Dr. Johannes Zöttl

Partner

Düsseldorf + 49.211.5406.5500

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Johannes Zöttl focuses on antitrust enforcement proceedings before the German Federal Cartel Office and the European Commission as well as merger reviews. He has worked extensively with companies in the chemical and IT industries and has led high-profile internal investigations in the automotive industry. He has particular experience dealing with cross-border mergers and acquisitions subject to review by multiple antitrust authorities around the world. Currently, Johannes assists companies in their compliance efforts under the EU's new Foreign Subsidies Regulation (FSR).

Johannes represented several suppliers of auto parts before the European Commission and the German Federal Cartel Office. He has significant experience in the area of cross-border compliance investigations and recently was one of the leaders of a large multinational cross-border investigation in connection with U.S. and German regulatory and law enforcement authorities.

Johannes was a member of the International Task Force of the American Bar Association Section of Antitrust Law (2007-2008) and a vice chair of the section's Unilateral Conduct Committee (2008-2014) and Global Private Litigation Committee (2018-2021). He is also a non-governmental advisor to the ICN Unilateral Conduct Working Group (UCWG) and is a member of the German Antitrust Lawyers Association (Studienvereinigung Kartellrecht e.V.).

Experience

  • TotalEnergies acquires VSB Group for €1.57 billionJones Day advised TotalEnergies in the €1.57 billion (equity value) acquisition of VSB Group, a Germany based renewable energy developer and operator of wind farms and photovoltaic power plants in Germany, France, Italy, Poland, Finland, and Croatia, from Swiss asset manager Partners Group.
  • Darfon Electronics acquires GROFA Action Sports GmbHJones Day advised Darfon Electronics, a Taiwanese listed electronics group, known among other things as the owner of the e-bike brand BESV, on the acquisition of 80% of the shares in GROFA Action Sports GmbH in Bad Camberg, Germany.
  • Affiliates of Centre Lane Partners acquire substantially all of the assets of Hardinge Inc. and its subsidiaries, including the Kellenberger, USACH, SuperPrecision, and Workholding business linesJones Day advised affiliates of Centre Lane Partners in the acquisition of substantially all of the assets of Hardinge Inc. and its debtor subsidiaries, a global leader and provider of advanced machine tool, manufacturing and workholding solutions, as part of chapter 11 proceedings in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware.
  • Koch Equity Development acquires iconectiv, LLCJones Day is advising Koch Equity Development LLC, the principal investment and acquisition arm of Koch, Inc., on its acquisition of iconectiv, LLC ("iconectiv"), a telecommunications solutions leader, from Ericsson (NASDAQ: ERIC), the global supplier of mobile communication and connectivity solutions for service providers and enterprises, and affiliates of Francisco Partners, a leading technology investment firm.
  • JENSEN-GROUP acquires majority stake in MAXI-PRESS Holding GmbH, Germany, and its subsidiariesJones Day advised JENSEN-GROUP in the acquisition of 100% of the shares in MAXI-PRESS Holding GmbH, the holding company of MAXI-PRESS Group, comprising of seven companies in Germany, Australia and the U.S., in a two-step approach.
  • Riverside sells Energy Exemplar to Blackstone and Vista Equity PartnersJones Day advised investment funds affiliated with Riverside's Australia Fund in connection with the sale of its Energy Exemplar platform to a newly formed acquisition vehicle jointly controlled by investment funds affiliated with Blackstone and Vista Equity Partners.
  • Charge Construct sold to ace GroupJones Day advised the shareholders of Charge Construct GmbH on the sale of their shares to the newly formed ace Group, which is part of the portfolio of EMERAM Capital Partners.
  • ETS acquires PSIJones Day advised Educational Testing Service (ETS) in its acquisition of PSI Services LLC, a global leader in test development and delivery across workforce certification and licensure.
  • TotalEnergies acquires Quadra EnergyJones Day advised TotalEnergies SE in the acquisition of Quadra Energy GmbH.
  • Affiliate of Centre Lane Partners acquires appliance business from Instant BrandsJones Day advised an affiliate of Centre Lane Partners in the acquisition and financing of the appliances business of Instant Brands, designer and distributor of kitchen and home appliances, including the Instant Pot, pursuant to Section 363 of title 11 of the United States Code.
  • Mahle sells its thermostat business to ADMETOSJones Day is advising Mahle GmbH in the sale of its thermostat business to ADMETOS, an owner-managed industrial holding and investment company for medium-sized businesses.
  • Evoqua merges with Xylem in $7.5 billion all-stock transactionJones Day advised Evoqua Water Technologies Corp. (NYSE: AQUA) in its $7.5 billion stock-for-stock merger with Xylem Inc. (NYSE: XYL).
  • TotalEnergies' affiliate Cray Valley sells three product lines to Pacific Avenue Capital PartnersJones Day is advising Total Energies on its sale of three product lines to Pacific Avenue Capital Partners (Wingtack®, PolyBD® and Dymalink®) developed by Cray Valley, its resin production and sales affiliate.
  • LyondellBasell invests in APK, a German plastics recycling companyJones Day represented LyondellBasell as the lead investor in the latest financing round of APK AG, a German plastics recycling company.
  • UPL sells stake in Advanta Enterprises to KKRJones Day advised UPL Limited in its $300 million sale of a 13.33% stake in its subsidiary, Advanta Enterprises Limited, to KKR.
  • Ansys acquires automotive simulation channel partner DYNAmoreJones Day is representing Ansys, Inc. in the acquisition of the DYNAmore business (“DYNAmore”), a Stuttgart, Germany-headquartered company who has historically distributed Ansys’ LS-DYNA crash test simulation software to virtually all major European car manufacturers.
  • Roper Technologies sells majority stake in industrial businesses to Clayton Dubilier & Rice, LLC for $2.6 billionJones Day advised Roper Technologies, Inc. on the sale of a majority stake in its industrial businesses, including its entire Process Technologies segment and the industrial businesses within its Measurement & Analytical Solutions segment, to an affiliate of Clayton Dubilier & Rice, LLC, for $2.6 billion in cash and contingent consideration of up to $51 million.
  • Plastic Omnium acquires ams OSRAM Automotive Lighting Systems from ams OSRAM GroupJones Day advised Plastic Omnium in the acquisition of the Automotive Lighting Systems (AMLS) business of ams OSRAM Group in a highly complex international carve-out transaction.
  • Koch Agronomic & Energy Solutions acquires 50% stake in Jorf Fertilizers Company III from OCPJones Day advised Koch Agronomic & Energy Solutions, LLC (KAES), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Koch Industries, Inc., in its 50/50 joint venture with OCP S.A.
  • Sonepar sells Vallen Distribution to Nautic PartnersJones Day represented the Sonepar Group – a Paris-headquartered global leader in B-to-B distribution of electrical products, solutions and related services – in the sale of Sonepar's subsidiary business, Vallen Distribution, to Nautic Partners, a middle-market private equity firm based in Rhode Island.
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    March 2025 Alert

    EU Foreign Subsidies Regulation: European Commission Launches Consultation on Guidelines

    SEPTEMBER 2024 Commentary

    EU Court Holds Back Expansion of Antitrust Reviews to Non-Reportable Transactions

    AUGUST 2024 Commentary

    The EC Issues Guidance on Assessing Market Distortions Under the Foreign Subsidies Regulation

    April 2024 Commentary

    Unwelcome Visitors? UK Court Greenlights Domestic Search Warrants in Competition Cases

    July 2023 Alert

    United Kingdom's CMA Reminds Businesses That Teamwork Must Stay on the Field

    July 2023 Commentary

    EU Adopts Reporting Requirements for Transactions and Public Bids Under the Foreign Subsidies Regulation

    March 2023 Commentary

    EU Court of Justice Revives Long-Dormant "Abuse of Dominance" Challenge to Non-Reportable M&A Deals

    December 2022 Alert

    EU Foreign Subsidies Regulation Filings Mandatory Starting in October 2023

    October 2022 Newsletters

    Global Merger Control Update | Fall 2022

    May 2022 Alert

    Updated EU Antitrust Rules on Vertical Supply Chain Agreements Take Effect June 1
    View All

    Additional Publications

    • December 2023
      Anmerkungen zu einer Black Box – Die Binnenmarktverzerrung gemäß DSVO | WuW 12/2023
    • October 2023
      Art. 4 bis 6 Vertikal-GVO, in: Münchner Kommentar zum Wettbewerbsrecht, Bd. 1, 4. Auflage 2023
    • August 25, 2023
      Neues zur Fusionskontrolle wegen drittstaatlicher Subventionen –Durchführungsverordnung veröffentlicht | EWS 2023/4
    • September 1, 2022
      Vive l'Industriepolitik – M&A unter der neuen Drittstaatensubventionsverordnung | NZKart 9/2022

    Additional Speaking Engagements

    • June 13, 2019
      2019 German Client Conference: New Challenges Crossing Borders
    • June 14-15, 2018
      Ninth Annual Chicago Forum on International Antitrust Issues
    • March 2, 2018
      Working Group Day 2018 of the DAJV (German-American Lawyers’ Association)
    • 28. Mai 2013
      Grenzüberschreitende Kartellrechtsdurchsetzung und –verteidigung
    • April 11, 2013
      The New Economy: Dominance in Novel Markets , chair, 61st Spring Meeting of the ABA Section of Antitrust Law in Washington
    • June 26, 2012
      JDialog: Managerhaftung bei Kartellrechtsverstößen
    • June 13, 2012
      C.H.Beck DialogCamp: Kartellrecht und IT-Märkte
    • June 4, 2012
      Missbrauch von Marktmacht oder Missbrauch des Kartellrechts?, Recht im Kontext, Wissenschaftskolleg zu Berlin
    • March 29, 2012
      Is "Aspen Skiing" Still Viable?, ABA Antitrust Section, Spring Meeting 2012
    • September 22, 2011
      Antitrust litigation for damages, FIW Summer Workshop
    • December 3, 2010
      Why the Section of Antitrust Law is Using Social Media: Social Media Strategy for Leadership, panelist, ABA Antitrust Section
    • April 24, 2010
      The Transatlantic Divide in the Area of Unilateral Conduct, German-American Bar Association
    • April 21-23, 2010
      58th Annual ABA Antitrust Law Spring Meeting
    • February 18, 2010
      Konsolidierung von Märkten - Herausforderungen und Chancen am Beispiel der Automobilindustrie
    • January 14, 2010
      Distribution Issues in the North Atlantic Triangle: Refusal to Deal: When Can - and Will - You Be Required to Supply, ABA Section of Antitrust Law
    • September 22, 2009
      Antitrust litigation for damages, FIW Summer Workshop
    • April 1, 2009
      U.S. Supreme Court jurisprudence dealing with unilateral conduct, Frankfurter Kartellrechtsforum
    • March 25, 2009
      Spring Meeting 2009, ABA Antitrust Section: Reconciling Price-Squeeze Claims In The U.S. And The EC
    • January 1, 2008
      Antitrust compliance in contract management, NetAcad Workshop

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