Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP is pleased to announce that Peter Decker has joined the firm as partner in the Munich office. Decker, previously a partner with German law firm Graf von Westphalen, focuses his practice on real estate transactions and other aspects of real estate law.
“Peter has an excellent reputation and is very well regarded for his industry knowledge and client service,” said Ken Doran, Managing Partner of Gibson Dunn. “In Peter, we found a real estate partner with the right credentials in the German market to support our global real estate practice.”
“Peter is a welcome addition to our well-established European Real Estate Private Equity team,” said Alan Samson, who heads the team and co-chairs the firm's Real Estate Group. “Our clients continue to be increasingly active in the German real estate markets, and we are delighted to have attracted a seasoned dealmaker of Peter's quality and standing to help us meet this demand."
“We are very happy to have Peter join us,” said Michael Walther, Partner-in-Charge of Gibson Dunn’s Munich office. “He is a highly experienced and widely acknowledged real estate lawyer with a strong industry network and thus will be a key element in the further expansion of our German transactional team.”
“Gibson Dunn has an exceptionally strong international real estate platform, which I am very much looking forward to joining,” said Decker. “This is an ideal opportunity for me to further develop and substantially grow high-end real estate business.”
Earlier in 2007, the Munich Real Estate Practice was strengthened by the arrival of Christoph Lauchs from the legal department of Siemens Real Estate.
About Peter Decker
With more than 20 years experience, Decker has practiced in the area of real estate since the beginning of his career. He formerly headed the Real Estate Group of German law firm Graf von Westphalen and has extensive experience in real estate development projects and national and international real estate transactions, involving both asset and share deals. In addition, he advises on construction projects, including contract management, claim management and risk management, real estate corporate and joint venture transactions, real estate finance, reorganization and restructurings, sale and leasebacks, and commercial leasing deals. Decker also advises commercial property operators, such as hotels, boarding houses and nursing homes. In addition to being a native German speaker, he is fluent in English and Italian and also speaks Spanish.
Peter Decker has practiced law since 1982 and was awarded his doctorate in law at the University of Regensburg in 1984. Prior to joining Graf von Westphalen, he was managing director of a development, real estate and construction consultancy firm and practiced with other well-known German law firms.
About the Munich Office
Gibson Dunn’s Munich office opened in 2002. It is home to a multilingual team of 20 German lawyers including dual-qualified lawyers, who work closely with Gibson Dunn's other European and U.S. offices. The Munich lawyers handle domestic and cross-border mergers and acquisitions, private equity, venture capital and real estate transactions and capital markets work, as well as joint ventures and restructurings.
Gibson Dunn’s Munich office also specializes in German and European antitrust and competition law with a strong focus on merger control work, advice in cartel investigations and strategic advice on the interface between IT/IP and antitrust law. In addition, Gibson Dunn’s Munich lawyers represent clients in the fields of German and international tax and labor law. On April 1, the Munich office boosted the latter practice with the arrival of former Baker & McKenzie labor and employment partner Mark Zimmer.
About Gibson Dunn’s Real Estate Practice
The Real Estate Group at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher is a top-tier real estate private equity transactional team with an international scope comprising an exceptional team of approximately 80 lawyers. The team handles a variety of sophisticated matters for clients ranging from privately held entrepreneurial developers to the owners, developers and financiers of the largest real estate projects in the United States, Europe and the Middle East. Regular clients of the firm's European real estate private equity team include Apollo International Real Estate Fund, British Land, Colony Capital, Invista, Lehman Brothers Real Estate Partners, London & Stamford, Marriott International, Rockpoint Group and Westbrook Partners.