Legal advice on the service relationships between companies or groups and their suppliers and customers is also the subject of this field of advice, as is the legal design of management and control (corporate governance), the organization, reorganization (including conversion) of companies and groups as well as the design and negotiation of cooperations, business successions, company mergers and acquisitions (M&A) and other corporate transactions.
In addition, our work includes representing clients in courts and the activity as an arbitrator or arbitration expert in commercial or corporate law disputes.
In particular, reorganizations of companies usually require a multidisciplinary consulting approach involving various professions. In addition to commercial, corporate and labor law, these projects also regularly raise tax and accounting law issues. One of KOCH's particular strengths is the ability to put together and lead such multidisciplinary teams as needed, as well as to work as a team player with the experts on the client side - without any conflicts of interest.
Corporate law consulting example: group reorganization
A medium-sized concern wants to separate the production and sale of its goods and to combine these areas within the group to achieve advantages in specialization and to reduce costs by eliminating redundant structures. The reorganization is to be completed by a specific date. KOCH structures the reorganization legally and advises and supports the group in the implementation of suitable conversion measures of the affected group companies and in the reorganization of the intra-group service relationships.
The complex labor law challenges of these measures are mastered together with experienced labor law specialists from the KOCH network. In addition, a suitable design of the reorganization was developed in cooperation with tax experts from the KOCH network, which helps the group to save a considerable amount of trade tax by relocating the sales company to a municipality with a low trade tax rate.
Consulting example: transitioning a company to steward-ownership
The owner of a medium-sized metal processing company faced a challenging succession situation: There was no successor within the family, yet selling the business was not an option. He wanted to preserve the company’s independence and core values. He also felt a deep responsibility toward his more than 100 employees, many of whom had relied on the company for generations to support their families.
The company had one significant advantage: a capable and intrinsically motivated management team, highly loyal to both the owner and the business.
The entrepreneur turned to KOCH and asked: “Is there another way to secure the future of my company?” KOCH provided the answer: steward-ownership.
This approach structures the company’s ownership so that the business essentially “owns itself” and remains committed to its core purpose. Neither heirs nor external investors can divert it from its mission or break it up. Control is placed in the hands of a steward-owner, typically through a trust-like legal structure such as a foundation.
The benefits of steward-ownership are clear:
- The company’s values and culture are preserved – along with jobs and livelihoods
- The business remains independent from external influence
- Profits are reinvested into the company instead of flowing to outsiders
- The founder and their family can still remain beneficiaries
However, structuring as well as implementing steward-ownership is complex. Every business requires a tailored solution that fits its specific needs and the interests of all key stakeholders. At the same time, the structure must provide long-term legal security without limiting the company’s ability to grow and remain competitive.
KOCH developed and implemented a customized legal framework to transition the company into steward-ownership. What made this transformation particularly successful: The founder of KOCH brings not only decades of experience as a distinguished business lawyer with a strong reputation in corporate structuring but also a professional background as a manager in the mid-sized industrial sector. This combination ensures a deep understanding of the unique dynamics of medium-sized businesses as well as the diverse needs of their stakeholders – a factor that was also crucial for the success of the transition in this project.
