Banking, finance and capital markets
2011: "CMS DeBacker’s client base includes Crédit Agricole and Keytrade Bank, for whom the team acted on the acquisition of the Belgian private banking and internet activities of Kaupthing. It also assisted in a rare real estate acquisition financing for Westimmo in a €70m deal, and undertakes a broad diet of transactional work for ING, Bank of America and Commerzbank."
2010: "Clients state that they value the ‘solid reputation’, expertise on ‘syndicated loans’ and ‘European network’ of CMS DeBacker. Catherine Houssa leads the team that was involved in several high-profile bank bailouts and bank restructuring that took place in Belgium as a result of the financial crisis. Carl Leermakers is also recommended and recently advised on finance restructuring for a leading international property specialist."
Competition
2011: "CMS DeBacker’s Annabelle Lepièce handles cases before the Belgian Competition Council, and against the European Commission. Clients include the Walloon and Brussels regional governments. "
2010: "CMS DeBacker continues to advise the Walloon regional government with recent instructions including advice on a €10m aid package for environmental protection. It also represents clients in the postal, energy and outdoor advertisement sectors in abuse of dominance cases."
Corporate and M&A
2011: "The new team head at CMS DeBacker, Vincent Dirckx, has applied energy to his team’s work, winning instructions from Delhaize Group, Belgium’s largest food retailer, and local restructuring for Fujifilm, courier services provider Link2Biz and American Express. Cedric Guyot is recommended."
2010: "'Strong industry knowledge and solid strength-in-depth' is how clients describe the CMS DeBacker practice. Headed by Vincent Dirckx, it recently advised on several large cross-border merger and reorganisations in addition to receiving instructions on corporate restructurings. Clients span the energy, banking and pharmaceutical sectors. Cross practice work has seen the team advise some of the countries largest financial institutions."
Dispute resolution
2011: "CMS DeBacker’s Cedric Guyot and Jean-François Goffin have been busy with IP-related trademark litigation, commercial agency and distribution claims, commercial arbitrations, as well as extensive shareholder litigation and financial misselling actions. Clients include BNP Paribas.
2010: "A valued strength of André Lombart at CMS DeBacker is his ‘business minded implementation of law’. Clients state that they instructed the practice because of Lombart’s ‘exceptional insight for which he is recognised world-wide’. The practice is regularly instructed on multi-million dollar and euro cases by clients that include an expert in contact centre management and a global hotel chain. Jean-François Goffin is also recommended."
Information technology
2011: "CMS DeBacker’s lawyers have seen IT-related cases in the Belgian appeals and Supreme Court, and significant volumes of first instance cases on domain name infringement against cyber-squatters. The team advised on a competition app for Facebook, and represented a long-standing client over an argument between two leading brewers, as to alleged infringement of an iPhone app. Tom Heremans is recommended."
2010: "Highlights for CMS DeBacker and recommended partner Tom Heremans included acting for Deckers Snoeck in a case against the Business Software Alliance before the Court of Appeal. It also acted for a Dutch IT-provider on software development projects."
Intellectual Property
2011: "CMS DeBacker’s Tom Heremans and Veerle Raus are recommended figures, with particular strengths in tradebmark and copyright law, especially in ambush marketing and counterfeiting cases, including those in relation to the recent World Cup. It acted for a leading paper towel manufacturer on whether refills of other brands of paper, dispensed from the manufacturer’s dispensers, can count as a trade mark infringement."
2010: "CMS DeBacker has a roster of impressive, household name clients. Mandates include acting for DuPont de Nemours in a case against Greenpan regarding the unfair use of the Teflon trade mark and DuPont trade name. The practice also advised UEFA on trade marks and logo matters, and G-Star in relation to anti-piracy matters. Polo Ralph Lauren and Commerzbank are notable clients. Tom Heremans, Veerle Raus and newly promoted partner Renaud Dupont are recommended."
Labour and employment
2011: "CMS DeBacker’s Stanislas van Wassenhove had a busy year advising senior executives following the global downturn. His colleagues have been no less busy, with numerous reorganisations involving difficult negotiations- (including on lowering retirement ages), as well as temporary measures to avoid unemployment; all of which involved unions, and some dismissals. The team has also been involved in cross-border mergers, with post-merger harmonisation of employment terms. Clients include Lloyds Development Capital."
2010: "Recent instructions for CMS DeBacker include advising a telecoms client on Belgian aspects of an acquisition, the transfer of employees and multiple redundancies. It also received instructions from a large banking client on TUPE transfer matters. Stanislas van Wassenhove heads the practice that boasts two additional partners."
Real Estate
2011: "CMS DeBacker’s head of practice Bruno Duquesne and the team received instructions from Westimmo, on a €70m financing of the acquisition of a newly developed built-to-suit office building in Brussels. It also assisted the city government of Brussels with a framework for the redevelopment of a derelict industrial area, and has acted for Brussels Harbour. RBS is a lender client. Pierre-Axel Chabot is also recommended."
2010: "Bruno Duquesne leads the four-partner practice at CMS DeBacker that clients rate for its ‘response times and accurate knowledge’. The practice advised BNP Paribas Fortis and LBLux in on the refinancing of the Mobistar office building in the Brussels vicinity, valued at €48.5m. Instructed by Fidentia Real Estate, it advised on the acquisition of one of the first “green” office buildings in Brussels. Clients single out Carl Dotremont and Stacey Smits, stating that both ‘were of great help’, noting the ‘very accurate approach’ of Smits."
Tax
2011: "CMS DeBacker provides tax services across a wide range of industry sectors. Practice head Didier Grégoire is a recognised real estate tax expert, especially on the VAT treatment of shopping malls, although his work has included cinemas and developers. Lievin De Wulf advised a large Benelux life insurance provider on the impact of the EU savings directive. Cross-border advice on withholding taxes is also a speciality."
2010: "Practice clients at CMS DeBacker include notable names in the world of cinema, industrial services and food manufacturing. Since the hire of Lievin De Wulf, the practice has three partners. It advised a global food producer on VAT aspects of e-invoicing in relation to its partnership with a supermarket. Practice head Didier Grégoire is recommended."