Banking, finance and capital markets
2008: "Catherine Houssa at CMS DeBacker has developed a service tailored to clients’ needs in different areas such as asset finance, property finance, project finance and regulatory matters."
2009: "CMS DeBacker and Catherine Houssa demonstrate ‘good industry knowledge’ on transactions such as advising an international bank on two asset finance deals with a Belgian steel manufacturer, with values totalling €27.8m. The practice was bolstered at the start of 2009 with the hiring of former Lydian partners Vincent Dirckx and Carl Dotremont."
Competition
"The CMS DeBacker team has an impressive public sector following, with clients including the Walloon and Brussels regional governments, particularly on state aid work, but has also worked on EU litigation for staff complainants."
Corporate and M&A
"CMS DeBacker has seen steady growth in M&A activity, acting on 38 transactions in a year. Carl Leermakers and his team acted for the shareholders of a Belgian steel group in connection with the sale of a 50% interest therein to a Russian steel manufacturer. One rival says: ‘I like their work and they have been busier this year."
Dispute resolution
2008: "With a high reputation in the field of corporate governance, shareholder relations and directors’ liabilities, CMS DeBacker’s Jean-François Goffin acts for directors in complex intragroup litigation. Highlights include involvement in asbestos litigation in connection with the Berlaymont building. ‘We like CMS DeBacker’, says one lawyer. ‘They have very good lawyers’. In Antwerp, Margareta Bresseleers has assisted clients in areas such as bankruptcy and construction."
2009: "Cedric Guyot and Jean-François Goffin at ‘very strong’ CMS DeBacker are recommended for shareholders dispute and directors/auditors liabilities matters. Guyot was appointed by Deminor, the largest syndicate of shareholders of Fortis Holding, in connection with the recent Government-sponsored rescue plan that transferred the banking and insurance business lines of Fortis to BNP Paribas."
Intellectual Property
2008: "CMS DeBacker is expert in trade mark cases, with a particular focus on international and national trade mark litigation, as well as patent litigation. The firm assists many national and international trade mark owners, including a US computer and MP3 player producer, a German sports shoe manufacturer, and an international football association. Tom Heremans, Veerle Raus, and Renaud Dupont are recommended."
2009: "CMS DeBacker has developed a strong reputation in the field of trade marks, advising clients such as a large US producer of baby bottles in a litigation case. Tom Heremans is ‘an expert IP lawyer’ and Veerle Raus is described by clients as ‘prompt, accurate, providing qualitative advice’. One client stated ‘it understands the business context of a case, and is open minded and a solution provider’."
Information technology
2008: "CMS DeBacker has Tom Heremans, who is a specialist in domain name disputes, and has represented the “.be” registry and the “.eu” registry in several court cases as well as conducting domain name litigation for international trademark owners. Recent cases include ones for a large Dutch IT company, a large US database company and a Belgian internet company against an international media group."
2009: "CMS DeBacker and domain name specialist Tom Heremans were instructed by the European Registry, EURid, in a domain name litigation against a cyber squatter who registered 10,000 domain names."
Labour and employment
2008: "CMS DeBacker ’s employment department grew with the arrival of Jef Degrauwe from DLA Piper to its Antwerp office. Rivals agree that ‘the firm has made a good hire’ in Degrauwe. Stanislas van Wassenhove and his team of three partners and seven associates operating out of Brussels and Antwerp, maintains its position as one of the top employment teams in the country. Michaël De Leersnyder has been very successful in developing a service to provide clients with urgent employment-related solutions."
2009: "Clients state that they continue to use CMS DeBacker not simply for its ‘very good work’ but also because they are ‘always sure to receive a complete and accurate answer quickly’. The team’s expertise includes work for individuals, industrial relations, negotiating and drafting collective bargaining agreements, restructuring and collective dismissals. It is also noted for its cross border work, advising on split-salary schemes, work permit issues and international contracts. Clients come from a mix of sector backgrounds and include one of world’s leading shipping companies and terminal operators, and a large steel company. Stanislas van Wassenhove leads the team and is recommended."
Real Estate
2008: "CMS DeBacker boasts corporate real estate as a major practice area. For the third year in a row, the firm’s real estate practice, led by Bruno Duquesne, has been performing extremely well. The most notable deal of 2007 involved acting for the Belgian Federal Government in connection with the widely publicised sale and lease-back through a public tender of 62 public buildings to a Belgian REIT. Antwerp is also increasingly becoming a real estate market in its own right and the firm’s Antwerp office has assisted several parties in real estate investments."
2009: "Clients assert that new partner Pierre-Axel Chabot at CMS DeBacker‘ went beyond the call and strengthened our position by negotiating additional guarantees’. The team has been advising Fidentia Real Estate Investments, a ‘green’ investment fund, on the acquisition of the first ‘green’ office building in Brussels. Head of practice Bruno Duquesne and the team received instructions advising on the sale of a former industrial site of approximately 45,000 sqm. One client remarked ‘ my overall impression was very positive and the service level was excellent’."
Tax
2008: "CMS DeBacker together with CMS Bureau Francis Lefebvre has developed considerable expertise in assisting French nationals in complex estate planning matters and has gained significant market recognition for this specialism. The practice additionally advises on the tax aspects of corporate restructurings and PPP. Eric De Plaen and Didier Grégoire are recommended."
2009: "Highlights for the CMS DeBacker team includes advising a computer software developer on its pre-sale reorganisation to a US buyer, including relocalisation of the group in Belgium, and the optimisation of the group’s Treasury management. In addition, the team advised a zinc mining company on the reorganisation of its transfer pricing policies, and negotiation of a favourable ruling with the Belgian tax authorities. Didier Grégoire is recommended."