Legal advice

We are experts in the areas of inheritance law, inheritance law and gift tax law. We focus on legal advice and tax arrangements and optimizations.  In addition to national cases, we also process international inheritance cases with references to European Union countries. If necessary, we use established legal and tax advisers from abroad from our network.

Corporate successions  

Our specialist lawyer for tax law and our tax consultants advise the company owner or his successor on how, in view of his individual wealth and family situation, the company succession can be implemented in a legally secure, tax-optimized, cost-effective and effective manner. We accompany our clients in all phases of company succession, from the first brainstorming to concrete planning and conception to the implementation of the handover of the company to the successor.
Estate administration  

In the area of estate administration, our consultants familiarize themselves with the testator's life in legal, organizational and financial terms. We advise the heirs on the legal, tax and processing of the estate. We offer support in a difficult phase of life, e.g. to banks, tax offices, former creditors and the probate court. We help with the handling of all formalities and support heirs or co-heirs with all necessary decisions.

Estate planning  

We ensure that the assets of our clients are passed on during their lifetime and upon their death's request. For example, if they provide for the spouse and want to take into account inheritance law aspects. Or want to transfer ownership to the children without giving up their say. We draw up wills and inheritance and marriage contracts for the corporate and private sectors. We always keep an eye on income and inheritance tax law.  From the point of view of dispute prevention, we recommend involving the successors as early as possible. These include e.g. donations as part of the anticipated succession.  To ensure the continued existence of the company and the preservation of family assets, we design risk prevention measures that are effective in the event of sudden death or a serious illness of the entrepreneur. If a successor is not found in the entrepreneurial family or the company, we also assist the entrepreneur in the sale of his company.

Foundation advice 

Our specialist lawyer for tax law and tax consultants primarily support widows, widowers, childless couples or entrepreneurs in this advisory segment who decide to set up a foundation with substantial parts of their assets. With this attractive design tool for private and corporate succession planning, we can achieve good things for the descendants and the companies of our clients as well as for the community. The focus of the consultations is always on improving the tax and civil law framework.

Execution of wills  

Heirs receive professional help from us and are saved from endless disputes. We take care of the submission of inheritance tax returns, the professional administration and the distribution of the estate. The will of our clients counts for us, and we implement it on our behalf after death.

Donations  

Gifts at an early stage are a good way to preserve (family) assets. Tax-free allowances can be used skillfully, thus reducing the inheritance tax that will follow in the future. However, “giving with a warm hand” needs to be well planned. Our specialist lawyer for tax law and the tax advisors can explain the advantages and disadvantages to you in an understandable manner and also show variants such as the gift subject to usufruct. The advice and drafting of contracts by our specialist lawyer for tax law takes place individually and specially adapted to your assets.  

Family office  

On request, we can take on individual family office services for you. Contact us!

In commercial law, we advise companies on all legal forms (GmbH, AG, GmbH & Co.KG, OHG, KG, silent companies, civil law companies, sole proprietorships, partnership companies, foundations) in the field of German and international commercial and corporate law, taking into account business requirements and tax regulations.

Our range of services includes the following tasks:

• Foundation of companies
• Corporate contracts for all German and European corporation forms
• (Cross-border) transformation of companies through merger, division and change of form
• Employment contracts for managing directors and board members
• Contracts for silent partnerships and sub-participations
• Advice and representation of partners in disputes with other partners - in and out of court
• Appeal of shareholder resolutions in court
• Shareholder agreements, pool agreements and investor contracts
• Capital increases and decreases
• Employee participation models
• Separation of shareholder groups, especially in family companies (extrajudicial, judicial)
• Economic engagements of non-profit companies and associations
• Out-of-court settlements of disputes between partners
• Review of D&O insurance contracts (property damage liability insurance specifically for managing directors, board members and supervisory boards)
• Advising managers in a economic crisis of the company (stage of pre-bankruptcy)
• Contracts for the establishment of cash pool systems

Mergers & Acquisitions

If a medium-sized company intends to grow through acquisitions and mergers, a company or group of companies is to be restructured or a company is about to be sold, we utilize our long-standing legal, business and tax law expertise:

• Optimization of national and international corporate structures
• Advice in all management and board matters
• Negotiation, conclusion and termination of service and other contracts
• Representation in all questions of liability
• Enforcement or defense against liability claims

Due Diligence und Unternehmensbewertung

Due Diligence

Kisslinger-Popp & Partner supports you in tax and Legal Due Diligence if you are planning to acquire or hand over a small or medium-sized company (SME). We examine companies comprehensively for opportunities and risks with regard to corporate, tax and labor law aspects. We are characterized by a deep business understanding.  We work hand in hand as a team in the business, tax and legal area to check the financial situation prior to a transaction.

Company valuation

With our highly specialized teams, we master the complex challenges that every company valuation entails. We analyze the requirements resulting from the law and the jurisprudence, the social contract and the regulations of various institutes. We access our expertise in the areas of commercial law, business administration and tax law. As a result, we apply the proper valuation method for our clients.

Asset protection

The purpose of asset protection is to protect the private assets of the entrepreneur, board of directors, managing director or supervisory board from an access to liability and thus to secure their economic existence and that of his family in the long term.  

If the risk of personal liability has already materialized (e.g. by filing a payment suit) or has even been realized (e.g. by a court decision), any considerations regarding asset protection come too late. Those who only take measures to safeguard their private assets at this stage of the procedure very easily become criminal and become the focus of law enforcement agencies. The same applies to the advisor, who in this phase advises his clients on how to "put his private assets aside".  

We therefore provide preventive advice in this area, show the legal and tax-legal options for asset protection and implement the measures agreed in detail with our clients.

(Tax) compliance and commercial law for medium-sized companies

The demands of the authorities and courts on the managers are becoming increasingly complex. An - even accidental - violation of compliant behavior quickly leads to liability claims and the conviction of the manager. We help our clients to avoid these risks in advance through an individualized compliance management system. In emergencies, we also support companies and decision-makers with search and seizure measures, help with corrections and tax criminal charges, and represent our clients before financial courts.

Restructuring of medium-sized companies

The early reorganization of a company must also be in the personal interest of the management. If the bankruptcy of the company cannot be avoided and the bankruptcy application is made several months too late - contrary to the legal requirements - which is the norm in today's practice - the members of the executive board face a sensitive personal liability towards the bankruptcy estate or the insolvency administrator, the tax authorities and social security institutions. In addition, such liability proceedings threatening the economic existence of managers are accompanied by criminal investigations, in particular due to the delay in bankruptcy, embezzlement and social security fraud.

If a medium-sized company hires us to advise the management or the company owners for the purpose of restructuring the company, we work in our highly qualified team and, if necessary, with experts from third-party law firms and management consultants from our network. Depending on your needs, we can also include a Munich insolvency administrator, a specialist lawyer for insolvency law. All consultants have special knowledge in the relevant specialist areas and, thanks to their many years of professional experience, are able to support the management in keeping an eye on the essentials even in this difficult situation.

As part of a reorganization project, we advise and support our clients in the following phases:

• Determining the current situation and analyzing the internal and external causes of the economic imbalance
• Examination of the company's ability to restructure, establishment of over-indebtedness status and ongoing liquidity planning
• Conception of suitable remedial measures (rough concept) and subsequent detailed planning of these measures; including a related schedule (detailed concept)
• Implementation of detailed planning - implementation of renovation measures
• Continuous monitoring of renovation efforts - success measurement; if necessary, modification of certain remedial measures

Drafting contracts

We design tailor-made contracts and general terms and conditions in almost all areas of commercial law. These include the following contracts and clauses:

• Sales agent contracts
• Commission agreements
• Distribution contracts, dealer contracts
• Leasing contracts (operate leasing, finance leasing) and franchise contracts
• Cooperation contracts 
• Software license agreements; We work closely with a Munich-based patent law firm on the drafting of license agreements in the field of industrial property rights (especially patents, brands, utility models, designs).

We review and revise draft contracts and clauses for our clients. In difficult and complex negotiations, our clients entrust us to conduct the contract negotiations directly with the business partners and their legal advisors.  In the event of conflicts between our clients and their business partners, we represent our clients' interests in court.

This classic area of law must be kept up-to-date professionally by every employer. We offer a full service for employers, both in an advisory and creative manner, as well as in the event of a dispute. We protect employees and executives in particular in the event of unjustified dismissals. We also have special knowledge in the area of the service law of managing directors and board members.

Advice and representation of executives  

We advise and represent senior employees on all legal issues and in their professional development. If rights from the employment contract are violated or the existence of the employment relationship is attacked, we protect the position under labor law and give our clients room for maneuver, especially in negotiations about severance payments and their tax optimization.

Human resources management  

In Germany, the personnel area is very standardized: entrepreneurs and their HR managers must therefore deal with labor law. We accompany our clients in the planning and implementation of personnel measures, taking into account individual and collective labor law, right through to judicial enforcement. In addition to the core areas (employment contract, occupational health and safety, collective bargaining law, company constitution law and employee leasing law), this particularly also includes the areas of company pension schemes (BetrAVG) and the acquisition or sale of companies (transfer of company).

Labor law in corporate transactions and restructurings 

In the course of designing and optimizing the structure of companies, we take on the individual reorganization of working conditions. We also assist our clients in the termination and settlement of termination and settlement contracts. If necessary, this also includes litigation before labor courts.  In corporate transactions, we support the M&A team initially in the context of labor law due diligence, and later also in establishing specific framework conditions.

Our specialist lawyer for tax law and our tax consultants as a team in our law firm always keep an eye on the tax issues of our clients and the tax law aspects of every design task and advisory situation. We ensure that the national and international tax issues that arise in numerous mandate processing can be successfully dealt with. We can do this because our partner attorney, Patrick M. Buchmann, also holds a B.A. and is a specialist lawyer for tax law and we work interdisciplinarily between tax consultants and lawyers on many orders. In tax law, we also advise and represent our clients in legal proceedings before the tax authorities and tax courts.

Legal process and proceedings

We advise and represent our clients in all tax law proceedings, in particular in opposition proceedings against the tax authorities, in lawsuits before the tax court, in appeal proceedings before the Federal Fiscal Court and as a defense lawyer before the criminal courts.  

We also submit all the necessary applications to the tax authorities (application for binding information, suspension of execution and restoration to the previous status and application for investment assistance).  We negotiate with the tax authorities in advance of the proceedings with the aim of quickly finding an optimal solution for our clients. The earlier we are commissioned, the sooner a negotiated solution is possible. If, for example, a critical company audit is pending, we should check the options for action in advance.  

We have great experience in preparing effective voluntary declarations, declaring income and communicating with the financial and criminal authorities.

Tax planning  

Any change in personal and business relationships may become subject to taxation. Even maintaining the status quo can be tax disadvantageous, for example if tax law or your private situation changes. In these cases, taxation is required. Property transfers in the family and to third parties are further typical occasions for our design advice.  Any design requires compliance with civil and tax law as well as economic requirements. The design advice forms the focus of our work.  

We are very experienced in the following areas:

• Creation of wills for entrepreneurs and private individuals
• Inheritance contracts for entrepreneurs and individuals
• Marriage contracts for entrepreneurs and individuals
• Restructuring of corporate groups
• Establishing of companies and foundations
• Buying and selling companies (M&A)
• Establishing all kinds of investments
• Reorganization of property ownership (Real Estate Planning)
• Donations of private and corporate assets 

This also includes strategic tax planning to reduce the tax burden on our clients and advice in connection with tax breaks and investment assistance. We do have special expertise regarding internationally located family assets.

National and international banks as well as external tax advice colleagues often refer clients in the area of criminal tax law to us. In the legal matters, they benefit from the experience of our qualified partner, lawyer Patrick M. Buchmann, who graduated in business administration and as a specialist lawyer for tax law. The top priority of our advice is confidentiality: Among other things, we represent well-known personalities nationwide. Our services in the field of criminal tax law cover all phases of  criminal tax proceedings:

Walking you through the criminal investigation process  

In order to avoid serious tactical errors that can be committed during an unannounced search, we urgently advise those affected to immediately hire a lawyer who is experienced in this field and who watches over the search on site.  

The lawyer in our firm, who is specialized in this area, has already participated in numerous searches and knows very well which measures to take in such situations. We are available at all times for clients who specifically fear or consider it remotely possible to be searched themselves.

Representing our client in the criminal investigation process  

In this phase of the procedure, we are usually dealing with the officials of the fines and criminal office of the investigating tax office or - at the next higher level - with the public prosecutor and the tax investigator. In the interests of our clients, the main aim is to avoid the involvement of the next higher level of the instance, in particular the submission of the proceedings to the public prosecutor or the criminal court. We carefully weigh the opportunities and risks of alternative approaches and use them to develop a defense strategy together with our clients. If a German or European arrest warrant has been issued against a client who lives in Germany or in another EU country in the event of serious allegations, we represent his interests before the judge and, if necessary, file an appeal against his decision up to the appeal to the Federal Constitutional Court.

Voluntary reporting to the tax office to avoid punishment  

Effective voluntary disclosure means that the taxpayer is not punished despite tax evasion. Our main focus here is on exempting voluntary self-disclosures from clients who maintain accounts abroad and who have not previously declared the investment income generated to the German tax authorities. In order to meet the requirements for an effective voluntary self-disclosure, the - often very extensive - re-determination of the tax bases is necessary. We support our clients in this as well as in communication with the tax office and, where applicable, the criminal authorities. Confidentiality is paramount. In this particularly sensitive area, we took care of public figures known throughout Germany without the cases getting into the press.

Defense of our client before the criminal courts (main proceedings)  

If an indictment by the public prosecutor and the admission of the indictment cannot be prevented after the so-called interim proceedings have been completed, our partner and lawyer Patrick M. Buchmann takes over the defense of the client before the criminal courts.  If appropriate, we involve experienced criminal lawyers from other law firms in our network in criminal defense.

In addition to providing our services to our domestic German clients, we specialize in cross-border legal advice. In particular, between Germany - Switzerland and Germany - Eastern and Southern European countries (Slovenia, Poland, Croatia, Romania, Russia and Bosnia) where we have established ourselves as experts on the market. In addition, we service mandates related to the USA, Great Britain, Austria and France in a professional and competent manner and can always rely on a stable network of experts abroad that has grown over the years.

Doing Business

We support company owners and managers who want to invest abroad or start a business. Which legal form should the company have, which contracts have to be drafted and put in place, how is the tax processing abroad and in Germany? Our specialist lawyer for tax law and our tax advisors offer holistic advice for all questions relating to "business abroad" and access many years of expertise and our network of specialists abroad.

BREXIT – Full Range Counselling

Brexit has a severe impact on German SMEs with their diverse links to the United Kingdom. Almost all areas of commercial law are affected by this: Company and tax law, company succession as well as contract drafting in the broadest sense. Our clients are professionally looked after by us holistically in all legal issues that arise from Brexit. As consultants for medium-sized companies, we are only too well aware of the concerns and needs of the "backbone of the German economy". Due to our many years of experience in international legal advice and the resulting contacts to the UK, we see it as our task to offer simple and straightforward solutions. As part of a special service provided by our company, we also support our clients in precisely recognizing the economic opportunities of Brexit and making targeted use of their own company with an optimal "post-Brexit" positioning.

Private Clients

Globalization does affect private individuals abroad. Particular caution is required here with the tax consequences and the applicability of foreign legal regulations. A vacation property abroad, an international marriage or moving out of Germany can have serious consequences in the area of inheritance law. We are specialists in the area of wealth structuring, legal succession planning and estate administration. We also support employees who plan to stay or move abroad as part of a posting. Thanks to our many years of experience with cross-border issues and our partner law firms abroad, we offer our clients comprehensive legal advice.

In addition to legal advice and legal representation of our clients, we always have an eye on out-of-court dispute resolution. Our concern is to avoid costly and time-consuming legal proceedings. Whenever possible, we bring everyone involved to a round table and work out an out-of-court solution that is satisfactory for everyone involved.  Mediation is a negotiation support provided by a neutral third party who has no decision-making powers. Rather, the mediator supports the parties in developing their own problem solutions. The focus is on the interests and needs of the participants, not their mutual legal claims.  Our main focus is on mediation in disputes within companies, communities of heirs or disputed parties in economic conflicts.

Out-of-court settlement of disputes  

Mediation is an extrajudicial dispute. Mediation attempts to constructively resolve disagreements, disputes or conflicts.  The basic idea of any mediation is that the conflicting parties work together to develop independent solutions under the guidance of the mediator as an outside, neutral third party.  Mediation can be used in almost all areas of conflict. A mediation process is also advisable to avoid conflict. In the entrepreneurial area (for example, when a partner leaves the company) and in the area of inheritance law (for example, when confrontations between heirs), mediation can often avoid lengthy and costly processes.