Daniel Donhauser advises in corporate law on all issues of legal structuring and optimization and focuses on acquisitions, investments and growth. He has many years of experience in advising on national and international transactions of VC investors and start-up companies and advises in the field of venture capital and private equity on all issues related to investments and financing, in a strongly growth-oriented environment, as well as on shareholder disputes.
In addition, Daniel Donhauser provides comprehensive advice on employment law, negotiation, contract drafting and disputes in court. By advising both employers and employees, founders and investors, Daniel Donhauser knows both sides and focuses on holistic optimizing legal advice and design and finds here especially creative and strategic solutions.
In addition, Daniel Donhauser provides comprehensive advice on employment law, negotiation, contract drafting and disputes in court. By advising both employers and employees, founders and investors, Daniel Donhauser knows both sides and focuses on holistic optimizing legal advice and design and finds here especially creative and strategic solutions.
Daniel Donhauser studied law with a focus on capital markets and corporate law at the LMU in Munich. Prior to that, he studied molecular biotechnology and sports science with a medical focus at the Technical University of Munich, which is why he advises many clients from the sports, nutrition, health care and life sciences sectors.
After working as legal counsel for a health-tech startup and as a corporate lawyer at a top-level American law firm ReedSmith, he joined one of the largest German law firms as a senior lawyer and handled national and international mandates in the field of commercial & corporate law in the Munich office, and built up the venture capital department in Munich.
Daniel Donhauser's experience in corporate law, tax law, and employment law, as well as his experience as an entrepreneur and advisory board member for a number of startup companies, provides a unified and economically optimized view of his clients' affairs. He combines this with negotiation tactics and experience from advising both sides, making him an expert in entrepreneurial contract drafting.
Commercial & Corporate Law
Labor Law | Tax Law
Technik | Medien
Gesundheitspflege | Lebenswissenschaften
Startups
VC- und PE-Fonds
Familienbüros
Privatkunden
Consultation in English and German.
1. Accompaniment of over 50 equity and debt financings involving private investors, business angels, family offices and venture capital funds on both the investor and startup side with up to 20 million. Extensive experience in drafting complex investment agreements.
2. Negotiation as well as structuring hybrid forms of financing, such as convertible loans, convertible bonds and mezzanine investments, with optimized results for startups in terms of the originally applied valuation.
1. Consulting and support of company acquisitions and sales, especially in the industries:
with transaction volumes of up to more than €100 million. Accompaniment and management of legal due diligence reviews, negotiation and drafting of company purchase agreements and supervision of the closing process.
2. Structuring asset deals and intellectual property transfers for software products, (social) media assets and other digital assets.
I. Advice, optimization and support of more than 100 company formations and shareholding transfers as well as all types of shareholder agreements. Extensive experience with cross-border matters and foreign parties such as China, the United Kingdom and the USA.
II. Structuring and optimization of more than 30 employee stock option programs in all forms, in particular straight equity options and virtual shares / phantom stock options.
III. Support and negotiation of shareholder disputes, both out of court and in court.
IV. Negotiation of out-of-court and in-court shareholder disputes up to EUR 100 million.
V. Ongoing advice to companies with administration-intensive legal forms on compliance with corporate law requirements, compliance requirements and optimization of liability risks. Advising shareholders and C-level on all issues of corporate liability, claim defense and claim enforcement.
I. On the employee side:
Extensive experience in dismissal protection proceedings and severance negotiations with severance volumes of up to EUR 250,000.
Negotiation of structuring and optimization of employment contracts, employee bonuses, employee participation and termination agreements in German and English.
II. On the employer side:
Consulting and strategy in setting up companies with a view to:
Strategic advice on how to proceed in the event of intended operational changes such as, in particular, staff reductions, site closures, wage cuts and short-time working.
Negotiation and representation of termination agreements and actions for protection against dismissal
Drafting and negotiating numerous complex contracts from various areas of commercial law, including general terms and conditions (GTC), service agreements, license agreements, franchise agreements, cooperation and distribution partner agreements, with a view to growth of the company.
Preparation of data protection declarations and data protection law consents
Advising and structuring the contribution of company shares to a subsequently established holding company with a share value of €1.2 million.
Structuring of call option rights in the buy-out over 120 million euros.
Tax audit of the transfer of intellectual property into a newly established limited liability company.
Structuring of management shareholdings and the inclusion of subsequent co-founders.
Advising and structuring the contribution of company shares to a subsequently established holding company with a share value of €1.2 million.
Structuring of call option rights in the buy-out over 120 million euros.
Tax audit of the transfer of intellectual property into a newly established limited liability company.
Structuring of management shareholdings and the inclusion of subsequent co-founders.
I do not deal with everything, but with the essentials.
• Incorporations
• Partnership agreements
• Shareholder agreements (vesting, tag/drag, IP transactions etc.)
• Corporate actions
• Shareholders' meetings
• Shareholder disputes
• Corporate governance
• Corporate housekeeping
• Corporate acquisitions
• Holding structures
• Venture Capital Financing
• Participation agreements
• Share transfers
• Option rights (put / call)
• Conversions
• Splitting of operations
• Contribution & spin-off of commercial operations
• Foundations
• Tax law issues regarding EStG, GewStG, KStG, UStG
• Structuring and optimization of assets and income sources
• Tax implications on inheritance law, gifts, family law
• Appeals against tax assessments
• Consulting for managing directors regarding
- liability
- rights
- Duties
• Managing director liability
• Status determination procedure
• Employee stock options such as
- Employee stock options (ESOP)
- Virtual stock options (VSOP)
- Profit participation rights
• Management intensification
• Managing director service contracts
• Equity participation of later co-founders
• Buyout
• Earnout
• Termination agreements
• Severance payments
• Bonuses
• Employer Consulting & Employee Consulting
• Dismissal Protection
• Contracts & Agreements
- Ongoing Consulting
- Liability
- Particularities
- Salary claims
The USP of my advice lies in the overlap of the legal fields and the resulting design and strategy in disputes.
A consultation appointment for binding information and advice can be booked here and we will discuss your case directly in a video call. For other mandate inquiries please contact the office directly.
"I solve problems before they arise."
I am a lawyer, but also an investor and founder and therefore know every side! In addition to my legal work, I use my experience from advising founders and investors, as an advisor to startups and investor, to build companies. In the area of Company Building & Investments, I offer models like „Brain for Equity“ as well as „Smart Capital“, to build companies together as a team and secure growth.
In Founder Mentoring, I coach and support a variety of founders and startups in building their business.
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Receive mentoring to build your business for the pre-startup phase through the first round of funding. With these strategies and know-how, you'll need less legal advice while learning how to build a business.
