Dr. Nicolas Rössler, LLM - Canadian Bar Association

Mayer Brown
Page 1 of 3
Dr. Nicolas Rössler,
LLM
Partner
nroessler@mayerbrown.com
Frankfurt
Ph: +49 69 79 41 2231
Fax: +49 69 70 41 100
Experience
Nicolas Rössler is a partner in our employment/benefits practice. His work emphasis is on the advise and
representation of national and international clients in an effort to ensure the best possible utilization of the
business resources of human labor. This includes advise on individual and collective employment law issues,
business and workforce restructurings; but also on any benefit and pension related matters. Nick advises clients
during the entire process of their projects, beginning with the creation of ideas, throughout the structuring of
decisions and all the way to the final implementation of entrepreneurial decisions.
Nick Rössler is especially respected for his expertise in occupational pension issues such as the design,
implementation and restructuring of occupational pension schemes. He is known for his mature handling of
complex negotiations with works councils and unions. Inside the courtroom he has gained a reputation as a
leading litigator in pension-related lawsuits in Germany.
Nick regularly advises clients on the set up of funding structures for pension schemes, such as Contractual Trust
Arrangements (CTA). Recently, he has also advised on co-determination issues in the formation of a Societas
Europaea, on the installation of an employee time-account scheme and the closure of a business in the chemical
industry. He also advises clients in M&A transactions on employment and pension issues on a regular basis.
Prior to joining Mayer Brown in 2004 Nick worked as an assistant at University of Mainz and as a paralegal for a
large international law firm. During his law studies, he was employed as a research assistant and paralegal by
Watson Wyatt’s German predecessor firm Dr. Dr. Heissmann GmbH. In 2007, Nick was seconded to Mayer Brown
International LLP’s pensions group in London. Whilst German is his first language, he is also fluent in English.
Education
University of Mainz, doctor's degree, (PhD in law) in Pensions Law: summa cum laude, 2004 • University of Notre
Dame, South Bend, Indiana, LLM Program at London Law Centre: cum laude, 2000-2001 • Mainz, Second State
Law Examination (bar exam), 2000 • Speyer, German Post-Graduate School of Administrative Science, 1999 •
Trier & Koblenz, legal clerkship (Referendariat), 1998–2000 • Mainz, First State Law Examination, 1998 •
University of Mainz, 1992–1997
Admissions
Frankfurt am Main, Germany, 2004
Publications
l
l
l
l
l
"Ausfinanzierung und Auslagerung von Versorgungsverpflichtungen" ("Outsourcing and Funding of
Pension Liabilities"), May 2010.
"Contractual Trust Arrangements – eine rechtliche Bestandsaufnahme" ("Contractual Trust Arrangements
– Legal Background and Open Questions"), Betriebs-Berater, p. 1405-1414, Mai 2010.
"Kantine ohne Köche – Wann muss der Käufer eines Unternehmens auch die Belegschaft
übernehmen?" ("Canteens without Chefs – When does a buyer of a company have to take over the
workforce?"), Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, p. 21, Dezember 2009.
"What´s new in Germany? – New rules on management compensation“, International Pension Lawyer, p.
26-31, November 2009.
"Mitbestimmung bei Änderung von Übergangsgeld" ("Co-Determination requirements for changes of
transition payments"), Arbeit und Arbeitsrecht – Personal-Profi, p. 680 seq., November 2009.
http://www.mayerbrown.com/lawyers/printprofile.asp?hubbardid=R710338772
15.06.2010
Mayer Brown
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
Page 2 of 3
"Auslegung von Versorgungszusagen – Risiken erkennen und vermeiden" ("Understanding pension
scheme language – spotting risks and avoiding them"), Der Betrieb, Heft 46, p. 2490-2493, November 2009
and BetrAV 3/2010, p. 213 – 217, April 2010.
"German Employment Law - An Overview", October 2009.
"Auswirkungen eines Betriebsübergangs nach Insolvenz des ursprünglichen Versorgungsschuldners auf
Versorgungszusagen" ("Legal consequences of a transfer of an insolvent company’s business on the
transferring employees‘ pension entitlements"), Betriebs-Berater online, September 2009.
"Anspruch auf Sonderzahlung aus dem arbeitsrechtlichen Gleichbehandlungsgrundsatz" ("Entitlements to
bonus payments under the equal treatment doctrine"), Betriebs-Berater online, September 2009.
The German Pension System - An Overview , April 2009.
"Betriebliche Übung und Gleichbehandlung in der betrieblichen Altersversorgung" (Repeated Business
Practice and the Doctrine of Equal Treatment in Pensions Law), Betriebs-Berater 2009, S. 615.
"Anspruch auf Altersteilzeit" ("Entitlement to Old-Age Part-Time Arrangements"), in: Arbeit und
Arbeitsrecht (AuA) 2009, p. 118.
Co-Author: "Praxishandbuch Unternehmenskauf" (Handbook on Mergers and Acquisitions), SchaefferPoeschel Verlag, Stuttgart, 2009.
"Versorgung fuer Homosexuelle" ("Pension entitlements of same sex partners"), Frankfurter Allgemeine
Zeitung, 4 February 2009, p. 21.
Co-Author: "Logistikverträge" (Logistics Contracts), Verlag Heinrich Vogel, Munich, 2009.
"Gnadenfrist für Schuldner - Welche Auswirkungen hat das Europarecht auf Betriebsrenten?" ("Grace
Period for Pension Debtors - The ECJ's impact on pension Schemes"), Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung,
October 1, 2008, p. 27.
"New Age Requirements for Statutory Pension Entitlements and their Consequences for Occupational
Pension Provisions", International Pension Lawyer, March 2008, p. 21.
"Ausreichend Mittel für Rentnergesellschaften" ("Necessity to Provide Sufficient Assets for Pensioner
Companies"), Finance, 5/2008, p. 83.
"Kein Nachteilsausgleichsanspruch bei Möglichkeit der kurzfristigen Wiederaufnahme der
Produktion" ("Court Rules Out Claims For Disadvantage Compensation If Production Can Be Restarted
Quickly - A Commentary On A Recent Decision Of The Bautzen Labour Court"), in: BB 5/2008, page 227.
"Auslagerung von Versorgungsverbindlichkeiten" ("Outsourcing of Pension Liabilities"), December 2007.
"Das Bezugsrecht aus Direktversicherungen in der Insolvenz des Arbeitgebers" ("The right to the insurance
benefits under occupational pension direct insurance contracts in case of the employer's insolvency"), Neue
Zeitschrift für das Recht der Insolvenz und Sanierung (NZI) 2007, p. 631.
"Bessere Chancen fuer Betriebsrentner - Anpassung der Pensionen nach Fusionen wahrscheinlicher",
Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, 15. August 2007, p. 21.
Co-Author: "Die Europaeische Aktiengesellschaft (SE) - Recht, Steuern, Beratung", Gabler-Verlag,
Wiesbaden, 2007.
Besprechung der Entscheidung des OLG Frankfurt/Main vom 22.02.2007 - Az. 16 U 197/06, BB 2007, 1007
betreffend den Anwendungsbereich des Par. 3 BetrAVG (Commentary on a decission of the High Court in
Frankfurt/Main re: the scope of application of Sec. 3 of the German Pensions Act).
"Zur Anpassungsprüfungspflicht des Arbeitsgebers nach § 16 BetrAVG" ("An analysis of employers'
obligations to adjust pension benefits as a result of inflation pursuant to Sec. 16 of the German Pensions
Act"), NZA-Rechtssprechungs-Report Arbeitsrecht, Issue 1, January 2007, p. 1 et sqq.
"Pensionsfonds: verbesserte Rahmenbedingungen für nationale und internationale Arbeitgeber und
Anbieter"("Pension Funds in Germany: Improvements of Legal Environment for German and International
Employers and Pension Fund Providers"), in: BB 22/2006, page 1221, (co-author: Dr Guido Zeppenfeld).
"Der triftige Grund in der Besitzstandsschutzrechtsprechung des Ruhegeldsenats des
Bundesarbeitsgerichts. Zur Übertragbarkeit der wirtschaftlichen Lage iSd § 16 BetrAVG" ("The "cogent
reason" for cutbacks of pension promises as developed by the Pension Chamber of the German Federal
Labor Court. A study of the transferability of the tests established to determine the employer's "economic
situation" pursuant to Sec. 16 of the German Pensions Act."); Verlag: Peter Lang GmbH; Frankfurt, 2005.
Seminars & Presentations
Regularly speaks at seminars on pensions law issues
Memberships
l
IPEBLA - International Pension and Employee Benefit Lawyers Association
http://www.mayerbrown.com/lawyers/printprofile.asp?hubbardid=R710338772
15.06.2010
Mayer Brown
Page 3 of 3
© Copyright 2010. Mayer Brown LLP, Mayer Brown International LLP, Mayer Brown JSM and/or Tauil & Chequer Advogados, a Brazilian law partnership with
which Mayer Brown is associated. All rights reserved.
Mayer Brown is a global legal services organization comprising legal practices that are separate entities (the Mayer Brown Practices). The Mayer Brown
Practices are: Mayer Brown LLP, a limited liability partnership established in the United States; Mayer Brown International LLP, a limited liability partnership
incorporated in England and Wales; Mayer Brown JSM, a Hong Kong partnership, and its associated entities in Asia; and Tauil & Chequer Advogados, a
Brazilian law partnership with which Mayer Brown is associated. “Mayer Brown” and the Mayer Brown logo are the trademarks of the Mayer Brown Practices
in their respective jurisdictions.
http://www.mayerbrown.com/lawyers/printprofile.asp?hubbardid=R710338772
15.06.2010