Dr. Ralph Wollburg | Lawyers

Admissions

Germany

Services

Mainstream Corporate

Sectors

Overview

Ralph is Co-Head of the Global M&A practice of Linklaters. He is advisor to a large number of major German DAX and comparable companies, such as Bayer, Beiersdorf, Deutsche Bank, Deutsche Börse, E.ON, Fresenius, Fresenius Medical Care, Porsche Automobil Holding, Siemens, thyssenkrupp and Volkswagen, and advises on complex cross-border mergers and acquisitions, public takeovers and matters relating to the German stock corporation law. Furthermore, he advises on the defence against shareholder activism and managing and supervisory boards on strategic issues.

Experience

Bayer: advising i.a. on (i) the carve-out of its subgroup Bayer MaterialScience, (ii) the subsequent IPO of Covestro AG.
Covestro: advising on the 100% takeover by Abu Dhabi owned ADNOC.
Deutsche Börse: advising i. a. (i) on its attempted merger with NYSE Euronext and (ii) on its attempted merger with London Stock Exchange.
E.ON: advising on numerous strategic transactions, including (i) the acquisition of innogy by way of a far-reaching exchange of assets and participations between E.ON and RWE and (ii) the split-up of E.ON and Uniper.
Fresenius: advising on various strategic matters incl. (i) on the deconsolidation of its subsidiary Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA by way of a change of legal form into an AG, and (ii) on its previous transformation into a SE & Co. KGaA.
Jakobus Stiftung: advising on the reorganization of Aldi Nord Group, including the implementation of the new group and foundation structure.
Mercedes-Benz Group: advising on (i) the implementation of a holding structure and (ii) on the spin-off of a majority interest in Daimler Truck with subsequent listing.
thyssenkrupp: advising on numerous strategic transactions, including (i) the intended spin-off or participation of an investor in the Marine Systems division (ii) the complete sale of its elevator business Elevator Technology and the IPO track prepared in parallel, (iii) the sale of a stake in the steel division to EP Corporate Group, (iv) the separation of the Steel Business unit and the IPO of thyssenkrupp nucera KGaA.
Uniper: advising on several transactions, including (i) ongoing advice on stabilisation measures as well as (ii) corporate law advice in connection with the de facto group relationship with Fortum Oy.
Volkswagen: advising on various strategic transactions, including (i) the investment transactions and the vehicle software technology joint venture with Rivian, (ii) the IPO of Porsche AG (it being the largest IPO in German history based on market capitalisation) and the sale of 25% plus one share in the ordinary share capital of Porsche AG from Volkswagen AG to Porsche Automobil Holding SE with a combined deal value of €19.5 bn, (iii) the IPO of TRATON SE, and (iv) the acquisition of the listed company Navistar Inc. by TRATON SE.

Recognition

JUVE (German Directory) considers Ralph as one of the leading senior partners in corporate law and M&A transactions (JUVE 2025/2026) and the “DAX lawyer per se”. Additionally, he is rated the only German “Star Individuals” for Corporate/M&A (Chambers Global, 2026), „[he] has been at the forefront of the market for many years“ (Chambers Germany, 2026).

Dr Ralph Wollburg has been featured multiple times in leading business publications, including a profile in manager magazin in July 2025. In 2025, FINANCE Magazin recognised him as one of Germany’s top lawyers in its renowned “Top Dealmaker” series. In February 2026, major German daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung and JUVE published a profile on him and his outstanding achievements.

Education, Qualifications and Languages

Ralph holds a Juris Doctor from Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich and studied law at the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich and at the Albert Ludwig University of Freiburg.

He speaks German, English and French.

Overview

Experience

Bayer: advising i.a. on (i) the carve-out of its subgroup Bayer MaterialScience, (ii) the subsequent IPO of Covestro AG.

Covestro: advising on the 100% takeover by Abu Dhabi owned ADNOC.

Deutsche Börse: advising i. a. (i) on its attempted merger with NYSE Euronext and (ii) on its attempted merger with London Stock Exchange.

E.ON: advising on numerous strategic transactions, including (i) the acquisition of innogy by way of a far-reaching exchange of assets and participations between E.ON and RWE and (ii) the split-up of E.ON and Uniper.

Fresenius: advising on various strategic matters incl. (i) on the deconsolidation of its subsidiary Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA by way of a change of legal form into an AG, and (ii) on its previous transformation into a SE & Co. KGaA.

Jakobus Stiftung: advising on the reorganization of Aldi Nord Group, including the implementation of the new group and foundation structure.

Mercedes-Benz Group: advising on (i) the implementation of a holding structure and (ii) on the spin-off of a majority interest in Daimler Truck with subsequent listing.

thyssenkrupp: advising on numerous strategic transactions, including (i) the intended spin-off or participation of an investor in the Marine Systems division (ii) the complete sale of its elevator business Elevator Technology and the IPO track prepared in parallel, (iii) the sale of a stake in the steel division to EP Corporate Group, (iv) the separation of the Steel Business unit and the IPO of thyssenkrupp nucera KGaA.

Uniper: advising on several transactions, including (i) ongoing advice on stabilisation measures as well as (ii) corporate law advice in connection with the de facto group relationship with Fortum Oy.

Volkswagen: advising on various strategic transactions, including (i) the investment transactions and the vehicle software technology joint venture with Rivian, (ii) the IPO of Porsche AG (it being the largest IPO in German history based on market capitalisation) and the sale of 25% plus one share in the ordinary share capital of Porsche AG from Volkswagen AG to Porsche Automobil Holding SE with a combined deal value of €19.5 bn, (iii) the IPO of TRATON SE, and (iv) the acquisition of the listed company Navistar Inc. by TRATON SE.

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Overview

Experience

Recognition

Education, Qualifications and Languages