Axel Gutermuth is a partner in the competition practice of Arnold & Porter. Trained in Germany, France and the US, he advises clients on all aspects of EU and German competition law. Having practiced in Brussels for more than 20 years, Mr. Gutermuth was nominated in 2021 for the GCR Award in the individual global category “Antitrust Lawyer of the Year”. Mr. Gutermuth frequently represents clients in merger control proceedings before the European Commission and the German Federal Cartel Office and coordinates merger filings worldwide. He has represented merging parties in high profile merger cases that tested novel theories of harm and remedies, such as Google/Fitbit and Bayer/Monsanto. In parallel with his merger control work, Mr. Gutermuth frequently advises on Foreign Direct Investment aspects and coordinates national FDI clearance procedures. Mr. Gutermuth also represents and assists clients in dawn raids and in cartel and internal compliance investigations and provides competition compliance advice on all types of commercial agreements. Mr. Gutermuth has worked for clients in various industries, including pharma, chemical, financial services, energy, life science, healthcare, technology, metals, tobacco, defense and telecommunications/media. A significant part of his current work involves antitrust issues relating to the digital economy, including advice on the Digital Markets Act. Mr. Gutermuth is listed as a leading practitioner in all major attorney rating publications. He frequently speaks at conferences and has published numerous articles on competition law. Mr. Gutermuth is a Member of the Munich Bar and of the New York Bar and is registered on the list of EU lawyers at the Brussels Bar.

Dirk Middelschulte has been Global General Counsel Competition at Unilever, based in Brussels, since October 2017. He started his career in private practice before joining Deutsche Bahn AG at its headquarters in Berlin in 2006 as in-house counsel for IP, regulatory and competition law and led the group’s antitrust advice & compliance team from 2010 onwards. Dirk moved to Danone in Paris in 2015 as Global Compliance Director, prior to joining Unilever.