- Global institutional insurance investors – Tax advice in relation to a landmark structured notes transaction of more than €700 million, secured against a portfolio of 70 German rehabilitation hospitals owned by a joint venture of healthcare real estate investors and operated by a leading rehabilitation hospital operator.
- Luxembourg-based real estate investment company – Tax advice in relation to a Luxembourg-based real estate investment company on the leveraged recapitalisation of approximately €250 million of financing arrangements relating to six German real estate portfolios, including a €56 million facility increase and the amendment and restatement of syndicated financing documentation.
- Multinational insurance group – Tax advice in relation to a €90 million forward purchase transaction involving bonds issued by a Berlin municipal housing company, including comprehensive financing, regulatory and tax advice.
- Exacompta Clairefontaine – Tax advice in relation to the acquisition of the business of legacy German office supply manufacturer HAN GmbH & Co. KG in the context of HAN’s insolvency.
- International technology and infrastructure group – Tax advice in relation to the acquisition of all shares in a German tech startup in the energy infrastructure sector.
- European developer and operator of battery storage projects – Tax advice in relation to the acquisition of BESS in Germany.
- Condor – Tax advice in relation to a cooperation with the corporate group of Karl-Heinz Kögel in the area of package holidays.
- Bosch Sicherheitssysteme – Tax advice on the acquisition of DMS Digitale Mess- und Steuerungssysteme AG.
- Commerzbank AG – Tax advice on the acquisition of 74.9% of the shares in Aquila Capital Investmentgesellschaft GmbH from Aquila Capital Holding GmbH.
- Duke Street – tax advice on two parallel transactions in the ostomy supply sector (acquisition of the ForLife Group from GHD, a portfolio company of Nordic Capital, as well as acquisition of the ostomy sale and distribution business from Trio Healthcare Limited).
- HIH Invest Real Estate – Tax advice on the acquisition of 14 development projects and new buildings with an investment volume of over €630 million for a newly launched fund for institutional investors together with the housing company Vonovia.
- Consortium of banks including ABN Amro, ING, KFW, KfW Ipex Bank, Kommunalkredit Austria, LBBW, NatWest, NordLB and SEB – Tax advice on an investment financing for the fibre-roll-out of Deutsche GigaNetz.
- MEAG Munich Ergo AssetManagement GmbH (MEAG) as Arranger and Société Générale as Agent – Tax advice on the financing of new local trains for the Kinzigtal network.
- Montea NV – Tax advice on the acquisition of a logistics centre in Hamburg from a fund managed by Tristan Capital Partners.
- Octopus Energy – Tax advice on its first wind farm investment in Germany.
- Oldenburgische Landesbank Aktiengesellschaft (OLB) as Lender – Tax advice on the financing of the acquisition of a majority stake in Karl Schmidt GmbH by Argos Wityu.
- Robert Bosch GmbH – Tax advice on the dissolution of the joint venture Advanced Driver Information Technology with DENSO Corporation.
- Siemens Energy – Tax advice on the sale of BIC Business to Triton Funds.
Expertise
Dr Susanne Knoch advises and represents clients in complex national and cross‑border tax matters. She has many years of experience and extensive expertise in corporate tax law, particularly in tax structuring and transaction‑related tax advice. With a particular focus on the tax support of strategically significant transactions, she helps clients develop solutions that are economically optimal and legally robust.
Her advisory focus is on M&A transactions, real estate transactions, infrastructure and energy projects, as well as the related financings. In this context, Susanne regularly works on multidisciplinary projects in which tax, regulatory and commercial aspects are closely interlinked. Her clients include international corporations and financial investors as well as medium‑sized enterprises. Clients value her clear, solution‑oriented advice and her ability to present complex tax issues in a precise and comprehensible manner.
Before joining Addleshaw Goddard, she spent more than fifteen years at a leading international law firm in Frankfurt. Throughout her career, she has also advised in the area of non‑profit law, including the structural and tax support of foundations and non‑profit organisations.
Susanne is recommended by Best Lawyers and Handelsblatt as one of the leading lawyers in tax law. Her recognised expertise and many years of experience make her a sought‑after point of contact for complex tax issues, both in the transactional context and in ongoing tax advice.
Experience
Education
- University of Würzburg – First State Examination
- Higher Regional Court of Munich – Second State Examination
- University of Bristol – Department of Law, Study visit as part of an Erasmus-Socrates Scholarship
Languages
- German (native)
- English (fluent)
- French (good command)
- Spanish (good command)
Professional Memberships
- Bar Association Frankfurt
- Chamber of Tax Advisors Hesse
Publications
- Anders Kraft/Susanne Knoch/Michael Lehmann - Life Cycle of a Commercial Property in Tax Law – from Acquisition through Rental to Sale, published in Handelsblatt Steuerboard on 10.01.2023
- Susanne Knoch - Accounting of a Limited Company with Administrative Seat in Germany: Comparative Legal Analysis of British, German and International Accounting Regulations in the Context of Law Applicable to a Limited Company with Administrative Seat in Germany, 2014
- Peter Hommelhoff/Susanne Sokol - International Accounting Law for Medium-Sized Enterprises, in Teichmann (ed.), Europe and Medium-Sized Enterprises, pp. 129-160, 2010
Recognition
"Germany’s best lawyers" for tax law (Handelsblatt & Best Lawyers, since 2025)
