German Attorneys
for the
Aviation Industry

Schlun & Elseven Rechtsanwälte PartG mbB is a full-service law firm who are active all over Germany. We offer our clients comprehensive legal advice from one source combined with industry-specific expertise. The aviation industry requires lawyers who are able to deal with a fast-changing and often challenging legal and global landscape. Our lawyers aim to support you in the achieving of your goals. Get to know us, our services and covered industries today.

To ensure the long-term success of one’s company and comply with the legal regulations that have come into force, it is crucial to implement efficient whistleblowing systems. Without such systems, employees who want to uncover wrongdoings in the company can quickly feel moved to go public. This can lead to significant reputational damage and loss of revenue.

Since the Whistleblower Protection Act came into force on 2 July 2023 in Germany, it has been incumbent on all German companies with more than 249 employees to set up an internal whistleblower system. Companies not complying with this obligation will face significant legal consequences (including hefty fines) from December 2023.

The German law firm Schlun & Elseven offers a competent and committed service to provide companies with the necessary support in implementing this legal requirement. Our lawyers explain which preventive measures you can take to prevent whistleblowing while effectively complying with all legal obligations. By implementing an efficient whistleblowing system certified in accordance with the applicable ISO standard, we ensure that whistleblowers are protected in accordance with the law while, at the same time, your company benefits from the information provided. We stand up for you so that your rights and interests as a company are protected.

In running an aviation company in Germany and other countries in Europe, many potential pitfalls can have a significant financial and reputational impact on your business. In such a regulated field, our clients in the aviation industry benefit from our ongoing support in legal compliance. Allow our lawyers to oversee your legal requirements in the areas of aviation safety, in ensuring that the correct licences are obtained and in competition law and antitrust matters.

Should your business believe that competitors are conducting matters in an anti-competitive manner, then allow our lawyers to oversee investigations. By implementing our experience and expertise, our team can determine whether a strong case exists that the company should pursue.

Furthermore, the current Covid-19 crisis demonstrates the need for businesses to have access to leading legal advice on issues such as corporate restructuring and other issues around the corporate structure of their business. In corporate law matters, our full-service approach ensures that your company can receive all of these services and more while allowing you to focus on running your company.

Our contract lawyers thoroughly analyse and assess the contracts of our clients. As well as reviewing contracts, our corporate clients can rely on our team to draft contracts where their needs are kept central to proceedings. Our lawyers will support you throughout the purchase and sale of aircraft to leasing contracts and airport service level agreements. Should you need a lawyer for in-court representation due to an alleged breach of contract, you can rely on our experience in the courtroom throughout. Furthermore, our team advises on when it is worth pursuing a case in court and when it is best to resolve matters by other means.

In the area of commercial agreements, we advise on the following topics:

• agency and commission agreements,
• aircraft maintenance contracts, aviation insurance,
• charter and sub-charter agreements,
• commercial contracts,
• frequent flyer and similar schemes,
• outfitting agreements,
• supplier agreements, including catering and ground handling.

Should your aviation company require thoughtful legal guidance concerning contract or commercial law issues in the aviation industry, contact us directly using the contact form below.

Our certified experts in employment law advise clients across the board in their labour law disputes. Our legal team will be by your side whether your case reaches court or can be resolved outside of it. Our employment experts advise private individuals on their legal rights and represent them in cases, but they also advise companies on implementing best-practice measures. Having such measures in place cannot be overestimated as costly and time-consuming legal matters can be prevented by strong best-practice standards and strong deterrents for breaches.

As certified specialists in employment law, Dr. Thomas Bichat and Jens Schmidt provide our aviation clients with excellent assistance and support in employment cases. They advise on employment law contracts, harassment disputes, work councils, unfair dismissal, posting employees abroad and more.

Our intellectual property lawyers protect your company’s copyrights, logos, and trademarks. Our lawyers are familiar with the workings of the German Patent and Trademarks Office (Deutsches Patent- und Markenamt) and provide competent and reliable representation during in-court disputes. However, in-court disputes tend to be costly and time-consuming. Therefore, our lawyers send warning letters and seek other means of resolving such disputes where possible. Our lawyers provide expert support in matters of arbitration and out-of-court settlements.

Another key consideration for those in the aviation industry is data protection. As well as employee data protection, our lawyers advise on passenger data protection measures that can be put in place. Having such measures in place and having structures to ensure that they are followed is a requirement when seeking to avoid reputational damage and costly court cases.

Litigation and lawsuits can occur in the aviation industry for many reasons. Our aviation industry lawyers can represent you in court in cases involving insurance disputes, lawsuits brought due to accidents and other aircraft incidents, commercial litigation, or litigation brought by customers. We are familiar with the German courtroom and have a deep knowledge of the litigation requirements when answering a case.

Furthermore, we support our aviation clients when they seek to bring legal action against state aviation authorities, the Federal Aviation Office (Luftfahrtbundesamt) and the Federal Ministry of Transport (Bundesministerium für Verkehr). Giving yourself legal protection through our lawyers is a reliable way to protect your company in legal proceedings. Additionally, our team is ready to provide their considered legal opinions in the case of disputes or when answers are required for difficult legal questions.