Axel Schmidt

Expertise Axel Advises Experience Highlights Career History

Partner

Commercial, Corporate

+49 151 275 866 65

Expertise

Axel Schmidt has been advising international clients for over 20 years in all areas of international commercial and corporate law, particularly in product liability cases with significant liability risks, safety recalls, and supply chain disputes. He has conducted complex litigation, established joint ventures, and led mergers and acquisitions projects in Europe, the USA, and China, as well as international compliance and competition law matters.

Axel has extensive experience as General Counsel and Head of Legal at three of the largest German automotive supplier groups (Dräxlmaier, Brose, and Knorr-Bremse).

He is passionate about advising companies over the long term on all legal challenges with a holistic, strategic approach. To achieve the best possible outcome for his clients, he brings in additional experts for specialised topics. He also supports companies in setting up efficient structures for legal and compliance departments.

Axel holds a Master of Laws (LL.M.) in International Law from the University of Edinburgh. Since 2015, he has been a lecturer at the HTWG University of Konstanz for the Master’s programme in Legal Management. He is also a partner at ARAT Rechtsanwaltspartnerschaftsgesellschaft mbH.

Axel Advises

in a solution-oriented and pragmatic manner:

  • international industrial corporations
  • medium-sized enterprises, and
  • affiliates of foreign companies operating in Germany and Europe

with a particular focus on the automotive and rail sectors.

Experience Highlights

  • International product liability litigation involving multi-million-euro claims
  • Safety recalls and campaigns in the automotive and rail industry
  • Strategic consulting for the development of new business areas (such as electromobility, particularly the battery sector)
  • International M&A transactions, including the acquisition of international company groups
  • Establishment and legal support of numerous international joint ventures in Europe, China, South Korea, and the USA (e.g. a multi-billion joint ventures of a German OEM with a leading company in the supplier industry, development of the China business of an international group of companies, restructuring of the investments in an internationally active joint venture)
  • Company and plant start-ups in Europe, China, the USA, and South America
  • Complex international compliance investigations, including engagement with the relevant authorities
  • Restructuring and development of the legal, compliance, risk and investment management departments of global companies
  • Implementation of effective corporate governance processes
  • Corporate reorganisation projects, including formation of European Companies – SE

Career History

Previous Positions

  • 01.2023 – 05.2025: Partner at a boutique law firm specializing in providing legal advice to industrial companies in the automotive industry, rail sector, aerospace, mechanical engineering, and manufacturing industries — particularly in product liability cases and dispute resolution
  • 01.2021 – 12.2023: Dräxlmaier Group, Group General Counsel and Head of Risk Management (SVP)
  • 06.2017 – 12.2021: Brose, Group General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer (SVP)
  • 01.2002 – 05.2017: Knorr-Bremse Group, Group General Counsel (interim); Head of Corporate, Corporate Governance, and Legal Rail

Memberships

  • Legal Committee of the German Association of the Automotive Industry (VDA) (2018 – 2022)

Education

  • University of Edinburgh
  • Universität Regensburg

 

 

 

 

Axel is a partner in gunnercooke GmbH, whose registered office is Kurfuerstendamm 15, 10719 Berlin, AG Charlottenburg, HRB 224488 B. All lawyers of gunnercooke GmbH are admitted either in Germany or Austria to practise as Rechtsanwalt or Rechtsanwaeltin and are members of and regulated by the relevant local Bar (Rechtsanwaltskammer).

Expertise

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Axel Schmidt has been advising international clients for over 20 years in all areas of international commercial and corporate law, particularly in product liability cases with significant liability risks, safety recalls, and supply chain disputes. He has conducted complex litigation, established joint ventures, and led mergers and acquisitions projects in Europe, the USA, and China, as well as international compliance and competition law matters.

Axel has extensive experience as General Counsel and Head of Legal at three of the largest German automotive supplier groups (Dräxlmaier, Brose, and Knorr-Bremse).

He is passionate about advising companies over the long term on all legal challenges with a holistic, strategic approach. To achieve the best possible outcome for his clients, he brings in additional experts for specialised topics. He also supports companies in setting up efficient structures for legal and compliance departments.

Axel holds a Master of Laws (LL.M.) in International Law from the University of Edinburgh. Since 2015, he has been a lecturer at the HTWG University of Konstanz for the Master’s programme in Legal Management. He is also a partner at ARAT Rechtsanwaltspartnerschaftsgesellschaft mbH.

Axel Advises

Back to top

in a solution-oriented and pragmatic manner:

  • international industrial corporations
  • medium-sized enterprises, and
  • affiliates of foreign companies operating in Germany and Europe

with a particular focus on the automotive and rail sectors.

Experience Highlights

Back to top
  • International product liability litigation involving multi-million-euro claims
  • Safety recalls and campaigns in the automotive and rail industry
  • Strategic consulting for the development of new business areas (such as electromobility, particularly the battery sector)
  • International M&A transactions, including the acquisition of international company groups
  • Establishment and legal support of numerous international joint ventures in Europe, China, South Korea, and the USA (e.g. a multi-billion joint ventures of a German OEM with a leading company in the supplier industry, development of the China business of an international group of companies, restructuring of the investments in an internationally active joint venture)
  • Company and plant start-ups in Europe, China, the USA, and South America
  • Complex international compliance investigations, including engagement with the relevant authorities
  • Restructuring and development of the legal, compliance, risk and investment management departments of global companies
  • Implementation of effective corporate governance processes
  • Corporate reorganisation projects, including formation of European Companies – SE

Career History

Back to top

Previous Positions

  • 01.2023 – 05.2025: Partner at a boutique law firm specializing in providing legal advice to industrial companies in the automotive industry, rail sector, aerospace, mechanical engineering, and manufacturing industries — particularly in product liability cases and dispute resolution
  • 01.2021 – 12.2023: Dräxlmaier Group, Group General Counsel and Head of Risk Management (SVP)
  • 06.2017 – 12.2021: Brose, Group General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer (SVP)
  • 01.2002 – 05.2017: Knorr-Bremse Group, Group General Counsel (interim); Head of Corporate, Corporate Governance, and Legal Rail

Memberships

  • Legal Committee of the German Association of the Automotive Industry (VDA) (2018 – 2022)

Education

  • University of Edinburgh
  • Universität Regensburg

Back to top

 

 

 

 

Axel is a partner in gunnercooke GmbH, whose registered office is Kurfuerstendamm 15, 10719 Berlin, AG Charlottenburg, HRB 224488 B. All lawyers of gunnercooke GmbH are admitted either in Germany or Austria to practise as Rechtsanwalt or Rechtsanwaeltin and are members of and regulated by the relevant local Bar (Rechtsanwaltskammer).