HOLGER SIEGWART, ESQ. – German Lawyer in the USA (California)
- Rechtsanwalt (German Attorney at Law), licensed in Germany
- Attorney at Law, licensed in California
- Since 2008 SIEGWART GERMAN AMERICAN LAW Counsel for US based corporate an individual clients and attorneys on German law, representation of US based corporate and individual clients in Germany; counsel for German and German speaking corporate and individual clients and attorneys on US law, representation of German and German speaking corporate and individual clients in the United States; practice in both countries
For corporate clients: German corporate law (incorporation in Germany), German business law (market entry, distributorship in Germany, doing business in Germany), German contract law (contracts under German law, contract disputes; venue clauses, choice of law clauses, and disclaimers under German law), CISG; German tax law (taxation of business entities in Germany, double taxation Germany-USA), litigation in Germany (representation of US based companies before German courts), arbitration in Germany, debt collection in Germany, enforcement of US judgments in Germany.
For individual clients: German inheritance law (settlement of estates in Germany, forced shares under German law), German tax law (German capital gains tax, German inheritance tax, double taxation of permanent residents), German real estate law (buy and sell real property in Germany, German citizenship (dual citizenship USA-Germany, live and work in Germany)
- 2008 Federal Court Admission (Northern District of California)
- 2007-2009 Civil Litigation Firm San Francisco Bay Area; State Court and Federal Court Litigation; personal injury, including catastrophic injury, wrongful death, real estate, landlord/tenant, premises liability, commercial liability, including large loss, employment/workers’ compensation, insurance, contracts
- 2007 California Bar Exam (35% pass rate) and bar admission
- 2007 California Bar Exam (35% pass rate) and bar admission
- 2004-2007 Intensive studies of Federal and California Law
- 2006-2007 Legal Aid of Marin; debt collection, enforcement of judgments, consumer protection, employment law, civil litigation, cooperation with authorities in Latin America, assistance to Latin American clients (in Spanish)
- 2006 Relocation to San Francisco, CA
- 2001-2006 Partner/shareholder of a law firm in Germany with domestic and international practice. Representation of corporate and individual clients in the areas of German Contract law, German business law, German Corporate Law, German real estate law, German wills, estates, and inheritance law, German employment law; including litigation, court appearances, trial practice and appeal practice in Germany on a regular basis.
Representation of foreign based corporate and individual litigants in Germany. Claim and settlement of estates and forced shares of foreign based heirs and beneficiaries in Germany.
Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Judgments in Germany. Counsel for German and foreign clients on US, Italian, and international law, including CISG.
Coordination of foreign litigation for German clients. Resolution of estate and inheritance, real estate, and contract matters in Italy, and the US.
Training and education of law school graduates and new attorneys.
Speaker on German business law, German employment law and German inheritance law.
Publications on German law and US law. Contribution to publications on international and Italian law.
- 1999-2001 Associate Attorney in Germany: Comprehensive general practice emphasizing but not limited to German business law, German Contract law, German corporate law, German real estate law, German wills, estates and inheritance law, German employment law and German Criminal law; including litigation, court appearances and trial practice on a regular basis
- 1999 Second State Administered Attorney Exam, with honors (German Bar Exam equivalent, requires a minimum of four years of law school education and additional two years of supervised post graduate practice)
- 1999 Diploma de Español como Lengua Extranjera (D.E.L.E), Nivel Superior (Spanish as a foreign language, highest level), University of Valencia, Spain
- 1997-1999 State Supreme Court (Karlsruhe, Germany), Law Clerk for Judge Brecht; Hearing Representative and Law Clerk for the District Attorney’s office (Karlsruhe, Germany); internship with an international law firm in Valencia, Spain
- 1997 First State Administered Attorney Exam (German J.D. equivalent), with honors
- 1992-1997 University of Heidelberg, Germany Law School (est. 1386, the oldest and most reputable law school in Germany), emphasis on civil law and international law; University of Heidelberg Language School, Italian Language degree (summa cum laude) and Spanish language degree (summa cum laude)
- 1991-1992 German Air Force, honorable discharge with several awards
- 1991 Graduated from 13-year grammar school in Germany (equivalent to AA degree), including nine years of Latin and five years of French
Speeches (Selection)
- Product Liability in the US – Comparative seminar on product liability and litigation in the US and Germany (05/2011 in Frankfurt/Main und Stuttgart)
- German-American estate planning and settlement of German American estates (10/2010), Bayer HealthCare, LLC, Berkeley, Kalifornien
- Doppelbesteuerung Deutschland - USA / Double Taxation USA – Germany (Concordia, San Francisco, CA, USA, August 2010)
Publications (Selection)
- US-Amerikanisches Gesellschaftsrecht – Die wichtigsten Gesellschaftsformen in den USA im Überblick (Incorporation and business entities in the US) ULN Law Review IV/2010
- Numerous comparative online publications on business law, corporate law, litigation, estate and inheritance law in the US and Germany
- German inheritance law for US based heirs and beneficiaries – series of six articles on intestate succession in Germany, forced shares, disinheritance and will contests under German law, German inheritance tax, double taxation etc. (Nordamerikanische Wochenpost, April 2010-Mai 2010)
- Abwicklung von Erbfällen in den USA (Settlement of Estates in the US) ZEV 2006, 110-114
- Arbeits- und haftungsrechtliche Folgen von Aufsichtspflichtverletzungen (KiTa-Recht 2003 II 16-20)
- Mobbing – der Krieg am Arbeitsplatz (KiTa-Recht 2003 I 22-26)
Memberships (Selection)
- AmCham, American Chamber of Commerce in Germany
- GABA, German American Business Organisation
- Rechtsanwaltskammer Karlsruhe (Bar of Karlsruhe, Germany)
- State Bar of California (Rechtsanwaltskammer des Staates Kalifornien), International Law Section (Sektion für Internationales Recht)
- Bar Association of San Francisco, International Practice Group
- San Francisco Barristers Club, International Law Section
- German Roundtable San Francisco
- American German Business Club
- Leben und Arbeiten in den USA
Languages
- German, English, Spanish, Italian, French, Latin
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