Michal Dobrowolski specializes in M&A/corporate law, particularly in the areas of private equity, take private, M&A transactions in the telecommunications, real estate and energy sectors, and venture capital. During his 20 years of experience, he has provided legal advice for significant landmark M&A transactions not only in Austria but worldwide, particularly in CEE.
Selected representations
- Blackstone and Permira together with their portfolio company Adevinta on the sale of its 50% joint venture stake in Willhaben to Sprints and the Styria Media Group
- RELX Group on its strategic exit from the Austrian exhibition market, including the sale of RX Wien to the City of Vienna, RX Salzburg to the City of Salzburg and Standout to mac. brand spaces GmbH as well as RELX Group and LexisNexis on the acquisition of Seminar Oberlaa GmbH
- Trilantic Europe on the acquisition of a 60% stake in the Aerocompact Group and the related joint venture with Mathias Muther Privatstiftung
- Barclays on the sale of its German and Austrian consumer finance business to BAWAG
- Mayr-Melnhof on the sale of two fiber cardboard mills in Germany and the Netherlands to Oaktree Capital Management, L.P.
- AMAG Austria Metall AG on the acquisition of Aircraft Philipp and other M&A opportunities in Europe
- Raiffeisen on the set-up of a fund in Austria and numerous follow up transactions in Austria (Mittelstandsfonds Raiffeisen Continuum)
- APG Asset Management on its €605m joint venture with Orange Polska to create the largest independent wholesale fibre operator in Poland
- Thyssenkrupp on the carve-out of its world-wide mining business across more than 26 jurisdictions
- S.-based packaging group Multi-Color Corp on the $1.3b acquisition of the labels unit of the Constantia Flexibles Group
- ABB on the acquisition of the world-wide active machine and factory automation company Bernecker + Rainer Group
- Cargill, an American privately held global corporation, on a strategic equity investment in Delacon, a global leader in phytogenic feed additives
- US based CA Technologies on the €600m acquisition of the Automic Holding Group from EQT
- JP Morgan & Chase and One Equity Partners on
- the takeover of the Constantia Packaging Group, including the takeover offer and the subsequent squeeze-out and price review proceedings
- the exit of its investment in AMAG Austria Metall AG (AMAG) by virtue of a dual track, having finally resulting in an initial public offering of AMAG
- the sale of the German and Czech business division of the Duropack Group to Mondi
- the €2.4b sale of the Constantia Flexibles Group to the Wendel Group and
- the €300m sale of the Duropack-Group to DS Smith
- One Equity Partners and its portfolio company Fortaco Group on the acquisition of Walter Mauser GmbH
- Semperit AG on the termination of its international joint ventures with the Thai Sri Trang-Group (in Thailand, China, Singapore and the US)
- Hutchison Whampoa (Drei) on
- the acquisition of Orange, the former third largest mobile telecommunication operator in Austria, from MidEuropa Partners and France Telekom
- the sale of Yesss! (a mobile virtual network operator), certain base stations and frequencies to A1 Telekom Austria AG
- the sale and operating lease-back of Drei’s telecommunications network infrastructure to the Asian equipment provider ZTE and an Asian financial institution
- Morgan Stanley Real Estate Fund on the set-up of a joint venture in Croatia and the acquisition of shopping centers in Zagreb
- Hawesko on the acquisition of the Austrian wine retailer “Wein & Co”
- Cassa Depositi E Prestiti SpA on the ITO certification and reorganization of its CDP/OMV joint venture company TAG owning the TAG pipeline in Austria
- Lufthansa on the acquisition of Austrian Airlines AG, the takeover offer and the subsequent squeeze-out of the minorities and the price review proceedings
- Starwood Hotels on the termination of its joint venture with the B&C Group in Imperial Hotels Austria AG, the subsequent squeeze-out of the minorities and the price review proceedings in relation to the squeeze-out
- STMicroelectronics on the acquisition of the NFC-Business in Switzerland, Serbia and Austria from ams AG
- Energie AG Oberösterreich, a major Austrian energy and utilities group, with regard to the sale of its waste management business in CEE (Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Ukraine, Moldova and Rumania) to EP Industries;
- Seves and its private equity owner Vestar Capital Partners on the acquisition of the PPC Insulators Group from The Riverside Company (an US private equity investor)
- Frequentis AG, an Austrian air traffic management company, on the sale of its subsidiary 3T Communications AG, an Austrian company providing communication infrastructure equipment based on the Terrestrial Trunked Radio (TETRA) technology, to Sepura plc, a technology company listed at the London Stock Exchange
- FCC, one of the largest European construction companies, on the sale of various investments (Alpine Energie-group, SUE-group und HAZET) in sales auctions for each group
- Fortress and Deutsche Bank NY on the acquisition (LBO) of a container leasing portfolio from the Volksbanken Group
- Yamaha on its successful acquisition of Bösendorfer, the traditional Austrian piano manufacturer and one of the most prestigious Austrian brands
- Holcim on the acquisition of the Austrian, Czech and Hungary related business of the Lasselsberger Group
- Garmin on the acquisition of the Austrian distributor for Garmin navigation system
- Unifrax on the acquisition of the Alfatec-Group in Austria and China
- List Group, a well-known Austrian real estate (garages) company, on the acquisition of certain entities in Hungary from Wipark
* The advice with regard to the listed transactions was rendered by Michal Dobrowolski during his previous legal role (with Freshfields).
Publications and Lectures
Michal Dobrowolski is known for his proven expertise in corporate law and M&A. He is the author of numerous specialist publications on corporate law and transactional topics and, thanks to his in-depth expertise, is regularly consulted by the media as a specialist on corporate and M&A issues.
Publications (German)
Say on Pay: Quo vadis, Hauptversammlung?, GesRZ 2015, 295
Das Delisting nach dem BörseG 2018, GesRZ 2017, 294
Überblick über die unterschiedlichen aufsichtsrechtlichen Rahmenbedingungen für Initial Coin Offerings, GesRZ 2018, 147
Neuerungen im Gremialverfahren nach dem AktRÄG 2019, GesRZ 2020, 36
Media (German)
Hauptversammlungen: Worüber Aktionäre heuer abstimmen sollten, Die Presse 21.3.2024
Die FlexCo nimmt Formen an, Trend 3.7.2023
ICO: Auf der Suche nach rechtlichen Vorbildern, Die Presse 4.7.2018
Wird die Wiener Börse noch schlanker?, Die Presse 1.9.2017
Was die Hauptversammlung in Zukunft alles darf, Wirtschaftsblatt 1.9. 2015
Aktionäre könnten künftig mehr Rechte haben, Die Presse 20.8.2015
M&A Transaktionen: Versicherte Deals, Trend 1.7.2014
Globalisierungstrend in Österreich / M&A: Mit einem Experten ins Detail, Wirtschaftsblatt 13.3.2014
Neue Regelungen für Aktiengesellschaften, Wirtschaftsblatt 20.10.2011
Neues Aktienrecht für Hauptversammlungen, Wirtschaftsblatt 3.6.2009
Memberships
Michal is a member of the Austrian Bar and was admitted as Austrian lawyer in Austria in 2009. In addition, he is a member of the Law Society as Solicitor (England & Wales) since 2022/23.
Rankings | Awards
Michal is recognised for his work, in particular in Private Equity and Corporate/M&, in several directories including in
– Chambers Global 2015: “Impresses observers with his diligence and efficiency.”
– Chambers Global 2016: “Up-and-coming counsel Michal Dobrowolski assists with M&A, private equity and general corporate matters.”
– Handelsblatt, Best Lawyers Austria, since 2020 annually recognized as one of the best lawyers in Austria for M&A and Corporate Law (more recently also in 2025)
– IFLR 1000: notable practitioner
CV
Michal completed his legal education at the University of Vienna from which he also holds a master of laws degree and a PhD in international investment protection law. Prior to joining bpv Hügel in 2026, he worked for almost 20 years at the renowned international law firm Freshfields, where he advised national and international clients on landmark and complex international M&A transactions, in particular take private and private equity transactions as well as venture capital investments and carve-outs.
Languages
German, English, French, Polish
