newsletter - Bucerius Law School

NEWSLETTER
In-house News for Friends of Bucerius Law School
May / June 2009 Page 1
EDITORIAL
Dear Friends of Bucerius Law School,
It is with a laughing and a crying eye, as the German expression
goes, that we bring you this issue of the new
Bucerius Friends Newsletter. The “laughing eye” is for the
great pleasure with which we inform you about the numerous
activities that have been taking place on campus
and off involving members of the Bucerius community:
the Bucerius/ZEIT Stiftung International Alumni Reunion in
London, the opening of the Bucerius office on Park Avenue
in New York, the meeting between a number of our
MLB students and German President Horst Köhler, and
the announcement of another top placement in the Law
School rankings for Bucerius.
On a much more somber note, however, the “crying eye”
refers to the shock and deep sadness we all felt when we
learned about the passing of two Bucerius/WHU Masters
Program alumni, Júlia Chaves de Miranda Schmidt (27) of
Brazil and Alexander Crolow (27) of Germany. Júlia and
Alex, who met and fell in love during the 2007-08 MLB
program, were both aboard Air France Flight 447 from Rio
to Paris when it crashed into the Atlantic on June 1.
At a remembrance service held here at the Law School on
June 8, Prof. Clifford Larsen and fellow students recalled
the energy, vibrance, optimism and promise of the couple,
who had become engaged during their trip to Brazil.
The students and staff of the Masters Program, who are
an extremely close-knit community, are devastated by
this tremendous loss. Júlia Chaves de Miranda Schmidt
visited the Law School just four weeks ago.
Julia and Alex in Hamburg
They will be sorely missed by all who knew them. Our
thoughts go out to the couple’s friends and family.
Yours,
Dr. Hariolf Wenzler
CEO, Bucerius Law School

NEWSLETTER
In-house News for Friends of Bucerius Law School
May / June 2009 Page 2
BUCERIUS TODAY
TRANSATLANTIC SPRING
Bucerius Law School in the US
by Dr. Hariolf Wenzler, CEO, Bucerius Law School and Dr. Nina Smidt, CEO,
Bucerius Education GmbH
A definite highlight of Bucerius’ recent activities in the
US – in collaboration with the Center for American
Progress (CAP) and Georgetown University, was the
“Green Societies” conference on April 29-30 in Washington
DC. The two-day conference, sponsored by the
Heinrich Böll Stiftung and the ZEIT Stiftung Ebelin and
Gerd Bucerius, covered topics including climate change,
sustainable economies and energy efficiency. Minister of
the Environment Sigmar Gabriel and US Senator John
Kerry discussed political framework, in particular with
regard to the current changes in the American administration,
which is making efforts to build a stronger partnership
with Europe and learn from their experience with
energy conservation and renewable energy.
T
F.l.t.r.: Sigmar Gabriel (Minister for Environment), John Kerry, Dr.
Klaus Scharioth (German Ambassador to the US), Dr. Markus
Baumanns (Chairman of the Board of the ZEIT-Stiftung)
On the second day, Professor Dr. Michael Fehling, Chair
for Public Law with Comparative Law at Bucerius Law
School and Professor Peter Byrne, Georgetown Climate
Center, discussed the legal implications of renewable
energy-oriented politics. Jeff Anderson, Director of the
BMW Center for German and European Studies at George-
town University, officiated. It was obvious how important
the transatlantic dialogue is at the moment: now is the
perfect window of opportunity for Europe to bring the US
into an active dialogue. A transcript of the discussion can
be found at www.americanprogressaction.org.
F.l.t.r.: Professor Michael Werz (Georgetown), John Podesta (CEO
Center for American Progress), Dr. Hariolf Wenzler (CEO Bucerius
Law School), Dr. Nina Smidt (CEO Bucerius Education GmbH),
Professor Dr. Michael Fehling (Bucerius)
AMERICAN FRIENDS
Board Dinner of the American Friends of
Bucerius Law School
by Dr. Hariolf Wenzler and Dr. Nina Smidt
The Board Dinner of the American Friends of Bucerius
Law School was held in the Cosmos Club in Washington
DC and included Bucerius Education GmbH CEO
Nina Smidt, new Board Member of American Friends and
recent New York City transplant. Dr. Smidt will work from
the new Park Avenue office for the next five months in
order to establish presence in New York, build a network
of alumni, law firms, foundations and decision-makers
and further Bucerius activities in the US. Dr. Schmidt is
supported by Professor Dr. Michael Werz, Professor at
Georgetown University and partner of the German Marshal
Fund in Washington DC.
Since its inception, Bucerius Law School has placed particular
emphasis on international orientation especially
toward transatlantic relationships. Bucerius counts 32
partner universities in the US – including them Stanford,

NEWSLETTER
In-house News for Friends of Bucerius Law School
May / June 2009 Page 3
UC Berkeley, Cornell, Georgetown, U Penn, Michigan and
New York University - among its 90 partner universities
worldwide. Over 300 students from our American partner
universities have taken part in the International Exchange
Program or the Bucerius/WHU Master of Law and Business.
Bucerius’ annual “Transatlantic Lectures” presents
themes related to European-American relations and features
prominent speakers including Charles Kupchan, Bob
Kagan and John Podesta. As of 2006, the American
Friends of Bucerius Law School has been established as
an American independent non-profit organization which
regularly offers lectures and discussion forums in the US.
Dr. Nina Smidt can be reached at:
American Friends of Bucerius Law School, Inc.
Dr. Nina Smidt, Director
440 Park Avenue South, 2nd Floor
New York, NY 10016
Phone +1 (212) 497-3569
Skype: nina.smidt
Fax:+1 (212) 497 3535
Email: nina.smidt@law-school.de
BUCERIUS LAW SCHOOL / ZEIT-STIFTUNG
ALUMNI REUNION IN LONDON
A
boat trip up the Thames, a guided tour of the Tate
Modern, dinner at Harvey Nichols: sounds like a
fabulous weekend getaway in London – and it was – for
the nearly 100 Bucerius Law School and ZEIT-Stiftung
Ebelin and Gerd Bucerius Alumni who were on hand for
the annual reunion this year.
Throw in sparkling conversation with professionals from
an eclectic mix of fields – law, politics, journalism, economics,
the arts – not the least of which was stimulated
by a timely lecture at Clifford Chance’s Canary Wharf
office from David Marsh on the current economic climate
– and there you have this year’s reunion.
Participants represented nearly every class of the International
Exchange Program and of last year’s Summer Pro-
gram and included participants in ZEIT-Stiftung programs
as well.
Alumni enjoy a boat trip on the Thames
DEMOCRACY TRAVELS
Gesine Schwan at Bucerius Law School
I
n the framework of her “Democracy Travels”, Gesine
Schwan, former German presidential candidate,
spoke to an audience in the Bucerius auditorium on April
5 th , 2009 at the invitation of the Julius Leber Forums of
the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung. In her lecture, the former
presidential candidate called for “a new culture of togetherness”
in this age of globalization.

NEWSLETTER
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May / June 2009 Page 4
INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL LAW AND
UGANDA
Reconciliation and Punishment
by Konstantin Kleine, Student
There was hardly a free seat in the Bucerius Law
School Moot Court on May 14, 2009 when an interested
audience packed the space to hear a panel discussion
on, “Reconciliation or Punishment? International
Criminal Law and Human Rights Violations in Uganda.”
Co-organizer of the event, Professor Dr. Jörn Axel Kämmerer,
Chair for Public Law, Civil and European Law,
opened the discussion with a question: Are reconciliation
and punishment contradictory or complimentary? Is the
application of international law hurtful or helpful? What
role does the church or local reconciliation rituals play?
Weighing in on these complicated queries was Dr. Gerd
Hankel, Hamburger Institute for Social Research, Franziska
Eckelman, International Criminal Law division, Professor
Dr. Ralf Wüstenber, Free University Berlin and Reverend
Dr. Slivester Arinaitwe Rwomukubwe, Chair of the
Ugandan Christian Counsel in Uganda.
F.l.t.r.: Dr. Gerd Hankel, Dr. Silvester Arinaitwe Rwomukubwe,
Franziska Eckelmans, Professor Dr. Ralf Wüstenberg
NEW ONLINE MAGAZINE OF THE INSTI-
TUTE OF FOUNDATION LAW
T
By Janne Seelig, Research Assistant
he Institute for Foundation Law and the Law of Non-profit
Organizations
under the direction of Professor Dr.
Birgit
Weitemeyer,
Chair
for Tax Law at
Bucerius Law School,
introduced the first
edition of the new
“Magazine for Non-Profit
Organization Law”. The
Magazine will offer
readers the latest about
the development of the
non-profit sector with
briefings about management,
legal issues, and
related events.
TAKEOVER DAY 2009: BETWEEN GAME
AND REALITY
by Florian Henn, Student
t the end, the vote of the assembled shareholders represented
through attorneys from Frankfurt firm Morgan
Lewis went in favour of their own firm. Dr. Christian
Zschocke, Nils Rahlf and Lutz Krosien decided not to
sell their stock at the extraordinary annual share-
A holders meeting of Aloha Ohe AG. In the run-up to
the vote, both bidding companies - the Colonia Festiva
AG, specialized in Ticket sales and the BMA AG, a market
research institute - battled for the right to takeover.

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In-house News for Friends of Bucerius Law School
May / June 2009 Page 5
Three student teams from every class fought over a sixweek
period for the favour of the jury during the business
takeover roll play organized by Professor Dr. Rüdiger Veil,
Chair for Civil Law, German and International Business
and Economic Law, and Morgan Lewis. The result was
two specifications of the Federal Agency for Control of
Financial Services correspond to public takeover offers as
well as the response of the target company.
AWARDS
CELEBRATING PRESIDENTS
Karsten Schmidt and Heinz Kötz Honored
T
he
Johanna und Fritz Buch Gedächtnis Stiftung hon-
ored
professors Hein Kötz, Karsten Schmidt and Peter
Schmucker with the Dr. Günther Buch prize at the Bucerius
Auditorium on April 22, 2009. The foundation, which
has given the 20,000 Euro prize since 1973, honored both
Bucerius Law School presidents – founding President
Professor Dr. Hein Kötz and current President Professor
Dr. Karsten Schmidt, for their accomplishments in the
field of law, particularly the founding and leadership of
Bucerius Law School.
ZARNEKOW PRIZE 2009
For her dissertation on the topic, “Obstacles between
Discrimination Protection and Rehabilitation Law”,
Anna-Miria Fuerst, research assistant at Bucerius Law
School, was awarded the Zarnekow Prize. The 5,000 Euro
award is given by the Illa and Werner Zarnekow Foundation
to young academics who are working with rehabilitation-science
themes.
ANOTHER TOP RANKING
Journals “Jungen Karriere” and “Wirtschaftswoche”
Release their Rankings
Bucerius Law School has come in third place in the
newest rankings released by journals “Jungen Karriere”
or Young Careers and “Wirtschaftswoche” or Economic
Weekly, thereby retaining their top placement from
last year. With just 3.7 more percentage points, Bucerius
could shift into the coveted first place position.
The ranking is based on polls conducted by a number of
journals as well as the recruiting service, “Access” and
the opinion poll research institute “Universum Communications”.
500 managers from diverse professional fields
were surveyed.
LECTURES
INTERNATIONAL HUMANITARIAN LAW
Conflict Resolution at DGVR Conference
by Monika Mohrdieck, Chair for Private Law
The German Society of International Law (DGVR) invited
participants to their 31 st biannual conference on
April 15-18 in Munich. Hosted by the Ludwig Maximilian
University and, for the first time, the Bundeswehr University,
the conference focused on the topic, “Modern Forms
of Conflict: International Humanitarian Law and Private
Law Consequences.” Bucerius Law School professors Dr.

NEWSLETTER
In-house News for Friends of Bucerius Law School
May / June 2009 Page 6
Doris König, Chair for Public Law, General Political Science,
International and European Law, and Prof. Dr. Karsten
Thorn, Chair for Civil Law International Private and
Commercial Law and Comparative Law, were featured
speakers at the conference.
Professors König (here above) and Thorn address participants.
FOUNDATION LAW LECTURES
Liechtenstein as a Tax Haven?
The Institute for Foundation Law and Law for Non-
Profit Organizations under the direction of Professor
Dr. Birgit Weitemeyer, Chair for Tax Law, hosted its 15th
regular country-focused lecture on the topic “Liechtenstein
as a Tax Safe Haven? The Reform of Foundation Law
in Liechtenstein and its Impact on the Taxation of Foundation
Revenue” at Bucerius Law School on May 14, 2009.
WORKSHOP WITH DEUTSCHE BANK
The Financial Crisis – What Does it Mean for
Foundations?
by Kerstin Meyer, Research Assistant
On April 24, the Institute for Foundation Law and the
Law of Non-Profit Organizations of Bucerius Law
School and Deutsche Bank invited participants to a workshop
to discuss the impact of the financial crisis on foundations.
Arndt P. Funken, Managing Director and Director
of the Philanthropic Wealth for Deutsche Bank explained
that in years past, German foundations have lost an average
of 10 percent of their capital in financial markets.
Professor Dr. Karl-Heinz Paqué, former Finance Minister
of the German state of Sachsen-Anhalt, Magdeburg University,
and Rolf Hunck, member of the management
board for Private Wealth Management Germany of
Deutsche Bank, also weighed in.
EMPLOYMENT LAW SEMINAR
How to Handle the Dismissal of an Executive
Officer
by Eva Schreiber, Student
Following the invitation of the joint practice of Ruge
Krömer, Professor Dr. Matthias Jacobs and about 20
interested students attended a practical seminar at the
law firm on May 13, 2009. The seminar offered a peek at
the daily practice of a employment law “boutique”. Jan
Ruge, founding partner of the firm, and Dr. Martin Lüderitz,
presented the case of the striking dismissal of a top
executive and the legal strategy in his defence.
In photo: Jan Ruge, left, and Dr. Martin Lüderitz

NEWSLETTER
In-house News for Friends of Bucerius Law School
May / June 2009 Page 7
STUDENT LIFE
BUCERIUS GRAD ACCEPTED TO STAN-
FORD SUMMER INSTITUTE
B
ucerius
Law School graduate Fabian Heilemann has
been
selected to take part in the “Summer Institute
for Entrepreneurship” at Stanford’s Graduate School of
Business this summer. Heilemann is currently working on
his doctorate at the Institute for German and European
Business and Economic Law at Ruprecht Karls University
Heidelberg. While at Bucerius, Heilemann founded the
“Bucerius Entrepreneurial Initiative.” His participation is
made possible by the Hamburg-based Heinemann Company
which provides scholarships for enterprising students.
F.l.t.r.: Claus und Gunnar Heinemann (Heinemann KG), Fabian
Heilemann
PRE-LAW SCHOOL
Secondary Students Simulate Int’l Court
O
n April 16, students of the Wilhelm Gymnasium of
Hamburg
heard a case before the International
Courts in the Moot Court of Bucerius Law School. 30
participants discussed the legality of the US invasion of
Iraq in March 2003. The activity was organized as part of
an international law lecture series led by Bucerius faculty
members Sascha Arnold, Andreas Kolb, Thilo Neumann
and Birga Tanneberg at the initiative of two teachers from
the high school. After carefully considering similar cases
and the applicable international legal precedents, the
students decided that the US acted contrary to international
law.
Students from Wilhelm Gymnasium at Bucerius’ Moot Court
CAMPUS FOR TAXATION
O
by Lena Deichmann, MLB Student
n February 26, 2009, the premiere of the “Campus
for Taxation at the WHU-Otto Beisheim School of
Management”. The one-day workshop on the question:
Would there really be a so-called “race to the bottom”?
Students, practitioners, academics and politicians discussed
the topic of if and how to stop the continued sinking
of the corporate tax rate.
STUDENT INTERNET PLATFORM „MEIN-
VEREIN.DE“ HONORED
by Maite Anna Baeurle, MLB Program Staff
The idea of MLB student and graduate of the first class
of the Bucerius Law School LL.B. program student
Max Fischer and his colleague Axel Komonitzek - to create
an internet platform for the exchange of club information
– was as simple as it has been successful. Since
2007, over 10,000 organisations involving virtually every
conceivable club interest have registered with

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In-house News for Friends of Bucerius Law School
May / June 2009 Page 8
www.meinverein.de, making it the largest and most active
internet site for club news in Germany. The striking
success of this “cyber bulletin board” was recognized on
April 30, 2009, as both founders were honored with the
prize “Deutschland – Land der Ideen” (Germany: Land of
Ideas). Their innovative project was praised as a German
initiative that, both within Germany and beyond, has been
seen as an example of the slogans “Quality Made in Germany”
and “Germany: Country of Poets and Thinkers.”
Present at the award ceremony were financial supporters
of meinverein.de, as well as guests of honor including
former tennis star Michael Stich and Mathias Nixdorf,
entrepreneur and son of the German computer pioneer
Heinz Nixdorf. We congratulate Max Fischer on his entrepreneurial
success, especially in light of his combining
his work with full-time study.
GERMAN PRESIDENT MEETS HIS
SCHOLARS IN THE MLB PROGRAM
by Collins Magalasi, MLB Student
The fifth of May 2009 will remain memorable to the
Bucerius/WHU Master of Law and Business Program
and the Horst Köhler Scholars in the MLB Program. On
this day, the three African MLB class of 2009 students
Yvonne Atieno (Kenya), Collins Magalasi (Malawi) and
Asheri Wimile (Tanzania), met the German President, Dr.
Horst Köhler, at the President´s official residence, Schloss
Bellevue, in Berlin.
President Köhler with Profs Larsen, Rudolf and MLB students
They were accompanied by the Co-Directors of the MLB
Program, Professor Clifford Larsen and Professor Dr. Markus
Rudolf, who thanked the German President for his
patronage. President Köhler supports the initiative “Partnership
with Africa” and the scholarships that the ZEIT-
Stiftung Ebelin und Gerd Bucerius makes available for
highly qualified students from Africa.
Each student had some minutes to share his or her experience
with the MLB Program. Yvonne Atieno underscored
that the Program transforms people and has prepared
her to compete successfully on the Kenyan labour
market. Collins Magalasi described how the scholarship
has laid the foundation for own personal technological
and political leadership in Malawi and Africa. Asheri
Wimile emphasized that the multifaceted approach of the
Program is unique and will improve his work in the East
African Community.
In response, the President stated that he supports the
scholarships because of his conviction that the solutions
to the challenges facing Africa have to emerge from Africans
themselves. In addition, he believes that educating
Africans in Germany is beneficial to Germans just as
much as it is to Africans. He himself has learned much
from his interactions with Africans and is convinced that
with the grooming of a new crop of young and talented
leaders, the future of Africa is bright. He commended the
BLS/WHU for providing the academic package that befits
his vision of a true German Partnership With Africa; in the
words of President Köhler, “the humanity of our world
will be measured against the fate of Africa."
Present at the meeting were also students and directors
of the Hertie School of Governance in Berlin, where two
other Horst Köhler Scholars are studying this academic
year.
MLB GOLF
Students “link” with Internship Supervisors
B irdies,
by Sam Winston, MLB Student
pars and bogies,” – these were the main topics
of discussion on the sunny afternoon of April 24

NEWSLETTER
In-house News for Friends of Bucerius Law School
May / June 2009 Page 9
at the Golf & Country Club Gut Bissenmohr where Bucerius
MLB students were heading out for a round of golf –
and networking – with their internship supervisors. The
team of Christoph Eschke from Ebner Stolz Mönning
Bachem & Partner, Ernst J. Hoffmann, Lars Luck from
Roland Berger Strategy Consultants and the MLB student
Conrad Poczka won the nine-hole “Texas scramble” with
a perfect par.
A few practice swings
RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT
MLB: Krupp Foundation to offer Scholarships
The Masters program “Law and Business” (MLB), offered
jointly by Bucerius Law School and WHU-Otto
Beisheim School of Management since Fall 2006, has a
new sponsor. The Alfried Krupp von Bohlen un Halbach
Foundation will contribute scholarships for deserving MLB
students starting in 2009.
The Masters Program, also supported by UBS Germany
AG and the Claussen Simon Foundation as part of a donor
collective for German academics, responded to the growing
demand for specialists in international economics
particularly focusing on the relevant knowledge of the
fields of law and economics and how they intersect.
Current Masters Program sponsor include: Allen & Overy
LLP, Hamburger Sparkasse as well as the Marga and Kurt
Möllgaard Foundation as part of a donor collective for
German academics. The ZEIT-Stiftung Ebelin and Gerd
Buerius also offers the “Horst Köhler Scholarship for African
Students”. This fall 2009 begins the fourth year of the
MLB program.
You can find additional information at our website:
www.bucerius.whu.edu.
Schomerus & Partner Give Moleskine Books
Bucerius Law School happily announces the addition
of our newest sponsor, Schomerus & Partner as of
April 2009. Schomerus offers accounting, tax and legal
advice and interdisciplinary consulting for mid-sized companies.
Schomerus, which is based in Hamburg, donated
Moleskine –blank leather-bound –books to the Law
School which will be used as gifts for graduates and
friends.
Editorial
Bucerius Law School
Hochschule für Rechtswissenschaft
Law School Management
Professor Dr. Dres. h.c. Karsten Schmidt (President)
Professor Dr. Jörn Axel Kämmerer (Vice President)
Dr. Hariolf Wenzler (CEO)
Jungiusstraße 6
20355 Hamburg
Translation: Jiffer Bourguignon
Editing and Contact:
Kasia Kwietniewska, Director
Clifford Chance International Office
kasia.kwietniewska@law-school.de