Vanessa is an associate in the Frankfurt office of Gibson Dunn. She is a member of the firm’s White Collar Defense and Investigations, International Trade and Litigation Practice Groups.
Vanessa advises multinational companies across various industries, including the defense sector, on complex internal investigations and compliance matters. She focuses on risk assessment and mitigation in the areas of export controls and sanctions, anti-corruption and anti-money laundering, as well as ESG-related reporting. Her work frequently involves matters with U.S. touchpoints, including issues relating to U.S. export controls (ITAR / EAR), sanctions, and related trade compliance requirements. Vanessa regularly advises clients on navigating the intersection of EU and U.S. regulatory frameworks and has experience in designing, implementing and evaluating global compliance management systems, particularly in the areas of export control. Her practice also covers representing clients in commercial, civil and administrative proceedings in Germany as well as in institutional and ad hoc arbitration proceedings.
Vanessa studied law at the University of Heidelberg and the University of Luxembourg with a special focus on private international law and international civil procedure law. After passing her First State Examination in 2017, she obtained her Master of Laws degree from Duke University School of Law in 2018 and her doctor’s degree from the University of Heidelberg in 2021.
Before completing her training for the Second State Examination at the Higher Regional Court of Koblenz in 2022, Vanessa was a research assistant and trainee in the Frankfurt and the Washington D.C. office of Gibson Dunn. She has been admitted as a German lawyer (Rechtsanwältin) since 2023.
In addition to her native German, Vanessa is fluent in English and speaks French.
She is a member of the German-American Lawyers Association (Deutsch-Amerikanische Juristen-Vereinigung e.V.) and the German-French Lawyers Association (Deutsch-Französische Juristenvereinigung e.V.).
Capabilities
- Litigation
- ESG: Risk, Litigation, and Reporting
- International Arbitration
- International Trade Advisory and Enforcement
- Sanctions and Export Enforcement
- Transnational Litigation
- White Collar Defense and Investigations
Credentials
Education:
- Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg - 2021 Dr. jur.
- Duke University - 2018 Master of Laws (LL.M.)
- Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg - 2017 Law Degree
Admissions:
- Germany - Rechtsanwältin