GSJ advocaten joins Holla and TLT in strategic alliance

Belgian law firm GSJ advocaten has joined TLT and Netherlands law firm Holla in a strategic alliance to deliver international cross border services for clients.

GSJ has significant expertise in common with both TLT and Holla across a number of sectors including real estate, financial services, retail and the public sector. The alliance will enable closer collaboration between the firms on client service, knowledge sharing and innovation to ensure a consistently high-quality and seamless service for the firms’ respective clients.

More broadly, Belgium’s status as a central hub for business and its position at the heart of the EU will be of increasing importance for clients operating in Europe. The new strategic partnership with GSJ therefore brings significant benefits for organisations with complex, cross-jurisdictional needs.

Holla and TLT announced their strategic alliance in June 2020 – the first for both firms. Looking ahead, all firms are committed to accelerating the development of similar strategic partnerships with like-minded firms across Europe, India and the US.

GSJ is a full-service law firm founded in 1985 and located in Antwerp, Belgium. It is a leading law firm on the domestic market. The firm achieved an 11 per cent rise in turnover in 2020. Its team of 18 partners and 58 lawyers specialise in sectors such as banking and insurance, real estate, retail, industry, public sector, education and health care.

Holla is a growing Dutch law firm with over 125 people with offices in Utrecht, s-Hertogenbosch and Eindhoven, It offers legal advice to medium-sized and large businesses and has a strong track record in the public sector. Their core tenets are their personal approach to clients and their strong focus on clients’ business success.

Chris Owen, head of international at UK law firm TLT, commented:

“We have significant crossovers and a shared focus on key sectors such as financial services, retail, and real estate. Given Belgium’s role as a critical commercial jurisdiction at the heart of the EU political infrastructure, it is of growing strategic importance to many clients operating across the EU and around the world. Alongside Holla in the Netherlands, this will ensure that all three firms can support clients’ growing international needs on a seamless basis and will be well-placed to support on their complex, cross-jurisdictional needs.”

John Wood, managing partner at TLT, said:

“Despite the challenges of the pandemic our ambitions for the future remain unchecked, and a critical part of that is developing further how we respond to client need for support internationally. This new strategic partnership with GSJ, alongside our alliance with Holla, is an important step in building our European offering and we will continue to progress with similar strategic partnerships across Europe, India and the US in the months ahead.”

Bart Goossens, managing partner of GSJ, added:

“We have forged this alliance to support clients focused on and operating in the Belgian and UK markets. To that end, the alliance between GSJ and TLT represents a significant opportunity for both of our firms in terms of client service, knowledge sharing and innovation, among other areas. Working alongside both TLT and Holla in the Netherlands, a firm we have known well and collaborated with for many years, we will be able to support internationally focused clients better than ever before.”

Robert Gebel, managing partner at Holla Advocaten, said:

“Holla’s recent growth has seen us successfully shift our focus to medium-sized and large businesses and the public sector. The number of legal matters we work on that have international aspects has therefore grown significantly. The strategic alliance with TLT has accelerated this process. Now GSJ advocaten is joining the alliance, we can further increase and strengthen our position in the international market. The strategic alliance with TLT and GSJ will allow us to offer clients with cross-border legal issues an even higher quality of service. “