English-speaking employment lawyers for expats in Munich. We represent employees at the Arbeitsgericht München in dismissal, severance, equity-vesting, bonus, and reference-letter disputes — with deep practical experience in Munich’s distinctive mix of automotive HQ (BMW), reinsurance (Allianz, Munich Re), industrial tech (Siemens), and the largest US-tech footprint in Germany (Apple, Google, Microsoft, IBM).
The Arbeitsgericht München — Bavaria’s high-Streitwert court
The Arbeitsgericht München at Winzererstraße 106, 80797 München shares its building with the Landesarbeitsgericht München (since May 2014). The court runs approximately 32 active Kammern. Practical notes:
- Highest median Streitwert in Germany: Munich’s mix of executive employees at BMW, Allianz, Munich Re, Siemens, Linde and the US-tech multinationals produces an unusually high concentration of disputes involving 6-figure variable compensation. RSU/PSU vesting, deferred bonus, and severance-on-acquisition disputes are routine.
- Gütetermin scheduling: typically 6–8 weeks — longer than Bonn but shorter than Berlin.
- No formal specialist chambers: but individual chambers have de facto expertise in executive separations, equity disputes (especially post-Apple/Intel modem acquisition), and automotive R&D dismissals.
- Court culture: highly settlement-oriented; Munich judges are known for actively driving Vergleich outcomes at the Gütetermin, often with specific guidance on appropriate severance multiples.
International employers we typically represent against in Munich
Automotive and industrial tech
BMW Group HQ, Siemens AG (including Siemens Healthineers nearby), MAN, Linde plc, MTU Aero Engines, KraussMaffei. Munich is the German venue for high-value automotive-engineering dismissals — Patent inventor compensation (ArbnErfG), R&D restructuring layoffs, and executive separations following platform changes (combustion-engine wind-down).
Insurance and reinsurance
Allianz SE (group HQ), Munich Re (the world’s largest reinsurer), ERGO Group, MunichRe specialty subsidiaries. These employers tend toward longer tenures and structured severance frameworks — but disputes are common at the executive level, particularly around clawback of deferred bonus and post-acquisition integration layoffs.
US tech multinationals (the largest concentration in Germany)
Apple (Munich is Apple’s largest engineering site outside the US after acquiring Intel’s modem unit — multi-thousand-engineer R&D campus), Google Germany (engineering campus expanded through 2024–25), Microsoft Deutschland (German HQ in Munich), Amazon (AWS + Alexa devices), IBM Deutschland, Oracle, Cisco, NVIDIA Munich office, Salesforce. Equity vesting disputes here are particularly distinctive: US-style RSU/PSU grant agreements often clash with German validity standards under § 307 BGB.
Big-4, consulting, and other
McKinsey Munich, BCG Munich, Bain Munich, all Big-4 audit firms, Philip Morris International HQ. Up-or-out culture produces a steady flow of senior-associate and principal severance disputes.
Munich’s distinctive case mix
Compared to other German cities, our Munich practice sees disproportionately high volumes of:
- Executive equity disputes: RSU/PSU clawback at Apple, Google, Microsoft following termination — the standard US Stock Plan provisions often fail § 307 BGB transparency review, especially „bad leaver” and post-termination forfeiture clauses.
- Acquisition-integration layoffs: the Apple-Intel modem-unit acquisition produced a multi-year pipeline of disputes; smaller acquisitions (Microsoft-Nuance, Cisco-AppDynamics, etc.) generate similar patterns.
- Insurance/reinsurance executive separations: Allianz, Munich Re — typically 5+ years tenure, six-figure variable, deferred bonus structures.
- Automotive R&D restructuring: BMW’s iX and Neue Klasse pivots have produced ICE-engineering layoffs; we represent engineers across all seniority levels.
- Patent-inventor compensation: under the Arbeitnehmererfindergesetz, engineers at Siemens, BMW and the tech multinationals often have substantial unpaid invention compensation claims that surface during termination negotiations.
Travelling to Munich from our Bonn office
ICE connections from Köln/Bonn to München Hbf typically run 4h 30min–4h 45min via Frankfurt or Mannheim/Stuttgart. From München Hbf, the Arbeitsgericht is a 10-minute U2 ride (U2 Hohenzollernplatz → Theresienstraße) or 15-minute taxi. For day trips we leave Bonn early morning and return same evening. Most case stages don’t require physical attendance — electronic filings via beA, video Gütetermin attendance where the court permits, written submissions throughout.
When local Munich representation matters
For ordinary dismissal and severance cases, physical proximity to Munich is not the decisive criterion — specialisation and English-language ability are. We routinely settle Munich cases at the Gütetermin from our Bonn office. Where local Munich coordination is advantageous (multi-day Kammertermin hearings, large multi-party severance negotiations at BMW/Siemens), we coordinate with on-site Munich counsel without separate cost to the client.
Worked example: an Apple Munich engineer’s RSU dispute
A senior engineer recruited from the US to Apple Munich receives notice of termination after 3 years. The standard Apple severance offer covers garden leave for the notice period and a modest cash component. Open issue: 4 years of unvested RSUs (originally granted on US join, partially carried over on intercompany transfer) — Apple’s standard policy forfeits unvested RSUs on termination.
We file Kündigungsschutzklage at the Arbeitsgericht München within the 21-day deadline and parallel a Stufenklage on the RSU value. Legal argument: the RSU forfeiture clause is invalid under § 307 BGB for lack of transparency and unreasonable disadvantage; on dismissal-without-cause, vested-but-uncalculated RSUs must be paid in cash equivalent. Munich settlement at Gütetermin: severance equivalent to 1.0 monthly salary per year of service plus 60% of the unvested RSU value (US$ amount approximately €280,000), plus Grade-1 reference. Total economic value of the negotiated outcome: ~€430,000.
Frequently asked questions
I have RSUs/stock options — are they recoverable on dismissal?
Often yes, in part. The default „forfeiture on termination” rule in US-style equity plans frequently fails German validity review (§ 307 BGB) for the unvested portion. Vested-but-unsettled equity is almost always recoverable in cash equivalent. We routinely include equity value in Munich severance negotiations.
My contract is in English and references US law — is that enforceable?
The substantive German labor protections (KSchG, BUrlG, MuSchG) apply regardless of contract choice of law (Article 8 Rome I Regulation). English-language drafting is enforceable, but US-specific concepts (e.g. „at-will employment”, California-style non-competes) do not transplant cleanly.
Munich has the highest cost of living in Germany. Does that affect severance?
Indirectly. Munich’s higher gross salaries mean higher Streitwert and therefore higher RVG-based legal-fee budgets. Severance multiples are not formally Munich-specific but practical negotiation often yields higher absolute amounts.
What about non-compete clauses?
German non-competes under §§ 74 ff. HGB require a Karenzentschädigung (compensation) of at least 50% of last salary for the prohibition period. Many US-imported non-competes lack this and are unenforceable. We routinely challenge them.
I work for a US tech company but my contract was signed with the German entity. Whose law applies?
German labor law for the substantive protections. US law may govern the equity-plan terms but only insofar as it doesn’t override German consumer-protection (§ 307 BGB) and mandatory provisions.
Find us and the court
The Arbeitsgericht München location and our office contact details: