Alexander Cappel

Partner
Norton Rose Fulbright LLP

Alexander Cappel

Dr Alexander Cappel is a white-collar crime and compliance lawyer based in Frankfurt/Main.

Alexander advises both national and international companies on all issues concerning white-collar crime and investigations, administrative and legal proceedings, as well as compliance and anti-fraud measures. A primary focus of Alexander's work is advising on German and international regulations in the areas of export control and financial sanctions, anti-corruption, and money laundering prevention.

Alexander has advised and defended numerous banks and industrial companies with regard to investigations and other requests for information by German authorities, including inter alia various public prosecution departments, the German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin), and main customs offices. Furthermore, he has a wide-range of experience in advising on investigations conducted by foreign bodies such as US authorities, including inter alia the US Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and the Department of Justice (DoJ). Alexander has successfully represented a large number of banks and industrial companies in this regard.

Alexander has a wealth of experience in the organization and handling of internal investigations. He has advised on various large internal investigations, the subject of which were, in particular, allegations of German and foreign investigation authorities stating that companies and their employees had breached anti-corruption policies and/or financial sanctions. Alexander does not only advise the respective companies as part of internal investigations, but also regularly represents managing directors and employees as witness counsel.

Moreover, Alexander advised on numerous M&A transactions concerning compliance issues as well as the subsequent implementation of compliance management systems.

Prior to joining us in 2018, Alexander worked with an international law firm in Frankfurt/Main, focusing on the areas of white-collar crime and regulatory and compliance.

Professional experience

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Education

Johann Wolfgang Goethe University, Frankfurt/Main

Doctoral degree, German and European white-collar crime, Université du Luxembourg

Admissions

Rechtsanwalt

Representative experience

Advising:

A multinational technology company – on an internal investigation regarding allegations of tax fraud and negotiations with German tax authorities
A multinational aviation company – in connection with enforcement proceedings by the German Federal Police regarding alleged violations against passenger data laws
A major German bank – in connection with investigations by the US authorities regarding alleged offences relating to US sanctions against Iran
A multinational aerospace and defence corporation – on an internal investigation regarding allegations of bribery
A major German industrial company – in connection with investigations of a US monitor regarding allegations of bribery in Italy
A major German industrial company – in connection with a compliance risk assessment regarding anti-money laundering
A major German industrial company – on potential risks regarding anti-money laundering laws in connection with the acquisition of a wind-farm
A Chinese healthcare company – in connection with its stock-exchange listing and a related compliance risk assessment in this regard, with a particular focus on sanctions compliance
A major German industrial company – (OCM) in connection with a compliance risk assessment regarding anti-money laundering
Various major German banks and industrial companies – in relation to EU and US sanctions and export controls; export controls and financial sanctions relating to Iran, Syria and Russia; German and EU anti-boycott regulations; and investigations by the German customs and prosecution authorities regarding alleged violations of sanctions and export control provisions.

Rankings and recognitions

Top lawyer, Compliance in Germany, WirtschaftsWoche, 2022-2023
Leading lawyer, Compliance and Top 100 lawyer, total recommendations, Kanzleimonitor, 2024-2025
(published by the German Institute for Legal Departments and Corporate Lawyers (diruj)).
Often recommended in the JUVE ranking 2022/2023 as lawyer for Compliance and Investigations ("very pleasant collaboration, very accomplished", "good strategist, excellent network, very collegial", "very experienced", "creative & confident, quick to react")

Publications

Alexander regularly publishes in law journals and also the business press.

He gives lectures on various compliance issues and is a visiting lecturer at different institutions of higher education (inter alia Université du Luxembourg, Frankfurt School of Management and Finance).

Memberships and activities