Dr. Ralf Kohlhepp

Education

Dr. Kohlhepp studied law at the University of Freiburg. He trained at law firms in Frankfurt, Berlin and Brussels as well as at the German Chamber of Commercial Matters and the German internal revenue department. He wrote his doctoral dissertation under Professor Johanna Hey at Heinrich-Heine-University in Dusseldorf. He was appointed as a specialist for tax law by the German Bar Association in 2007.

Professional Memberships

• German-American Lawyers Association (DAJV)
• German Society of Tax Lawyers (Deutsche Steuerjuristische Gesellschaft e.V.)
• Consortium of Tax Lawyers (Arbeitsgemeinschaft der Fachanwälte für Steuerrecht e.V.)

Career

Dr. Kohlhepp worked at a CPA firm in Boston, Massachusetts. Following his admittance to the German bar in 2004, he became a partner in an accounting and legal firm near Stuttgart. He served for a number of years as a tax accountant and authorized signatory at accountancy firm PricewaterhouseCoopers AG in Hamburg. He joined WEIDMANN as an attorney and partner in 2008 and added his function of tax accountant / German CPA in 2010.

Areas of Expertise

As a certified tax lawyer and accountant, Dr. Kohlhepp’s area of expertise is commercial and tax law. Dr. Kohlhepp has advised entrepreneurs and companies as well as legal persons governed by public law for many years on tax-related issues. A focus of his work are nonprofit organizations. He advises clients on taxation and corporate law and assists them with annual financial statements and tax compliance.

Dr. Kohlhepp serves as an expert witness in financial court proceedings and legal disputes between business partners.

He advises foreign businesses particularly American and Canadian companies that are setting up or operating branch offices in Germany on tax-related and legal issues. He has worked with a large number of clients from the New England states and California as well as Canada.