12 November 2019
De Brauw appoints two in competition practice
De Brauw Blackstone Westbroek reinforces its international competition practice with the appointment of Helen Gornall as partner. In addition, Maikel van Wissen re-joined De Brauw in October and has been appointed as the firm's resident partner in Brussels.
These decisions underpin the focus of De Brauw on further expanding the competition practice to meet the growing demand for high-end support in its international competition matters.
Geert Potjewijd, Managing Partner at De Brauw: "We are excited to announce the promotions of these skilled lawyers. Helen and Maikel have strong track records to support our international client base in complex matters that span beyond a single jurisdiction or expertise. It takes a certain type of lawyer to work alongside other experts, providing innovative and practical advice based on deep legal knowledge and sector-specific insights. We are thankful to welcome two such talents in their new positions."
Helen Gornall
Helen Gornall (42) joined De Brauw in September 2018. Over the past year, she has applied her 17 years of expertise in competition law in both private and corporate practice and has proven herself to be an invaluable member of the team.
Before joining De Brauw, Helen was Director Competition Law at AkzoNobel. Prior to her time in-house, she worked in private practice for two international law firms in London, Brussels and Amsterdam. She has a strong track record in complex merger control and abuse of dominance matters, and has a particular interest in digital regulation. She was admitted to the Law Society of England & Wales as a Solicitor in 2004 and is also registered as an advocaat with the Dutch Bar Association.
Maikel van Wissen
Maikel van Wissen (43) re-joined De Brauw in October 2019, where he started his career in 2005. He developed his skills as a multi-faceted competition lawyer while working for an international firm in Amsterdam and Brussels. Maikel brings with him significant experience in representing clients in both European and national proceedings and in a wide variety of industries and sectors, including FinTech, healthcare, media, food services and telecom. Over the years he has built up a strong track record on merger control matters, compliance issues, self-reporting and follow-on litigation.
Helen and Maikel are both part of De Brauw's integrated Amsterdam/Brussels competition practice, which works closely together with Best Friend firms Slaughter and May, Hengeler Mueller, Bredin Prat, BonelliErede and Uría Menéndez.

