Clients describe Mr. Zapf as “solution-oriented, pragmatic” with a “good responsiveness and cost efficiency” (Legal 500, 2025) and as “very reliable and pleasant to deal with” (Chambers, 2025) with the “ability to always think his way into the client's needs” (Legal 500, 2025). Clients highlight that he “has extensive experience in the context of internal investigations” (Legal 500, 2025). Peers noted that he is “specialist for cross-border investigations”, “highly competent, collegial”, “strategically strong” (JUVE Handbook 2024/2025) and “highly experienced in providing criminal law advice to corporations” (JUVE Handbook 2025/2026).
Biography
Dr. Daniel Zapf is a partner in our Global White Collar/Investigations Practice Group and heads the White Collar team in Germany.
Mr. Zapf is specialized in resolving business conflicts and assists corporates, private equity firms, financial institutions, digital service providers and senior executives on a broad spectrum of white-collar, compliance and anti-financial crime matters. These include anti-bribery and corruption, fraud, embezzlement, anti-money laundering, sanctions, antitrust, capital market laws, tax investigations, environmental law violations, GDPR violations and product compliance matters. He represents and defends clients in governmental investigations, law enforcement proceedings and supervisory audits, as well as in court proceedings and coordinates litigations proceedings, e.g., in case of damage claims.
Mr. Zapf conducts high-stake corporate internal investigations, e.g., following sensitive whistleblowing reports or short-selling attacks, as well as in connection with data breaches, alleged ESG compliance violations and/or workplace misconduct, both nationally and internationally.
He has particular experience in preventive risk mitigation counselling, including the design and implementation of compliance programs and anti-money laundering systems, as well as respective health checks. Furthermore, he frequently advises clients on compliance-focused due diligence in the context of M&A transactions.
Mr. Zapf regularly publishes articles in professional journals, commentaries and books on white-collar, investigations and compliance topics.
Best Lawyer in Corporate Governance and Compliance, as well as Criminal Defense Handelsblatt/Best Lawyers 2025/2026
Germany Investigations 2025, Lexology (former Who's Who Legal)
Up and Coming, Compliance, Chambers Germany 2025
Top Lawyer for Compliance, WirtschaftsWoche 2025
Recommended for compliance, internal investigations and white-collar crime: advice to corporations
Legal 500 Germany
'Criminal Responsibility', (together with Jürgen Taschke), in: Tödtmann/Winstel (eds.), The Executive Board - Practical Handbook for AG and SE, 4th edition 2025, p. 757-848
Commentary on Art. 10 GDPR (Processing of personal data relating to criminal convictions and offences), in: Taeger/Gabel (eds.), DSGVO/BDSG/TDDDG, 5th edition 2025
Commentary on Secs. 346 to 349 UmwG (Section 7 – Criminal Provisions), (together with Jürgen Taschke), in: Semler/Stengel/Leonard (eds.), Transformation Act (Umwandlungsgesetz), 4th edition 2025
'The Art of Tough Negotiations – Between Skill and Criminal Liability ', (together with Suheib Qaderi), in: NZWiSt 2025, p. 154-161
'Compliance in the healthcare sector', (together with Jürgen Taschke), in Saliger/Tsambikkis (eds.), Criminal law of the medical industry, 2022, p. 736-755'
'Criminal responsibility', (together with Jürgen Taschke), in Kubis/Tödtmann (eds.), Osperational manual for boards members, 3rd edition 2022, p.541-626
'Compliance in the healthcare sector', (together with Jürgen Taschke), in: Saliger/Tsambikakis (eds.), Criminal law of the medical industry, 2022, p. 736-755'Criminal responsibility', (together with Jürgen Taschke), in: Kubis/Tödtmann (eds.), Operational manual for board members, 3rd edition 2022, p. 541-626
'Dealing with non-specific whistleblower reports', in: CB 2021, p. 467-471
'Defense against GDPR fines (part 1 and 2)', (together with Jan Spittka and Philipp Adelberg), in: CB 2021, p. 96-101, 149-154.
'Fundamentals of Compliance', (together with Jürgen Taschke), in: Parigger, Helm, Stevens-Bartol (eds.), Labor and social criminal law, 1st edition 2021, p. 46-69.
'(Criminal) Compliance in the pharmaceutical sector', (together with Jürgen Taschke), in: Rotsch (ed.), Criminal Compliance – Status quo and Status futurus, 2020, p. 403-430
Commentation on sec. 94 - 101 EnWG (section 5 - sanctions, sanctioning proceedings), in: Rosin/Gentzsch (eds.), Praxiskommentar zum EnWG, status as of December 2019
'On the development of limitation periods in corruption cases in the jurisprudence', in: NZWiSt 2018, p. 54-58
'Sections 299a, 299b German Criminal Code - Draft. Consequences for the cooperation between pharmaceutical companies and medical device manufacturers with physicians in private practice', (together with Jürgen Taschke), in: medstra 2015, p. 332-337
Administrative fines (Ordnungsstrafen), Contributions to poenology, 2015
'Considerations for an ethics of internal investigations', (together with Jürgen Taschke), in: Kempf/Lüderssen/Volk (eds.), Corporate culture and corporate crime, 2014, p. 181-199
