Jean Schaffner
Partner
Luxembourg

Jean Schaffner
Partner
Luxembourg
Contact details
Jean heads the Luxembourg tax practice and has also previously been a member of Allen & Overy's global tax board, the firm-wide management body of our global Tax practice.
He has extensive experience in advising institutional investors, private equity houses and alternative investment funds on cross-border investments all over Europe and abroad, including advising on the structuring of international acquisitions via Luxembourg regulated and non-regulated investment vehicles. He advises various international investment banks on tax structured finance schemes (including securitisations) and has expertise in EU tax and state aid matters.
Jean has more than 25 years of experience as a tax lawyer and has written several books on Luxembourg and international taxation.
He heads the scientific board of the Luxembourg chapter of the International Fiscal Association (IFA) and is a member of the International Bar Association (IBA). He has served as a member of the Luxembourg Bar Council and currently chairs its fiscal commission.
Qualifications
Professional
Academic
Docteur en Droit (Ph.D), Luxembourg, 2012
HEC, Paris, 1991
DESS, International Taxation Law, University of Paris-Sud XI, 1991
Maîtrise, Political Science, University of Strasbourg, 1989
Maîtrise, Law, University of Strasbourg, 1989
Related articles
Experience highlights
Advising McDonald’s in the preparation of the response to the EU Commission investigation regarding tax and state aid which was filed by the Luxembourg Ministry of Finance.
Advising on cross-border re-domiciliation of an international metal group.
Advising the Luxembourg steelmaker Ternium on the acquisition of thyssenkrupp Slab International and its wholly-owned subsidiary CSA Siderúrgica do Atlântico in Brazil, a steel slab producer with a steelmaking facility located in the state of Rio de Janeiro, with an annual production capacity of 5 million tons of high-end steel slabs, from thyssenKrupp AG. thyssenKrupp AG will assign to Ternium a two-million-ton per year agreement to supply slabs to thyssenkrupp’s former Calvert re-rolling facility in Alabama, U.S..
Advising Saham Group, Africa's leading multiservices group, on the merger of Bertelsmann's and Saham Group's CRM businesses. The two companies will each hold 50 percent of the shares in the new company, which will employ almost 48,000 employees in 25 countries in Europe, Africa, Asia and the Americas. The new company will generate an annual turnover of around EUR1.2 bn.

Qualifications
Professional
Academic
Docteur en Droit (Ph.D), Luxembourg, 2012
HEC, Paris, 1991
DESS, International Taxation Law, University of Paris-Sud XI, 1991
Maîtrise, Political Science, University of Strasbourg, 1989
Maîtrise, Law, University of Strasbourg, 1989
Published work
- Jean Schaffner (Head of editorial board) « Livre jubilaire de l’International Fiscal Association Luxembourg » Legitech 2018
- Jean Schaffner (2013) "How fixed is a permanent establishment?", Luxembourg Kluwer, 2013
- Jean Schaffner (2010) "General Principles of Luxembourg Taxation", Anthemis
- Jean Schaffner (co-author) (2009) "Dossiers Internationaux Luxembourg", 8th edition, Francis Lefebvre
- Jean Schaffner 1999 (1st edition), 2005 (2nd edition), 2013 (3rd edition) "Droit fiscal international (Luxembourg and international tax law issues)", Promoculture
Recognition
The 'exceptional' Jean Schaffner is widely regarded as 'one of the best tax practitioners in Luxembourg.' Another client lauds him as 'the reference point in Luxembourg for international tax law'.
Chambers and Partners 2021
Jean Schaffner stands out in the market thanks to glowing feedback, with interviewees describing him as 'clearly a leading individual' and 'one of the strongest technical tax lawyers in Luxembourg'. A client hails him as 'one of the most impressive tax lawyers' in Luxembourg, further adding: 'His knowledge of tax is unprecedented'.
Chambers and Partners 2020