• Studied social sciences in Hanover from 1989 - 1996
• Studied law in Hanover from 1990 - 1995
• Legal clerkship at the OLG Celle (1995 - until 1997)
• Admission to the bar 1998
• Self-employed lawyer in Celle until 2010 (specialising in family and medical law)
• Partner at the law firm Lehmann und Partner (Hanover) from 2010 to 2016
• 2016 - 2022 artvocati (family law, Hanover)
• 2019 - 2024 Head of the Family Law Department at Rose & Partner (Hamburg)

Research / Science

• Staff member at the chair of Prof Dr Kühne (Leibniz University Hannover)
• Scholarship holder of the VW Foundation for impact research on court decisions
• Research activity on international demands for reform of family law, Leibniz University Hannover, Chair of Prof Dr Meder (2010 - 2013)
• Lecturer at the ZEW of Leibniz University Hannover (2015 - 2019)
• Research project on English family and maintenance law (DFG) from 2009 - until 2013
• Doctorate in family law, child maintenance in England, in 2013
• Lecturer at the University of Münster, Institute for German and International Family Law (since 2023)

Specialist courses / Specialist lawyers

• Specialised course in mediation (2003)
• Specialist lawyer for family law (since 2006)
• Specialist lawyer course in tax law (2008)
• Specialist lawyer for medical law (since 2011)

Memberships

• Legislative Committee on Family Law in the DAV
• German Family Court Conference e.V.
• Working group on family law in the German Bar Association
• Medical Law Working Group of the German Bar Association
• Interest group of employers, self-employed and entrepreneurs e.V.
• Hanover Lawyers' and Notaries' Association
• Honorary membership Glücksmomente e.V.

Publications

Monographs, contributions

• The recognition of surrogacy carried out abroad, in Budzikiewicz/ Heiderhoff/ Klinkhammer/ Niethammer-Jürgens (eds.), Ausländische Elternschaften (in preparation for autumn 2024)
• Kischkel/Ostholdt (ed.), Handkommentar Familienrecht, new edition of: §§ 1589-1590, before §§ 1591-1599 BGB, §§ 1591-1599 BGB, §§ 1600-1600d BGB (in preparation for autumn 2024)
• Rieck/Lettmaier, Foreign Family Law, new commentary on the Florida and California sections (in preparation for autumn 2024)
• Rieck/Lettmaier, Ausländisches Familienrecht, 23rd EL (2023), Verlag C.H.Beck, Munich (country section England and Wales, completely revised)
• Modern parenthood - challenges for a modern parentage law, special edition Family Law Compact 2022
• The best interests of the child in law - Establishment, organisation and loss of parental custody, Göttingen 2018
• Geschichtliche Entwicklung des Unterhaltsrechts in England, in: Stephan Meder; Christoph Eric Mecke (eds.), Reformforderungen zum Familienrecht International, Vol. 1, Cologne, Weimar, Vienna 2015, p. 408 ff.
• Child maintenance in England - From the Poor Relief Act 1598 to the Child Support Act 1991, Cologne, Weimar, Vienna 2014

Essays

• Becoming a parent isn't difficult, is it? Part 4, FK (in preparation for June/July 2024)
• Becoming a parent isn't difficult, is it? Part 3, FK (in preparation for May/June 2024)
• Three parents and one child, in FK 2024 (in preparation for May 2024)
• Will there be a second female parent position? FK 2024, 87
• Becoming parents isn't difficult, is it? FK (Family Law Compact) 2024, 69
• The social-familial relationship as a means of preventing paternity?, in NZFam 2023, 817
• European parenthood - is that possible? in Ad Legendum 2023, 173
• Cross-border custody conflicts, in NJW-aktuell 28/2023, 12
• European parenthood - Is harmonisation possible? in NZFam 2023, 632
• The Embryo Protection Act of 1990 - mission accomplished?, in NZFam 2022, 870
• Modern parenthood, FK (Family Law Compact), Issue 1 /2022
• Voluntary parenthood, NZFam 2021, 853
• Your child, my child, our child, FK (Family Law Compact) 1/2021, 120
• Parentage law 2.0? NZFam 2020, 985
• The parentage of surrogate mothers' children, in NZFam 2020, 457
• Does The German Judiciary Truly Consider A Child's Best Interest? in: Lawyer Monthly, July 2019
• The Welfare of Children in Germany's Legal System, Lawyer Monthly Magazine, January 2018, p. 75
• Getting through the hardship of divorce, in: Lawyer Monthly Magazine, November 2017, p. 69
• New laws strengthen hospice and palliative care, in: pflegen: palliativ, issue 29/2016, p. 28 ff.
• Assisted suicide & Hospice and Palliative Care Act - What should change?, in: pflegen: palliativ, Issue 28/2015, p. 40 ff.
• Relatives and friends - who is allowed to know what?, in: pflegen: palliativ, Issue 2/2011, p. 23 ff.
• Trends in the judicial approach to protection and assistance, in: ZRP 1999, pp. 502 - 507 (with Prof. Dr H. A Hesse et al.)

Remarks

• Father, mother, father, child, beck-aktuell v. 10.04.2024
• A bold plan, NJW-aktuell 9/2024, p. 15
• Stepchild adoption not only serves the best interests of the child, but is also necessary, comment on OLG Frankfurt/M. Decision of 12 December 2023, 2 UF 33/23, FK 2024, 43
• Entry of the intended parents in the main entry of the register of births on the basis of a postnatal foreign parentage decision, comment on Cologne Local Court, decision of 3 January 2024, Ref. 378 III 175/23, NZFam 2024, 378
• Stepchild adoption in the case of surrogacy by the non-biological intended mother, comment on OLG Frankfurt/M. Decision of 12 December 2023, 2 UF 33/23, NZFam 2024, 306
• GenDG stands in the way of obtaining a parentage report abroad, comment on OLG Celle, decision of 30 January 2023, Ref. 21 UF 124/20, FK 2024, 23
• Stepchild adoption proceedings after surrogacy, comment on Munich District Court, decision of 5 October 2023, case no. 52721 F 1965/22, NZFam 2024, 40
• No exclusion of representation of civil partners for the recognition of parenthood in the context of a birth by a surrogate mother, comment on OLG Munich, decision V. 01.08.2023, Ref. 16 UF 614/23e, NZFam 2023, 1095
• No implied choice of law when using a general Islamic model marriage contract | Note on OLG Celle of 14 December 2022 - 15 UF 137/21 | jurisPR-FamR 20/2023 Note 3
• Recognition of a foreign parentage decision without genetic parentage from the intended parents, comment on AG Sinsheim, decision of 15 May 2023, 20 F 278/22, BeckRS 2023, 10061, in NZFam 2023, 856
• No extraordinary expenses for expenses in connection with a surrogate maternity | Note on BFH of 10 August 2023 - VI R 29/21 | jurisPR-MedizinR 10/2023 Note 1
• No bringing forward of the assessment date for a social-familial relationship in paternity challenges, comment on OLG Naumburg, decision of 28 July 2021 (Ref. 8 UF 95/21), in NZFam 2023, 664
• Necessity of a formative guideline of the JCC for entitlement to benefits in kind pursuant to Section 27a (4) SGB V even in the event of a change in the law | Note on LSG Celle-Bremen of 14 October 2022 - L 16 KR 256/21 | jurisPR-MedizinR 6/2023 Note 2
• Ministerial decision not a decision within the meaning of Section 108 FamFG, comment on OLG Celle, decision of 23 January 2023 (Ref. 21 UF 171/19), in FK 2023, 130
• Transfer of the birth certificate of a child with same-sex parents to the civil status register of another Member State, comment on ECJ v. 24/06/2022 - C-2/21 | in: jurisPR-FamR 25/2022 note 1
• Reimbursement claim for artificial insemination in other EU countries only for measures permitted by the German Embryo Protection Act, comment on LSG Chemnitz, judgement of 09.03.2022 (L 1 KR 247/16), in jurisPR MedizinR 9/22, note 4
• Deductibility of expenses for artificial insemination as an extraordinary burden within the meaning of Section 33 EstG, comment on FG Hannover, Urt. v. 14.12.2021 (6 K 20/21), in jurisPR MedizinR 9/22, note 5
• Comment on Munich Social Court, court order of 26 January 2022 (S 7 KR 242/21), in MedR 2022, 628
• No claim for reimbursement for artificial insemination in the event of violation of the ESchG, in jurisPR MedizinR 4/22, note 4
• Partial immorality of a marriage contract, core area doctrine and functional equivalence, comment on OLG Celle v. 09.03.2021 - 17 UF 172/20, jurisPR-MedizinR 9/2021 note 3
• Same-sex co-mother is not a father, in FK (Familienrecht Kompakt) 7/2021, 120
• Restriction of the second parental position in § 1592 No. 1 BGB to husbands unconstitutional, comment on OLG Celle of 24 March 2021 - 21 UF 146/20, in jurisPR-FamR 15/2021 note 8
• Fundamental requirement for approval by ethics committee for PGD of trophectoderm cells - comment on: BVerwG v 02.12.2020 - 3 C 6/19 - jurisPR-MedizinR 5/2021
• Profession-specific risks do not stand in the way of an attribution of liability - comment on: BGH of 8 December 2020 - VI ZR 19/20 - jurisPR-MedizinR 3/2021 note 1
• No temporary injunction pursuant to Section 32 (1) BVerfGG in custody-related eA proceedings prior to a decision after an oral hearing - comment on: BVerwG of 29 December 2020 - 1 BvR 2652/20 | jurisPR-MedizinR 2/2021 Note 3
• Offer recommendations do not justify compulsory treatment, in juris-PR MedR 6/2020, note 1
• Justification of interference with fundamental rights only by established facts relevant to the decision, in juris-PR MedR 8/2020, Note 1
• No loss of personality increasing compensation for pain and suffering without independent disease value in the case of birth injuries, in: juris-PR MedR 10/2020, Note 3
• Parentless parenthood permissible, in: jurisPR-FamR 11/2020, Note 4
• Maintenance claim of the mother of an illegitimate child against the father's heirs, in: juris-PR FamR 4/2020, Note 4
• Courts must consider the content of the parties' submissions, in: juris-PR MedR 3/2020, Note 5
• Status-neutral review of foreign paternity determinations possible in Germany, in: juris-PR FamR 23/2019, Note 5
• No recognisability of foreign birth certificates and register entries that identify intended parents as parents on the occasion of surrogacy, in: juris-PR FamR 16/2019, note 3
• Residence status: Ordinary residence of a child born in Ukraine to a surrogate mother and brought to Germany by the intended parents, in: juris-PR FamR 15/2019, note 3
• State-specific hospital planning can only be reviewed under federal law within the framework of Section 162 SGG or in the event of a violation of the prohibition of arbitrariness, in: juris-PR MedR 7/2019, Note 2
• Exclusion of stepchild adoption in non-marital unions unconstitutional, in: juris-PR FamR 14/2019, note 1
• No simultaneous participation in general practitioner and specialist care, in: juris-PR MedR 6/2019, Note 1
• In principle, the need to continue living with suffering is not eligible for compensation, in: juris-PR FamR 12/2019, note 1
• Hygiene deficiencies in hospital rooms as a fully controllable risk, in: juris PraxisReport Medizinrecht 4/2019, Note 1
• Entitlement to benefits in kind due to fictitious authorisation pursuant to Section 13 (3a) sentence 6 SGB V, in: juris PraxisReport Medizinrecht 2/2019, Note 1
• Local jurisdiction of the youth welfare organisation if the parents have different residences and personal care is divided between them, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 2/2019, Note 3
• No entry of the wife as "additional mother" in the birth register, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 24/2018, Note 3
• No restriction to domestic service providers in the case of private self-procurement of a fictitiously authorised service pursuant to Section 13 (3a) SGB V, in: juris PraxisReport Medizinrecht 10/2018, Note 1
• Calculation and limitation of equalisation claims in the case of other provisions within the meaning of Section 426 (1) BGB, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 20/2018, Note 6
• Judge's reservation for the fixation of mentally ill inpatients, in: juris PraxisReport Medizinrecht 7/2018, Note 1
• Disagreement between parents on how to deal with gender dysphoric behaviour and the child's expressed wishes, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 7/2018, Note 6
• Liability of the designated body for culpable breaches of duty, comment on BGH judgement v. 22 June 2017 - VII ZR 36/14, in: juris PraxisReport Medizinrecht 10/2017, Note 1
• Violation of parental rights by removal of custody without sufficient determination of a risk to the child's welfare, comment on BVerfG decision of 13 July 2017 - 1 BvR 1202/1, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 20/2017, note 2
• Permissible institute authorisation for obstetric hospital department, comment on BSG, judgement of 25.01.2017, B 6 KA 11/16 R, in: juris PraxisReport Medizinrecht 9/2017, note 1
• Burden of presentation and proof in maintenance modification proceedings, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 10/2017
• Requirements and judicial review obligations for expert opinions in guardianship matters, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 9/2017
• Considerability of another lis pendens also in proceedings in EU non-member states, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 8/2017
• Veterinarian liable for risky examination of a foal, in: juris PraxisReport Medizinrecht 3/2017
• The organisation of holiday visits is fundamentally a matter of access rights, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 23/2016
• Requirements for the specificity of living wills, in: juris PraxisReport Family and Inheritance Law 21/2016
• BAG surcharge for members in the referral quarter, in: juris PraxisReport Medizinrecht 7/2016
• Requirements for the factual clarification by the court in committal orders under the PsychKG, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 25/2015
• Grossly unreasonable partial exclusion of pension equalisation due to the exercise of a lump-sum option, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 19/2015
• No claims for compensation against parents of former partner for investments in their property, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 16/2015
• Serious impairment of the best interests of the child within the meaning of Art. 13 para. 1 lit. b) in conjunction with Art. 17 HCCA. Art. 17 HCCA in the event of a stay order by the court of the state of origin, in: juris PraxisReport Family and Inheritance Law 14/2015
• Inpatient liposuction does not meet the quality and cost-effectiveness criteria of Section 2 (1) sentence 3 SGB V, in: juris PraxisReport Medizinrecht 6/2015
• Legality of the graduation regulation in the Brandenburg fee distribution agreement, in: juris PraxisReport Medizinrecht 5/2015
• Duration and timing of other activities within the meaning of Section 20 (1) sentence 1 Ärzte-ZV n.F., in juris PraxisReport Medizinrecht 3/2015
• Duty and scope of review of expert opinions, in: juris PraxisReport Family and Inheritance Law 7/2015
• Authorisation requirements for coercive medical measures, in: juris PraxisReport Medizinrecht 10/2014
• Unconstitutionality of Section 32a (2) sentence 1 of the VBL statutes, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 5/2014
• Requirements for expert opinions in cases of hospitalisation and compulsory medical treatment, in: juris PraxisReport Medizinrecht 2/2014
• No inclusion of benefits in kind in pension equalisation, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 24/2013
• Costs of interference contrary to fundamental rights (here: secret GPS surveillance) not reimbursable, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 22/2013
• Educational maintenance after a three-year orientation phase, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 18/2013
• Requirements for an advertising ban on "before and after pictures" pursuant to Section 11 (1) HWG (new version), in: juris PraxisReport Medizinrecht 8/2013
• Adjustment pursuant to §§ 33, 34 VersAusglG not a compound decision, in: juris PraxisReport Medizinrecht 16/2013
• Laboratory services not direct treatment methods, in : juris PraxisReport Medizinrecht 6/2013
• Use of pocket money for parental maintenance, juris PraxisReport Family and Inheritance Law 9/2013
• Order of suspensive effect in the case of recovery notices based on grossly negligent incorrect fee statements, in: juris PraxisReport Medizinrecht 3/2013
• Prerequisites for cancellation of a priority notice of conveyance in the case of participation by heirs, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 9/2012
• Calculation of the case value reduction in accordance with section 7.5 HVV, in: juris PraxisReport Medizinrecht 3/2012
• Restrictions on the licence to practise lead to the withdrawal of participation in contract medical care, juris PraxisReport Medizinrecht 2/2012
• Restrictions on the licence to practise lead to withdrawal of participation in SHI-accredited medical care, in: juris PraxisReport Medizinrecht 2/2012
• No loss of entitlement to training maintenance if the start of training is delayed due to pregnancy and three years of childcare, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 24/2011
• Nullity of private remuneration agreements in guardianship law, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 17/2011
• Inequity of a continuing maintenance claim, in: jurisPraxisReport Family and Inheritance Law 13/2011
• Duty of the trial judge to clarify when determining the validity of a private will consisting of several individual sheets, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 11/2011
• Violation of the prohibition of allocation against payment in the case of company shareholdings ("Hearing aid supply II"), in: juris PraxisReport Medizinrecht 4/2011
• Liability of heirs for breaches of the testator's duty to provide information, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 4/2011
• Lapsing guarantee function of the collective declaration even in the case of recognisable errors in the billing software, in: juris PraxisReport Medizinrecht 2/2011
• Application of the BGB to inheritance law relationships of non-marital descendants after reunification, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 12/2010
• Requirements for the reimbursement of costs in accordance with § 74 SGB XII, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 8/2010
• Usufruct and gift tax, in: juris PraxisReport Family and Inheritance Law 25/2009
• Requirements for a custody decision in accordance with § 1696 Para. 1 BGB in the area of conflict with Art. 6 GG, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 18/2009
• Requirements and content of the registration of fractional usufruct and conditional usufruct of the survivor, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 12/2009
• Undue hardship in the equalisation of pensions under the law of obligations: Standards of assessment and assessment times, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 5/2009
• PKH: Necessary travelling expenses in the case of unrestricted attachment, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 7/2008
• Top-up maintenance only in the case of marital disadvantage, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 24/2007
• Child-raising periods in pension equalisation, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 23/2007
• Limits and scope of formative capital income, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 19/2007
• No pro rata cash maintenance obligation for non-parity alternating models, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 11/2007
• Nullity in case of violation of §§ 1587a, 1587b BGB, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 11/2007
• No withdrawal of the right of residence determination despite strong attachment intolerance, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 9/2007
• Duty to provide information pursuant to §§ 53b para. 2 FGG, 11 para. 2 VAHRG, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 8/2007
• Interim dispute as a necessary measure within the meaning of Section 1666 (1) BGB, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 5/2007
• Information required in legal aid proceedings, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 23/2006
• Entitlement to old-age maintenance in relation to an appeal not lodged against pension equalisation, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 15/2006
• Compensation for use after voluntary departure of the sole owner spouse, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 13/2006
• Entitlement stage of the occupational pension scheme remains static, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 8/2006
• Reduction of an equalisation pension if one's own reasonable needs are jeopardised, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 4/2006
• No reviewability of the content of a proper discretionary decision in public law pension equalisation, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 2/2006
• Requirements for proof of serious efforts to find a training place in order to continue receiving child benefit, in: juris PraxisReport Familien- und Erbrecht 2/2006

Lectures, seminars, conferences, symposia

• Children's wishes in family law, seminar (planned for spring 2024), GJI
• Beyond names, gender and ancestry - an overview of the reforms - seminar (planned for spring 2024), GJI
• The recognition of surrogacy carried out abroad, lecture, 6th Dialogue in International Family Law, Philipps University Marburg, 8/9 March 2024
• Responsibility and community in modern societies, 19th Göttingen Workshop on Family Law on 10 November 2023
• Family Law, Lecture, University of Münster WS 2023/24
• Kinship, parentage and parental law, lecture Schwetzinger Familienrechtstage 2023 (SiS) on 28 September 2023
• Legalisation of egg donation, DJB e.V., on 06.06.2023
• Future of surrogacy and egg donation in Germany, symposium/ panel discussion A.L.L.E. on 12 May 2023 in Berlin
• Law of descent, lecture, University of Münster SS 2023
• Children's wishes and reproductive medicine in family law, seminar GJI on 17 November 2022
• Challenges of reproductive medicine for family law, lecture on 23 June 2022 at DAT 2022 (Hamburg)
• The best interests of the child as a guiding principle in social work, Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences (November 2017)
• Strengthening self-determined lifestyles - introducing a community of responsibility, expert opinion in the Legal Affairs Committee of the German Bundestag on 26 October 2020
• Current reform efforts in child and youth welfare, TH Köln, Institute for Social Law (October 2018)
• Legal foundations in the management of non-profit organisations, Leibnitz University Hannover (2015-2019)
• Healthcare proxy and living will, Viscom AG, Health Day, Seminar Hanover 2019

Media, press and TV

• Sperm donation from coma patient allowed? Illu of the woman, April 2024
• One click to your dream child, SZ 30/31/03/01/04/2024
• CHILD DESIRE WITHOUT A PARTNER - "Better attach a child to a guy": Why solo mothers have a hard time in Germany, BuzzFeed.news v. 09.03.2024
• Social-familial relationship vs. genetic paternity, newstime Pro7/ Sat1 v. 26.10.2023
• WDR Morgenecho, Surrogacy in Ukraine, on 20 October 2023 (ARD Audiothek)
• British divorce law - 5 Years Separation Law (Boris Becker), BILD Zeitung 07.09.2023
• Surrogacy, BILD am Sonntag from 05.02.2023
• Deportation threatens imprisonment, the case of Boris Becker, RTL News v. 15.12.2022
• Surrogacy in Ukraine, Der Spiegel v. 16.09.2022
• Risk - pregnancy, Süddeutsche Zeitung Magazin v. 12.08.2022
• Fertility law, Podcast Andreas Berwing (honest leadership) June 2022
• Born in war - a wish child from Kiev, arte v. 31.05.2022
• Making dreams come true, Anwaltsblatt v. 02.05.2022
• Desire to have children without a partner, Stern TV v. 27.04.2022
• Surrogacy in Ukraine, NZZ v. 20.04.2022
• Violence blocks the system, HAZ v. 13.04.2022
• Babies in the bunker: Surrogate mothers in Ukraine, Weltspiegel (SWR) v. 09.04.2022 (ARD Audiothek)
• Why the war also endangers babies of German parents, Domradio v. 07.04.2022
• Ukrainian surrogate mothers between the fronts, Deutsche Welle (DW) v. 28.03.2022
• Surrogacy in Ukraine, BR of 31.07.2021
• Who pays after the separation? Welt am Sonntag from 27.09.2020
• Corona chaos with surrogacy in Ukraine, DW v. 25.05.2020
• Child abuse, protection mandate of the youth welfare office, NDR, Hallo Niedersachsen v. 11.5.2019
• Surrogacy is prohibited in Germany. How can couples still fulfil their most fervent wish for a child of their own? Bunte v. 05.07.2020

Top topics

• How single women fulfil their desire to have children alone (Talk, studio guest April 2022)
• Ukrainian surrogate mothers caught between the fronts
• High-risk pregnancy
• Surrogacy: "Many couples have a long ordeal behind them"
• The bureaucracy behind surrogacy
• Surrogacy in Ukraine: The war is now presenting agencies and parents with unexpected challenges.
• What is a community of responsibility?