TGS Baltic has advised InMedica on its acquisition of the Vilnius Implantology Center Clinic from the OP Group. Walless advised the seller.

Rymarz Zdort has advised Polskie Gornictwo Naftowe i Gazownictwo on a number of gas sales agreements with Equinor for natural gas from the Norwegian continental shelf to be delivered to Poland via the Baltic Pipe gas pipeline, through Denmark. 

Ellex has provided pro bono legal services for the production of the 2022 documentary film Sisters in Longing, directed by Elita Klavina.

PwC Legal has advised Orlen Unipetrol on the acquisition of Remaq. Havel & Partners advised Libor Vecera, Renata Vecerova, and Dieffe SRL on the sale.

Brandl Talos has advised Kompas and Herbst Kinsky has advised Ventech on co-leading the USD 11 million Series A investment round into Prewave. Act Legal WMWP reportedly advised Prewave on the round.

Wiercinski Kwiecinski Baehr has advised the shareholders of Health Labs Care on its sale to Medvic, a company from the USP Group. PwC Legal advised the USP Group on the acquisition.

Everlegal has announced its cooperation with the Danish Refugee Council to implement an online legal support platform aimed at helping Ukrainians around the world.

Ellex has advised Bigbank on its EUR 20 million issuance of subordinated bonds.

Moral, Kinikoglu, Pamukkale, Kokenek has advised Softline Holding on its acquisition of 80% of shares of Makronet Bilgi Teknolojileri from Gucly Tugay. Bener advised the seller.

DWF has advised NKT consortium's Tele-Fonika Kable and DEME on a reservation contract for the design, supply, and installation of the inter-array, offshore, and onshore export cables for the Baltic Power offshore wind farm. Reportedly, Hogan Lovells’ German office advised Baltic Power.

Cobalt has successfully represented Latvian news magazine Ir before Latvia’s Supreme Court in defamation proceedings.

Havel & Partners has advised Skoda Auto in resolving disputes over the use of the Skoda sign with engineering companies from the Skoda Group.

Former Suciu Popa Senior Associate Daiana Ichimescu has joined Adesman & Asociatii as a Partner.

Former Filip & Company Of Counsel Oana Voda has joined Dentons’ Bucharest office as Head of Public Procurement.

Former CMS Senior Counsel Csongor Tompa has joined Bird & Bird’s Budapest office as Head of the Banking & Finance and Capital Markets practices.

Former KPMG Lawyer Romana Szutanyi has joined Rowan Legal as Head of Employment.

Mari Manniko has joined PwC Legal in Estonia as Head of Data Protection and Media Disputes.

Former Sorainen Senior Associate Dalia Augaite has joined TGS Baltic as an Associate Partner in Lithuania, at the beginning of September.

Partner Akos Fehervary has been elected as the new Managing Partner of the Baker McKenzie Budapest office, as of July 1. Fehervary takes over the position from Partner Zoltan Hegymegi-Barakonyi, who led the operation for the past nine years.

Former Eversheds Sutherland Partner and Head of Banking and Finance Michal Markowski has joined Osborne Clarke in Poland as a Partner and Head of Banking and Finance.

Former Wolf Theiss Partner Akos Eros has established a new firm in Budapest: Eros Law Firm.

Following the recent addition of Roxana Dudau in Romania (reported by CEE Legal Matters on September 6, 2022), Wolf Theis has announced it hired Tomasz Siembida in Poland as a Partner, and the further promotion of Austria-based Nikolaus Loudon and Venus Valentina Wong, Poland-based Konrad Kosicki, and Slovenia-based Teja Balazic Jerovsek to Partners.

Former Compliance Partners Partner Jaroslaw Nowacki has founded Tau Nowacki focused on "operational compliance and AML in fintech and crypto."

Former Associate Partners Andris Lazdins, Sarmis Spilbergs, and Martins Gailis have become Equity Partners at Ellex Latvia.

The Czech Act on Ultimate Beneficial Owners (the "UBO Act") has been effective since 1 June 2021. Not even a year and a half later, Czech lawmakers introduced an amendment to the UBO Act (the "Amendment") after significant pressure from the European Commission to comply with the Fifth Anti-Money Laundering Directive ("AMLD5").

During the Covid-19 pandemic, in every industry where it was possible employers transferred their employees to work from home.

One of the questions that is often risen in practice is whether there is an obligation to conclude a contract with an individual who is registered as a legal representative, i.e., director of a company, and who does not establish an employment relationship in that company. In relation thereto, there are also inquiries whether it is mandatory to provide for a compensation for the work of a director who is not employed with the company, as well as what are the tax obligations of the company regarding the compensation that a director receives for performing the respective capacity.

Europe is awaiting the evolution of cybersecurity. On 3 May 2022, the Council and the European Parliament agreed on the so-called NIS 2 Directive (Directive on measures for a high common level of cybersecurity across the Union). NIS 2 repeals the currently effective NIS Directive.

Imagine receiving a letter that your real estate located in Bulgaria will, in fact, “change” its location within the neighborhood. This can come up as a shock to any international investor in Bulgaria. Such companies might wish to finance certain entrepreneurial construction activity in Bulgaria, and therefore, acquire one or more plots of land. This sort of legal conundrum is indeed possible in Bulgaria and this article will look into its intricacies.

The Government of the Republic of Serbia rendered the new Ordinance on Conditions, Manner and Procedure for Awarding the State-owned Agricultural Land for Use for Non-agricultural Purpose, that came into force on 10 September 2022.

The Ministry of Economy has officially announced the opening of the call for submission of applications under the state aid scheme regulated by Government Decision no. GD 959/2022 for financing assets and/or salary costs. The period for submitting financing requests is scheduled between 1 November 2022 to 16 December 2022, when investors may file the relevant documentation.

According to the latest Position published by the Serbian Commission for the Protection of Competition, it is prescribed whether and in which cases the scope of one concentration can be several undertakings that are not considered interrelated.

A major amendment to consumer law is on the horizon in the Czech Republic, and although it has so far undergone only a first reading in the Chamber of Deputies, it is not premature to look at its content. As for the most part it consists of the implementation of European directives, which leave almost no room for deviation, no major changes to the proposed draft are expected to be made during the legislative process. Another focus of this legislative amendment is digital content, particularly the rights and obligations connected to its supply.

Back in February 2020, the new Personal Protection Data Law was published in the official gazette, which meant that North Macedonia was catching up with the European Union on personal data protection.

Based on Directive 2019/1158 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 July 2019 on work-life balance for parents and carers and repealing Council Directive 2010/18/EU (“Work-Life Balance Directive”), as of 2 August 2022 all Member States shall apply rules to improve work-life balance for parents and carers. In particular, Member States must ensure for working fathers at least 10 working days of paternity leave around the time of birth of the child and the paternity leave should be compensated at least at the level of sick pay.

Following a long lasting process since 2010 the European Court of Human Rights (the “ECHR”) held that Slovakia violated right to property due to the refusal of its courts to enforce an International Chamber of Commerce (the “ICC”) arbitral award ruling that the National Property Fund of Slovakia (the “NPF”) was due to pay BTS Holding (“BTS”) approx. EUR 1.9 million plus interest. (the “Decision”)