Today, the majority of large companies produce sustainability reports covering their ESG practices. However, one major obstacle to voluntary ESG reporting is the inconsistency of the shared information Companies have the liberty to select their ESG reporting framework and decide what information to disclose, which results in difficulties for investors and other stakeholders to compare ESG risks and impacts uniformly.

Regulation (EU) 2022/2560 on foreign subsidies distorting the internal market (the "FSR") will become applicable this year on 12 July and 12 October (for M&A notifications) respectively.

The Serbian government announced that it is looking for a strategic partner to develop a minimum of five self-balancing solar power plants with a total installed capacity of 1,000 MWac (or 1,200 MWdc) and a battery storage system with a minimum total installed capacity of 200 MW and the ability to accumulate at least 400 MWh of electric energy.

The new Law on Electronic Communications, published on April 29, 2023, in the Official Gazette of the Republic of Serbia no. 35/23, went into force on May 7, 2023. With the entry into force of the new law, the previous Law on Electronic Communications ceases to be valid (“Official Gazette of the Republic of Serbia”, nos. 44/2010, 60/2013, 62/2014 and 95/2018) except for certain provisions related to the secrecy of electronic communications, legal interception, and retention of data, as well as other specific provisions that will be valid until the adoption of by-laws prescribed by the new Law on Electronic Communications.

The Hungarian Government would designate additional areas of Budapest as immediate ‘Rust Belt’ areas, where the related development regulation will be applicable.

The Ministry of Infrastructure of Ukraine is to resume work leading up to the grant of concession of three terminals of the Chornomorsk seaport, one of the largest seaports in Ukraine. In particular, the concession is to cover the first (cargo) terminal, the container terminal, and the fifth (railway and ferry) terminal.

The Parliament of Republika Srpska adopted the amendments of the Company Law of Republika Srpska which entered into force on 2 March 2023. This is the sixth time that the Company Law has undergone changes since it was enacted, whereas the recent amendments brought significant novelties, rather than cosmetic ones.

A new ruling of the Curia has finally settled the long-lasting debate on whether the general rules of civil law or the provisions of the Labour Code apply to the liability for damages of the employed managing director.

On 17 May 2023, at the Council of Europe Summit, the European Union and 43 other countries signed the agreement on the Register of Damage Caused by the Aggression of the Russian Federation Against Ukraine ("Register").

Detailed information on subsidies.

Five years ago, probably the most common concern of companies across the European Union was to reach compliance with the General Data Protection Regulation. In the recent years, tempers have calmed down, nevertheless the application of the GDPR raises interesting legal questions from time to time. To celebrate the GDPR’s fifth birthday, we collected five landmark decisions of the Court of Justice of the European Union interpreting the GDPR that made a high impact on data controllers’ lives.

We would like to remind you that tomorrow is the final day for legal entities in Serbia to register as users of the e-government portal.

In January 2023, the Serbian Ministry of Mining and Energy initiated the procedure for the amendments to the Law on the Use of the Renewable Energy Sources (“Amendments”) whose purpose was, among others, to limit the installed power of the prosumers.

Significant changes are expected in the Hungarian tax system in the coming years, which could have a major impact on economic operators and individuals alike. As a result of the changes, the State is likely to lose significant revenues and the means to replace these revenues are not yet known.

Despite entering the corporate lexicon back in 2004, the concept of ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) remained relatively obscure for over a decade. However, with the intensification of discussions around global warming, ESG has become a significant part of the conversation and a focal point for today's companies.

The Commission for Protection of Competition of Serbia (the “Commission”) announced on 3 May 2023 that it initiated an antitrust investigation against the companies KTG Solucije d.o.o. Subotica and Eco Sense d.o.o. Subotica due to alleged restrictive agreement – colluding in public procurement procedures (bid rigging).

In a recent case (under No. BDT2023.4623), the Budapest Court of Appeal made an important decision on the issue of jurisdiction. The case related to challenging the fairness (and the validity) of general terms of business (GTCs) of foreign service providers engaging in business with consumers in Hungary.

EPS (Elektroprivreda Srbije) seeks a strategic partner to design, build, fund, operate and maintain at least 5 new solar power plants.