In The Spotlight
After years in private practice, including as Head of Corporate/M&A at Clifford Chance Ukraine and later as Founder of Redcliffe Partners, Dmytro Fedoruk became all too familiar with one of the profession’s most dreaded tasks: legal directory submissions. His platform, Ranking Copilot, is now helping firms worldwide streamline the process.
Norton Rose Fulbright has advised Panattoni on a long-term lease agreement with Intermarche for a new distribution center located in Panattoni Park Sosnowiec IV, in the Silesia region of Poland.
Norton Rose Fulbright's Turkish affiliate Pekin Bayar Mizrahi has advised the Motherson Group on the acquisition via its Turkish subsidiary Motherson SAS Turkey Otomotiv Servis Ticaret of the entire shareholding held by Erol Senol in SMR Plast Met Molds and Tools and SMR Plast Met Automotive Tec. Caliskan Okkan Toker advised Erol Senol.
DZP has advised Arlen and its majority shareholder A.T. Fundacja Rodzinna on the company’s initial public offering and admission to trading on the main market of the Warsaw Stock Exchange.
White & Case's Turkish affiliate GKC Partners has advised Aksa Enerji on securing a USD 150 million facility from the Africa Finance Corporation to support the company’s natural gas power plant investments across the Africa region. Norton Rose Fulbright and its Turkish affiliate Pekin Bayar Mizrahi advised AFC.
Ellex has advised Baltic venture capital fund Superangel on its investment in Kraken Technology Group.
Sorainen has advised Summus Capital on its EUR 30 million bond issuance.
Lexist has advised Efor Holding on wind turbines supply and installment agreements with Nordex Group for Efor Holding subsidiaries Yellice Enerji Uretim and Gelgit Yenilenebilir Enerji ve Elektrik Uretim.
DLA Piper has advised Optima Bank on the establishment of its EUR 500 million Euro Medium Term Note Program and the inaugural issuance of EUR 150 million Tier 2 Reset Notes due 2035.
Wolf Theiss has advised Winegg Realitaeten subsidiary CWR Realitaeten on the sale of Engerth 173-175 Entwicklungs, the property owner and lessor of the Voco Vienna Prater hotel, to Nowu Hospitality. Hasch und Partner reportedly advised Nowu Hospitality.
VD Law Group has advised Meta Estate Trust on its EUR 1.52 million acquisition of four villas within the upcoming Radisson Blu Grand Mountain Resort Brasov.
Schoenherr has advised Enery Element on the sale of its 50% stake in Dunav Solar Plant, the developer of the Gabare photovoltaic project in northwest Bulgaria, to OMV Petrom, as part of a 50-50 joint venture between the two companies. Simultaneously, Enery Element transferred the remaining 50% of its shares to Enery Power Holding.
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer has advised Deutsche Bank and Raiffeisen Bank International on the refinancing of financing instruments for Strabag SE.
Former Provaris Varga & Partners TMT and corporate law Partners Adam Liber, Tamas Bereczki, and Aron Bagdi have spun off to launch BLB Legal, effective July 1, 2025.
Baker McKenzie has promoted Malgorzata Bakula and Slavomir Slavik to Partner as part of its latest promotion round that saw a total of 59 lawyers join the firm's partnership ranks.
TGS Baltic has changed its name to Tegos.
Cobalt has promoted former Managing Associate Rauno Ligi to Partner.
Kinstellar has appointed Karla Rundtova as the Co-Head of the firm-wide Automotive & Industrials Sector.
Mihaj, Ilic & Milanovic has promoted Jelena Papic and Bojan Jankovic to Partner.
Skanska Executive Vice President Legal Counsel Tomas Fabian was appointed as the company's new Executive Vice President Operations Czech Republic.
Former Ellex Partner Migle Petkeviciene has joined Sorainen as a Partner.
Rymarz Zdort Maruta has appointed Katarzyna Lukaszewicz as the new Co-Managing Partner of its Financial Regulatory Practice, alongside Partner Lukasz Gasinski.
Liviu Togan has rejoined Musat & Asociatii as a Partner.
Former Vodeno General Counsel Przemyslaw Karolak has joined Aion Bank as its new Deputy Head of Legal.
Elena Stoilova-Dobreva has become a Co-Managing Partner at Tzvetkova & Partners and, as a result, the firm has changed its name to Tzvetkova, Tzvetkov & Dobreva.
On 18 June 2025, the National Commission for State Regulation of Energy and Public Utilities (NEURC) adopted a resolution amending the Licensing Conditions for Energy Storage (Resolution No. 882).
Effective 1 October 2025, amendments to the Law on the Centralised Records of Beneficial Owners (UBO) in Serbia will introduce important new obligations for a broader range of entities.
In the coming weeks, the European Commission is expected to discuss amendments to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
In April 2025, the Hungarian Parliament adopted significant amendments to the Act on Energy Efficiency, bringing about a major revision of the Energy Efficiency Obligation Scheme (EEOS). The new legislative package introduces a range of substantial changes aimed at accelerating the country’s transition toward a more sustainable and energy-efficient building stock while also providing a much-needed stimulus for the domestic construction and renovation sectors.
The Court of Justice of the European Union (“CJEU”) has recently issued a significant judgment in the case “Lindenapotheke” (C-21/23), taking a clear stance on the processing of special categories of personal data, namely health data, in the context of online medicine sales within the pharmaceutical industry. The ruling sheds light on how the General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”) applies to the data that users provide when ordering pharmacy-only medicinal products online, even those not subject to prescription, and provides clear guidance on the rights and obligations of data controllers.
In a recent landmark decision, the German Federal Court of Justice (BGH) addressed whether law enforcement authorities were entitled to unlock a suspect's smartphone by forcibly using their fingerprint. The BGH accepted this conduct under the specific circumstances and explicitly ruled out a violation of the prohibition against self-incrimination.
The integrity of on-site inspections remains a cornerstone of effective competition law enforcement. The Turkish Competition Authority (TCA)’s decision to impose a record-breaking fine on BIM Birlesik Magazalar A.S. (BIM), one of Turkiye’s largest retail chains, has drawn considerable attention from international businesses and the legal community.
Bulgaria’s renewable energy sector has seen significant growth in recent years. In 2024, almost 1 gigawatt of new renewable energy capacity was connected to the grid, predominantly from solar energy. Notably, no new wind farms have been commissioned since 2012, primarily due to administrative barriers and local opposition. However, investor interest remains high, especially in the southern and northwestern regions. Projects like the 238-megawatt Tenevo hybrid solar plant in Yambol, which plans to integrate a solar park, wind turbines, and energy storage, exemplify this trend.
The contemporary European market witnesses a large number of highly operational business models that target European consumers and are, simultaneously, managed outside the European Union. There are businesses whose central administration or decision-making hubs are not established in any EU member state. Some of them neither control nor process data of their consumers within the EU. At the same time, some of these businesses are also subject to strict and enforceable international regulations in addition to the applicable EU legislation.
Bulgaria’s Technology, Media, and Telecommunications (TMT) sector is continuing its steady and dynamic growth, reflecting the country’s ongoing digital transformation and its increasing role as a regional technology hub.
The first half of 2025 in Bulgaria’s corporate and M&A landscape has been characterized by a modest start amidst global economic and political uncertainties. Many export-oriented industries faced a challenging 2024, impacting the financial projections of potential targets. However, the outlook remains largely positive, fueled by major upcoming developments.
Bulgaria’s energy sector has been undergoing deep and rapid reforms. The combination of the effects of the war in Ukraine and the related sanctions, the European Green Deal and the rapid decrease of investment costs for renewables, the commitments for a coal-free future, and the neighboring discoveries of natural gas in the Black Sea – all combined with the unprecedented support for nuclear energy – is putting Bulgaria on the global investment map.
AIR ARABIA WAS FOUND COMPLIANT DURING A RECENT PROCEDURE OF PROTECTION OF PERSONAL DATA ACROSS THE EU
bpv Huegel successfully advised RWA Raiffeisen Ware Austria Aktiengesellschaft (RWA) on the sale of its share in AUSTRIA JUICE GmbH to AGRANA Beteiligungs-Aktiengesellschaft.
RWA eGen completes the purchase of shares in RWA AG from BayWa AG. The acquisition financing was structured and provided by Raiffeisen Bank International AG.
bpv Huegel is delighted to appoint Johannes Mitterecker as a partner. He works in the Corporate Law/M&A practice group and specialises in M&A transactions, restructuring and sports law.
RTPR has assisted the syndicate of banks in connection with a RON 3.1 billion syndicated loan granted to Electrica.
From the 1st May, 2025 Markian Malskyy becomes the new managing partner of ARZINGER, replacing Timur Bondaryev, founding partner. Timur Bondaryev has held this position almost ever since the firm was founded 23 years ago and, together with other partners, has built a strong legal brand.
This makes bpv Huegel’s tax practice top-ranked in Chambers Europe. This confirms the leading position of bpv Huegel in tax law advice.
bpv Huegel advises EAVISTA on the acquisition of the majority stake in card complete Service Bank AG
EAVISTA is acquiring 75.1% of the shares in card complete Service Bank AG from UniCredit Bank Austria and Raiffeisen Bank International.
We are delighted to announce that PRK Partners has been shortlisted with other three international law firms operating on the Czech legal market as finalists for the Czech Republic Law Firm of the Year 2025 in the 26th annual IFLR Europe Awards.
The Antimonopoly Office of the Slovak Republic (PMU) imposed a fine of EUR 675,200 on United Classifieds s.r.o. for a serious breach of competition rules, namely for abuse of a dominant position on the online real estate advertising market.
RTPR announces the promotion of Bogdan Cordos to Partner. He joins the team of 8 partners consisting of Costin Taracila, Victor Padurari, Alexandru Retevoescu, Mihai Ristici, Valentin Berea, Roxana Ionescu, Alina Stavaru and Cosmin Tilea.
The bpv Huegel team led by Elke Napokoj advised the founder and the shareholders of EVK DI Kerschhaggl GmbH (“EVK”).
Our Latest Issue
Albania’s start to 2025 has been largely shaped by national elections, which have stalled most developments, according to Hoxha, Memi & Hoxha Partner Dorant Ekmekciu. The focus has been on key judicial appointments and ongoing discussions about the independence of the anti-corruption body.
Turunc Managing Partner Kerem Turunc discusses the upcoming 2025 CEE Legal Matters Turkiye General Counsel Summit due to take place in Istanbul on November 4, 2025.
Turunc Managing Partner Kerem Turunc discusses the upcoming 2025 CEE Legal Matters Turkiye General Counsel Summit due to take place in Istanbul on November 4, 2025.
On November 23, CEE Legal Matters reported that Cobalt had advised BaltCap Latvia Venture Capital Fund and funds managed by Imprimatur Capital, together with other shareholders, on the sale of Blue Bridge Technologies to Everfield. CEE In-House Matters spoke with Henning Schreiber, Head of Acquisitions at Everfield, to learn more about the acquisition.
