Sayenko Kharenko has advised the EBRD on its USD 30 million secured financing to Ukrainian agro-industrial holding Astarta.

Czabanski & Galuszynski has advised HiProMine on a EUR 32 million financing for the construction of a new production plant and insect genetics center from Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego. Dentons advised BGK and the KUKE state export credit agency.

Popovici Nitu Stoica & Asociatii has advised the Ameropa Group on the full refinancing of its main revolving credit facility in Romania to the tune of EUR 542 million. Nestor Nestor Diculescu Kingston Petersen advised the banking syndicate.

Kocian Solc Balastik has advised REMA System in obtaining an authorization from the Ministry of the Environment to operate a collection system for all groups of electrical equipment, including solar panels.

Cerha Hempel has advised SES on obtaining regulatory clearance for expanding the Europark shopping center in Salzburg.

Ellex has advised Payhawk Financial Services on obtaining an electronic money institution license from The Bank of Lithuania.

Dentons has advised Enterprise Investors on the acquisition financing from Bank Pekao for its purchase of a significant minority share in Advanced Protection Systems. SSW Pragmatic Solutions reportedly advised the bank.

Clifford Chance has advised PAD RES on a PLN 240 million financing agreement with the Polish Development Fund for the construction of two photovoltaic farms with a total capacity of 117 megawatts in northern Poland. Wardynski & Partners advised the PDF.

Norton Rose Fulbright has advised Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego on its PLN 350 million financing of Europejski Fundusz Leasingowy's business activity.

Paksoy has advised Turkish baby goods retailer Ebebek Magazacilik on its TRY 1.86 billion IPO.

On 21 October 2022, the Banking Regulatory and Supervisory Authority (“BRSA”) published BRSA Decision No. 10389 (“Tightening Decision”) to tighten the restrictions set forth under the BRSA Decision No. 10250 dated 24 June 2022 (“Restriction Decision”), which introduced Turkish lira borrowing restrictions for non-financial institutions that are subject to independent audit and BRSA Decision No. 10265 dated 7 July 2022 (“Decision No. 10265” and together with Tightening Decision and Restriction Decision, “Decisions”), which in turn aims to clarify and ensure the effective application of the Restriction Decision.

Filip & Company has advised Romanian software developer Arobs Transilvania Software on the transfer of its shares to the Main Market of the Bucharest Stock Exchange.

On 12 September 2023, the President of Ukraine signed Law No. 5431 "On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of Ukraine to Improve the Activities of the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine" ("Law"), which launches a reform of Ukrainian competition law. The Law will enter into force on 1 January 2024.

Where behavior is investigated in parallel by the Austrian competition authorities and the Public Prosecutor’s Office (PPO), the latter usually requests the competition authorities to provide it with copies of their files, including leniency statements and settlement submissions that have been filed with the Federal Competition Authority (FCA), and adds (parts of) these documents to its own file. Victims of competition law infringements can thus indirectly get access to leniency statements and settlement submissions through an inspection of the PPO’s file. This practice risks weakening the effectiveness of the Austrian leniency program and settlement procedure as it may deter undertakings from cooperating with the FCA.

This article aims to explore key aspects of Regulation (EU) 2022/720 (Regulation), which governs the block exemption of specific vertical agreements in the European Union market, with a focus on its implications within the Bulgarian market, particularly for its dynamic IT sector, which had a 26% growth in 2022 and reached 4.5% of the country’s GDP. Further to that, Bulgaria has seen even more foreign investments by VCs and big corporations alike, therefore such antitrust legislations are closely followed by the business ecosystem. Some of the world’s biggest automotive giants also have software and engineering development centers here, with new leading players expected to enter soon.

Are compliance teams a necessary evil or effective facilitators of business success? At the CEE Legal Matters GC Summit held in Istanbul, legal experts from across Europe discussed how to best foster a culture of compliance and ethics in order to benefit businesses, as well as why multidisciplinary knowledge and an agile approach are crucial for compliance teams.

Does your business produce computers or other electronic or electrical equipment? Maybe you make machinery and equipment, pharmaceuticals, medical devices or food? Do you have 50 or more employees? Then your company is likely to be subject to the new cybersecurity regulations. The same applies if your activities are in the chemical industry or you provide a variety of digital services – for instance cloud computing, data centre services or online marketplaces.

Since the beginning of this year, the Personal Data Protection Office has issued fines of almost CZK 4,500,000 for breaches of the GDPR in connection with the processing of personal data via cookies.

Former Linklaters Counsel Klaudia Krolak has joined Greenberg Traurig’s Poland office as a Partner.

PwC Legal has advised Green Estonia on its acquisition of a majority stake in local furniture industry company Standard AS.

Kinstellar has advised the Electrolux Group on the sale of its manufacturing facility in Nyiregyhaza, Hungary, to Qvantum for EUR 38 million. CMS reportedly advised Qvantum.

Former Banasik Wozniak i Wspolnicy Partner Joanna Bernat has joined Crido in Warsaw as a Partner and the firm's Head of Energy.

Clifford Chance has advised PAD RES on a PLN 240 million financing agreement with the Polish Development Fund for the construction of two photovoltaic farms with a total capacity of 117 megawatts in northern Poland. Wardynski & Partners advised the PDF.

The Hungarian Government plans to further develop the regulatory framework for geothermal energy, according to the REPowerEU chapter of Hungary’s Recovery and Resilience Plan.

Zivkovic Samardzic has successfully represented the B92 media company before the European Court of Human Rights in a dispute against Serbia.

Everlegal has become the legal partner of the USAID/ENGAGE program – funded by USAID and implemented by Pact in Ukraine – in an educational project aiming to provide legal support to civil society organizations, small and medium-sized enterprises, and the citizens of Ukraine on martial law and other regulatory changes introduced during the war.

Cobalt has successfully represented Estonian citizen Ivan Turogin before the Supreme Court on the admissibility of electronic surveillance as an alternative to arrest for defendants during extradition proceedings.

Cobalt has advised Italian company Italferr on its successful participation in the EUR 141.5 million Rail Baltica public procurement process for the provision of engineering consultancy and construction supervision services for the construction of the mainline in Latvia.

CMS has advised Hellenic Petroleum Group subsidiary EKO Bulgaria in the EUR 51 million public procurement process organized by the Bulgarian Ministry of Finance for the delivery of fuel needed by the administration entities under its executive purview.

In recent years, significant global events and unforeseen circumstances have had a profound impact on, among others, infrastructure projects. These events, whether global conflicts, health crises, or other significant occurrences, have triggered price changes in such projects. As a result, provisions of the Serbian Law on Obligations regarding claims for changes in price have gained prominence.

With a delay of over a year, Czech Act no. 284/2023 on preventive restructuring implemented the EU Restructuring Directive 2019/1023 into Czech law with effect as of 23 September 2023. This publication explains some of the key choices made by the Czech Republic upon the Directive’s implementation.

"Bulgaria transposed the Restructuring Directive's prohibition to terminate contracts via ipso facto clauses, but also (deviating from the Directive) prohibited contractual set-off in restructuring, thus rendering the preservation of many contracts performed via contractual set-off / netting of payment meaningless. So, in drafting ipso facto clauses the impossibility to perform contracts in restructuring, due to the contractual set-off prohibition, may be utilised as an additional trigger for termination, now".

E+H, working with Simpson Thacher & Bartlett, Gleiss Lutz, Loyens Loeff, and Linklaters, has advised the Takko Fashion group on its financial restructuring and refinancing transactions that saw its bondholders acquiring a majority stake in the group. Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, working with Arendt & Medernach, advised the ad hoc group of noteholders.

Social media platforms significantly changed the ways how people express their opinions: sharing views became easier than ever. On the one hand, this is positive, but on the other hand, it is also dangerous in the employment context, as the employee's opinion may be prejudicial to the employer's interests. A recent decision of the Hungarian Supreme Court gives answer to the question whether the employer can dismiss the employee for expressing his opinion on Facebook.

Djingov Gouginski Kyutchukov & Velichkov has successfully represented the Bulgarian Employers Association for Innovative Technologies before the country's Supreme Administrative Court in a dispute for its recognition as a nationally representative employers’ organization against the Bulgarian government.

The Government Decree on the winter administrative break is out. Here’s what to expect.

The Serbian private healthcare sector – including private healthcare providers and pharmacies – has been on a steady incline over the past several years. BDK Advokati Senior Partner Vladimir Dasic, Prica & Partners Partner Tijana Lalic, and Karanovic & Partners Senior Partner Marjan Poljak take a deep dive into what makes the sector tick and grow.

Clifford Chance has advised AHP Investments on the sale of a majority stake in the American Heart of Poland medical network to Gruppo San Donato in partnership with GKSD. Dentons advised the target. Rymarz Zdort Maruta advised the buyers.

Gide has advised Investindustrial portfolio company Farmaceutici Procemsa on its acquisition of a majority stake in Poland's Master Pharm.

Corporate reputation is an organisation's most valuable intangible resource and may be defined as the public perception of the company and how it operates. It has its monetary expression and influences financial and social capital as well as market share. It can be positive and negative. Reputation is an essential aspect of any business. In today's digital age, a company's reputation can be easily tarnished through websites, social media, online reviews and news articles.

Under the current legislation, mediation as an alternative method of dispute resolution is voluntary. The amendments adopted in the State Gazette, No. 11 of 2023, which enter into force on 1 July 2024, introduced two categories of obligatory mediation in civil and commercial court proceedings:

It is well established in today's world that the resolution of civil disputes is a crucial aspect of any legal system both by ensuring justice effectively and enabling continual business relationships to thrive unhindered by excessively long-lasting court proceedings.

Cobalt has advised Italian company Italferr on its successful participation in the EUR 141.5 million Rail Baltica public procurement process for the provision of engineering consultancy and construction supervision services for the construction of the mainline in Latvia.

Ellex has advised Integre Trans on its EUR 4 million bond issuance on the Nasdaq Baltic First North Market.

DWF has advised Enter Air Group on a EUR 25 million financing from a consortium including facility agent Bank Pekao and security agent mBank. Kycia Legal advised the banks.

Djingov Gouginski Kyutchukov & Velichkov has advised ICBC International Finance Limited on a USD 66.22 million ship financing extended to the Navibulgar group. Stephenson Harwood reportedly advised Navibulgar.

The KLC law firm has advised the Hellenic Republic Asset Development Fund on the Court of Auditors' pre-contractual review of the tender and contract for the sub-concession of a multi-purpose terminal within the Philippos II port.

Amendments and supplements to the Customs Law, enacted in December 2022, amended the misdemeanour provisions for violations of this law. The amendments introduce greater certainty regarding the misdemeanour liability of importers and customs representatives for submitting customs declarations and accompanying documents with the goal of legitimate con­ducting of customs procedures. In this ar­ticle we present our interpretation of the respective amendments.

DLA Piper has advised the RV Ingatlan Befektetesi Alap fund on its acquisition of the Roseville office building in Budapest from Atenor.

Cobalt has advised the Nordic Secondary Fund II on its acquisition of a 10% stake in Cleveron AS. Eversheds Sutherland reportedly advised the sellers.

Aksan has advised APY Ventures on its new investment in Poliark.

The Ilyashev & Partners law firm has assisted Italian non-governmental organization Fondazione Terre des Hommes Italia ONLUS in setting up its local branch in Ukraine, advising on corporate, tax, and employment matters.

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer has signed the memorandum of understanding and is providing pro bono legal advice to the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine as it establishes a development fund to attract public and private sector capital for the future reconstruction and recovery of its economy.

Integrites has been providing pro bono legal advice to the military personnel protecting Ukraine in the war against Russia, as well as to members of their families.

DLA Piper has advised the RV Ingatlan Befektetesi Alap fund on its acquisition of the Roseville office building in Budapest from Atenor.

BBH has advised the Kaprain Group on its acquisition of a 53,000-square-meter brownfield site next to Prague's O2 arena.

Kinstellar has advised the Electrolux Group on the sale of its manufacturing facility in Nyiregyhaza, Hungary, to Qvantum for EUR 38 million. CMS reportedly advised Qvantum.

Already last year, it was noticeable that after several years of decline, the Hungarian Tax Authority conducts more and more tax audits. In 2022, the number of tax audits increased by 6.2% compared to the previous year. Experience shows that this trend is expected to continue even more strongly this year. The most commonly audited tax category remains VAT.

Cobalt has successfully represented Germany's Bauer Spezialtiefbau before the Administrative District Court in a dispute related to a VAT refund for the company against the State Revenue Service of Latvia.

Former Path Law Hatylak Kielian i Wspolnicy Partners Tomasz Hatylak, Sergiusz Kielian, and Dominika Mizielinska have joined Baker Tilly Legal Poland in September 2023 together with their 12-member team.

Aksan has advised APY Ventures on its new investment in Poliark.

E+H, working with Osborne Clarke, has advised the Funke Mediengruppe on its acquisition of a stake in High Five. Brandl Talos advised High Five.

BDK Advokati has advised Vision Gaming Holding and the other Digital Revolution shareholders on the sale of Digital Revolution to Singapore-based Fibers PTE.

What is corporate crime prevention and why is it a necessary "cost"? Depending on the industry in which a company operates in Romania, it is subject to legal obligations whose violation can result in legal liability.

As we promised a few weeks ago when we discussed all the interesting aspects of commercial offences as an integral part of Serbian penal law, we shall now take a closer look at the first-instance proceeding and some of the most important segments of domestic and foreign legal entities, as well as their responsible persons, should keep in mind in case they are subjected to a commercial offence proceeding.

This article discusses the interplay between the primacy of European Union law and the expected new practice in criminal law cases in Romania.