NNDKP Team Spins-Off to Launch Simion & Baciu

Baciu, who had been with NNDKP since 2003, headed the firm's IP department and Pharma and Health Care practice group while co-heading the Gaming and Consumer Protection practice groups.

Simion, who co-headed the NNDKP Gaming and Consumer Protection practice groups, joined NNDKP in 2015 after spending five years as a Counsel with DLA Piper and another nine as a Counsel with Central European Media Enterprises. Earlier still, she spent two years as an Associate with Taylor Wessing.

Bende, who is a Partner at the new firm, started her career at NNDKP in 2005, and was appointed Partner in January 2019 (as reported by CEE Legal Matters on January 15, 2019).

The three are joined by Senior Associates Andrei Cosma and Ana Maria Coruga, Associate Teodora Popescu, and Office Manager Simona Naie.

According to a Simion & Baciu press release, the new firm will cover various practice areas, including intellectual property, gaming and gambling, life sciences, consumer protection and advertising, technology and data protection. According to that press release: “We like to describe ourselves as more than lawyers and consultants, but first of all, as happy people that like what they do, that are good at trying and finding solutions and are naturally focused on their clients’ needs and expectations. We like to build long-term relations with all our clients and aim to add our resources and knowledge to those of our clients and to integrate our assistance to the experience of the entities for which we work."

An NNDKP statement announced that "NNDKP, Ana-Maria Baciu, and Cosmina Simion intend to maintain their collaboration with respect to certain areas of practice to ensure that clients have access to the most appropriate legal service in projects requiring such complementarity.”

In 2017 Baciu and Bende authored an article in the CEE Legal Matters Magazine on domain name disputes in Romania (available here).