ACI Partners Legal Manager Carolina Parcalab, Avellum Senior Partner Glib Bondar, Gecic Law Counsel Miodrag Jevtic, Vujacic Law Office Partner Sasha Vujacic, and Schoenherr Bulgaria Local Partner Tsvetan Krumov discuss the current status of capital markets in CEE.

With CMS’s recently published European M&A Outlook report taking the temperature of the M&A activity across the continent, CMS Romania Managing Partner Horea Popescu and CMS Vienna Partner Alexander Rakosi share their insights on M&A trends in the CEE region.

In The Corner Office, we ask Managing Partners at law firms across Central and Eastern Europe about their backgrounds, strategies, and responsibilities. Shifting our focus to the financial aspects of legal work, we asked: What percentage of your issued bills end up being overdue, what percentage end up never paid, and what is your firm’s/office’s standard methodology to handle both cases?

In the Serbian market, contractual penalties are often included in employment contracts since this is concrete and efficient protection for the employer in case of a breach of certain contractual obligations by employees. On a general note, a contractual penalty is a fixed monetary receivable that can be claimed in case of a breach of contractual obligations by one party, without having to prove the actual amount in damages. However, in the area of labor law, there is still uncertainty when it comes to the validity of such clauses and their enforceability in case of disputes.

In line with European efforts to create a competitive, innovative, and efficient business environment, electronic company registration has become a significant part of reforms in the field of company law. The branch of law related to business stands out as one of the most prominent examples of the impact of digitization on the law and its continuous evolution.

Gecic Law has advised Telekom Srbija on its memorandum of understanding with the College of Europe to provide up to ten annual scholarships for Serbian students.

In light of the latest amendments to the Law on Spatial Planning and Construction, which put the topic of energy efficiency and energy features of the building in the spotlight, it would be interesting to remind ourselves of the already existing legal in regard to energy efficiency improvement in Serbia, and above all, what laws and especially bylaws at the local level offer and provide to housing communities – buildings (in srb. – stambena zajednica) and individuals and in which manner they may obtain financial support in case that they intend to carry out certain measures/works that improve the energy efficiency of the building, i.e. apartment.

A historic labor strike unfolded in 2023’s ever-evolving Hollywood scene, resembling a gripping drama.  On May 2, the Writers Guild of America (WGA) took center stage, unanimously endorsing a strike.  This was reminiscent of the industry-shifting 2007–2008 Hollywood strike, marking fifteen years since writers last voiced dissent.

Kinstellar has advised Chinese investors CMC Capital and Shanghai Electric Power & Energy Development Limited on the acquisition of Crni Vrh Power, a project company developing a 150-megawatt onshore wind farm in the eastern Serbian municipalities of Bor, Zagubica, and Majdanpek.

Legislation proposes to roll back rules to prevent employees misusing leave entitlement.

Karanovic & Partners has advised BIG CEE on its acquisition of two retail parks in Serbia – NEST Obrenovac and NEST Kraljevo – from RC Europe. Djokic+Partners advised RC Europe.

Both consumers and companies that are using the software in everyday activities, either for business or pleasure, usually do not own the software, but only have limited rights granted by a license agreement with specifically defined scope and terms of use. Why the misunderstanding? In general, software is a set of instructions or programs used to operate computers and execute specific tasks. It is an intangible object, opposite to hardware compartments. With the latter, the ownership perception is clear when you are buying it. On the other hand, software brings confusion to end-users - is it purchased or licensed? Because the difference is essential.

In preparation for Expo Belgrade 2027 (hereinafter “Expo”), a specialized international exposition that is scheduled to be held in Belgrade from mid-May to mid-August, 2027, the Government of the Republic of Serbia has decided to provide incentives for new accommodation that will be necessary for hosting the mentioned event.

NKO has advised Dr Max on its acquisition of Melem Pharmacy in Serbia from Vladimir Cupic. Bajic & Popovic reportedly advised the seller.

The EU Digital Markets Act (DMA) is meant to make digital markets fairer and more competitive. How DMA does this is simple: the European Commission designates the “gatekeepers” (mostly the big tech companies), imposing on them new obligations such as mandatory interoperability of gatekeeper’s services and preventing the gatekeeper from favoring its products and services against similar services or products offered by third parties on the gatekeeper’s platform.

In the Official Gazette of RS no. 92/2023, dated October 27, 2023, amendments and supplements to the Law on Health Insurance were published, becoming effective on November 4, 2023 (“the Law“).

On October 26, 2023, the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia passed new amendments to the Law on the Protection of the Right to a Fair Trial (hereafter referred to as the “Law"), which were published in the Official Gazette of the Republic of Serbia No. 92/2023.

The Law on Amendments to the Law on Tobacco (“the Law”) was published in the Official Gazette of the RS no. 92/2023 of October 27, 2023. The subject amendments entered into force on the eighth day upon the day of publishing i.e., on November 4, 2023, with several exceptions.