On 15 May 2024, the Law of Ukraine “On amendments to the Labour Code of Ukraine on employment relations in case of business entity transfer” entered into force. The new Law establishes additional guarantees to employees in the event of business transfer. The Law aims at approximation of the national legislation to the Transfers of Undertakings Directive 2001/23/EC of 12 March 2001.

Sayenko Kharenko has advised the Green for Growth Fund on a EUR 6 million loan to Bank Lviv to support investments in sustainable agricultural equipment, energy-efficient measures, and small-scale renewable initiatives.

Asters, working with Kellerhals Carrard, has successfully represented the interests of FC Metalist LLC, based in Kharkiv, before the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne in a case concerning the issue of sports succession and a related claim brought by a former player of FC Metalist PJSC, the football club that has been in liquidation since 2017 due to bankruptcy.

Across Europe, defense sectors are experiencing significant transformations and budgetary escalations, driven by a need for enhanced military readiness and modernization. Avellum Partner Andriy Romanchuk, Cobalt Partner Deividas Soloveicik, Nagy es Trocsanyi Partner Gyorgy Kiszely, and Tuca Zbarcea & Asociatii Partner Serban Paslaru take a closer look at defense spending in their respective countries.

In The Corner Office, we ask Managing Partners at law firms across Central and Eastern Europe about their backgrounds, strategies, and responsibilities. Given the dynamic and ever-evolving nature of the legal profession, we asked: What is the one critical skill that you’re investing time and energy in to develop within your team, and why?

On January 19, 2024, the International Federation of Consulting Engineers (FIDIC) entered into a strategic partnership with Ukraine’s Ministry for Communities, Territories, and Infrastructure Development. The deal aims to create National Particular Conditions for using FIDIC contracts in Ukraine. This is promising news for professionals familiar with drafting such contracts for Ukrainian construction projects. But can FIDIC forms be used in Ukraine while this initiative is in progress, and what challenges do professionals face in using these contracts in the country?

On 4 May 2024, new amendments to Regulation of the Board of the National Bank of Ukraine “On the Operation of the Banking System during the Period of Martial Law” No. 18, dated 24 February 2022, came into effect. Such amendments aim to further ease relevant currency control restrictions, including (i) lifting all currency restrictions on imports of works and services, (ii) permitting businesses to repatriate “new” dividends, (iii) easing restrictions on repayment of “new” foreign loans, (iv) allowing payment of interest on “old” foreign loans, and (v) allowing to transfer funds abroad under leasing/rental agreements.

The post-war reconstruction of Ukraine is an immense challenge that necessitates mobilization of substantial resources. During a United Nations Security Council meeting in November of the previous year, the approximate cost of the country's reconstruction and rehabilitation was estimated at $400 billion. Acknowledging the impossibility of covering such expenses solely through state funds and international aid, Ukraine is placing emphasis on enhancing collaboration with the private sector. Among the various forms and mechanisms for securing resources required for rebuilding of the destroyed infrastructure, public-private partnership (PPP) stands out as one of the most widely debated.

On 27 April 2024, the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine adopted Order No.262 (the ''Order'') which amended Order No.402 ''Regulations on Military Medical Expertise in the Armed Forces of Ukraine'' dated 14 August 2008.

CMS, working with Harneys Cyprus, has advised the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development on a EUR 22 million loan to the Cyprus-based Farmak Group and Ukraine's JSC Farmak for the acquisition of Poland's Symphar and the upgrade of JSC Farmak's IT systems.

On April 22, 2024, Everlegal announced it had been appointed to provide legal support to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees – the UN Refugee Agency – for its activities in Ukraine.

Asters, working with Heuking, has advised Ukraine's Shakhtar Donetsk football club on organizing its home matches during the UEFA Champions League and Europa League competitions in Hamburg, Germany, as a guest of the Hamburger SV football club.

Effective April 2024, former LCF Law Group Partner and Head of International Arbitration Yuliya Atamanova has joined JSC CB PrivatBank as a Legal Counsel and the head of the bank's International Arbitration and Cross-Border Litigation Department.

On the evening of April 25, 2024, the Deal of the Year Awards Banquet brought together, under the same roof, top-tier lawyers from Central and Eastern Europe's leading law firms in the region in Warsaw.

Former CMS Partner Anna Pogrebna has joined Integrites as a Partner to focus on real estate, construction, and infrastructure, while Mykola Nychyporuk has joined the firm as a Counsel and the Head of its White-Collar Crime practice.

Avellum has advised Ukraine's Ministry of Finance on a CAD 2 billion ten-year concessional loan from Canada. Sayenko Kharenko advised the Government of Canada.

Did you know that, according to the Activity Rankings function of the CEELMDirect website, of the 88 law firm partners who have reported working on disputes in CEE over the past 12 months, only nine have reported working on more than one?

On April 8, 2024, Integrites announced it had been selected, alongside Latham & Watkins, to advise the Ukrainian Finance Housing Company on a bridge financing to be granted by international financial institutions and the subsequent securitization of mortgage loans.