Oppenheim has advised CPI Europe on its sale of the Marriott Hotel Budapest to undisclosed buyers.

Gospic Plazina Stojs has advised lead manager and lead bookrunner Erste&Steiermaerkische Bank on Bosqar Invest’s issuance of EUR 143.2 million in sustainability-linked bonds. Mamic Peric Reberski Rimac advised Bosqar Invest.

Schoenherr and Gessel have advised BHM Group on the sale of its portfolio of ten A-Centrum retail parks in Poland to the Reticulum Group. Kinstellar reportedly advised Reticulum Group.

Paksoy has advised Siniora Food Industries Company on its acquisition of the remaining shares in Polonez, giving Siniora full ownership of the Turkish processed meat producer.

SSW has advised Eika Asset Management on securing financing from Santander Bank Polska for the development of a logistics facility in Sochaczew, Poland. DLA Piper reportedly advised Santander Bank Polska.

Clifford Chance has advised BNP Paribas-TEB, ING, and QNB on the financing provided to Cimsa for its acquisition of Ireland-based Mannok.

Dentons has advised Ciklum on its acquisition of GoSolve Group. Davis Wright Tremaine and Legal Logic reportedly advised the sellers.

Gen Temizer Erdogan Girgin Attorney Partnership has advised Ticimax and its founder and sole shareholder Cenk Cigdemli on the sale of a majority stake to Team.blue. Kolcuoglu Demirkan Kocakli advised Team.blue.

Djingov, Gouginski, Kyutchukov & Velichkov, working with Linklaters, has advised joint bookrunners Citigroup and J.P. Morgan on the EUR 800 million Eurobond issuance by Bulgarian Energy Holding. Spasov & Bratanov, working with Allen Overy Shearman Sterling, advised Bulgarian Energy Holding.

Jasinski has successfully represented TF Bank in a case resulting in a final and binding court judgment confirming the bank’s full compliance with information disclosure obligations under the Polish Consumer Credit Act.

CMS has advised Bitdefender on its agreement to acquire Mesh Security Limited.

Sayenko Kharenko has advised PJSC Stalkanat on initializing a sunset review of anti-dumping measures applied to imports of cables and ropes originating from China.

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.

Former Akol Partner Tugce Tatari has joined Abdi Ibrahim Pharmaceuticals as its new Legal Director.

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.

This is not the sentence commonly heard in law firms across the region at the moment. But that might not be the case for much longer.

A breach of labor obligations by an employee has been discovered in your company, the investigation and assessment have taken several weeks, and since immediate dismissal is risky, you have decided to proceed with dismissal for a serious breach of labor obligations. If this decision is made at the beginning of the month and no one is ready to agree on mutual termination, you won’t get rid of the employee any sooner than a timeframe of almost three months. Furthermore, if there are delays in the delivery of mail by the post office or the employee falls ill, it will take even longer.

The Polish Ministry of Family, Labor, and Social Policy has prepared an amendment to the Labor Code, which in particular amends the existing provisions on mobbing. The new provisions are expected to enter into force in 2025. The aim of the amendment is to remove ambiguities in the current provisions, simplify procedures for pursuing claims, and increase the responsibility of employers for negative phenomena in the work environment, including mobbing.

The protection against the termination of employment contracts for disabled workers who still have residual working capacity is guaranteed both by the Employment Relationships Act (ZDR-1) and the Employment Rehabilitation and Employment of Disabled Persons Act (ZZRZI). Despite relatively uniform case law that has developed over the years, two recent rulings from the Higher Labor and Social Court have set new, stricter criteria for assessing the justification of dismissal reasons, which raise numerous dilemmas among employers in practice.

Internal corporate investigations are no longer occasional procedures but essential elements of organizational integrity and risk management. In Hungary, where labor law, data protection, and criminal law intersect, companies must handle investigations with diligence. While whistleblowing systems are mandatory for certain Hungarian organizations, effectively managing reports remains challenging. Establishing robust internal policies and adhering to data protection standards from the outset are the best safeguards against corporate liability risks, as improperly handled evidence may be inadmissible in legal proceedings. As a result, internal investigations must emphasize transparency, proportionality, and lawful data management, particularly when competition law or criminal law issues arise.

As digital solutions become more widespread in business operations, the use of electronic signatures for labor-related documents is increasingly common in Slovakia. However, it is crucial for both employers and employees to understand whether such signatures hold legal validity under Slovak labor law. This article examines the key points surrounding the use of electronic signatures in labor documents.

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.

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”).