The Kyiv office of Dentons has advised Innovatus Capital Partners on a USD 10 million pre-export secured facility to an unidentified group of companies dealing with producing and trading of grains, oilseeds and byproducts of oilseeds, and other farming services. 

Integrites has successfully defended the interests of Dominoni, an Italian manufacturer of agricultural machinery, in an unfair competition claim made to the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine.

Hillmont Partners has successfully defended the interests of Delta Wilmar Ukraine in a dispute with the State Environmental Inspectorate of Ukraine.

Zivkovic Samardzic has been appointed the representative for Yandex LLC pursuant to the Serbian Data Protection Act, following a decision by the Commissioner for Information of Public Importance and Personal Data Protection of Serbia.

Walless has advised DiPocket on setting up a subsidiary in Lithuania and obtaining an electronic money institution license from the Bank of Lithuania.

Zivkovic Samardzic has been appointed the representative of SNAP Inc. under the Serbian Data Protection Act, following a decision by the Commissioner for Information of Public Importance and Personal Data Protection.

The Kyiv office of Dentons has advised Innovatus Capital Partners on a USD 10 million pre-export secured facility to an unidentified group of companies dealing with producing and trading of grains, oilseeds and byproducts of oilseeds, and other farming services. 

Asters has successfully defended PrivatBank CB JSC in a dispute involving the Bukovel Ski Resort heard by the Commercial Court of Cassation of the Supreme Court of Ukraine.

Boyanov & Co has helped Ideal Standard Vidima obtain a loan of EUR 65 million, with EUR 45 million coming the DSK Bank and another EUR 20 million from the United Bulgarian Bank. 

Sorainen has advised the Modus Group on launching a second public bond issuance, expected to attract investment of EUR 8 million. The bonds are being distributed by Saiuliu Bankas and will be traded on First North, an alternative market administrated by Nasdaq.

SSW Pragmatic Solutions has advised Stelmet on the squeeze-out and withdrawal of its shares from the Warsaw Stock Exchange. Stelmet’s majority shareholder, Stanislaw Bienkowski, purchased all of the shares previously owned by minority shareholders.

SSW Pragmatic Solutions has helped Mo-BRUK get prospectus approval from the Polish Financial Supervision Authority.

Ilyashev & Partners, representing the interests of OBIO LLC, has persuaded Ukraine's Interdepartmental Commission on International Trade to initiate an anti-dumping investigation on the import of heat-insulating materials to Ukraine from the Republic of Belarus and the Russian Federation.

Ilyashev & Partners has successfully protected the interests of Karpatnaftochim LLC in a safeguard investigation regarding the import of polymeric materials to Ukraine.

The adoption of Directive 2014/104/EU ("Damages Directive"), which introduced a level playing field for the private competition law enforcement regime among EU Member States, has paved the way for private enforcement to gain more traction in the EU.

Zivkovic Samardzic has been appointed the representative for Yandex LLC pursuant to the Serbian Data Protection Act, following a decision by the Commissioner for Information of Public Importance and Personal Data Protection of Serbia.

Zivkovic Samardzic has been appointed the representative of SNAP Inc. under the Serbian Data Protection Act, following a decision by the Commissioner for Information of Public Importance and Personal Data Protection.

Jankovic Popovic Mitic has helped chemical company BASF implement GDPR best practices in Serbia.

Greenberg Traurig has advised Abris CEE Mid-Market Fund III L.P., managed by Abris Capital Ltd., on the acquisition of the Scanmed S.A. healthcare provider from Life Healthcare Group Holdings Limited. DLA Piper advised Life Healthcare Group Holdings on the transaction.

The Latvian office of Sorainen has advised the USS Grupp on its acquisition of the Latvian branch of the Securitas security services company.

Squire Patton Boggs and Eversheds Sutherland have advised the Miss Group on its acquisition of Interneto Vizija from its founders. Walless advised the sellers on the deal.

Greece's KLC Law Firm has advised National Energy Holdings in its first investment in Greece — the acquisition and construction of five solar parks to be constructed in Central Greece, with a total capacity of 24 MW, for which it secured financing of EUR 22 million from Piraeus Bank.

Sorainen has advised the Modus Group on launching a second public bond issuance, expected to attract investment of EUR 8 million. The bonds are being distributed by Saiuliu Bankas and will be traded on First North, an alternative market administrated by Nasdaq.

Asters has advised Naftogaz Energoservice on the construction of a 33 megawatt solar power plant in Chudniv, Ukraine.

Cobalt, acting pro bono, has represented the "Association of LGBT and Their Friends Mozaika" as amicus curiae before the Constitutional Court of Latvia regarding the right of same-sex couples to parental leave.

Eterna Law has helped the War Childhood Museum project open a museum in Ukraine.

BDK Advokati has launched a Human Rights Protection & Litigation practice, led by Attorney-at-Law Relja Radovic.

Motieka & Audzevicius has successfully represented the Panevezio Keliai road construction company in a dispute against the City of Vilnius administration that reached the Supreme Court of Lithuania.

Pohla & Hallmagi has helped Verston Ehitus acquire Estonia's state-owned road maintenance company AS Eesti Teed at public auction with a winning bid of EUR 19.7 million. Ellex Raidla reportedly advised the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications on the auction.

Cobalt has successfully represented Helmes, an international custom software developer, in disputes regarding the public procurement process for "Development and Maintenance Services for Collection App Software" organized by Estonia's Information Technology Center of the Ministry of Finance.

Kinstellar has re-launched its Restructuring and Insolvency practice, with the new iteration to be co-led by Csilla Andreko, Head of Kinstellar's Banking & Finance practice, and Denise Hamer, Kinstellar Head of C/SEE Asset Solutions.

If a company has fulfilled its purpose, its further existence is unprofitable, or if there are other justifying reasons, it is usually best to dissolve such a company and have it deregistered from the commercial register. Where the company has no legal successors to which its assets could be transferred, it must, however, first go into liquidation.

Baker McKenzie’s Warsaw office has launched a Restructuring & Insolvency Practice, co-led by Counsels Karol Czepukojc and Pawel Dlugoborski.

Two normative acts have recently been adopted that establish a teleworking obligation:

New amendments to the Labour Code (Law no. 53/2003) have come into force, including an optional conciliation procedure for individual labour disputes.

The SEE Legal law firm alliance has announced the formal launch of two new practice groups, one dedicated to Employment and Immigration, headed by Kolcuoglu Demirkan Kocakli Counsel Maral Minasyan, and one dedicated to Intellectual Property, headed by Selih & Partnerji Partner Natasa Pipan Nahtigal.

Greenberg Traurig has advised Abris CEE Mid-Market Fund III L.P., managed by Abris Capital Ltd., on the acquisition of the Scanmed S.A. healthcare provider from Life Healthcare Group Holdings Limited. DLA Piper advised Life Healthcare Group Holdings on the transaction.

Yigit Issever has joined Bayer as Legal Counsel and Pharmaceuticals and Radiology Business Partner in Istanbul.

CMS has advised Discovery Life Sciences, a US-based bio-specimen, genomic sequencing, cell, and immunohistochemistry services firm, on its acquisition of East West Biopharma, a Ukraine-based human bio-specimen solutions organization.

Esquires has successfully reversed the seizure of immovable property on behalf of Entertainment Center of Sport, a hotel and entertainment complex with a total area of more than 3.500 square meters located in the suburbs of Kyiv.

Triniti Jurex has defended the interests of AB Lietuvos Radijo Ir Televizijos Centras against the Darnu Group in an EUR 6 million real estate sale dispute before the Supreme Court of Lithuania.

Sorainen has successfully represented Estonian meat producer Atria in its dispute with the Estonian Veterinary and Food Board before the Supreme Court of Estonia.

JDP has helped the 4PL Central Station Group establish a joint venture with an unidentified Polish company. Grant Thornton advised the Polish co-venturer on the deal. 

Egorov Puginsky Afanasiev & Partners has successfully represented ZMK 1520 in a dispute with New Forwarding Company over the replacement supply of railway wagons heard by  the Supreme Court of Russia.

Hedman Partners has become Solaride’s legal advisor on its project to build a solar-powered car in Estonia.

Gugushev & Partners has helped Fr. Lurssen Werft GmbH & Co KG, part of Northern Germany's Lurssen shipyard group, win a public tender for the supply of two multipurpose modular patrol vessels to the Bulgarian Navy.

The Odessa office of Ilyashev & Partners has successfully represented Challenging Shipping Ltd. in its appeal of a decision of the State Ecological Inspection of Ukraine imposing an administrative penalty onto the captain of one of its ships, New Challenge, for contaminating the harbor waters in the Mykolayiv seaport.

Sayenko Kharenko has advised the Orexim Group on the sale of Ukraine's Everi port terminal to Renaisco B.V., a subsidiary of Glencore Agriculture Limited. Baker McKenzie’s Kyiv and London offices reportedly advised the buyers on the deal.

Sorainen has advised venture capital fund Startup Wise Guys on its investment in the logistics startup GoRamp. Startup Wise Guys, together with Presto Ventures, invested EUR 450,000.

Herbst Kinsky has advised investment company Round2Capital Partners GmbH & Co KG on its EUR 6.6 million financing round.

Herbst Kinsky has advised Austrian start-up Trality on attracting EUR 1.5 million in financing from a group of German investors including Blockrocket, VC Tokentus, FFG, and AWS.

Cobalt, acting pro bono, has represented the "Association of LGBT and Their Friends Mozaika" as amicus curiae before the Constitutional Court of Latvia regarding the right of same-sex couples to parental leave.

Ilyashev & Partners, working pro bono on behalf of the Ukrainian Red Cross Society, has persuaded a large network of medical centers in Ukraine to discontinue its illegal use of the Red Cross emblem.

Asters has helped the Tabletochki Fund organize the DobroRun charity race, involving over 1200 individuals from Ukraine and 16 other countries.

Piotr Szafarz, Partner in Dentons’ Warsaw office, has been appointed Head of CEE Real Estate at the firm, in which capacity he will be supported by newly appointed Partners Monika Sitowicz and Bartlomiej Kordeczka. 

Esquires has successfully reversed the seizure of immovable property on behalf of Entertainment Center of Sport, a hotel and entertainment complex with a total area of more than 3.500 square meters located in the suburbs of Kyiv.

Triniti Jurex has defended the interests of AB Lietuvos Radijo Ir Televizijos Centras against the Darnu Group in an EUR 6 million real estate sale dispute before the Supreme Court of Lithuania.

Ilyashev & Partners, representing the interests of OBIO LLC, has persuaded Ukraine's Interdepartmental Commission on International Trade to initiate an anti-dumping investigation on the import of heat-insulating materials to Ukraine from the Republic of Belarus and the Russian Federation.

On January 16, 2020, the Ukrainian Parliament passed a law launching anti-BEPS tax reform in Ukraine, among other legislative changes (the “2020 Tax Law”). The business community expressed opposition to most of its provisions.

In 2012 a simplified lump sum tax, known as KATA, was introduced for small businesses. The rules of KATA allowed small businesses, including private entrepreneurs, to opt to pay a lump sum monthly tax of HUF 50,000 (EUR 145) per person employed by the business. Businesses paying the lump sum tax are relieved of any other income or payroll taxes. The regime is applicable to income of up to HUF 12 million (approximately EUR 34,000) revenue per year. Above this limit, a tax rate of 40% is applied to the excess.

DLA Piper Legal Director Natalia Kirichenko has made named Head of Intellectual Property and Technology in the firm's Kyiv office.

Squire Patton Boggs and Eversheds Sutherland have advised the Miss Group on its acquisition of Interneto Vizija from its founders. Walless advised the sellers on the deal.

Schoenherr has advised Christian Bamberger, SK Capital GmbH, Foxyflo GmbH, Christian Waldheim, and Martin Mrvka on the sale of 100% of shares in Austrian communication-platform-as-a-service companies ATMS, SMS.AT, and WebSMS to Norwegian Link Mobility Holding ASA. AGP Advokater AS and EY Law advised Link Mobiliy on the transaction, which closed on November 16, 2020.

Over the last couple of months, CEE Legal Matters reported on the launch by Romania's Mares & Mares law firm of two new alliances with firms specialized in White-Collar Crime – one in Moldova and one in Israel. We spoke with Mihai Mares, founder and Managing Partner of the firm, about his career and his firm's history, as well as the rationale behind the new alliances.

Mares & Mares and the Tel Aviv-based Israeli-European Regulatory Consultancy firm have announced they are teaming-up to cooperate in criminal cases in the fintech, cryptocurrency, artificial intelligence, and cybersecurity industries. 

Egorov Puginsky Afanasiev & Partners has successfully defended Ilya Averyanov, the former owner of the Menshevik Confectionary in South-Eastern Moscow, in a trial involving charges that he murdered a guard at the factory.