Trademarks are more than just logos and brand names—they are powerful symbols that represent the values, quality, and recognition of a company or product. From the iconic swoosh of Nike to the golden arches of McDonald's, well-known trademarks have become ingrained in our daily lives, shaping our consumer habits and perceptions.

In The Debrief, our Practice Leaders across CEE share updates on recent and upcoming legislation, consider the impact of recent court decisions, showcase landmark projects, and keep our readers apprised of the latest developments impacting their respective practice areas.

In The Corner Office, we ask Managing Partners at law firms across Central and Eastern Europe about their backgrounds, strategies, and responsibilities. This time around we turn our attention to setting up new practices and ask: When launching a new practice, what is your go-to strategy – do you look at internal team members to spearhead it, or are you more likely to turn to lateral hires? Why?

Serbia and France recently deepened their bilateral relations by signing multiple strategic agreements during French President Emmanuel Macron’s visit to Belgrade. These agreements span multiple sectors and are poised to have profound impacts on Serbia’s economy, business environment, and legislative landscape. Doklestic Repic & Gajin Partner Slobodan Doklestic and NKO Partners Partner Petar Orlic look at these agreements and their anticipated effects.

An in-depth look at Slobodan Doklestic of Doklestic Repic & Gajin covering his career path, education, and top projects as a lawyer as well as a few insights about him as a manager at work and as a person outside the office.

Central and Eastern Europe is increasingly on the radar of digital nomads seeking new destinations. The countries they flock to see their markets impacted – for better or worse – with both opportunities and challenges aplenty. Babic & Partners Partner Marija Gregoric and JPM & Partners Partner Jelena Nikolic analyze these impacts.

Non-competition (non-compete) clauses came into the spotlight this year as the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) decided to impose a broad ban on their use. The underlying motive for this is the perception that the non-compete clauses, in the words of FTC Chair Lina Khan, keep wages low, suppress new ideas, and rob the American economy of dynamism, including from the more than 8,500 new start-ups that would be created a year once non-competes are banned. However, this rule quickly faced challenges, including a lawsuit from the US Chamber of Commerce, which argued that it was unfounded and that the FTC exceeded its authority.

This article analyzes the Decision of the Italian Data Protection Commissioner (“Commissioner“) No. 472 of July 17, 2024 (“Decision“), which concerns the monitoring of employees’ official computers and emails, and the protection of personal data in accordance with Italian regulations and the General Data Protection Regulation of the European Union, which was adopted on April 14, 2016, and came into force on May 25, 2018 (“GDPR”).

Moravcevic, Vojnovic and Partners in cooperation with Schoenherr has advised RP Global on the sale of 100 % of the share capital in a portfolio comprising a 200-megawatt onshore wind power project located east of Belgrade and a 768-megawatt pipeline of wind and solar projects in Serbia to Alcazar Energy Partners.

Although more than six years have passed since the adoption of the new Personal Data Protection Law (the “Law“), there are still practical uncertainties about when data controllers and processors must appoint a Data Protection Officer (DPO). Additionally, many foreign data controllers and processors subject to the Law have yet to fulfill their obligation to appoint a representative for personal data protection. This lack of compliance makes it harder for individuals to exercise their rights when it comes to the processing of their personal data.

The German Law on the Corporate Due Diligence Obligations for the Prevent of Human Rights Violations in Supply Chains introduces for the first time the obligation for German companies to comply with certain procedures and rules, implement due diligence obligations and appropriate measures, in supply chains, with the aim of preventing human rights violations and damages to the environment. The mentioned German Law does not have a direct impact on companies in Serbia, so the sanctions prescribed by that Law cannot be enforced in Serbia, however, there is a certain influence on Serbian companies that will need to comply with, for reasons of further cooperation with German companies.

The Serbian Commission for Protection of Commission ("Commission") has announced that it will conduct a sector inquiry of the state and conditions of competition in the pharmaceutical industry. This move by the Commission was expected, given the announcements made by the Government of the Republic of Serbia last year.

AP Legal and Dentons have advised NLB Komercijalna Banka Beograd and Nova Ljubljanska Banka Ljubljana on a EUR 89 million facilities agreement to MK Fintel Wind Beograd.

AP Legal has advised Inn-Flex on its acquisition of Parir Print. Sole practitioner Tomislav Stankovic reportedly advised the sellers.

Andrej Jelenkovic has been promoted to Partner at Karanovic & Partners.

On 27 June 2024, the Constitutional Court of Serbia issued a Decision initiating proceedings to assess the constitutionality of the Gender Equality Act. This decision implies that all activities undertaken based on the said Act, including executing individual acts and actions, are suspended until a final decision on its constitutionality is rendered.

NKO Partners has advised Dr Max on its acquisition of VIVA Pharm pharmacy chain.

The National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia in its session held on 27 November 2024 adopted a new Strategy on Energy Development until 2040 with the Projection until 2050 („Strategy“).