Vasil Kisil & Partners has advised Corteva Agriscience, an agricultural division of DowDuPont, on signing a cooperation memorandum with the Poltava Regional State Administration to develop the road infrastructure in the Dykanka district of Central Ukraine.

Vegas Lex has prepared Russia’s first “federal special investment contract” for the Russian Federation and the Russian subsidiary of Germany's CLAAS group of companies.

Vasil Kisil & Partners has successfully represented the UNIQA Insurance Company in a dispute over payment of an insurance indemnity in connection with a low crop yield caused by drought.

Zivkovic Samardzic secured what it calls "an important victory in the Administrative Court in Belgrade, against the Ministry of Economy of the Republic of Serbia."

Wolf Theiss has advised McArthurGlen, a developer, owner, and operator of designer outlet centers in Europe and Canada, on matters relating to the expansion of its center in Parndorf.

Vilgerts has been engaged by Proof IT to challenge the procurement decisions of the European Institute for Gender Equality involving the award of framework IT service contracts before the General Court of the EU.

Zivkovic Samardzic has advised Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport on its third issuance of shares and share capital increase in less than five months.

Zivkovic Samardzic has advised Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport, a joint-stock public company that owns and operates the Belgrade airport, on its new, third issuance of shares. The issuance of shares was a result of NTA’s share capital increase.

Zepos & Yannopoulos, working alongside Shearman Sterling, has acted as Greek legal counsel to Attica Bank SA, a Greek medium size bank, on the securitization of non-performing loans and future receivables from the EUR 1.3 billion sale of real estate. The portfolio was sold to a Luxembourg SPV against issuance of EUR 525 million senior notes and EUR 806.2 million junior notes. All the notes were initially subscribed by Attica Bank, which will also act as interim servicer of the portfolio.

Zivkovic Samardzic has advised Livnica a.d. Kikinda, the Serbian subsidiary of Cimos and a member of the TCH Group, on its delisting from the Belgrade Stock Exchange.

Zivkovic Samardzic has advised Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport, a joint-stock public company that owns and operates the Belgrade airport, on its new, third issuance of shares. The issuance of shares was a result of NTA’s share capital increase.

Zivkovic Samardzic has advised the joint-stock public company that owns and operates the Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport on its share capital increase through contribution of 28 real estate properties owned by its majority shareholder – the Republic of Serbia.

Zivkovic Samardzic reports that it has obtained competition clearance in Serbia, Montenegro, and Macedonia for Petrol d.d. Ljubljana’s acquisition of control over the Slovenian natural gas trader Geoplin.

Ilyashev & Partners has successfully protected the interests of Mozyrsalt OJSC, one of the largest producers of "salt extra" in the region, in an anti-dumping investigation on imports of white evaporated salt extra originating from Belarus into Ukraine.

Wolf Theiss Prague has announced that Robert David is joining the firm to lead the its Czech Banking and Finance practice and that current Counsel Robert Pelikan will join the partnership as head of the office's Dispute Resolution and Competition practices.

Ilyashev & Partners has successfully protected the interests of Mozyrsalt OJSC, one of the largest producers of "salt extra" in the region, in an anti-dumping investigation on imports of white evaporated salt extra originating from Belarus into Ukraine.

In recent years suspicions regarding massive conflicts of interest, corruption, and the favoritism of creditors have created the political will to mandate the disclosure of ownership backgrounds of companies dealing with public finances. Attorneys from Taylor Wessing Bratislava have participated in the preparation of the so-called Anti-Letterbox Companies Act, which entered into force on February 1, 2017.

Weinhold Legal has advised the Czech Republic's National Medicines Verification Organization on the launch of a medicine verification system in the country.

Zivkovic Samardzic has successfully represented Titan, an international cement and building materials producing group headquartered in Athens, in a dispute with former minority shareholders of Cementara Kosjeric, the group’s Serbian subsidiary, relating to the 2009 squeeze-out of minority shareholders, which was governed by the 2006 Securities and Other Financial Instruments Act in force at the time.

Zivkovic Samardzic has announced the promotion of two partners, both effective January 1, 2018.

Zivkovic Samardzic has advised the shareholders of Tim Kolos d.o.o, the Belgrade-based facility management, construction, and installation services provider, on the sale of 55% of shares in the company to Samsic Holding dejavnost holdingov d.o.o, the Slovenian member of French Samsic Group. Moravcevic Vojnovic and Partners in cooperation with Schoenherr advised the buyers on the deal.

Zamfirescu Racoti & Partners has secured a final arbitration decision from the International Chamber of Commerce Paris, which partially accepted a case brought by Societatea de Administrare a Participațiilor in Energie (SAPE) against Enel Investment Holding B.V. and Enel S.p.A (Enel).

Zamfirescu Racoti & Partners (ZRP) has advised Complexul Energetic Hunedoara, a company fully owned by the Romanian State, on its absorption of Societatea Nationala a Huilei Petrosani, a state company active in the mining field. The formalities of registration with the Trade Registry Office of the merger operation were completed on July 8, 2013.

Zamfirescu Racoti & Partners and Tanasescu Gavrila & Asociatii have successfully represented the Romania state in an ICSID investment arbitration initiated by Alpiq AG Switzerland involving claims of over USD 450 million.

Zivkovic Samardzic is reporting that it successfully represented Veran Matic, Chairman of the Serbian Commission responsible for investigating killings of journalists, in a complaint to the Press Council about an article published by Serbia's Politika newspaper.

In a case referred by Immigration Equality, Weil Gotshal & Manges in the United States has secured asylum for an LGBT man from Belarus who was forced to flee his home after being targeted for numerous assaults on account of his sexual orientation.

Weil is reporting that, in a case referred to the firm by LGBTQ immigrant rights organization Immigration Equality, its lawyers have secured asylum for a Russian pro bono client on the grounds that he suffered past persecution on account of his sexual orientation and had a well-founded fear of future persecution if required to return to Russia.

Zivkovic Samardzic is advising the Austrian Development Agency on the rehabilitation of flood protection infrastructure in Serbia.

Zivkovic Samardzic has advised Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport, a joint-stock public company that owns and operates the Belgrade airport, on its new, third issuance of shares. The issuance of shares was a result of NTA’s share capital increase.

Wolf Theiss has announced that the firm's Zagreb branch successfully assisted Split-based Adria Steel in enabling customs-free exports of Croatia-produced steel products to Algeria. Adria Steel is wholly-owned by Techcom.

Zivkovic Samardzic has secured a victory for AIK Banka in the Supreme Court of Cassation of Serbia.

The Polish Supreme Court has ruled that rents collected in the course of bankruptcy proceedings by a bankruptcy receiver out of real property encumbered with a mortgage are part of a separate distribution plan, and thus may only be paid out to the creditors holding such mortgage.

Wolf Theiss has confirmed that it advised Smartown Investments on its EUR 30.3 million acquisition of the Swan Office & Technology Park in Bucharest from Casa de Insolventa Transilvania (CITR), the bankruptcy administrator for Swan Property.

Zamfirescu Racoti & Partners has promoted Monica Strimbei and Catalin Micu to Partner.

Ana Popovic and Kruna Savovic have been promoted to partner at Zivkovic Samardzic in Serbia.

Workplace privacy issues, especially those relating to the privacy of employees’ communications, have been a major issue for both employment and privacy law practitioners.

Dentons has appointed Bratislava-based partner Zuzana Simekova as Co-head of the Europe Life Sciences group, joining Paris-based Partner Jean-Marc Grosperrin, who has led the group since its inception in 2014.

Yelda Dogan Yasarturk has become the Head of Legal, Middle East & Africa at GSK Consumer Healthcare.

Wolf Theiss, working with Italian offices of Dentons, has advised the shareholders of Lifebrain, an Italian laboratory diagnostics services operator, on the cross-border sale of its shares to an investment subsidiary of Investindustrial VI L.P.  Investindustria, which was advised by Italy's Chiomenti law firm, with CHSH acting as local counsel for Austria, now owns 96% of Lifebrain.

Zamfirescu Racoti & Partners has successfully represented Romania's National Agency for Mineral Resources in arbitration against Chevron.

Zamfirescu Racoti & Partners has promoted Monica Strimbei and Catalin Micu to Partner.

Zamfirescu Racoti & Partners has secured a final arbitration decision from the International Chamber of Commerce Paris, which partially accepted a case brought by Societatea de Administrare a Participațiilor in Energie (SAPE) against Enel Investment Holding B.V. and Enel S.p.A (Enel).

Zivkovic Samardzic has advised Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport on its third issuance of shares and share capital increase in less than five months.

Wolf Theiss Prague has announced that Robert David is joining the firm to lead the its Czech Banking and Finance practice and that current Counsel Robert Pelikan will join the partnership as head of the office's Dispute Resolution and Competition practices.

WKB has helped the Ryanair Group establish Ryanair Sun, the company's new business unit in Poland. Ryanair Sun launched its inaugural flight on April 26, 2018, flying from Poznan to Zakynthos, in Greece.

White & Case, Cakmak-Gokce, and Cakmak have advised IFM Investors on its acquisition of 40% of the Mersin Port in Turkey from Akfen Holding A.S. — a deal which has now closed.

Watson, Farley & Williams has advised HSH Nordbank on a transfer of 10 distressed vessels out of its non-core portfolio to the Navios Group.

Taylor Wessing Slovakia has advised and represented the Austrian company Wiener Donauraum Laanden und Ufer Betriebs- und Entwicklungs GmbH on its investment into P.A.D., spol. s.r.o., which owns and operates seven pontoons on the Danube river in Slovakia.

Zivkovic Samardzic has announced that it has supported South Central Ventures (SCV) with a EUR 700,000 investment in City Expert, a Belgrade-based startup that, according to the firm, “has gained traction rapidly with its innovations and use of technologies in real estate sale and rental sector."

Zivkovic Samardzic has advised South Central Ventures (SCV) on its investment in CUBE Risk Management Solutions, a tech startup providing risk assessment, reporting and monitoring services, market analysis, and competition and trade intelligence to companies operating on, planning to expand into, or investigating their competition's presence on the Serbian market.

A year after advising South City Ventures on its investment in City Expert, a Belgrade based startup that gained traction rapidly with its innovations and use of technologies in real estate sale and rental sector, Zivkovic Samardzic has helped SCV on another share capital increase.

White & Case is attending the Winter Olympics in Sochi to help athletes resolve any legal disputes which may arise during the games. 

Weil attorneys in Paris and Warsaw have obtained a ruling from the French tax authorities officially recognizing the Auschwitz-Birkenau Foundation as one of the few foreign entities to which bequests and donations can qualify for full tax exemption.

The Supreme Court of Poland has accepted for a hearing the cassation appeal in a civil rights case handled pro bono by lawyers at Wardynski & Partners.

Zieba & Partners is advising mBank on its lease of office space at the Warsaw complex from Golub GetHouse and Mennica Polska S.A. Greenberg Traurig reportedly advised Golub GetHouse and Mennica Polska.

Zepos & Yannopoulos, working alongside Shearman Sterling, has acted as Greek legal counsel to Attica Bank SA, a Greek medium size bank, on the securitization of non-performing loans and future receivables from the EUR 1.3 billion sale of real estate. The portfolio was sold to a Luxembourg SPV against issuance of EUR 525 million senior notes and EUR 806.2 million junior notes. All the notes were initially subscribed by Attica Bank, which will also act as interim servicer of the portfolio.

Wolf Theiss Bucharest and Warsaw, working alongside Radulescu & Musoi, have advised Poland's Credit Value Investments asset management company on its EUR 12 million investment in Impact Developer & Contractor. Impact Developer & Contractor was advised by PeliFilip and Linklaters.

Zepos & Yannopoulos has become the official correspondent of the International Bureau of Fiscal Documentation (IBFD) on current Greek VAT matters. 

Jara Drapala & Partners has announced that Magdalena Zasiewska has joined the firm as Head of Tax.

Yuliya Shved has joined Cobalt in Belarus as a managing associate and Head of Tax and Banking & Finance.

Zivkovic Samardzic has announced its successful representation of Serbia's 021 broadcaster in a copyright infringement case resulting in what the firm calls “a landmark decision … reinterpret[ing] the current events exception in Serbian copyright law."

After an application brought by Zivkovic Samardzic on behalf of Serbian commercial television network Prva, the Commercial Court in Belgrade has granted an interim injunction against the Pink International Company, the parent company of the Pink TV network in Serbia and a member of the regional Pink Media Group.

Ana Popovic and Kruna Savovic have been promoted to partner at Zivkovic Samardzic in Serbia.

A change to Czech law on the criminal liability of companies (and other legal entities) will come into force on 1 December 2016. The radical approach adopted in the new law significantly increases the risk of companies being convicted of criminal offences.

The majority of criminal behaviours are quite universal, but what usually differs, among different jurisdictions, are the punishments and procedures of detection and the processing of the crimes. In that sense, the understanding of white collar crimes (WCC), as a group of specific crimes, is universal.

Despite recommendations by international organizations, Czech legislation on whistleblowers is fragmentary and does not offer a complex legal regulation of the phenomenon, or even a definition of the term. The current protection of whistleblowers – i.e., employees or former employees of an organization who inform competent institutions of illegal or unethical practices in that organization – is only dealt with in the Czech Act on Banks, Act on Savings and Credit Co-operatives, Capital Market Undertakings Act, and Civil Service Act (or, more precisely, in the Government Decree implementing the Civil Service Act). Some vague protection of whistleblowers is also provided by the general provisions of the Labor Code and other regulations, which, however, do not specifically address the protection of whistleblowers as such. Currently, two acts are being discussed in the Czech Parliament aimed at providing higher labor-law protection of whistleblowers in both the private and public sectors.