The latest trend in M&A advisory, in Croatia and the region, is to offer to both sellers and buyers of CEE targets a special type of M&A insurance policy – a Warranty Insurance Policy (WIP).

Former Krehic & Partners Partner Matea Gospic Plazina and former Investment Banking Counsel at Zagrebacka Banka Lana Stojs have established a new firm in Zagreb – Gospic Plazina Stojs.

Deloitte Legal’s Krehic & Partners has advised sellers Tomislav Plesa and Domagoj Makar on the sale of their shares in Heloo to TaskUs. Wolf Theiss, working with Simpson Thacher & Bartlett, advised the buyer.

Deloitte Legal’s Krehic & Partners has advised the Kovacic family on their sale of Aquapark Istralandia to the Looping Group. Divjak Topic Bahtijarevic & Krka reportedly advised the buyer.

Viruses affecting human body have been the hot topic of most conversations for over two years. However, the digital world is not spared from “viruses” which affect other aspects of human lives. Multiple malwares used for cyber-attacks are created to damage, disrupt, hack, or block a device and encrypt or lock data and can cause enormous damage both in the private and public sector.

On the 9th of March 2022, the Croatian Parliament adopted the amendments to two crucial Croatian laws – the Companies Act (ZTD) and Court Registry Act (ZSR). Most of the amendments to the ZSR entered into force on the 24th of March; two articles will be entering into force on the 1st of August 2022, and another one on the 1st of August 2023. Amendments to the ZTD are still to come into force, some on the 1st of June 2022, and others (the most significant ones) only on the 1st of August 2023.

This year, the Croatian Companies Act (Act) was amended again (amendments enter into force on 1 June 2020 and on 1 August 2023).

Former Schoenherr Attorney-at-Law Ozren Kobsa has joined Krehic & Partners in cooperation with Deloitte Legal as Partner and Head of the Banking & Finance team.

BDK Advokati has advised the sellers on the sale of Termoplast Grupa to Greiner Packaging. Divjak Topic Bahtijarevic & Krka and Selih & Partnerji reportedly advised the sellers as well.

Non-resident owners of property in Croatia who have plans to rent it out should consider domestic and double tax treaty rules on taxation of permanent establishments.

Porobija & Spoljaric has advised Croatian tourism company Mon Perin on listing its shares on the Zagreb Stock Exchange.

Divjak Topic Bahtijarevic & Krka has provided legal support to the organizing committee of the WRC Croatia Rally 2022, including regarding the necessary agreements, permits, and the implementation of international sporting regulations.

One of developments in the artificial intelligence sphere which raised most concerns about potential human rights violations is definitely facial recognition.

CEE Legal Matters readers will likely be familiar with Patricia Gannon as one of the founders of Karanovic & Partners. Since her withdrawal from the firm (reported by CEE Legal Matters on September 21, 2020), Gannon ran her own "holistic strategic advisory business" (as reported on October 12, 2020) and, recently, she announced she is working on a new social media app for lawyers – Platforum 9. We caught up with her to learn more about her new project.

The EU-imposed sanctions on Russia have generated significant movements throughout Europe, and Croatia has felt the ramifications as well – leading to a lot of work and some economic uncertainty, according to Ostermann & Partners Partner Vjekoslav Ivancic.

On February 21, 2022, CEE Legal Matters reported that Savoric & Partners had advised Studenac on its acquisition of Pemo from founder Lovorko Milosevic. CEE In-House Matters spoke with Michal Senczuk, CEO of Studenac, to learn more about the acquisition.

In May of this year, the new Consumer Protection Act will enter into force, completely replacing the previous Act of the same name from 2014, which has undergone only two significant amendments. According to the Republic of Croatia Government, the main reason for adopting the new Consumer Protection Act is the implementation of Directive (EU) 2019/2161 from 27th November 2019. No less important, the reasoning for adopting the new Act also lies in the continuous development of digital tools, which is why it was necessary to include a digital segment of the conclusion of contracts in the legislation to a greater extent than was the case so far.

Considering the military invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Federation and the scale of mass influx of displaced persons from Ukraine, on 7 March 2022 the Republic of Croatia officially introduced temporary protection for the displaced persons from Ukraine in accordance with the Act on International and Temporary Protection. The temporary protection is granted to persons displaced from Ukraine as of 24 February 2022 (or just before this date), more specifically, to Ukrainian nationals and their family members as well as to certain groups of stateless persons and certain groups of third country nationals.