NKO Partners has advised industrial real estate developer CTP on its EUR 2.1 million acquisition of six hectares of land in Kragujevac, Serbia, from the City of Kragujevac.

Karanovic & Partners has advised Canadian precious and base metals exploration company Tethyan Resource Corp on its acquisition of ten percent of the shares and management control over the of the Serbian geological company EFPP. NKO Partners advised EFPP on the deal.

The Supreme Court of Austria has recently passed a decision whereby it ordered an employer to compensate the employee for non-material damages in the amount of EUR 2,400.00 (cca EUR 400.00 per month of monitoring), as the company vehicle used by the employee was equipped with GPS system for monitoring without appropriate legal ground. The court deemed that the use of GPS tracking system affected the employee’s privacy and thus created basis for damage compensation.

NKO Partners has advised Dr. Max, the largest pharmacy network in Central Europe, on a public-private partnership project involving the concession of 27 state owned pharmacies located in the City of Krusevac and the Rasina District of Serbia.

Samardzic Oreski & Grbovic has advised Bravos Holding on the acquisition of a high-class office building in Belgrade from DUTB.

The Government of the Republic of Serbia amended the Decision Declaring Covid-19 Disease Caused by Sars-Cov-2 Infectious Disease.

BDK Advokati has been appointed to act as the local representative for Google under the Serbian Data Protection Act.

ICT system operators of special importance, i.e. companies operating within the activities specified in the Law on Information Security, are obliged to establish and maintain an adequate ICT system, as well as to review the compliance of applied protection measures with the Law on Information Security, and to make a report on the matter.

After the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia rendered the decision to revoke the state of emergency on 6 May 2020, both administrative authorities and businesses have gradually started to return to their regular activities.

“Well, the Parliament was shut down for almost two months,“ says Darija Ognjenovic, Partner at Prica & Partners in Belgrade. “Given that fact, it is clear why there have been no legislative changes of note other than those related directly to the COVID-19 crisis, instituting measures to protect public health and the economy.“

On 15 March 2020, the Government of the Republic of Serbia declared a state of emergency due to the pandemic of the infectious disease COVID - 2019, which resulted in the closure of borders and a ban on movement.

On 6 May 2020, the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia rendered the decision to revoke the state of emergency which has been proclaimed on 15 March 2020 due to the epidemic of COVID19.

The global pandemic caused by Covid-19 disease has caused huge losses to the tourism industry.

The Serbian Parliament terminated the state of emergency on 6 May 2020, following the flattening of the epidemic curve and the creation of conditions for the gradual attainment of collective immunity. Since the introduction of the state of emergency, the Serbian Government issued 44 regulations that were aimed at combating the COVID-19 crisis, including the health, safety, and economic measures, as well as to maintain the functioning of the judicial system and administrative authorities.

The Alternative Investment Funds Act (“Act”) came into force on 19 October 2019 and applies as of 20 April 2020, except certain provisions whose application is postponed. Additionally, the Securities Commission adopted 7 bylaws implementing the Act, which came into force on 5 May 2020.

As we witness the progress of technological achievements in our society, certain advancements in this field may give cause for concern in others, such as privacy and personal data protection laws. Although facial recognition technology has been around for a while, an increasing number of countries are starting to implement this technology in dealing with the ongoing pandemic. Its use is not limited only to special circumstances such as health emergencies; its use far exceeds a narrow scope of crises and extends into anything from preventing terrorist activities to keeping track of class attendance at school. Naturally, while this technology should be welcomed as its possibilities are further explored, there is a legitimate reason for legislators to stay alert, approach regulation of this issue carefully, and not abolish the privacy rights of citizens.

After almost two months, the state of emergency instituted because of the COVID-19 outbreak was revoked in the Republic of Serbia on 6 May 2020. Unlike the Decision on declaration a state of emergency from 15 March 2020, the Decision on revoking the state of emergency was adopted by the National Assembly. The Decision determined it will enter into force on the day of its publication in the Official Gazette of the Republic of Serbia, which means that as of 6 May, state of emergency is no longer in effect in the Republic of Serbia.

In light of the announced ending of the state of emergency in Serbia, businesses must check and ensure their compliance with data protection regulation which has been fully applicable, even in these exceptional times.