Did you know that while only five lawyers worked on ten or more CEE client matters reported by CEE Legal Matters in 2022, a total of fourteen lawyers reached that level in 2023? The 2023 leaderboard was led by Milos Felgr of Clifford Chance in Prague, who worked on a remarkable 20 CEELM-reported client matters last year, with Alper Onar of Istanbul’s Aksan Law Firm, who worked on 19, close behind. Fellow Turk Kerem Turunc, the Managing Partner of Turunc, worked on 17 reported deals, while Djordje Nikolic of NKO Partners in Belgrade worked on 16, and Tomasz Rogalski of Norton Rose Fulbright in Warsaw worked on 15.

Former Zivkovic Samardzic Partner Ana Popovic has joined VMT Vujetic Trisic in Belgrade as a Partner.

In The Corner Office, we ask Managing Partners at law firms across Central and Eastern Europe about their backgrounds, strategies, and responsibilities. With 2023 marching to an end, we looked ahead and asked about strategies for next year: As the budgeting period is around the corner, compared to 2023, what are the main budgeting lines you expect to increase for 2024 and why?

From personal income tax to compulsory social insurance and punitive measures for tax return submission failures, there is a plethora of tax legislation updates that are critical to stay apprised of in Serbia. Tax novelties are, as usual, numerous and perhaps complex to comprehend for someone who is not well versed in tax issues. However, those devoted to running a successful business can greatly benefit by keeping track of tax updates.

Ana Popovic, the Head of Zivkovic Samardzic's Employment practice and a Partner with the firm, has left the outfit on January 1, 2024.

Arbitration clauses, in their nature, impose on the parties an obligation to refer their disputes to arbitration as set forth in the arbitration agreement. Such agreements are vastly symmetrical – they provide both parties with the equal right to invoke arbitration proceedings.

Karanovic & Partners has advised Doehler on its acquisition of Frikos. Reportedly, Four Legal advised the sellers.

Schoenherr, working with Walder Wyss and the Law Office of Loren Richards, has advised Raiffeisen Bank International on its EUR 31 million project financing to borrower Energy Financing Team SE Bileca to develop a 60-megawatt solar power plant in Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina.

BDK Advokati has advised Germany's DEG development finance institution on its EUR 20 million loan to regional FMCG company Atlantic Stark.

Business activity generates thousands of documents, contracts, letters, invoices, and the like. This constitutes documentary material. This means that every entrepreneur and company in the Republic of Serbia, in one way or another, is either a creators or possessor of documentary material.

Cvjeticanin & Partners has advised Merkury Market on increasing the capital of its Emma Real Estate subsidiary in Serbia by EUR 1.8 million.

Cvjeticanin & Partners has advised Emma Logistics Serbia on restructuring its EUR 5.2 million in loans from creditors BM Land Cesko and Merkury Market.

On November 21, 2023, corporate/M&A and private equity experts from Bulgaria, Greece, Hungary, Kosovo, Moldova, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Turkiye, and Ukraine sat down for a virtual round table moderated by CEE Legal Matters Managing Editor Radu Cotarcea to discuss the key developments in the field over the past decade.

Doklestic, Repic & Gajin Partner Slobodan Doklestic talks about the evolution of the practice and their role as legal advisors in Serbia over the last 10 years.

On December 15, 2023, JPM & Partners announced that Slovenian Big Bang's acquisition of Serbian online retailer BC Group (reported by CEE Legal Matters on September 1, 2023) had closed.

A foreign national, as well as a domestic citizen, assumes the status of a self-employed person when performing the duties of a director outside an employment relationship, i.e., based on a contract governing the mutual rights and obligations of the director, unless insured on a priority basis.

Last week, we discussed the topic of incentives for the improvement of energy efficiency and energy improvement/rehabilitation, and possibilities for individuals and housing communities in that regard. This time we would like to glance at incentives for energy improvement/rehabilitation for housing communities– residential and residential–commercial buildings connected to district heating systems, which may be obtained through the project called „Energy improvement/rehabilitation of residential, multi-family buildings connected to district heating system– Public ESCO Project“ which is initiated by the Ministry of Mining and Energy in collaboration with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. 

During its last session on October 26, 2023, the National Assembly adopted amendments to the Public Procurement Act.