CEE Legal Matters

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  • Biris Goran Promotes to Partner

    Biris Goran has promoted IP/IT lawyer Ana Maria Andronic to Partner, noting that she “placed the firm as the leading name on the IT market in the last few years and will continue to further develop the IP, IT & Media Practice.” The firm also announced that Senior Associate Stefanita Georgescu has joined its Real Estate Practice team.

       

    Ana Maria Andronic

    Andronic joined Biris Goran in 2008 and heads the IP, IT & Media Practice. She specializes on angel and venture capital investments, Internet privacy matters, copyright and trademark related matters, and all related corporate/M&A/labor issues. The firm claims that she is “widely regarded as the leading lawyer in Romania when it comes to IT and online matters,” and notes that “she is the driving force behind VentureConnect, the leading investment platform for IT and online innovative and high growth companies in Romania.” 

    Andronic graduated from the University of Craiova, Faculty of Law, in 1997, and from the National Institute for Magistrates, Bucharest, in 1998. She obtained an LL.M. in Intellectual Property and Internet Law from Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, USA in 2006. She was admitted to the Bucharest Bar in 2007, and to the New York State Bar in 2011.

    Partner Victor Constantinescu stated that: “This promotion is a no-brainer for us: Mary (as we call her) is the best IT-sector lawyer in Romania, bar none. Nobody has her US training and background, transaction resume, experience dealing with IT start-ups and entrepreneurs, and her demeanor and client management skills – all wrapped up in a single lawyer.  Mary is a vital part of the BG team and we’re glad that she joins us as partner as she continuously expands her client base.”

    Georgescu joins Biris Goran as a senior attorney primarily assigned to the Firm’s real estate practice. He has over 11 years of experience in providing transactional and regulatory advice concerning a broad range of domestic and cross-border transactions, including five years as a de facto in-house lawyer with ING Romania, where he performed extensive title investigations and other real estate matters involving acquisition, disposal, financing, and leasing, and two years as Chief In-house Counsel for Romanian companies belonging to the Kardan Group, where he was involved in a wise variety of financing, corporate, and regulatory matters.

     

  • Avellum Partners Advises Ferrexpo on USD 41 Million in Export Financing Credits

    Avellum Partners has announced that it acted as Ukrainian legal counsel to Ferrexpo in connection with three export financing credits, including a USD 14.5 million credit provided by Private Export Funding Corporation (PEFCO) to Ferrexpo’s Ukrainian subsidiary Ferrexpo Yeristovo Mining and a USD 15.8 million credit provided by PEFCO to Ferrexpo’s Ukrainian subsidiary Ferrexpo Belanovo GOK.

    Both credits were guaranteed by the Export-Import Bank of the United States, and both were used to finance the purchase of mining trucks and services from the United States for Ferrexpo’s mining business in Ukraine. The third is a USD 10.7 million facility provided by AB Svensk Exportkredit to Ferrexpo Poltava Mining and guaranteed by Exportkreditnamnden, the Swedish Export Credits Guarantee Board, with BNP Paribas Fortis acting as arranger and facility agent. This facility was used to finance the purchase of equipment and services from Sweden.

    According to Avellum Partners, “Ferrexpo’s resource base is the largest iron ore deposit in Europe with approximately 20 billion tons of resources. It is the largest producer of pellets in the CIS and the 5th largest supplier of pellets to the global steel industry.”

    The Avellum Partners team was led by Partner Glib Bondar, with significant support from Associates Artem Shyrkozhukhov, Taras Dmukhovskyy, and Anna Melnychuk.

     

  • Lawin Advises Entree Capital on Investing in UAB Worapay

    Lawin has advised the Israeli venture capital fund Entree Capital on a EUR 400,000 investment in the Lithuanian mobile payments company UAB WoraPay. The investment was made through Olerra Investments Limited, which is an affiliate company of Entree Capital and operates under the Entree Capital brand.

    UAB WoraPay is a start-up company, creating and developing mobile payments infrastructure. Currently UAB WoraPay provides mobile payment solutions for more than 150 venues in the Baltics, including restaurants, petrol stations, taxis, and entertainment arenas. One of the largest users of the system is the Lukoil network of gas stations.

    Entree Capital provides multi-stage financing for innovative seed, early, and growth stage companies all over the world. The company specializes in enterprise software, payment, e-commerce, and mobile communications markets. According to LAWIN, Entree Capital, “has invested in other payments services companies, including Flypay, mCash, Scan and other.”

    Lawin was represented by Partner Dovile Burgiene, Associate Lina Radaviciene, and Junior Associates Arminas Banys and Arturas Grimaila.  

     

  • Glimstedt Successful in the Supreme Court of Estonia in Constitutional Review

    Glimstedt Estonia reports that it successfully convinced the Supreme Court of Estonia, sitting en banc, to hold as unconstitutional a procedural law passed by the Parliament of Estonia regarding limits to the compensation of legal expenses.

    According to Glimstedt Partner Priit Latt, the case involved a regulation established by the Government of Estonia, establishing the maximum amounts for which payment of expenses for contractual representatives could be claimed from other participants in a civil proceeding). In the trademark case at hand, that amount was EUR 319.56, which Glimstedt claims is “clearly not enough in the case of more complex disputes.”

    Glimstedt’s client in the case before the Supreme Court involved AS Uvic, an Estonian food production company, which was contesting the decisions of the Harju County Court and Tallinn Circuit Court in connection with the expenses it incurred in a successfully-resolved trademark dispute. According to Glimstedt, “In case no. 3-2-1-153-13 the Supreme Court en banc declared several important provisions of Code of Civil Procedure and the Government’s regulation which  prescribed the limits of legal expenses unconstitutional and invalid. The Supreme Court annulled the lower court’s decisions and assigned the designation of procedural expenses to be reviewed again in county court.”

    According to Glimstedt Partner Priit Latt, the key to law-making is in quality and protection of fundamental rights not speed and dissolving of separation of powers. “The legal environment in Estonia today must be clear and understandable for all parties to ensure stability and equality of treatment for all citizens,” he said. “Parliament must not become a ‘rubber stamp’ and this means the Riigikogu must resolve important matters, such as limitations of right of ownership and everyone’s fundamental right to recourse to the courts, themselves, and not assign the resolving of these matters to executive power of the state – the Government.“  

     

  • CMS Advises Dixons on Sale of ElectroWorld to NAY

    CMS has advised Dixons Retail on the sale of its ElectroWorld operations in the Czech Republic and Slovakia to Slovak electronics retailer NAY. 

    Dixons Retail is one of Europe’s leading specialist multi-channel electrical retailer and services companies. ElectroWorld operates 22 stores in the Czech Republic and 4 in Slovakia, which for the financial year that ended on April 30, 2014, generated a turnover of GBP 129 million.

    CMS Partner Helen Rodwell, who led the CMS team on the deal, commented: “We are delighted to have advised Dixons on this transaction. We are currently seeing an uptick in M&A activity in the Czech Republic and the wider region and particularly players from within CEE that aim to increase their geographical footprint remain keen to purchase high quality assets in nearby markets.”

    Rodwell’s team included Senior Associates Patrik Przyhoda and Frances Gerrard. 

     

  • Schoenherr Advises Laakman Holding on Increase of Participation in C-QUADRAT

    Schoenherr has advised Laakman Holding on the increase of its participation in the C-QUADRAT Investment fund company from 9.4% to 18.4%.

    By means of the transaction, Laakman became core shareholder of C-QUADRAT. The increase of participation was effected through the acquisition of a shareholdings from Alexander Svoboda Privatstiftung, Christian Mayer Privatstiftung, Michael Neubauer Privatstiftung, and from other individuals, as well as the treasury shares of C-QUADRAT.

    The transaction was completed on August 7 following the approval of the Austrian financial market authority.

    The Schoenherr team consisted of Partner Christian Herbst and Attorney Maximilian Lang.

    The sellers were represented by Hausmaninger Kletter Rechtsanwalte-Gesellschaft.

     

  • Gide Advises KGHM Polska Miedz on PLN 2 Billion Financing Facility from EIB

    Gide has announced that it advised KGHM Polska Miedz on another major financing project, following less than a month after the the world’s leading copper producer had entered into a USD 2.5 billion investment loan agreement with a consortium of Polish and international banks (reported on by CEE Legal Matters on July 16, 2014 and July 21, 2014).

    The new agreement involves a 12-year unsecured loan for PLN 2 billion (approximately USD 640 million) from the European Investment Bank, which KGHM intends to use to finance the costs of modernizing smelter installations and extend the “Zelazny Most” waste incineration facility. According to Gide, “KGHM states that this is the next step towards consolidating financing for the KGHM Capital Group’s strategic investments.”

    As in the previous deal, Gide’s team consisted of Partners Dariusz Tokarczuk and Pawel Grzeskowiak and Associate Marta Karminska.

     

  • RTPR Advises EBRD on EUR 10 Million Loan to Romanian Water Operator

    Lawyers from RTPR Allen & Overy have counseled the EBRD on its EUR 10 million loan to SC Raja SA Constanta, one of the largest water utilities in Romania. SC Raja SA Constanta — an existing EBRD client that previously received a EUR 33 million loan in 2010 — operates in the counties of Constanta and Ialomita with a growing presence in Calarasi, Dambovita, and Ilfov.

    Today the company serves over 730,000 residents.

    According to the EBRD, the loan is being provided alongside EU Cohesion Funds of EUR 47.5 million, and is designed to increase access to clean water and improve sewerage services in the region. As a result, over 10,000 people will receive access to a safe water supply through extended water networks and nearly 20,000 people will be connected to sewerage networks in 17 towns and villages across the counties of Constanta, Ialomita and Ilfov. The project will also support investments in wastewater networks and will ensure that quality water supply services are available in smaller localities in Ilfov county, which is also serviced by SC Raja SA Constanta.

    Felix Stroe, General Manager of SC Raja SA Constanta, said: “The long-standing collaboration between SC Raja SA and the EBRD has developed over time into a trustworthy partnership. The two institutions have worked together in guaranteeing the successful implementation of ambitious national infrastructure programs. Through various projects developed by the EBRD, SC Raja SA efficiently manages infrastructure assets for the entire lifecycle – water catchment, distribution and treatment – to ensure the optimum provision of water services for the well-being of the population and of the environment.”

    The EBRD reports that the loan, “is the 23rd investment under the Romania EU Cohesion Fund Water Co-Financing Framework (R2CF), launched in 2010. The facility was originally approved in November 2010, with a volume of EUR 200 million, and further increased by EUR 130 million in September 2012 following strong local demand. To date, the EBRD has mobilised approximately EUR 2 billion of EU funding in Romania’s water and wastewater facilities.”

    The EBRD reports having invested approximately EUR 6.7 billion over 364 projects in Romania, making it the largest investor in the country.

    Senior Counsel Enrico Canzio led the EBRD’s legal team on the matter, with on-the-ground assistance from RTPR Allen & Overy Partner Victor Padurari and Counsel Cosmin Tilea.

     

  • SPCG Advises PGNiG on Carve-Out of Retail Gas Unit

    Studnicki Pleszka Cwiakalski Gorski has advised PGNiG during the process of a carve-out from the company of its retail gas trade unit and its in-kind contribution to the company PGNiG Obrot Detaliczny, which took over activity in the retail gas trade from PGNiG on August 1, 2014.  

    SPCG reports that its advice during the process included preparing the documents required to executed the capital increase of PGNiG Obrot Detaliczny and the agreement of in-kind contribution from PGNiG into the company, as well as preparing legal memoranda concerning selected legal aspects relating to the capital increase of the company and the in-kind contribution.

    The SPCG team was led by Partner Agnieszka Soja, assisted by Partners Slawomir Dudzik and Marcin Koper, and Associates Lukasz Przyborowski, Pawel Wec, and Ewa Krzemien.

     

  • Eaton EMEA GC Moves to APM Terminals

    Susanne Marston, former Vice President & Chief Counsel for the EMEA region at the Eaton Corporation joined APM Terminals, an independent unit of the Danish Maersk Group, as their General Counsel in August and is based in The Hague, Netherlands.

       

    Sussane Marston

    Marston was previously based in Morges, Switzerland. As part of her role with Eaton, she was heading up the regional law department and was responsible for the handling of all legal aspects of doing business in Europe, Middle East and Africa, including Intellectual Property, the implementation of tax strategies, and the management of risks related to the expansion into Russia, Middle East, and Africa. Prior to joining Eaton in September 2006, she worked for a little over 5 years as International Legal Counsel with GMAC Automotive and GMAC Insurance in the United Kingdom.

    APM Terminals operates a Global Terminal Network of 20,300 employees on five continents which includes 65 operating port and terminal facilities in 39 countries, and over 160 Inland Services operations in 47 countries. The company provides port management and operations to over 60 liner shipping customers who serve the world’s leading importers and exporters of containerized and other cargoes.

    In CEE, the company’s global terminal network of ports includes Tallinn in Estonia, and St. Petersburg, (4 Terminals: Petrolesport, First Container Terminal, Moby Dik Container Terminal and Ust-Luga Container Terminal), Moscow, and Vostochny in Russia, while its network of inland services includes terminals in Romania, Russia, and Turkey. The company reported a 2013 revenue of USD 4.33 billion.