CEE Legal Matters

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  • Schoenherr Advises Oesterreichische Volksbanken on Sale of Volksbank Malta

    Schoenherr has advised Osterreichische Volksbanken (OeVAG) on the sale of its fully-owned subsidiary Volksbank Malta, to Malta-based Mediterranean Bank.

    On April 11, 2014, OeVAG and Mediterranean Bank signed a Share Purchase Agreement for 100% of the shares in Volksbank Malta. Closing wlll take place after regulatory approval. As the central institution of the Volksbank sector, Vienna-based OeVAG supports the core business of the 48 regional Volksbanks in Austria. After a carve-out of the international business in 2013, Volksbank Malta today has a balance-sheet size of approximately EUR 150 million and approximately EUR 56 million of equity.

    The Schoenherr team advising OeVAG was led by Partner Sascha Hodl, with the involvement of Partner Roman Perner and Associate Philipp Kapl.

    OeVAG also received advice from KPMG Financial Services, while Malta’s Fenech & Fenech Advocates served as legal advisors to Mediterranean Bank.

     

     

     

  • Mishcon de Reya Successfully Defends Russian Oligarch

    The Mishcon de Reya law firm announced that it has successfully defended a EUR 50 million claim bought by an American businessman against a Russian oligarch in the English Commercial Court, in a case that addressed the issue of when contracts should be governed by English law.

    Richard Gerstein, Partner and Head of Mishcon de Reya’s Professional Negligence Team, represented defendant Lev Tchernoy, a Russian businessman who generated significant wealth in the Russian aluminum industry. The claimant, Carl Sax, an American businessman, brought the claim over the acquisition and development of a 269 hectare estate in Sardinia, Italy – a joint business venture between the two parties and one other which ended when Tchernoy became concerned over the legality of the proposed transaction. Mr. Justice Hamblen ruled in favor of Tchernoy on all three grounds put forward by Mishcon de Reya — that there was no binding contract, that English law did not apply, and that there was no basis to recover any of the damages claimed. 

    The firm issued a statement announcing that: “As London’s standing as the preferred dispute resolution centre for wealthy foreigners increases, this case illustrates the need for a genuine connection to England for the case to be heard here.” And according to Gerstein, “the impact of the decision is that the claim cannot be pursued in England, and will not be pursued elsewhere. The judge effectively said that if you want the English courts to determine disputes you need to expressly provide for it.”

     

     

     

  • EPAM Sponsors Ukrainian Moot Court Team

    The Ukrainian office of Egorov Puginsky Afanasiev & Partners is sponsoring the Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court team from the Institute of International Relations at Taras Shevchenko National University of Kiev (IIRTSNU) in the upcoming White & Case International Rounds of the 2014 competition.

    The International Rounds will be held on April 6-12 2014, at the Capitol Hilton Hotel, in Washington, D.C.

    The Ukrainian National Round took place on February 14-16, 2014, at the Higher Commercial Court of Ukraine. In the final round, the team from the IIRTSNU won, in the process qualifying to represent Ukraine in the prestigious International Rounds.

    This year will be the 55th year of the Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition. Jessup is the world’s largest moot court competition, with participants from over 600 law schools in more than 90 countries. The Competition is a simulation of a fictional dispute between countries before the International Court of Justice, the judicial organ of the United Nations. One team is allowed to participate from every eligible school. Teams prepare oral and written pleadings arguing both the applicant and respondent positions of the case. Thousands of law students from around the world participate on the assigned problem, which for 2014 concerns the conflict between maritime development and conservation, criminal jurisdiction, and maritime salvage rights. The winning team will be awarded the White & Case Jessup Cup.

     

  • Dvorak Hager & Partners Advises on JDK Transformation

    Dvorak Hager & Partners has provided legal support on the transformation of the JDK limited liability company to a family holding company.

    JDK, a leading Czech producer and supplier of cooling machinery, is based in Nymburk, about 50 kilometers from Prague. The project was managed by DH&P Partner Stanislav Dvorak and Managing Attorney Jan Krampera.

     

     

     

  • Schoenherr Hires Head of Employment

    Schoenherr has announced that Stefan Kuehteubl has agreed to join the firm as a Partner and the Head of the firm’s Employment practice as of July 2014.

    Kuehteubl will be returning to Schoenherr, where he worked as a member of the Employment team between 1999 and 2004. For the past ten years he has worked at the Engelbrecht und Partner employment law boutique — the past six as a partner.

    The Schoenherr employment law team under Stefan Kuehteubl will consist of a total of six lawyers. Kuehteubl advises on contentious and non-contentious employment law, including continuing advice to employers on out of court matters, the drafting of legal opinions and contracts, as well as advising and representing managing directors and management board members. International employment law and employment in the public sector, including in privatized entities, are additional points of focus. His clients include Magna, the City of Vienna (Vienna General Hospital, AKH), MedAustron, the Institute of Science and Technology Austria, and ASSA ABLOY.

    “Employment law these days is as exciting as never before. Stefan Kuehteubl is an excellent lawyer who learned his trade at Schoenherr. With Stefan rejoining the firm, we now have the opportunity to strengthen and expand our Employment practice at the partner level. Our goal is clear, namely to also have a leading position in the market in this field of law,” said Christoph Lindinger, Schoenherr’s Managing Partner.

     

  • Legal Counsel Ltd. Hires New Partner

    Ukraine’s Legal Counsel Ltd. law firm has announced that it has hired Real Estate lawyer Victoria Papenkova as Partner.

    Victoria is expected to enhance the firm’s practices in land law and land relations, construction, and infrastructure. She previously worked for four and a half years with CMS Cameron McKenna, for five years with the American Chamber of Commerce, and for one and a half years as a Senior Associate with CMS Reich-Rohrwig Hainz, all in Kiev.

     

  • BPV Braun Partners Appoints New Partner in Slovakia

    BPV Braun Partners has made Slovakian lawyer Igor Augustinic a Partner in the firm’s Bratislava office.

    Augustinic focuses primarily on Banking/Finance, Real Estate, and Competition law. He also works on Corporate/M&A and the law of business associations. In his new role as Partner, he will also take part in managing the Bratislava office, where he has worked as Managing Associate since June 2012.  

    “Appointing a local partner in the Bratislava branch is the logical next step that will allow us to strengthen our successful presence on the Slovak market,” commented Arthur Braun, Managing Partner of bpv Braun Partners, adding, “We are planning on adding more team members in the medium term and we are open to appointing experienced professionals as new partners in Prague and Bratislava.”

    Augustinic joined bpv Braun Partners from CHSH in June, 2012, after four and a half years with the latter firm. Before CHSH he worked for 2 years with Gleiss Lutz. 

     

  • Baltic and Nordic Firms Advise DT Group on Billion Euro Acquisition

    Castren & Snellmann has acted as legal adviser for the DT Group – the largest retailer and distributor of building materials in the Nordic region – in the company’s acquisition of Puukeskus, Finland’s leading supplier of timber and building materials to the trade and general public.

    Puukeskus employs 400 persons nationwide, and its net sales exceeded EUR 230 million in 2013. The billion-euro acquisition was initially announced in the beginning of February, and LAWIN has now announced that it has now been completed with the approval by the authorities. 

    The Castren & Snellman team in the transaction was headed by Partner Jan Kuhlefelt and included, among others, Associates Jonas Hasto, Tuukka Hamalainen, Arimo Leppa, Laura Kotilainen, and Jenni Parviainen 

    Lawin Partner Martin Simovart and Associate Kris Tammistu teamed up with Castren & Snellmann to perform legal due diligence on Puukeskus’s Estonian unit and to provide legal advice on pre-closing, transactional and post-closing matters.

     

  • Tark Grunte Sutkiene Advises on Sports Center Sale

    Tark Grunte Sutkiene has advised Estonian investors Indrek Prants, Sven Mansberg and Armin Koomagi in their purchase of the Rocca al Mare Sports Centre – one of Estonia’s largest tennis and fitness centers – from the Askembla Growth Fund.

    The total area of the Rocca al Mare Sports Centre is 9,800 square meters. The largest tenants are the MyFitness sports club, the Rocca al Mare Tennis Center, Sportland, and AMPS.

    The new owners of Coral Arendus are planning to invest in the Rocca al Mare Sports Centre and to further expand the sporting activities in the centre. Indrek Prants commented on their plans concerning the center as follows: “We plan to invest in Coral in the coming years to modernize the whole sports centre. Rocca al Mare Tennis Centre and the largest chain of fitness clubs in Estonia, MyFitness, have proven to be a viable combination and our goal is to provide everybody even wider sporting opportunities under one roof in the future.”

    Tark Grunte Sutkiene Senior Associates Tanel Tark and Allar Aru provided counsel on the transaction.

     

     

  • Cleary Gottlieb Among ILFs Advising on Lafarge/Holcim Merger

    Cleary Gottlieb has announced that it was counsel to Lafarge in the company’s EUR 40 billion merger with Holcim to create LafargeHolcim, which Cleary Gottlieb predicted would be “the most advanced group in the building materials industry.”

    Holcim and Lafarge intend to combine the two companies through a merger, unanimously approved by the companies’ respective Board of Directors and fully supported by the core shareholders of both companies. 

    According to a statement released by Cleary Gottlieb, “the transaction would result in the creation of the most advanced group in the building materials industry, offering an unprecedented range of products and services to answer the changing demands of the building materials industry and the challenges of increasing urbanization. Lafarge and Holcim pro forma combined sales amount to approximately EUR 32 billion and Ebitda to EUR 6.5 billion.

    After a strategic optimization of the portfolio through a pro-active divestment process, in anticipation of regulatory requirements, LafargeHolcim would occupy complementary positions, with production sites located in 90 countries across all continents with the most balanced and diversified portfolio in the industry.

    Once the deal is complete, LafargeHolcim will be listed on the SIX in Zurich and Euronext Paris, and is expected to remain domiciled in Switzerland. It would operate under the local governance rules with a board composed with equal numbers of Lafarge and Holcim directors and through a distribution of central corporate functions in France and Switzerland.

    The proposed combination is conditional upon, among other things, execution of definitive documentation, approval of the shareholders of Holcim and obtaining required regulatory and other customary authorizations. Completion is expected by summer 2015, subject to obtaining regulatory approvals.

    The Cleary Gottlieb team included Partner Pierre-Yves Chabert and Associate Rodolphe Elineau in Paris, with the support of more than 30 Cleary lawyers covering six practices in three different offices, including Partner Murat Akuyev, and Associates Mikhail Suvorov and Yury Babichev in the firm’s Moscow office.

    Holcim was advised by Homberger in Switzerland, as well as Linklaters (on French law aspects) and Freshfields (for anti-trust matters).