Category: On the Move

Former Counsels Zeno Grabmayr, Adelina Iftime-Blagean, Maciej Olszewski, Aleksandar Ristic, Bruno Stefanik, and Stefan Wartinger have all become Partners in Wolf Theiss’ respective offices across CEE.

Grabmayr is a member of the Banking & Finance team in Vienna. According to the firm, he has “a particular focus on transactions in the financial sector, distressed M&A, restructuring, and financing.” Grabmayr joined Wolf Theiss in 2013 and has been with the firm since, save for a six-month secondment with Slaughter and May in London. “I appreciate the trust Wolf Theiss has placed in me and the recognition of my work so far,” Grabmayr said. “With this promotion, the next chapter of an exciting professional journey begins for me and my colleagues.”

Iftime-Blagean is a labor law and IP&IT expert in Wolf Theiss’ Bucharest office. Before joining the firm in 2006, Iftime-Blagean spent three years with Popovici, Nitu, Stoica & Asociatii and a year in-house with SSIF Broker. “I am delighted and grateful to be appointed as a Partner at Wolf Theiss,” Iftime-Blagean commented. “From this position, I aim to contribute to the future growth of the firm. This promotion not only represents personal appreciation but also honors the collective effort of our team.”

Olszewski is a member of the Corporate/M&A team at Wolf Theiss in Warsaw. According to the firm, he has “specialized in corporate transactions, including share and asset deals, equity investments, corporate restructurings, joint ventures, and regulatory advice.” Before joining Wolf Theiss in 2019, he spent 11 years with Allen & Overy and, earlier, over three years with Salans. “I am excited about this professional milestone and looking forward to further developing our Corporate/M&A practice with my colleagues,” Olszewski stated.

Stefanik is a member of the Corporate/M&A team at Wolf Theiss in Bratislava. According to the firm, “for over ten years, Bruno has advised clients on various corporate law matters, including M&A, restructurings, and regulatory issues.” Before his career at Wolf Theiss, Stefaniak spent almost five years in-house as Lead Counsel with Audia Plastics, and, earlier, almost six years with Kinstellar. “Being appointed Partner greatly motivates me to further expand our office in Bratislava and to achieve many more successes for Wolf Theiss with my colleagues,” Stefanik added.

Wartinger is a member of the Competition and Antitrust Law team at Wolf Theiss in Vienna. According to the firm, his activities encompass “complex cartel and abuse proceedings before the European Commission and Austrian courts as well as leniency applications at national and EU levels.” Before joining Wolf Theiss in 2021, he spent eight and a half years with E+H. “In my new role, I aim to further contribute to Wolf Theiss’s strengths in terms of expertise and solution-oriented action on an international level,” Wartinger commented.

Aleksandar Ristic is a member of the Corporate and Disputes team at Wolf Theiss in Belgrade. Ristic began his legal career with Wolf Theiss in 2015, joining as an Associate and becoming a Senior Associate in 2019 and Counsel in 2021.

“We are delighted to welcome six exceptional colleagues to the circle of Partners, further expanding our market presence and service portfolio in the CEE/SEE region,” Managing Partner Sebastian Oberzaucher said. “Promoting excellence and talents within the firm is of great significance to Wolf Theiss.”

During the Three Seas Initiative annual general meeting in Bucharest in September 2023, Austria’s Dorda, Bulgaria’s Boyanov & Co., Croatia’s Divjak Topic Bahtijarevic & Krka, the Czech Republic’s Kocian Solc Balastik, Estonia’s Ellex Raidla, Hungary’s Lakatos Koves & Partners, Latvia’s Ellex Klavins, Lithuania’s Ellex Valiunas, Poland’s Wardynski and Partners, Romania’s Nestor Nestor Diculescu Kingston Petersen, Slovakia’s Barger Prekop, and Slovenia’s Selih & Partnerji announced they formed the Three Seas Legal Alliance, in recognition of the progress made by the Three Seas Initiative.

According to the press statements, the Three Seas Legal Alliance’s core goals will include supporting the development of the Three Seas Initiative in each member country; raising awareness amongst the client community of the Three Seas Initiative and the legal environment and support for investments arising thereof; and offering clients “the best legal advice if they are considering investments in any of the member countries which may form part of the Three Seas Initiative.”

The Three Seas Initiative describes itself as a politically inspired, commercially driven platform for improving connectivity between twelve EU member states located between the Baltic, Adriatic, and Black seas. The initiative was born out of a shared interest in developing transport, energy, and digital infrastructure connections on the EU’s north-south axis.

Several members of the new Three Seas Legal Alliance – Boyanov & Co., Divjak Topic Bahtijarevic & Krka, Nestor Nestor Diculescu Kingston Petersen, Selih & Partnerji – were working together within SEE Legal, which will continue to run in parallel.

On May 21, 2023, Allen & Overy and Shearman & Sterling announced they are merging into a fully integrated firm: Allen Overy Shearman Sterling – A&O Shearman for short.

Globally, A&O Shearman will have approximately 3,900 lawyers and approximately 800 Partners across 49 offices. In CEE, A&O is the only one present with offices in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, and Turkey (through its association with Gedik & Eraksoy). The firm also had a presence in Romania (through its association with RTPR, which ceased in March 2020) and in Russia (with the office winding down following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine).

“This combination of two great firms is such an exciting step for us,” Allen & Overy Senior Partner Wim Dejonghe commented. “Both firms have a history of excellence, and together we think A&O Shearman will be a firm unlike any other in the world.

“Client need for global elite firms has never been greater,” Shearman & Sterling Senior Partner Adam Hakki added. “They are calling for integrated global legal solutions and advice: merging with Allen & Overy will dramatically accelerate our ability to meet their needs in an increasingly complex environment.”

Simpson Thacher & Bartlett is advising Allen & Overy and Davis Polk & Wardwell is advising Shearman & Sterling on the merger.

Editor’s Note: On October 13, 2023, A&O Senior Partner Wim Dejonghe announced that the partnerships of both Allen & Overy and Shearman & Sterling had voted in favor of merging to create A&O Shearman, “with a 99%+ majority in both firms.”

“This is a historic moment for both firms and our profession,” Dejonghe commented. “We are delighted that our partners have voted so resoundingly in favor of this merger, which is a transformational step for the legal industry.”

Havel & Partners has expanded its IP practice with the establishment of H&P Patents, a team specializing in providing industrial property strategy services including patents, utility models, and industrial design protection. H&P Patents will be led by Havel & Partners Partners Robert Nespurek and Ivan Rames.

According to Havel & Partners, H&P Patents also provides “services related to European patent validations and obtaining supplementary protection certificates in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. The team consists of more than 15 experienced patent attorneys, IP specialists, and attorneys with many years of experience who represent clients before patent offices and courts in complex patent disputes.”

The new H&P Patents team has 17 members in total, of which two new-joiner Patent Attorneys – Tomas Pavlica and Ivana Beranova; three Partners – Robert Nespurek, Ivan Rames, and Jan Sturm; as well as a Managing Associate, four Senior Associates, two Associates, four Junior Associates, and a Trademark Specialist.

“We can now offer our clients the widest range of IP services on the Czech-Slovak market,” Partner Ivan Rames commented. “We have established a dedicated group specializing in patents and related matters, which is composed of experts with extensive experience in patent law.”

Seven Kinstellar lawyers have been promoted to Partner: Bratislava-based Tomas Melisek, Budapest-based Levente Hegedus, Istanbul-based Bulut Girgin, and Kyiv-based Anastasiya Bolkhovitinova, Natalia Kirichenko, Oleg Matiusha, and Illya Muchnyk.

Melisek is the Bratislava office’s Head of the Banking, Finance & Capital Markets practice. He has been with the firm since 2011. Earlier, he also spent a year and a half with Clifford Chance.

Hegedus is the Head of the Budapest-based Banking, Finance & Capital Markets practice and the Co-Head of the firm-wide Restructuring & Insolvency practice. He joined Kinstelalr in 2009 as a Junior Associate, became an Associate in 2013, a Senior Associate in 2017, a Managing Associate in 2018, and a Counsel in 2020.

Girgin is the Head of the Istanbul Competition and Compliance practice and Co-Head of the firm-wide Competition & State Aid practice. Before joining the firm in 2019, he spent over three years with ELIG Gurkaynak. Earlier, he was a Compliance Manager with the Fox Networks Group for a year and, before that, a Senior Regulatory Legal Counsel at Turkcell, between 2012 and 2014. He began his career as a Legal Consultant at Actecon.

Bolkhovitinova is the Head of Kyiv’s TMT practice and a Co-Head of the firm-wide Telecommunications practice. She has been with the firm since 2021, having joined after spending 16 years with DLA Piper. She began her career as an Associate with EY Law, where she spent a year.

Kirichenko, Head of the Kyiv IP&T and Data & Cybersecurity practices and a Co-Head of the firm-wide IP&T practice, joined Kinstellar in 2021. Before, she spent 11 years with DLA Piper and, earlier, two years as Head of Legal with All Motion. Earlier still, she spent a year and a half as a Legal Counsel with Progression LLC and over a year as a Legal Counsel with ADV.

Matiusha is the Kyiv Head of the Infrastructure & Transportation and Real Estate & Construction practices. He has been with the firm since 2018, having joined after spending six years with DLA Piper. Earlier, Matiusha spent six years with Baker McKenzie and, before that, a year in-house with Consortium Ukrindustry. He started his career as the Deputy Head of the legal department at Sofia Kyiv in 2004, where he spent over a year.

Muchnyk is the Head of the firm-wide Fintech practice. He has been with Kinstellar since 2021, having joined after spending 16 years with DLA Piper. Earlier, he spent a year as an Associate with EY Law and, earlier still, over two years as an Associate with Trust. He began his career in-house with Credit Union in 2000, where he spent one year.

Former Counsel Daniel Aranyi has been promoted to Partner at Bird & Bird in Budapest, where he also leads the firm’s Energy and Competition practice.

Specializing in corporate and M&A, energy, and competition, Aranyi joined Bird & Bird in 2018 as a Senior Associate and was promoted to Counsel in 2020. Earlier, he spent over seven years at Weil Gotshal and Manges, from 2011 to 2018, as an Associate. Aranyi was also an Associate with White & Case in Budapest from 2005 to 2011.

A new promotion round saw 62 lawyers become Partners at CMS – spanning 25 cities across the UK, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Latin America – including Arno Zimmermann, Hans Lederer, and Klaus Pateter in Vienna, Alicja Zalewska-Orabona in Warsaw, and Mihai Jiganie-Serban in Bucharest.

A corporate and M&A, litigation, and arbitration specialist, Zimmermann joined CMS in 2013. Earlier, he had spent two years with the Vienna office of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom.

Lederer, an expert in intellectual property, technology, media & telecoms, and commercial law, joined CMS as an Associate in 2009. He became a Senior Associate in 2014 and, finally, a Counsel in 2018, before making Partner this year.

Pateter, a technology, media & telecoms, commercial, and start-up legal expert, joined CMS in 2018 as an Associate and became an Attorney at Law in 2019. Before becoming a part of CMS, he spent three and a half years as an Associate with Held Berdnik Astner & Partner.

Warsaw-based former Counsel Zalewska-Orabona is an intellectual property and trademark expert. She has been with CMS since 2019 when she joined as a Senior Associate. Before that, she spent over three years with Baker McKenzie as an Associate and, earlier, over two years with the European Union Intellectual Property Office between 2014 and 2016.

Jiganie-Serban, a former Senior Counsel, is a Bucharest-based dispute resolution and white-collar crime specialist. He has been with CMS for over three years, having joined in 2020 as Head of the firm’s Criminal Defense practice. Before that, he spent 15 years with Serban & Asociatii.

“Congratulations to our new Partners,” CMS Chairman Pierre-Sebastien Thill commented. “At CMS, it is very important to us that we recognize individual contributions and performance; and give everyone the opportunity to use their talents and fulfill their potential. While taking on the responsibilities of a Partner during these challenging times is not an easy task, I know that our new Partners have the necessary depth of knowledge to anticipate our clients’ challenges and the experience to meet them in innovative and sector-shaping ways.”

Editor’s Note: This article was updated on May 3, 2023, to remove three names from the CMS Partner promotion list, at the firm’s request.

Taylor Wessing Counsel Tugce Yalcin – who joined the firm in March 2023 from DLA Piper – will head the firm’s newly established CEE Turkish Desk in Vienna.

According to Taylor Wessing, Yalcin “advises her clients in her native languages German, English, and Turkish. As a dual-qualified lawyer, Attorney at Law in Austria, and Solicitor of the Senior Courts of England and Wales, Tugce is a Counsel in the Corporate/M&A practice group and has ten years of experience.”

Prior to joining Taylor Wessing, Yalcin spent six and a half years with DLA Piper. Before that, she spent eight months as an Associate with Harrer & Harrer and, earlier still, nine months as an Associate with Raits Bleiziffer.

“Economically, the CEE region offers enormous potential for Turkish companies and vice versa,” said Yalcin. “Our mission and strength are to provide these companies with first-class lawyers who are not only experts in their field of law, but also know the market very well.”

The Bosnia & Herzegovina-based law firm Ibrahimovic & Co has launched its dedicated Turkish Desk with the addition of Feyza Gerger Erdal, who will head the new department. 

According to Ibrahimovic & Co, “the Department for Business with Turkey is headed by lawyer and team member Feyza Gerger Erdal, founder of the Istanbul-based Erdal Law office, which has experience in corporate law, mediation, and labor law.”

Erdal, who has been at the helm of the Erdal Law office since 2014, has previously spent almost seven years with the Gur Law Firm, starting as an Associate in 2007 and making Partner in 2014.

Austria-based Helml Rechtsanwaelte has become part of Los Angeles-based Aliant Law.

According to Aliant Law, its Austrian affiliate law firm has, since 2014, “been advising its clients regionally from two Austrian offices and is now also globally networked with lawyers in over 20 countries in Aliant Law.” Aliant Austria is managed by two Managing Partners, Friedrich Helml and Julia Helml.

Friedrich Helml has been at the helm of Helml Rechtsanwaelte since 2014. Before that, he spent over three years as Attorney at Law with SCWP Schindhelm.

Julia Helml has been with Helml Rechtsanwaelte since 2021. Prior to that, she spent over six years with Schoenherr, between 2015 and 2021, and over three years with SCWP Schindhelm, between 2012 and 2015.

“We have a strong first decade almost behind us,” said Aliant Austria Founder and one of the Managing Partners Friedrich Helml. “Now we are finally leaving the founding phase behind us and can now serve our clients in more than 20 locations worldwide. Due to the cross-disciplinary orientation, we also benefit greatly from the internationally available know-how in the firm, which has already been evident in the first weeks of being part of Aliant in national and international cases.”

“Since our founding in 2015, we’ve grown to provide services around the world to clients ranging from startups to global giants,” added Aliant Law Chairman Jacob Stein. “The addition of operations in Austria meets the needs of many of our clients who have legal needs here. This combination represents Aliant’s 20th member firm, bringing the total number of attorneys practicing under Aliant to 200 worldwide.”

Aliant Law is also present in other CEE countries, including Hungary, Lithuania, and Poland.