Albanian lawyer Elona Ganaj has joined CentralNic as Group General Counsel.

Former Cerha Hempel Senior Partner Edith Hlawati has been appointed as the sole member of the Management Board of Oesterreichische Beteiligungs AG.

Christopher Fischer, Vice President Legal Affairs at Paysafecard.com, talks to CEE In-House Matters about digitalization in his company.

Katja Tautscher has been appointed as Senior Vice President Legal and Compliance as well as Human Resources, at Borealis.

Karalina Tsimashenka has been promoted to the position of Associate Legal Manager for CIS and CEE at EPAM Systems in Minsk.  

On June 23, 2021, CEE Legal Matters reported that DGKV had advised Internet Corporated Networks on the sale of its hosting and domain business to Superhosting.bg. CEE In-House Matters spoke with Julian Borislavov, CEO and Co-Founder of ICN to learn more about the deal.

On March 24, 2021, CEE Legal Matters reported that Djingov, Gouginski, Kyutchukov & Velichkov had advised the founders of tech start-up MYX AD on EUR 350,000 invested into the company by a group led by New Vision 3 Fund KD. CEE In-House Matters spoke with Yordan Zarev, Partner at New Vision 3 Fund, to learn more about the matter.

Vladislav Nikolov, General Counsel at EnduroSat in Sofia, Bulgaria, explains why creative problem-solving, critical thinking, and communication skills are necessary for GCs in today’s world.

On April 1, 2021, CEE Legal Matters reported that ODI Law had advised the MSIN Group on the acquisition by member company EGP of a 75.11% stake in Croatia-based cardboard packaging manufacturer Neograf from Croatian entrepreneur Dusan Boras. CEE In-House Matters spoke with Tina Bacic, Corporate Legal Advisor at MSIN Group, to learn more about the matter. 

On March 3, 2021, CEE Legal Matters reported that Marohnic, Tomek and Gjoic had advised both Day One Capital and Orqa Holding Limited on the former’s EUR 1.3 million investment in the latter. CEEIHM spoke with Srdjan Kovacevic, CEO at Orqa Holding Limited to learn more.

Luka Pavlekovic has been appointed as Head of Legal at INA Grupa in Croatia.

Former 3M General Counsel Edit Rosta has joined SAP in Prague as a Senior Legal Counsel.

Ondrej Krticka has left the Linkers law firm in Prague to join Rossum’s in-house team as Head of Legal.

Christian Blatchford, General Counsel of Energo-Pro a.s., has become Chairman of the company’s two-member Supervisory Board.

Athens-based Yota Kremmida was appointed to Director & Associate General Counsel, WW Channels & Ecosystem at Hewlett Packard Enterprise.

Yota Kremmida, Regional Counsel Greece, Turkey, and Africa and EMEA & LatAm Indirect GTM & Competition Law GBU Counsel at Hewlett Packard Enterprise in Athens, explains how standardization and solid operational preparedness can help mitigate legal risks.

Ioannis Voskos, Legal Director at Hellenic Petroleum’s Retail Legal Division in Greece, talks about the role of senior in-house counsels in a world where risks can no longer simply be “controlled.”

Attila Bocsak has joined Wizz Air as a Senior Legal Manager in Budapest.

Former CMS CEE Senior Associate Dora Czegledi has joined Grundfos as Senior Legal Counsel.

Lenard Szabados has been appointed Assistant General Counsel and Regional Legal Counsel for Europe and the UK at Jabil. 

On August 19, 2021, CEE Legal Matters reported that Sorainen had advised Montonio on raising EUR 2.5 million from Tera Ventures, as well as ffVC, Superangel, Practica, 365.fintech, Startup Wise Guys, and a number of business angels. CEE In-House Matters spoke with Rasmus Oisma, Director at Montonio Finance, to learn more about the matter.

Former SupplierPlus Head of Group Legal Kirill Lezeiko returns to private practice by rejoining PwC Legal in Estonia.

On January 18, 2021, CEE Legal Matters reported that Cobalt had advised Practica Capital on its investment in Lithuanian start-up Biomatter Designs – part of the latter's EUR 500,000 investment round. CEEIHM spoke with Donatas Keras, Co-Founding Partner at Practica Capital to learn more about the matter.

On January 18, 2021, CEE Legal Matters reported that Cobalt had advised Practica Capital on its investment in Lithuanian start-up Biomatter Designs – part of the latter's EUR 500,000 investment round. CEEIHM spoke with Donatas Keras, Co-Founding Partner at Practica Capital to learn more about the matter.

On February 26, 2021, CEE Legal Matters reported that Eversheds Sutherland had advised Valmieras Stikla Skiedra on the sale of 83.14% of the share capital from the company’s controlling shareholder group to Duke I S.a.r.l. CEEIHM spoke with Ilze Saviele, Legal Counsel at VSS, to learn more about the sale. 

On January 14, 2021, CEE Legal Matters reported that the Riga office of Eversheds Sutherland had represented Euromin Holdings Limited before the Court of Justice of the European Union in a proceeding with the Financial and Capital Market Commission. CEEIHM spoke with Girts Apsitis, Member of the Management Board at AS Ventspils Nafta, to learn more about the matter.

On May 21, 2021, CEE Legal Matters reported that Ellex Valiunas had successfully represented Western Baltija Shipbuilding in its appeal of a public procurement award to a consortium of Finnish companies to provide a specialized vessel for the Lithuanian Armed Forces to eliminate pollution incidents and carry out rescue operations in the Baltic Sea. CEE In-House Matters spoke with Andrius Digrys, General Legal Counsel at Western Baltija Shipbuilding, to learn more about the deal.

On June 22, 2021, CEE Legal Matters reported that Motieka & Audzevicius had advised Elektroniniu Pinigu Bite on obtaining an electronic money institution license. According to the firm, Elektroniniu Pinigu Bite “serves related companies – mutual lending and crowdfunding platforms FinBee, FinBee for Business, and their customers.” CEE In-House Matters spoke with Darius Noreika, CFA and CEO at Finbee, to learn more about the matter.

On April 13, 2021, CEE Legal Matters reported that the Vilnius office of Walless had advised the founders of the Alwark Group on the sale of 66% of their shares in the company to the KJK Fund III. CEE In-House Matters spoke with Gediminas Simkus, Member of the Board of the Alwark Group, to learn more about the sale.

Aleksandra Popovic, Director of Legal Affairs Serbia and Macedonia at Atlantic Grupa, describes the digitalization process at her company and its impact on the legal function.

Krzysztof Mazurek has joined the Precision Medicine Group as its Deputy General Counsel and Head of Legal Europe. In his new role, he's also acting as Managing Director for CEE Precision Medicine Group Affiliates.

Joanna Knozowska-Castens has joined Allegro as In-House Counsel in Poland.

On May 12, 2021, CEE Legal Matters reported that Bird & Bird Warsaw had advised Polish Enterprise Fund VI, a private equity fund managed by Enterprise Investors, on the sale of companies from the Wento Group to international energy concern Equinor. CEE In-House Matters spoke with Michal Rusiecki, Managing Partner at Enterprise Investors, to learn more about the sale. 

Ramonca Lunca has joined ALTEX Romania as Legal Advisor.

Clementina Canel has joined Fepra International as Head of Legal in Romania.

On July 7, 2021, CEE Legal Matters reported that Zamfirescu Racoti Vasile & Partners and Simmons & Simmons had advised ALRO on a seven-year USD 40 million corporate loan from the Black Sea Trade and Development Bank to Romanian aluminum producer ALRO, part of Vimetco Group, for its capital investment program. CEE In-House Matters spoke with Dragos Voncu, Legal Director at the Vimetco Group, to learn more about the matter.

Timur Khasanov-Batirov, former Head of Compliance for Russia & CIS at the Stada Group, has returned to private practice by joining Eterna Law as Partner and Head of the firm’s Compliance Practice.

Former Rosgeologia Deputy Director General and Head of Legal, Mikhail Kazantsev, has joined Egorov Puginsky Afanasiev & Partners as Partner to launch the firm's Natural Resources Practice.

Artem Afanasiev, Vice President Legal Affairs and GR at Ozon in Moscow, Russia, explains how his legal team uses digitalization to cater to the in-house legal needs of his fast-growing company.

Aleksandra Popovic, Director of Legal Affairs Serbia and Macedonia at Atlantic Grupa, describes the digitalization process at her company and its impact on the legal function.

Gligorije Brajkovic, Head of Legal Department at UniCredit Bank Serbia, reflects on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the role of the general counsel.

According to Branko Gabric, General Counsel at Air Serbia in Belgrade, we are living in historic times. He reports that the unprecedented pandemic, as well as the subsequent vaccination process, has greatly affected not only the aviation industry, but also the legal sector in his country.

On November 18, 2020, CEE Legal Matters reported that Hamala Kluch Viglasky had advised Slovakia's Budamar Logistics on the formation of a joint venture with Austria's Innofreight Consulting & Logistics. CEEIHM spoke with Lubomir Loy, Director for Sales and Marketing and Member of the Board of Directors at Budamar Logistics, to learn more about the deal.

On April 1, 2021, CEE Legal Matters reported that ODI Law had advised the MSIN Group on the acquisition by member company EGP of a 75.11% stake in Croatia-based cardboard packaging manufacturer Neograf from Croatian entrepreneur Dusan Boras. CEE In-House Matters spoke with Tina Bacic, Corporate Legal Advisor at MSIN Group, to learn more about the matter. 

On July 9, 2020, CEE Legal Matters reported that ODI Law had advised Hranilnica Lon on a new issuance of shares. CEEIHM spoke with Imre Balogh, President of the Management Board at Hranilnica Lon, to learn more.

Former Inal Unver Attorney Partnership Partner Ekin Inal has joined the International Finance Corporation as a Legal Counsel in Turkey.

Turkey-based Gulbin Olgun Erbak was appointed as Legal Director for Turkey, Iran, and Israel at Johnson & Johnson.

Former Turkish Competition Authority Chief Legal Counsel Harun Gunduz has moved into private practice by joining ELIG Gurkaynak Attorneys-at-Law.

On May 17, 2021, CEE Legal Matters reported that Asters had advised Elementum Energy Ltd. on the acquisition of a majority stake in the Dnistrovska wind park in the Odessa region of Ukraine. CEE In-House Matters spoke with Victoria Pysmenna, Head of Legal at Elementum Energy to learn more about the deal.

On June 1, 2021, CEE Legal Matters reported that Vasil Kisil and Partners has successfully represented commercial audio content provider PressCom and its clients in a lawsuit brought against them by the Ukrainian League of Copyright and Related Rights for lost profits allegedly arising from their use of PressCom sourced music in their restaurants. CEE In-House Matters spoke with Denys Kukharenko Co-Founder and CEO of PressCom to learn more about the matter.

On April 16, 2021, CEE Legal Matters reported that KPD Consulting had successfully represented the community of the Vozdvyzhenka neighborhood in Kyiv in a dispute with the developer of the Podol Grad Vintage residential complex. CEE In-House Matters spoke with Tatiana Maksymenko, Project Manager of Development of the Communal Reform at Vozdvyzhenka Street Committee, to learn more about the dispute.