A change in the way law firms compete in the Hungarian market was highlighted by Eszter Kamocsay-Berta, Managing Partner of KCG Partners, who explained that, while law firms have tended to compete on fees in an otherwise saturated market over the last few years, there is now a trend of “moving beyond price competition.”
Kamocsay-Berta argued that it is now rather a competition of quality of legal services with clients “expecting and appreciating value added, cutting-edge knowledge, and smart and tangible solutions with clients find it critical for law firms to understand their perspective.”
Another trend in Hungary Kamocsay-Berta identified was that of small- and mid-sized firms looking to join or build their own law firm networks in CEE: “We don’t really expect to see more international firms expanding into the country but we do see more and more of these international alliances shaping up. The latest example of that is the that of the former Kinstellar team announcing it co-founded a new regional network” This focus on building a regional alliance is, in part at least, responsible for another direction of the evolution of law firms in the country, according to Kamocsay-Berta: “In a world where building these kinds of regional cross-border alliances is becoming a priority, it is of enormous importance for law firms in Hungary to focus on enhancing their exposure and visibility in the market. This has led to increased attention being dedicated to law firm marketing and communications, and we see that the legal services market is slowly evolving towards opening up and communicating more.” This acknowledgment that law firms are competing with one another for business, Kamocsay-Berta observed, may also be what’s behind the increased buzz in the market about the possibility of a new act on the legal profession. The KCG Partner said the final form of this update — if, indeed, it comes to pass — is not yet known, but she hopes that it will further this evolution towards a fully-functioning and commercial market.
Turning to the legislative front, Kamocsay-Berta spoke of a general tendency towards modernization and innovation. She pointed to Hungary's newly enacted public procurement law, new civil code, and ongoing reform in the civil procedure as examples of this. The last of these, she said, were the updates enacted “in order to restore trust in the financial markets.” Following a scandal involving brokerage firms that led to several high-profile criminal cases, the new updates include elements such as an increased liability and personal liability of the main officers or supervisory board members of financial services providers.
In “The Buzz” we interview experts on the legal industry living and working in Central and Eastern Europe to find out what’s happening in the region and what legislative/professional/cultural trends and developments they’re following closely.
