White & Case has announced a new Local Partner hire in Prague as well as four new Local Partners in Prague and Warsaw as part of its latest promotion round.

Filip & Company and Deloitte Legal-affiliated Reff & Asociatii have successfully represented BT Leasing Transilvania IFN before the Bucharest Court of Appeal in a first-instance decision that annulled a Competition Council Decision imposing fines on 16 companies and the Financial Services Association following an investigation into the financial leasing market.

CMS has appointed Warsaw-based CMS Partner Malgorzata Urbanska as the firm's new Co-Head of the Global Antitrust, Competition & Trade Group alongside Partner Marquard Christen.

From 1 August 2024, the maximum fine that can be imposed by the Hungarian Competition Authority equals 15% of the undertaking’s net turnover. According to the Authority’s statement, its primary objective is not to impose fines, however, the increase in the potential financial penalty is a strong deterrent. In any case, it can be observed that the Authority is becoming more and more stringent concerning fines: while in 2023 it imposed fines totalling HUF 2.2 billion, the total amount of fines imposed this year exceeded HUF 2 billion by August.

On October 10, 2024, the Serbian Commission for the Protection of Competition (Commission) launched an investigation against four large retail chains – Delhaize Serbia, Mercator-S, Univerexport, and DIS – over possible anti-competitive practices, i.e., alleged retail price-fixing and coordination. The four major retailers account for over 50% of the Serbian retail market.

In The Debrief, our Practice Leaders across CEE share updates on recent and upcoming legislation, consider the impact of recent court decisions, showcase landmark projects, and keep our readers apprised of the latest developments impacting their respective practice areas.