Anticipated completion of the European NIS2 Directive's integration into Czech law is set for late 2024, facilitated by the new Czech Cybersecurity Act (CSA) and associated decrees. This legislative shift will impact an estimated 6,000 to 10,000 Czech companies, formerly exempt from cybersecurity regulations, necessitating the adoption of measures for compliance. Since the CSA is a complex legal regulation, it is advisable to engage a spectrum of experts, extending beyond IT to include legal and compliance professionals, in this transformative process.

Former PRK Partners Co-Head of Corporate and M&A has joined Excelia Legal as the firm's Managing Partner.

Havel & Partners has advised Lead Ventures on co-leading a EUR 26 million investment round for CouldTalk. Prielomek & Partners reportedly advised CloudTalk.

Michal Sylla has been appointed to an Associate Partner position with PRK Partners in Prague.

Eversheds Sutherland has advised the shareholders of SWS on the full sale of the company – including subsidiaries Entec Solutions and SWS International in Slovakia – to Also Holding.

There has been much discussion about protracted shortages of critical medicines in the Czech Republic over the last couple of months. Many national measures have been adopted. At the European Union level,the Voluntary Solidarity Mechanism for medicines has been put in place.

Kinstellar has announced several appointments to firm-wide practice and sector leadership positions, including Partner Csilla Andreko in Budapest, Partner Iustinian Captariu and Special Counsel Magda Raducanu in Bucharest, Managing Partner Milos Velimirovic in Belgrade, Managing Partner Lukas Sevcik and Counsel Jan Lehky in Prague, and Managing Associate Lukas Mrazik in Bratislava.

CEE Attorneys has advised Webscope shareholder Jan Vorcak on the sale of the company to the Mibcon Group.

PRK Partners has advised Affimed on its successful divestment of AbCheck to Flagship Pioneering company Ampersand Biomedicines.

The Czech Competition Authority (CCA) recently announced that it prepared a proposal to update the Czech Competition Act (the "Act"). While at present the proposal is just a set of ideas, it indicates how Czech competition enforcement may evolve in the years to come. Crucially, the CCA suggests deploying a "new competition tool" that will allow it to intervene even without proof of anticompetitive agreements or abuse of dominance. In addition, it wants to have call-in powers for under-threshold mergers.

Kocian Solc Balastik has advised the J&T Group on its sale of FVE Holding to the EPH Group.

Kocian Solc Balastik has advised real estate investment fund Nemomax on its first EU growth prospectus.

Did you know that while only five lawyers worked on ten or more CEE client matters reported by CEE Legal Matters in 2022, a total of fourteen lawyers reached that level in 2023? The 2023 leaderboard was led by Milos Felgr of Clifford Chance in Prague, who worked on a remarkable 20 CEELM-reported client matters last year, with Alper Onar of Istanbul’s Aksan Law Firm, who worked on 19, close behind. Fellow Turk Kerem Turunc, the Managing Partner of Turunc, worked on 17 reported deals, while Djordje Nikolic of NKO Partners in Belgrade worked on 16, and Tomasz Rogalski of Norton Rose Fulbright in Warsaw worked on 15.

PRK Partners has advised the Thomayer University Hospital in Prague on the development of its gender equality plan.

On January 4, 2024, Boyanov & Co announced that the EUR 1.4 billion sale of Cargo-Partner subsidiaries to Nippon Express (reported by CEE Legal Matters on May 17, 2023) had closed.

Havel & Partners has advised Luigi’s Box on the acquisition of Persoo. Novalia advised Persoo.

Kinstellar, working with Linklaters' Madrid office, has advised a consortium of lenders on their EUR 800 million financing for AmRest. Uria Menendez reportedly advised AmRest.

Clifford Chance has advised CTP on the EUR 100 million club financing of the Vlnena campus in Brno with main arranger, agent, and security agent Komercni Banka and second mandated lead arranger UniCredit Bank Czech Republic and Slovakia. White & Case advised the banks.