The US Federal Reserve published a document titled Money and Payments: The U.S. Dollar in the Age of Digital Transformation (“Paper”) in January. The Paper points out the pros and cons of creating the digital dollar in the form of a CBDC (Central Bank Digital Currency), to determine whether it could improve the US payment system. As we explained in earlier texts on this subject, CBDCs are virtual records of existing fiat currencies. They represent the complete equivalents of currencies such as the euro, dollar, dinar, etc. The Paper points out that the digital dollar would be a liability of […]
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In late 2021, the Romanian Constitutional Court issued a statement regarding the judgment of the Court of Justice of the European Union (”Judgment”) in Cases C-357/19 Euro Box Promotion and Others, C379/19 DNA – Oradea Territorial Service, C-547/19 “Romanian Judges Forum”, C-811/19 FQ and others and C-840/19 NC. The Judgment established that national judges are entitled to disregard the decisions of the Romanian Constitutional Court that are not aligned with the EU law without any risk of disciplinary measures. Moreover, it addressed the Romanian justice reforms and pointed out the mandatory character of the EU’s recommendations, embedded in the Cooperation and […]
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Montenegro, the jewel of the Adriatic Sea and first in line to become the next European Union (EU) member state, has extended its program of granting citizenship by investment until the end of 2022. The benefits of such a program for investors are manifold – the opportunity to become a citizen of a beautiful European country that is experiencing one of the highest investment per capita in the Old Continent but also the chance to become a citizen of the EU once the country becomes EU member state. On 22 November 2018, the Government of Montenegro adopted the Decision on […]
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Our founder and partner Bogdan Gecić spoke with the regional publication The Adriatic, an English-language publication by the Institute for Strategic Solutions (Inštitut za strateške rešitve) in Ljubljana. It features fundamental business and geopolitical issues of importance for the region of Southeast Europe. The interview was published in the February issue. Bogdan spoke about the Gecić Law’s achievements and its strengths when advising diverse entities in the SEE region. He singled out innovation as the key ingredient to the firm’s success and the decision to expand into new practice areas such as ESG, one of the most pressing issues of […]
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According to the January 2022 Development Agency of Serbia report, the agricultural sector recorded a significant inflow of foreign investments indicating that Serbia is fertile ground for investment in agriculture. The industry showed remarkable resilience during the crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, when many countries faced food shortages. Meanwhile, during this period (January to November 2021), cereals, cereal-based products, fruits, and vegetables were among the most crucial Serbian export products. Serbia has a long-standing agricultural tradition and optimal conditions for the development of this sector. Its land is fertile, the climate is optimal, and there is excellent potential for […]
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Gecić Law Counsel Ivana Stojanović Raišić joined the 2022 edition of the prestigious Terralex Leadership Training Program which helps top talent in the legal profession to connect and enhance their leadership skills. Throughout the twelve-month program, Ivana will take part in a series of webinars, meetups and workshops organized by TerraLex. Previously, our Partner | Head of Corporate / M&A Ognjen Colić graduated from TerraLex’s inaugural Leadership Training Program which was held from January to November 2021. Topics covered by the program include strategic thinking, client service, communications, personal branding, project management, law firm economics, and more. The program, which […]
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At the very end of 2021, amendments and supplements[1] were adopted to the Act on Registration Procedure with the Serbian Business Registers Agency[2]. The implementation of certain provisions has been delayed by 12 or 18 months, respectively. The legislator’s main motive for the amendments is the time and cost-efficiency of registrations before the Serbian Business Registers Agency (“SBRA”), as well as to continue implementing the administration of the digitalization policy, in this case with the SBRA. Digitalization is certainly the key catalyst for innovation, modernization and economic growth and development. The most significant changes are following: Company incorporation The most […]
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Our Founding Partner Bogdan Gecić and Partner | Head of Corporate/M&A Ognjen Colić spoke with the Managing Editor of the preeminent regional legal publication CEE Legal Matters which invited Gecić Law as a leading regional law firm to take part in its featured interview published in the December edition dedicated to the Western Balkans. They talked about the importance of ESG in the region, the firm’s new practice area and its unique approach to advising clients in the field. Gecić Law recently became the first independent law firm in the region to expand into the area of Environmental, Social & […]
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“Business, after all, is nothing more than a bunch of human relationships.” Lee Iacocca Whenever people talk about Environmental, Social & Governance (’’ESG’’), the environmental part always seems to draw all the attention. The importance of the “S” element is often neglected. However, it looks like COVID-19 along with the Great Resignation phenomenon have changed that, making social issues increasingly relevant. The “S” stands for the social part of the ESG concept and simply put, it deals with businesses’ relations with employees, suppliers, customers, and communities in which it operates. Basically, the “S” is all about the way businesses treat […]
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The National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia adopted the Amendments to the Patent Act (“Amendments“) on December 8, 2021. The Act seeks to harmonize local protection of inventions regulations with those of the European Union. It also looks to eliminate certain shortcomings that have been identified in the application of the existing Patent Act. Therefore, the most important changes relate to the supplementary protection certificate and the protection of inventions through a utility model system. The changes will have a significant impact on the Serbian pharmaceutical industry and potentially incentivize investments by domestic entities. These changes seek to eliminate […]
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