Services

We handle a wide range of commercial disputes across industries, including claims stemming from contract breaches, supply chain disruption, and force majeure events. Our experience includes:

• Representing a Romanian energy company backed by a private equity fund in a dispute concerning natural gas supply to a major industrial consumer, with issues arising from supply chain disruptions due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
• Representing a Romanian agribusiness in a commercial claim against a buyer who failed to perform a commodities agreement, in the context of market price volatility following the conflict in Ukraine.
• Representing a Fortune 500 food and beverage company in a damages dispute initiated by a distributor following termination of a distribution agreement.
• Representing one of the most active real estate developers in Romania in a lease renewal dispute with a major DIY retail tenant.

We have significant experience in both domestic and international arbitration, having acted in proceedings under the rules of leading institutions such as the ICC, LCIA, VIAC, and CCIR, with seats in London, Paris, Vienna and Bucharest. Our team was involved in drafting some of the first major infrastructure contracts in Romania inspired by FIDIC standards and incorporating ICC arbitration clauses. We subsequently represented numerous clients in the wave of infrastructure arbitrations arising from EU-funded projects following Romania’s accession to the European Union. We consistently advocate for the inclusion of arbitration clauses in cross-border transactions or contracts that involve specialised industry standards. 

Our arbitration experience dates back to 1995, beginning with a dispute against a global player in the personal care/consumer goods industry. Our more recent experience includes:

• Representing multiple clients in domestic and international arbitrations arising out of motorway, railway and energy projects.
• Representing a financial institution in a post-M&A arbitration involving indemnity and warranty claims (English law, London seat, ICC Rules).
• Representing a major contractor and engineering company in an ICC arbitration related to the development of a road infrastructure project, involving issues of res judicata under French and Romanian law (Paris seat, ICC Rules).
• Representing a global energy contractor in a construction arbitration related to an EPC contract concluded with a major Romanian state-owned energy production facility (Vienna seat, ICC Rules). Representing a major Romanian bank in a domestic arbitration regarding swaps—a topic rarely subject to dispute in Romania.

Romania has experienced rapid and substantial legislative changes over the past decades, particularly in the context of its integration into the European Union. This pattern of frequent—and at times unpredictable—legal shifts has persisted, sometimes disrupting foreign investments. We have advised foreign investors on navigating these governmental actions and helped them leverage investment law protections to safeguard their interests.

• We assisted strategic investors in the energy and oil & gas sectors in navigating their relationship with the government and developing investment protection strategies. This included preparing for potential investment arbitrations in response to government actions that disrupted investments, such as non-recognition of bond redemptions by the investor, aggressive amendments of taxation and royalty regimes, and failures to pay compensation under energy price cap schemes.

We provide targeted legal solutions to resolve shareholder conflicts, for both private and public companies. We also have extensive experience handling M&A-related disputes, particularly when transactions fall through or give rise to post-closing claims. Our experience includes:

• Representing a Romanian financial institution backed by a US investment fund in post-M&A disputes concerning indemnity and warranty claims.
• Representing a high-net-worth minority shareholder in disputes over the management of a subsidiary within a holding structure tied to a regulated insurance company.
• Representing a large investment fund with investments in key Romanian state-owned entities in addressing minority shareholder obstruction aimed at challenging the appointment of a global investment firm as its asset manager. 
• Representing the majority shareholders of a media advertising company in regaining control of the business from a minority shareholder, the former sole owner.

Almost every major public procurement tender in Romania triggers rounds of challenges. We represent clients in all stages of public procurement disputes, from challenging tender awards to defending winning bids. Our experience includes:

• Representing clients in dozens of public procurement disputes across various sectors, including road and rail infrastructure, energy production and transport, waste management and water treatment, IT, defence, pharma and healthcare.
• Successfully challenging contract awards due to deficiencies in competitor bids, non-compliance with eligibility requirements, and anti-competitive conduct.
• Appearing in European Court of Justice cases involving procurement law. We have also levied our knowledge of EU public procurement law in the Romanian courts to obtain the annulment of a final judgment invoking the right to effective judicial protection in a vaccine procurement case.

Construction law is one of our core areas of expertise. We have been involved in negotiating major infrastructure contracts since the 2000s, seeing the implementation of FIDIC standards in infrastructure projects. We have extensive experience in construction disputes, including claims drafting, DAB proceedings, and representation in arbitration, court litigation, and settlement negotiations. Our experience includes:

• Representing contractors in DAB and ICC arbitration proceedings under FIDIC Yellow Book and Red Book contracts for road infrastructure.
• Representing a construction company in an ICC arbitration against the Romanian motorway authority (FIDIC-based contract) involving delay claims, archaeological findings, and quantum-related disputes.
• Representing a construction company in an ICC arbitration involving res judicata effects of a previous award and issues of price escalation claims in infrastructure projects.
• Representing a Romanian real estate developer in an ICC arbitration concerning delays and construction defects in a major retail and entertainment complex.
• Representing a solar energy developer in litigation concerning the validity of environmental permits following challenges from a local NGO.
• Representing a bank in a litigation for damages related to the release of performance guarantees to a contractor.
• Representing a design company in ICC arbitration against a contractor regarding alleged design flaws that triggered additional costs.

We advise clients at every stage of antitrust proceedings—from initial investigations (including dawn raids, responses to RFIs and statements of objections, and pleading before competition authorities) to subsequent litigation challenging fines and enforcement decisions. We recently secured a rare success in obtaining the full annulment of a multimillion-euro fine imposed by the Romanian Competition Council for an alleged abuse of dominant position. Our experience includes:

• Representing a pharmaceutical company in a cartel investigation and subsequent litigation challenging a fine imposed by the Romanian Competition Council.
• Representing a telecom company in an abuse of dominance case, successfully obtaining the annulment in full of the fine imposed by the Competition Council.
• Assisting an automotive parts manufacturer backed by a South African investment fund in a cartel investigation conducted by the European Commission.
• Representing a gas company in an investigation into alleged abuse of dominant position.
• Representing an oil company in challenging the fine applied for an alleged collusion related to the withdrawal of certain gasoline products.

We assist clients in disputes against regulatory authorities across sectors such as telecom, energy, financial services and consumer protection. We also help clients in investigations and enforcement actions, as regulators have become increasingly assertive in the past few years, by imposing fines often calculated as a percentage of the company’s turnover. Our experience includes:

• Representing a telecom operator in a dispute with the national regulator over the tariffs set for mobile network interconnection.
• Representing a digital technology manufacturer in a challenge against the government’s refusal to grant a 5G licence on national security grounds.
• Representing a utilities company in litigation against the Romanian State and energy regulator seeking reimbursement of compensation funds promised under consumer energy price cap schemes.

We advise creditors in recovering losses arising from the restructuring or insolvency of their counterparties. Our team has significant experience helping international creditors register claims despite strong opposition, sometimes even fraudulent behaviour, from insolvent parties.

• We have been involved in multiple insolvency disputes across various sectors, including financial services, commercial real estate development, insurance, energy, and construction.  

We provide fast, strategic advice during crises—whether involving internal misconduct, dawn raids or criminal investigations. We have experience with both local and cross-border enforcement actions, including multi-jurisdictional investigations conducted by US and EU agencies. Our experience includes:

• Advising a joint venture behind one of Bucharest’s largest commercial real estate developments in safeguarding its property rights during criminal proceedings related to the formation of the joint venture (as a consortium between a private investor and a Romanian public institution).
• Being part of an international legal team advising a Nordic financial institution during a cross-border investigation led by the DOJ, DFS, and OFAC, involving allegations of money laundering, AML compliance shortcomings, and sanctions breaches (including 1.5 years of on-the-ground assistance in the client’s home jurisdiction).
• Representing a defendant in criminal proceedings related to one of the first major investigations in Romania after the fall of communism, which initially stemmed from a smuggling case but eventually revealed high-profile political connections.
• Representing a defendant in criminal proceedings for defrauding one of Romania’s largest financial institutions.