Author: natalia

This is the result of a survey carried out by the data company Statista for the German news magazine Focus. act legal Germany is awarded as Top Business Law Firm in the area of employment law.

The Focus ranking is based on recommendations by partners of law firms or lawyers from corporate legal departments – 2,664 experts participated in the survey this year.

This year’s ranking recommends 379 top business law firms in 21 areas of law throughout Germany.

Finland’s leading developer, YIT Development, has purchased a land lot located at Nałęczowska street in Sadyba (a neighborhood of Warsaw), with an eye on building nearly 300 apartments in Q4 2019 as part of Nordic Sadyba project.

“We are proud to have succeeded in buying yet another appealing land lot in the Mokotów district of Warsaw. It is located in the historic section of Mokotów, called Miasto-Ogród Sadyba, that has long been famous for its characteristic buildings and unique ambience of the time when this part of city was home to military officers. This location is about to have access to fully-shaped urban amenities, convenient transport services and numerous green areas. In 2019, this project, together with the land lot in Bemowo district (purchased earlier), opens the way for YIT to build a total of almost 1,000 apartments,” says Tomasz Konarski, CEO of YIT in Poland.

act legal Poland (BSWW) provided the developer with a full range of legal services with respect to this transaction. Their scope covered all transaction stages, from due diligence review of the land, through support during transaction negotiations, to acquisition of a pending investment project with a building permit.

The transaction has been handled by a team made up of Michał Wielhorski (team leader, Manging Partner at BSWW), Michał Sołtyszewski (Partner), Mateusz Prokopiuk (Senior Associate) and Anita Woźniak (Senior Associate).

“We are more than glad to have earned the trust of the Client, who has chosen us to handle yet another of its major Poland-based projects,” says Michał Wielhorski. “We have long experience advising YIT on complex transactions, the most recent including purchase of land designed for Nordic Bemowo project and acquisition of Parkur Tower office complex,” he adds.

YIT is Finland’s leading developer, operating in 11 countries: Finland, Russia, Scandinavia, the Baltic states, the Czech Republic, Poland and Slovakia.

The company has been operating in Warsaw for over 3 years. Its first project, Nordic Mokotów, involved the construction of 340 apartments at the junction of Sikorskiego and Pory streets, with the last building, comprising 124 apartments, pending completion. Progress is also being made at Aroma Park residential estate, offering over 400 apartments. For now, the first two stages of the project, with a total of 171 apartments, are being implemented. In addition, YIT intends to build 400 apartments as part of Parkur Residence estate, with further 600 offered by Nordic Bemowo estate at the crossing of Lazurowa and Batalionów Chłopskich streets.

Volkswagen Poznan sp. z o.o. relies on act legal Poland for the advice on the acquisition of property, which is crucial for the development of the company’ factory in Poznan. During the transaction Volkswagen was represented by legal advisor Marta Kosiedowska – partner in the real estate practice of act BSWW.

“For me – as the person who was managing the process of purchasing the above properties – it was important that act BSWW advised Volkswagen Poznań not only in strictly legal matters, but also was properly counted business risks and was a real support for my project team, which undoubtedly contributed the positive finalization of purchasing the properties, all within the framework of the schedule for realization of future investments”, said attorney Tobiasz Adam Kowalczyk, the Director of legal department of Volkswagen Poznań sp. z o.o.

“Having in mind how important this transaction is from the company’s point of view and how much time the company sacrificed for its finalization, we are especially proud of the fact that act BSWW was granted with the company’s faith and that we could represent Volkswagen during the acquisition”, said legal advisor Marta Kosiedowska.

act legal Poland (BSWW) advised Strabag Real Estate on a transaction involving the sale of a downtown Warsaw hotel. 

Motel One at Tamka street features 12,700 m² of usable area, eleven levels and over 300 rooms. The Fryderyk Chopin Museum is located nearby.

The scope of the law firm’s services included due diligence audit and acquisition of land on which the hotel was supposed to emerge, as well as drafting and negotiations of the construction works agreement, subsequently followed by the building’s forward purchase.

The project was handled by Marek Wojnar (attorney-at-law and Managing Partner at act BSWW) and Marta Kosiedowska (legal counsel, Partner).

“This is Poland’s first Motel One (developed by our Client) that follows the new standards set by this hotel chain,” says Marta Kosiedowska.

“This is yet another large transaction that we have handled for Strabag Group. It gave us an extra boost of satisfaction since it was carried out in the hotel property market that requires vast knowledge and extensive skills. We are pleased that that the Client placed its trust in us with respect to this project that turned out to be a success,” adds Marek Wojnar.

Find Strabag’s press release here. 

The new regulations within the Tax Act Relating to Brexit (Brexit Steuerbegleitgesetz) and the CRD V, both of which came into force in 2019, have brought about changes within the framework of the application of the Remuneration Ordinance for Institutions (Institutsvergütungsverordnung; IVV).

The German banking supervisory authority must therefore adjust the IVV in any case with regard to the remuneration exemption limit for the performance-related remuneration of risk takers as a result of the new CRD V regulations. In particular, this is likely to have an impact on the current EUR 15 billion limit. In the CRD V, the threshold to become a major institution is already envisaged when a balance sheet total of only five billion euros is reached. This threshold can be increased by the EU member states, but the CRD V stipulates further special requirements in the event of an increase in order to be able to refrain from applying the special risk taker requirements for the variable remuneration of risk takers.

In addition, the EU member states should be able to exempt individual groups of risk takers from the remuneration exemption limit if this is appropriate in view of their specific function or responsibility or the standard market remuneration system.

In view of the new stricter requirements, we advise you to monitor the legislative process in Germany and establish the necessary processes in your institution in advance. As a law firm, we have supported institutions in the internal implementation of the remuneration guidelines from the very beginning and have trained employees on the basis of practical implementation examples. We therefore have extensive experience in advising on remuneration models of all company sizes. 

Contact us and we will be happy to support you in the development of internal remuneration processes or train your employees in in-house seminars.

Echo Investment, Poland’s leading developer, has laid the cornerstone for Fuzja, a section of Łódź that will combine modern urban features with the historical spirit of Księży Młyn (a complex of textile factories). The company has started restoring the former Scheibler factory.

The multi-stage project will see the development of residential, commercial and urban spaces. The investment area covers 7.7 hectares. The mixed-use project will offer approx. 90,000 m2, seamlessly blending different types of spaces into one development. This is going to be a new landmark in Łódź.

“Echo Investment’s strategy focuses on the so-called ‘destinations,’ i.e. locations that help cities grow, where people can work, live and spend their free time. While creating them, we make sure to respect their history. The investment project at Tymienieckiego street in Łódź is going to be one of them. It will cover nearly eight hectares on the site of the former Scheibler factory, with the historical power plant situated in its heart,” says Nicklas Lindberg.

The project will be made up of 20 buildings serving different functions, 14 of which are tastefully restored historical buildings. The historical building of the former power plant will be the beating heart of this area. The project also includes urban squares, common areas and green zones, with a total area of almost 4 ha.

act legal Poland (BSWW) was advising Echo Investment on the acquisition of Elektrownia RE sp. z o.o., the company that owned the investment property. The scope of legal consulting services covered all stages of the transaction: legal and tax due diligence audit of the company and the property, followed by support in negotiations of transaction-related documents (incl. the share purchase agreement).

The law firm’s team was made up of Michał Wielhorski (team leader, Managing Partner), Katarzyna Marzec (Partner) and Mateusz Prokopiuk (Senior Associate).

“We are glad to advise on real estate projects that involve urban renewal. Thanks to them, historical sections of cities regain their former glory, turning into unique and bustling venues,” says Michał Wielhorski.

act legal Germany advises Swiss Life on the acquisition of Waldstadt Center in Potsdam for around EUR 40 million. The sellers of the property are funds managed by the global private investment manager Partners Group in collaboration with Arax Properties Ltd. .  

The specialty shopping centre with a balanced tenant mix is the central main supplier in South Potsdam. The retail park was built in 1995 and comprehensively modernised in 2015. The rentable area comprises around 13,500 square meters. 210 free parking spaces are located directly in front of the center. It is fully let and the average remaining lease term is around nine years. Anchor tenants include Kaufland, Rossmann and KiK.

act legal Germany’s team was headed by Dr. Tara Kamiyar-Müller (Managing Partner) and Dr. Matthias Müller, MBA (Partner) supported by Jessica Zenz-Spitzweg.

The seller was advised by Clifford Chance.

Adventum, a real estate investment fund operating internationally, has acquired Poznań Financial Centre (PFC), marking the first investment the fund has made in Poland.

act legal Poland (BSWW) was advising Adventum throughout the transaction involving the acquisition of shares in PFC. The scope of legal services included a due diligence audit of the real estate, preparation of transaction-related documents, as well as support in negotiations and transaction advisory.

The law firm’s project team was made up of Marek Wojnar (Managing Partner, attorney-at-law), Marta Kosiedowska (Partner, legal counsel), Mateusz Prokopiuk (Senior Associate, attorney-at-law) and Katarzyna Góra (Senior Associate, attorney-at-law).

“We appreciate having been given the chance to advise Adventum on their first acquisition in Poland. We hope it is the first in a string of successful projects,” says Marta Kosiedowska.

“Supporting a new player entering the Polish market is especially exciting. We are happy to be handling the Client’s subsequent transactions,” adds Marek Wojnar.

Poznań Financial Centre is an office building situated in the Old Town of Poznań. The seventeen-floor building has 18,000 sq.m. of gross leaseable area.

Congratulations to Dr. Sven Tischendorf, MBA for being listed in “Germany’s Best Lawyers 2019” in the category finance law.

The US publishing house Best Lawyers determines the most prestigious legal advisers in Germany for the business newspaper Handelsblatt. The ranking is based on a peer-to-peer survey.

Jan Havel and Jan Ožana successfully passed the mediator exam and since June 19, 2019, they have been included in the list of mediators maintained by the Ministry of Justice. Both lawyers from act legal Czech Republic thus not only act as attorneys but also as registered mediators. 

In addition, Jan Havel is an arbitrator in the Arbitration Court attached to the Economic Chamber of the Czech Republic and the Agricultural Chamber of the Czech Republic. He is also an expert within the ICC Mediation Group. Currently, ŘANDA HAVEL LEGAL covers all areas of ADR.