BDK Advokati/Attorneys at Law

BDK News

• 20.05.2013 BDK Advokati/Attorneys at Law joins Islamic finance law network (iSfin)

  BDK Advokati/Attorneys at Law has become a member of iSfin (Islamic Finance Lawyers), the world's leading network of independent law firms specializing in the Islamic finance, investments from and to the Muslim world and the Halal industry. The alliance covers more than 40 jurisdictions around the world and is composed by the most innovative and highly regarded independent law firms.

  The partnership with iSfin further extends BDK‘s international reach and exposure.

  Prof. Laurent MARLIERE, Ceo of ISFIN, commented, "iSfin is delighted to welcome BDK as the exclusive partner firm for Serbia and Montenegro. The firm has an outstanding reputation with exceptional lawyers who are dedicated to delivering the very highest standards of service. The firm has had a continuous growth and became one of the prime movers in the representation of foreign investors in the region. With the addition of BDK, we consolidate our position in Eastern Europe and the Balkans."

• 22.04.2013 BDK Tax: ABA’s Tax Conference in London, 11-12 April 2013

  Associates at BDK Tax, Tanja Vasić and Miloš Krstić, attended the 13th Annual ABA’s Conference: “Tax Planning Strategies, U.S. and Europe” which took place in London from 11-12 April 2013.
  
  Presentations covered many hot topics in international taxation such as Debt Equity Characterization and Interest Allocation Issues, Meaning of the Beneficial Owner Today, Recent Cross-Border Mergers & Acquisitions and Restructuring Transactions, the Service PE and Transfer Pricing.
  
  The main focus of the conference was the OECD’s Base Erosion and Profit Shifting report (BEPS) and the “key pressure areas” of international taxation that were identified as the weakest spots of the modern system of international taxation. Read more
  

• 04.04.2013 Real Estate Newsletter: Law on Efficient Use of Energy – New costs imposed on real estate sector

  In force since 23 March 2013, the Law on Efficient Use of Energy (Zakon o efikasnom korišćenju energije, "Sl. glasnik RS", no. 25/2013) ("Law"), imposes new requirements on real estate developers and owners which will increase the costs of construction and transactions with real property.

  ·Energy inspection report

  Starting from 1 January 2014, owners of buildings (including parts thereof, such as apartments, commercial outlets etc.) will have to procure an energy inspection report, issued by a licensed energy advisor and not older than 10 years, when changing the purpose of the building, as well as when selling or leasing the property. Any advertisement in public media on the sale or lease of real property will have to disclose data on energy efficiency. Read more
  

• 03.04.2013 Energy Newsletter: ESCO legal framework – Potential for PPPs in sustainable urban development?

  The Law on Efficient Use of Energy (Zakon o efikasnom korišćenju energije, Official Gazette of Serbia no. 25/2013) (the “Energy Efficiency Law”), adopted by the Serbian Parliament on 15 March 2013, brings foundation for the development of the ESCO (energy service company) industry in Serbia. The legislation is based in the EU Directive 2006/32/EC. Taking into account the fact that this Directive has been recently replaced by EU Directive 2012/27/EU and the conclusions of the Permanent High Level Group, one may expect amendments to the Energy Efficiency Law to align it with the latest EU Directive in this area. Read more
  

• 28.03.2013 BDKnowledge: New Law on Deadlines for Settlement of Monetary Obligations in Commercial Transactions

  The new Law on Deadlines for the Settlement of Monetary Obligations in Commercial Transactions becomes applicable on March 31, 2013. It significantly restricts the autonomy of undertakings to freely regulate their commercial relationships.
  

  BDK Senior Associate Ana Jankov describes how the law will affect domestic commercial contracts between companies as well as between companies on the one hand, and the public sector, on the other. You may watch the video here.
  

• 18.03.2013 BDK Dispute Resolution: BDK Partner Tijana Kojovic speaks at the V Belgrade Arbitration Conference

  V Belgrade arbitration conference, organized by the University of Belgrade, Faculty of Law, featured two panels, on due process and efficiency, chaired by Prof. Klaus Peter Berger, and the other on the taking of evidence in international commercial arbitration, chaired by Prof. Loukas Mistelis. BDK partner Tijana Kojović spoke on the topic of Witness Preparation in Arbitration. You can watch the video here, part 3. The speech starts at the 58:00 mark.
  
  
  The event was co-organized with the German Institution of Arbitration (DIS), GIZ Open Regional Fund for South East Europe and the Center for International Legal Education of the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, and supported by numerous law firms from Serbia and abroad, including BDK. The organization of the Conference was also endorsed by the School of International Arbitration of the Queen Marry college of the University of London and the American Chamber of Commerce in Serbia.
  
  A full report on the Conference, video proceedings and photo gallery are available here.
  
  

• 14.03.2013 BDK Advokati/Attorneys at Law receives top ranking in 2013 Chambers Global

  The 2013 edition of prestigious Chambers Global ranks BDK Advokati/Attorneys at Law in Band 1 of Serbian law firms. BDK Montenegrin practice has also received excellent reviews. Tijana Kojović maintains her ranking in Band 1 of Serbian lawyers, while Dragoljub Cibulić has debuted on the ladder following stellar client feedback for his Montenegrin work.
  
  Chambers Global is a leading directory of the legal profession and its rankings are based on the merits.
  
  The research results for Serbia can be viewed here and for Montenegro here.

• 22.02.2013 BDK launches ‘In the Media’ page on its website

  This section provides an overview of the media attention we receive in different print and online outlets such as journals, blogs and websites.
  

  
  

  The visitors of our website are also invited to check our IP and Competition Blogs page, as well as our Newsletter archive. Newsletter subscription form is available here.

• 28.01.2013 BDK Advokati / Attorneys at Law

  As of 23 January 2013, the official name of our firm is BDK Advokati AOD, while the registered translation of the firm’s name is BDK Attorneys at Law. Our logo will continue to refer to our firm as BDK Advokati/Attorneys at Law.
  
  Please also note that we moved our Podgorica office to a new address.

• 24.01.2013 BDK Tax Note on Transfer Pricing

  In the face of the growing public deficits, tax authorities around the globe have made the regulation and enforcement of transfer pricing legislation and the underlying arm’s length principle a top priority. Read more
  

• 18.01.2013 BDK Energy Newsletter: Amendments to the Serbian Energy Law

  The Amendments to the Energy Law, which came into force on 30 December 2012 (Amendments), introduce a full-scale procedure for obtaining the energy permit (called “consent”) for the construction of small hydro-power plants with installed capacity under 1MW. Read more
  

• 04.01.2013 BDK Team

  BDK promotes and welcomes new team members. Read more

• 27.12.2012 BDK Real Estate Newsletter: Amendments to the Law on Planning and Construction - Land Conversion Obligation Postponed

  The Law on Planning and Construction, enacted in 2009, stipulated that after September 2010, companies acquired in privatization, bankruptcy proceedings or debt collection proceedings would not be able to obtain a construction permit before converting the right of use on the relevant construction land into ownership. Read more
  

• 26.12.2012 BDK Tax Newsletter: The Law on Corporate Income Tax

  We set forth an outline of the most significant amendments to the Serbian Law on Corporate Income Tax, which came into force on 25 December 2012. Read more

• 25.12.2012 BDK Finance Newsletter: Further liberalization of the Serbian foreign exchange regime

  Serbia has made one further step towards foreign exchange liberalization, with the Parliament’s adoption of a new set of amendments to the Law on Foreign Exchange on 15 December 2012. Read more
  

• 20.12.2012 BDK Finance Newsletter: New Law on Default Interest

  Serbia has made one further step towards foreign exchange liberalization, with the Parliament’s adoption of a new set of amendments to the Law on Foreign Exchange on 15 December 2012. Read more
  

• 06.12.2012 BDK advises ITN

  Osnovana srpsko-alžirska firma "Salsef" za izgradnju skladišta - Planirane investicije u 2013. oko 30 mil EUR

  Alžirska državna firma "Frigomedit" i kompanija ITN iz Beograda potpisale su danas Sporazum o formiranju srpsko-alžirskog preduzeća "Salsef" koje će se baviti izgradnjom rashladnih skladišta za poljoprivredne proizvode.

  Kako je, nakon potpisivanja tog dokumenta u Beogradu, kazao ministar spoljne i unutrašnje trgovine Srbije Rasim Ljajić, vrednost četiri projekta koje u 2013. godini treba da realizuje ova mešovito srpsko-alžirska firma je oko 30 mil EUR.

  Ljajić je kazao da "Salsef" neće raditi samo projekte izgradnje hladnjača, već i velikih silosa, klanica i fabrika stočne hrane, a to otvara mogućnosti za veći izvoz poljoprivrednih proizvoda iz Srbije na tržište Alžira.

  - Srbija ima značajne potencijale i kapacitete u oblasti proizvodnje hrane i ovo je dobra prilika da se to iskoristi - kazao je on.

  Prema rečima Ljajića, ITM je potpuno privatna kompanija i Vlada Srbija će stati iza nje kao i iza svih izvozno orjentisanih kompanija koje otvaraju nova radna mesta. On je naglasio i da osnivanje preduzeća "Salsef" treba da bude poziv i drugim alžirskim kompanijama da investiraju u Srbiju koja sa Alžirom ima dopre političke odnose, a intenživno radi i na razvijanju ekonomskih.

  Ljajić je potsetio da su Alžir i Srbija definisali četiri oblasti za unapređenje ekonomske saradnje, a to su poljoprivreda, građevinarstvo, zdravstvo i farmaceutska industrija. On je istakao i da je sa alžirskom stranom dogovoreno formiranje zajedničkih preduzeća u različitim oblastima delovanja, a u kojima bi alžirske kompanije imale 41% vlasništva.

  Ambasador Alžira u Srbiji Abdelkader Mesdoua kazao je da Srbija i Alžir imaju dobru političku saradnju i da je u poslednje četiri godine pokrenuto nekoliko različitih ekonomskih aktivnosti kako bi se ta saradnja učvrstila, a dokaz za to je i današnje potpisivanje sporazuma o osnivanju mešovitog srpsko-alžirskog opreduzeća.

  - U našem investicionom programu od 2010. do 2014. godine vrednom 268 mlrd USD ima mesta i za srpska preduzeća - kazao je on.

  Predstavnik firme ITM Zoran Ristić kazao je da je prvi projekat "Salsefa" skladište u Alžiru za luk, krompir, meso, mleko u prahu, brašno i šećer, odnosno strateške proizvode koji će biti u svrsi robnih rezervi Alžira. On je kazao da je u prvih pet godina predviđeno da vrednost ukupnih projekata bude 400 mil EUR.

  Prema njegovim rečima, ITM postoji 20 godina i bavi se implementacijom novih tehnologija u industriji hrane.

• 20.11.2012 BDK advises VAIT-Voest Alpine Intertrading

  Titan Machinery Inc. (NASDAQ:TITN) announced today that it has entered into a definitive agreement with VAIT-Voest Alpine Intertrading to acquire a CaseIH dealership in the Vojvodina region of Serbia. The acquisition is expected to close on or around December 14, 2012. BDK Partner Vladimir Dasic advised VAIT in this deal.

• 20.11.2012 BDK Attorney Bogdan Ivanisevic published on Balkan Insight

  BDK’s Bogdan Ivanisevic wrote for Balkan Insight a legal analysis of the recent judgment by the Appeals Chamber of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Yugoslavia in the case Prosecutor v. Gotovina & Markac. The controversial 3-2 decision of the chamber reverses the first-instance judgment whereby the two Croatian generals were sentenced for persecution of Serb civilians during and after a military action in Croatia, in August 1995.

• 02.11.2012 Watson Pharmaceuticals acquires Actavis Group

  Watson Pharmaceuticals has completed its 4.25 billion Euro acquisition of Swiss competitor Actavis Group, making Watson the third-largest generic drug company worldwide. BDK advised Watson on their acquisition of Actavis’ Serbian subsidiary. BDK’s team was led by partner Vladimir Dasic.
  
  

• 25.10.2012 BDK advises LPGD

  BDK advised LPGD on a 90-year lease of 87ha of land in the vicinity of the Tivat Airport and Porto Montenegro with the purpose of developing a golf course and exclusive commercial - residential complex. BDK partners Dragoljub Cibulic and Vladimir Dasic led the advice.