SPCG Studnicki Płeszka Ćwiąkalski Górski

Managing Partners: Jakub Górski, Sławomir Dudzik, Piotr Kamiński

Number of partners: 22

Number of lawyers: 112

Languages: English, French, German, Polish

Offices: Cracow (HQ), Warsaw, Katowice, Wrocław

The firm was founded in 1988 and today it is one of the largest and most experienced independent law firms in Poland.

SPCG combines an in-depth practical experience with a unique academic and theoretical background. The company provides its services throughout Poland, having four branch offices in Kraków, Warsaw, Katowice and Wrocław and affiliated lawyers across Poland. Complex expertise of the firm includes - among other specialisations - all main areas of legal practice: M&A, capital markets, litigation and arbitration, banking and finance, corporate, EU and antitrust, energy, labour law, real estate, tax and regulatory. In its international practice, the firm cooperates with leading CEE, English, German, Italian and US law firms.

M&A:

SPCG provides advising services regarding both international (including those that involve multiple jurisdictions) and domestic transactions. SPCG represents buyers and sellers and acts on behalf of management boards and shareholders of businesses that are parties to such transactions, as well as on behalf of financial institutions and investment funds which provide financing.

Contacts: Piotr Kamiński, Artur Zapała, Wawrzyniec Rajchel

Capital Market:

SPCG specialises in capital markets, providing services within the scope of preparation of issuers to public and private offers, regarding equity and debt financial instruments, public tender offers and fulfillment by the issuers of securities of their reporting obligations, introduction of dual listings as well as supporting foreign issuers whose financial instruments are listed on regulated market in Poland.

Contacts: Artur Zapała, Ewa Mazurkiewicz

Litigation & Arbitration:

The firm has extensive experience in legal representation in all types of civil proceedings before common courts of law, the Supreme Court and arbitration courts. SPCG has represented Tesco in arbitration disputes concerning the admissibility of application of discounts by the retail chains based on turnover and has recently won before the Supreme Court in precedential dispute concerning the inadmissibility an action for annulment of arbitration clause. Moreover SPCG has successfully represented Deutsche Bank in a dispute concerning voidance of a credit contract denominated in Swiss Franc and has also successfully represented T-Mobile in the few proceedings before the Polish Court of Competition and Consumer Protection.

Contacts: Zbigniew Ćwiąkalski, Krystian Radłowski, Piotr Kamiński, Tomasz Spyra, Jakub Górski, Paweł Węc

Banking & Finance:

The firm represented major Polish banks in disputes with regulators and in important litigation. It has also advised major Polish banks in connection with loan agreements and collateral securities, as well as in matters relating to restructuring and insolvency.

Contacts: Tomasz Spyra, Wawrzyniec Rajchel

Banking & Finance: Regulatory:

SPCG’s team provides legal counsel to fund management companies, investment funds and investment firms at every stage of their activity: (i) beginning with the formation and obtaining the necessary permits, (ii) through preparing the necessary internal and client regulations, (iii) ongoing advisory in the scope of the clients activity and (iv) representing its clients in conflicts with the supervisory authorities and with clients. SPCG offers advisory services to other institutions acting on the financial market including entities organising trading in financial instruments, banks, insurance companies and also general pension societies, in all aspects of their activity, primarily in regulatory compliance. SPCG also provides legal advice in processes of acquiring shares of financial institutions and represents its clients in front of relevant authorities in connection to submitting the notifications required and obtaining the necessary licences.

Contacts: Artur Zapała, Ewa Mazurkiewicz

Corporate:

SPCG offers legal advice with respect to the operation of all types of commercial law companies, partnerships, and other business entities on the Polish markets as well as legal services in litigation on corporate matters and in terms of any restructuring activity including those related to the merger of companies and division and transportation thereof. SPCG provides legal services to commercial law partnerships and companies (including public companies) and to partners and shareholders.

Contacts: Piotr Kamiński, Agnieszka Soja, Łukasz Zięcina

EU & Antitrust:

SPCG developed a unique expertise in matters relating to EU and antitrust. The firm also represented its clients before the Antimonopoly Office and courts in various matters relating to competition matters (including leniency programs and dawn raids). The firm was responsible for drafting applications for antimonopoly clearance in connection with many high-profile M&A transactions.

Contact: Sławomir Dudzik

Energy:

SPCG provides comprehensive legal services with respect to energy law and investment processes in the energy sector, including RES. SPCG’s clients include entities that produce, distribute and trade in electricity. Specifically, SPCG has broad experience in advising entities operating in the renewable energy sector, especially wind farms.

Contact: Łukasz Zięcina

Labour:

SPCG provides comprehensive advice on individual and collective labour law. SPCG lawyers prepare individual employment documents as well as general internal labour regulations binding at the employer. SPCG lawyers represent clients in all disputes with employees both at the negotiation stage and in the court. The firm provides advice during negotiations with trade unions in relation to the internal acts of the labour law. SPCG also supports employers in resolving collective disputes.

Contact: Adam Kostrzewa

Real Estate:

SPCG provides comprehensive services to entities participating in the construction process, starting from the purchase of the real estate through the execution of the investment, settlements with the participants of the process and to the actual use of the developed real estates.

Contacts: Jakub Górski, Wawrzyniec Rajchel, Marcin Kubala

Tax:

The tax advising services provided by SPCG comprise in particular the issues of income taxes, VAT, excise tax and the tax on civil law transactions. In all cases, SPCG considers the tax aspects, analysing tax risks related to transactions as well as advising on tax-effective investment planning and tax optimisation for all domestic and foreign transactions.

Contact: Agnieszka Soja

Administrative Law, Court & Administrative Proceedings:

SPCG provides legal aid in the form of advising on material administrative law as well as representing clients in administrative proceedings. SPCG has the most extensive experience in the following fields of administrative law: (i) construction law along with the regulation on building products, (ii) zoning and development law, (iii) environment protection law along with waste management regulation, (iv) law on granting licenses and concessions related to business operations and (v) tax law. SPCG provides legal representation in proceedings aimed at obtaining permits and concessions necessary for business operations. The team also represents clients in court and administrative proceedings before the regional administrative courts and the Supreme Administrative Court.

Contact: Agnieszka Soja, Jakub Górski