Thought Articles

This article was first published in The Lawyer - 12 May 2014 The economic trends in Romania since the country joined the EU can be seen as a roller coaster ride. Solid GDP growth throughout 2007 and 2008, encouraged by cheap and accessible European capital, was abruptly replaced by a steep recession as the global economic downturn battered the continent. Following severe public spending cuts and supported by the gradually improving European business environment, Romania’s economy has stabilised in the past three years and returned to growth, albeit at a more modest pace. Furthermore, while not yet out of the woods, the future looks brighter for the local economy. Robust 3.5 per cent GDP growth in 2013 (mainly generated by an excellent agricultural year and increased exports in the automotive sector) is likely to continue this year with a 2 to 3 per cent increase.

The publication addresses the most important legal issues relevant for legal practitioners and business people dealing with cloud computing products and services in 14 jurisdictions across the region.

Following on from the success of the first edition, Țuca Zbârcea & Asociații has recently published a second volume of a directory called “Final Court Decisions on Financial Corrections in Structural Fund Projects” (released in late June 2014). This second edition of the book features a representative national sample of final court decisions on cases related to financial corrections, imposed over the last four-five years on the projects implemented under EU funds programmes by county councils and town halls of county capitals. As with the previous volume in the series, Țuca Zbârcea & Asociații and the Institute for Public Policy (IPP) co-authored the publication of the book, also benefiting from the support from the Romanian Municipalities Association.

Reproduced with permission from Law Business Research Ltd. This article was first published in The Government Procurement Review, 2nd edition (published in May 2014 – editors Jonathan Davey and James Falle). The second edition of The Government Procurement Review brings even wider geographic coverage than the first edition, now covering six continents and 24 national chapters (including the EU chapter). In Romania, public procurement contracts are essentially regulated by Government Emergency Ordinance No. 34/2006 on the award of public procurement contracts, public works concession contracts and service concession contracts (GEO No. 34/2006). Specific sector regulation and clarifications of GEO No. 34/2006 can be found in the secondary legislation, consisting of government decisions and National Authority for the Regulation and Monitoring of Public Procurement (ANRMAP) orders. GEO No. 34/2006 transposes EC directives on public procurement and creates the legal framework to secure compliance with the principles of contract awarding in public procurement: non-discrimination, equal treatment, mutual recognition, transparency, proportionality, optimum use of funds and undertaking of liability.

Reproduced with permission from Law Business Research Ltd. This article was first published in Getting the Deal Through – Labour & Employment 2014, (published in April 2014; contributing editors: Matthew Howse, Walter Ahrens, Sabine Smith-Vidal and Mark Zelek of Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP). Romania is a civil law jurisdiction and the core employment regulation is the Labour Code. Besides the Labour Code, specific tailored legal enactments regulate other employment-related aspects, such as employment safety and health, insurance for work accidents and professional diseases and social dialogue. Collective bargaining agreements also provide binding rules and obligations to be complied with by the employers. Finally, considering Romania’s accession to the European Union, which took place on 1 January 2007, EU legislation and ECJ decisions are also relevant.

Reproduced with permission from Law Business Research Ltd. This article was first published in The Corporate Governance Review, 4th edition (published in March 2014 – editor Willem J L Calkoen). The Law No. 31/1990 on trading companies, republished in 2004 and further amended and completed (the Companies Law) and the Capital Market Law No. 297/2004, as further amended and completed (the Capital Market Law), represent the primary sources of law relating to the corporate governance of listed companies in Romania. In addition, as an independent agency the securities regulator, the Financial Supervisory Authority (ASF) may issue legally binding regulations. Furthermore, Government Emergency Ordinance No. 109/2011 concerning the corporate governance of public enterprises (GEO No. 109/2011) sets out specific statutory rules for the corporate governance of enterprises controlled by the Romanian state (a significant number of the targeted companies that are listed on the Romanian regulated markets or that are envisaged for listing in the near future).