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Overview

The Austrian legal market is small and flexible and there are few major global players operating out of Vienna, with the exception of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, DLA Piper Weiss-Tessbach, CMS Reich-Rohrwig Hainz Rechtsanwälte GmbH and Baker & McKenzie Diwok Hermann Petsche Rechtsanwälte GmbH.

The country has good access to trade partners and is often used as a gateway to Eastern European jurisdictions. As such CEE transactions continue to be a lucrative source of business, from the top full-service firms through to the boutiques.

The redundancies that have hit Western European firms hard are much less evident in Austria, and many of the larger players are as ambitious as ever, with the economic crisis barely dampening expansionism. CHSH Cerha Hempel Spiegelfeld Hlawati, Wolf Theiss and Schoenherr are still sweeping across the CEE, although the mid-tier firms operating out of the capital still garner their fair share of the mandates on offer. Austria has a large number of smaller players, and the boutiques, such as Fellner Wratzfeld & Partners, Schramm Öhler Rechtsanwälte and Gassauer-Fleissner Rechtsanwälte GmbH still prove to be a very successful model.

Lateral moves are still relatively unusual in the market, with big-hitting partners more likely to set up on their own than join a rival. The biggest move of 2010 saw five equity partners, including Stefan Eder, leave DLA Piper Weiss-Tessbach to form Benn-Ibler Rechtsanwälte GmbH, while well-respected real estate partner Alfred Nemetschke left Schoenherr to set up Nemetschke Huber Koloseus Attorneys at Law.

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Press releases

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Legal Developments in Austria

Legal Developments and updates from the leading lawyers in each jurisdiction. To contribute, send an email request to

  • Austria: Advantages of Establishing a Company's Headquarters in Austria: Part 1

    Choosing or changing a multinational company's headquarters involves considerations of quality of living and political stability in addition to economic and legal issues. This arti-cle, in two parts, outlines some of the advantages of and basic information about choos-ing Austria for a company’s headquarters. Part 1 is an overview of Austria's social and political background and of some legal forms to consider for a holding company. Part 2 will introduce Austrian tax law and provide additional legal information.
    - Schönherr

  • Hungary: Why is equity protection ineffective in Hungary?

    The Hungarian Companies Act ("CA") and others have long contained provisions to protect creditors. One provision prohibits a limited liability company from paying dividends to its shareholders if it does not have sufficient funds.
    - Schönherr

  • Austria: Termination of contracts after initiation of insolvency proceedings

    One of the primary objectives of the reformed Austrian Insolvency Act ("IO"), which entered into force on 1 July 2010, has been to increase the number of successful corporate reorganisations and to facilitate the continuation of business operations during financial crises. After the initiation of insolvency proceedings, the creditors of an insolvent debtor shall not be entitled to revoke or terminate contracts that are essential for continuing the debtor’s business operations.
    - Schönherr

  • Environment Romania

    Romania
    - Schönherr

  • Environment Bulgaria

    Bulgaria
    - Schönherr

  • Environment Austria

    Austria Christian Schmelz and Bernd Rajal - Schönherr Rechtsanwälte GmbH
    - Schönherr

  • Austria: Mandatory declaration of minimum remuneration in job postings

    The latest amendment of the Austrian Act on Equal Treatment (Gleichbehandlungsgesetz – GlBG; in force since 1 March 2011) sets into force a provision requiring the declaration of minimum remuneration in job postings. As of 1 January 2012, any infringement of this provision may lead to sanctions.
    - Schönherr

  • The Handbook of Competition Enforcement Agencies 2011

    Neli Nedkova and Dessislava Iordanova - Wolf Theiss In 2010 the activity of the Bulgarian Commission for Protection of Competition (the Commission) showed a trend of increasing focus on compliance shifting slightly from the antitrust area. Proceedings that have started and the most recent decisions show that this trend is likely to continue in 2011.
    - Wolf Theiss

  • Bulgaria: VAT re gulations on construction right transfers amended

    From 1 January 2012, the transfer of a construction right will be VAT exempt only until the construction permit is issued. The previous regime had allowed the exemption until the completion of the rough construction.
    - Schönherr

  • Foreign investors face new barrier when acquiring Austrian companies

    On December 8, 2011 an amendment of the Foreign Trade Act 2011 (Außenwirtschaftsgesetz 2011, until then Außenhandelsgesetz 2011, “FTA 2011”) entered into force imposing a substantial new barrier on foreign investors when acquiring shares in Austrian companies that operate in areas of public security and order. This amendment came as a surprise as part of the Budget Consolidation Act 2012 (Budgetbegleitgesetz 2012), governing different topics. The key points of the new barrier for foreign investors are the following:
    - Binder Grösswang Attorneys-at-Law

Press Releases in Austria

The latest news direct from law firms. If you would like to submit press releases for your firm, send an email request to
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