The Legal 500

Within Corporate and M&A, Lawyers Office Bojana Tkalcic-Dulic, Olodar Prebanic & Adela Draganovic is a first tier firm,

Headed by partner Bojana Tkalcic-Dulic, Lawyers Office Bojana Tkalcic-Dulic, Olodar Prebanic & Adela Draganovic remains one of the more highly esteemed domestic practices, considered ‘reliable and effective’ by clients. The firm has the capacity and track record to manage significant M&A transactions and, in 2008, acted for an international financial client in relation to the acquisition of a majority stake in Privredna Banka. Additionally, the firm has experience in advising European clients on subordinated loans and finance contracts pertaining to transactions in the local banking and finance market. It continues to be a popular choice for international investors when creating local subsidiaries or special-purpose vehicles in BiH. In a domestic market of variable quality, Lawyers Office Bojana Tkalcic-Dulic, Olodar Prebanic & Adela Draganovic offers dependable advice across a broad spectrum of practice areas, including competition, employment and capital markets.

Within Legal market,

Both the Federation and RS have separate laws, courts and bar associations, mirroring political fractures. The Federation accounts for the bulk of the economy and consequently Sarajevo houses the major law firms. Domestically, Maric Law Office continues to dominate, with a reputation amongst foreign clients as the most professional and reliable of the home-grown outfits. Three-partner Lawyers Office Bojana Tkalcic-Dulic, Olodar Prebanic & Adela Draganovic is not far behind and recommended sole practitioner Advokat Karabdic Kerim goes from strength to strength. The only international firms present in the market are regional players Law Office Femil Curt and Wolf Theiss, for whom their Bosnian offices represent the realisation of a general policy of ubiquity across Central and Eastern Europe. Whilst the latter firm continues to lead operations from Vienna, the former changed strategy in 2008 and concentrated on creating a more self-sufficient local practice. Both remain the first port of call for foreign investors and the influence of their respective networks guarantees a level of quality that the domestic market struggles to produce. Both are fending off hostility from Bosnian firms and the two bar associations. BiH’s profoundly illiberal legal market continues to discourage the presence of foreign firms. The RS has only a handful of firms, all operating out of its unofficial capital Banja Luka. Attorney at Law Office Ruzica Topic, Advokatska Firma Sajic o.d. and Stevan Dimitrijevic Law Office in cooperation with Karanovic & Nikolic – the one-partner outpost of Serbian operation Karanovic & Nikolic – are the leading players. Observers agree greater liberalisation is needed if the market is to grow and standards are to rise. Despite the modest demand, there remains a shortfall of highly qualified, multilingual lawyers capable of dealing with international clients.

Within Real estate and construction, Lawyers Office Bojana Tkalcic-Dulic, Olodar Prebanic & Adela Draganovic is a second tier firm,

Lawyers Office Bojana Tkalcic-Dulic, Olodar Prebanic & Adela Draganovic has some limited experience in real estate, primarily in advising foreign embassies on land purchases.