EU and Competition
Panayotis Bernitsas
Managing Partner
Panayotis is the Managing Partner of the Firm and a leading legal practitioner, with an active, broad-based commercial practice incorporating more than 35 years of experience in transactional, advisory and litigation work.
Panayotis is an authority in EU, competition and antitrust law and has represented clients in prominent cartel cases before the Hellenic Competition Commission. He is a senior litigator, with vast experience in all types of dispute resolution, and represents clients in complex, high stake civil and administrative actions before the high courts and arbitration boards. He has also acted as arbitrator at the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC).
Panayotis is an expert in concession projects and privatisations, with an unsurpassed track record of playing a key role in many of the pioneering, ground breaking transactions to have taken place in Greece. He advises extensively on major renewable and conventional energy and infrastructure projects and investments in energy property development companies. His real estate practice is focused on large scale developments and real property asset portfolio investments.
Within the framework of his private practice, Panayotis has acted on a number of occasions as advisor to the Government on European Union, State Aids and Privatisation issues. He also advises companies and individuals on complex tax structuring and wealth planning matters and has acted extensively in high stakes tax controversies.
Panayotis has been widely published in legal journals, books and other publications in his areas of expertise and is a participant in the annual Forum on International Wealth Disputes. He held the position of Associate Professor in International Economic Law, Law of International Business Transactions, European Community Law at the University of Thrace from 1983-2007.
Marina Androulakakis
Partner
Marina is an expert in EU, competition and antitrust law. She joined the Firm in 1997 and advises national and international clients on antitrust, merger control and State aid issues, with substantial experience in cross-border and cross-section transactions, risk and strategy assessment and regulatory compliance. Her work includes FSR and FDI screening advice.
Marina has extensive experience in successfully representing clients across various industries in alleged cartel and abuse of dominance cases before the Hellenic Competition Commission. She also has considerable expertise in merger cases and has effectively coordinated multi-jurisdictional filings and obtained clearance for high-profile M&A transactions from the Hellenic Competition Commission and the European Commission in a wide range of industry specialisations. Marina has an expertise in assessing commercial agreements and policies for their compliance with competition law and also provides on-site assistance and practical guidance in dealing with dawn raids.
Marina has significant experience in advising clients on emerging and existing data protection requirements, including identifying gaps and areas of potential infringement of data protection laws, supporting clients on employment related privacy matters and advising on internal investigation procedures and data breach incidents.
Marina also supports clients in relation to compliance with international sanctions regimes. Her work includes advising on sanctions monitoring and reporting requirements and the design and implementation of compliance programs, as well as assisting clients to obtain authorization from national authorities and liaising with the regulators.
Tania Patsalia
Partner
Tania is specialised in EU, competition and antitrust law, advising on all aspects of antitrust, merger control and State aid rules. She regularly assists clients with antitrust and competition law issues arising from their commercial arrangements and has been involved in high-profile cartel and merger control cases before the Hellenic Competition Commission.
Tania provides clients with on-site assistance in dealing with dawn raids, including running workshops and mock exercises. Tania also advises on the application of EU law in Greece and the regulatory requirements applicable to the telecoms, media and technology sectors, regularly liaising with regulators such as the National Telecommunications and Post Commission, the National Council for Radio and Television, the Hellenic Data Protection Authority and the Hellenic Authority for Communication Security and Privacy.
She has extensive experience in advising telecoms operators on licensing requirements, compliance with their annual reporting obligations and telecoms issues relating to the use of new technologies and the launch of new products and services. Tania also has an expertise in advising on all aspects of EU and Greek data privacy rules and she routinely advises clients on the proactive identification, assessment and management of risks associated with their privacy practices. She assists clients in GDPR compliance steps, and advises extensively on how to identify compliance gaps and draft privacy policies, consent forms and data processing agreements. Tania is an expert in AI and cybersecurity law, advising on their requirements and implications on data privacy and data protection and assisting clients in understanding the legal effects of AI on their business operations.
Domna Mirasyesi
Partner
Domna is a senior member of the Firm's management team. Her broad remit covers responsibility for strategy in the areas of responsible business, practice management, people and finance.
Domna is the Partner responsible for people engagement and continuing professional and career development. She leads the Firm's Pro Bono and Social Commitment Programmes. In this capacity she oversees the support of over 30 organisations involved in higher and lower education, culture and the arts and the support of children and vulnerable members of the community as well as initiatives to provide free legal representation to individuals, non-profits and NGOs. She has been with the Firm since 1986.
Domna has vast experience in advising on EU, Competition & Antitrust and Human Rights law. She has successfully represented clients in several cases regarding the violation of Articles of the Convention before the European Court of Human Rights.
Domna is a member of the board of directors of the Center for Asia Minor Studies, since 2021. From 2013 to 2020 Domna served as a non-executive member of the Board of Directors and a member of the Nomination and Corporate Governance Committee of the listed company Titan Cement SA. She was also a member of the Board of Directors and the Curriculum/Standards Committee of St Catherine’s British School and the Designated Governor responsible for Child Protection and e-Safety issues from 2009 to 2017.
Christina Kechagia
Senior Associate
Christina is a senior associate at the Firm and a member of the EU, Competition & Antitrust Team.
She advises on all aspects of EU and Greek law, with emphasis on antitrust, regulatory issues of M&A transactions, merger control, FDI and state aid. Christina has been involved in complex antitrust cases before the Hellenic Competition Commission and the National Telecommunications and Post Commission, including in abuse of dominance investigations.
Christina advises clients on their day-to-day regulatory issues and assists them in dawn raids providing on-site assistance and testing compliance by running mock dawn raids. She is also involved in drafting and reviewing commercial contracts, focusing on vertical arrangements and compliance with internal market regulations.
Ioanna Palyvou
Associate
Ioanna is an associate with the Firm and a member of the EU, Competition & Antitrust team.
Ioanna has experience in national and EU competition and antitrust law, including advising on compliance with competition and merger control regulations and drafting notifications to the regulatory authorities. She works on cartel investigations and abuse of dominance cases before the Hellenic Competition Commission and advises on competition law issues arising in commercial agreements and corporate transactions.
Prior to joining the Firm, Ioanna worked as a trainee at the Antitrust Unit of the Directorate-General for Competition of the European Commission.
Antonia Spilipoulou
Associate
Antonia is an associate with the Firm and a member of the EU, Competition & Antitrust team.
She advises on competition law compliance and dawn raid preparedness. Antonia is involved in cartel investigations before the Hellenic Competition Commission and supports clients through competition and antitrust training. She also works on merger cases before competition authorities. Antonia joined the Firm as an intern and later as a trainee and has experience working with the Litigation, Arbitration and Dispute Resolution team.
Vasiliki Velesioti
Associate
Vasiliki is an associate at the Firm and a member of the EU, Competition & Antitrust team.
She advises on Greek and EU competition law compliance, including horizontal and vertical agreements and abuse of dominance. Vasiliki is involved in merger filings before the competition authorities and advises on DMA and FDI compliance. Prior to joining the firm, Vasiliki completed a traineeship at the Antitrust Unit of Directorate General for Competition of the European Commission. She also worked with an international law firm in Brussels.
Deals
- - Clearance for the Sale of Dodoni to Hellenic Dairies We advised Vivartia Group in the merger clearance process before the Hellenic Competition Commission (HCC) regarding the sale of Dodoni SMSA to Hellenic Dairies SA. The HCC unconditionally approved the transaction in phase 1. As part of our work, we also assisted the client in relation to the merger clearance procedure before the Commission for the Protection of Competition (CPC) in Cyprus.
- - Merger Control in Concessions We advised Aktor Group of Companies in successfully obtaining phase 1 merger clearance from the Hellenic Competition Commission (HCC) in relation to its c.€367m acquisition of Aktor Concessions to strengthen the group’s PPPs and concessions footprint.
- - Advice on Antitrust Compliance of Distribution Network We are advising a natural cosmetics company, member of a multinational group, on competition law issues on an ongoing basis, including the reform of its distribution network in Greece and abroad.
- - Competition Law Compliance Advice We are advising the Greek subsidiary of a leading global supplier of technology and services, providing them regular onsite training on compliance with competition rules in their day-to-day business activities.
Team Services
Our practice is a market leader, with a history dating back to Greece’s accession to the EU and a successful track record of advising in landmark competition and antitrust matters, including merger control cases, cartel investigations and related litigation, concerted and restrictive practices, market and sectoral investigations, abuse of dominance and State aid cases.
Our clients include Greek, foreign and multi-national corporations. We have also advised government bodies on the implementation of the directives liberalising State monopolies and represented Greece in negotiations with the EU on State aid granted to Greek industries.
- EU
- Competition & Antitrust