DWF Poland

Managing Partner: Dr Michał Pawłowski

Number of partners: 23

DWF Poland currently consists of over 160 professionals. As a team, we have been providing legal services in Poland since 1991. Our lawyers have extensive experience in providing comprehensive legal services for private companies, international corporations and state-owned entities. Our achievements are widely recognized by our clients, peers and market participants as well as leading international rankings. Our lawyers are regularly recommended by independent international rankings, such as Chambers Global, Chambers Europe, Legal500, IFLR1000 as well as WTR100 and Managing IP. Our lawyers actively participate as speakers at key sector conferences, seminars and workshops on, inter alia, environmental, energy, construction, litigation and arbitration law issues.

Banking & Finance

DWF Poland's Banking & Finance team regularly advises Polish and international banks, investment funds, assets management companies, financial institutions, companies, borrowers, local authorities, investors and sponsors of domestic and cross-border finance transactions. The lawyers have extensive transactional (project finance, acquisition finance, property finance) and regulatory experience both in Poland and globally with particular focus on banks, sponsors, private debt funds, investment funds, derivatives and payment institutions.

Contact: Tomasz Kaczmarek, Partner

Capital Markets

DWF Poland's capital markets lawyers provide experienced counsel for issuers, public companies, financial institutions and other capital markets participants. They prepare transaction documentation and represent issuers, companies and investment banks in all public transactions, including initial public offerings (IPO), secondary public offerings (SPO), accelerated book building (ABB) and public mergers and acquisitions. They regularly advise public companies and represent shareholders in disputes regarding corporate governance and on developing the transaction structure for large investments in the capital markets with regard to tax issues and compliance with regulatory requirements.

Contact: Dr Michał Pawłowski, Managing Partner; Filip Urbaniak, Partner; Dr Rafał Woźniak, Partner

Construction

DWF Poland's lawyers have a broad knowledge and practical understanding of modern European, U.S., and local approaches to structuring and running construction projects and handling related disputes. They are experts in investor and governmental requirements relating to requirements applicable to design and construction processes, liability, warranty and regulatory requirements, etc. They have experience in working with virtually every aspect and type of construction projects, such as road, rail, energy investments, office buildings, shopping centres, hotels & resorts, mixed-use and residential developments, industrial and R&D complexes, warehouses, etc. DWF Poland's lawyers assist with drafting or negotiating of contracts, arranging for financing, structuring a tendering process under the public procurement laws or privately designed procedures.

Contact: Joanna Wojnarowska, Partner

Corporate/M&A

DWF Poland's lawyers specializing in Corporate/M&A advise leading Polish and foreign companies, encompassing both private and public enterprises across diverse industries and sectors. They offer comprehensive legal counsel to clients, addressing all aspects impacting their businesses. With extensive M&A experience they assess their clients' economic requirements, devise custom-tailored structures, and implement solutions geared towards fostering growth of their operations. The team offers guidance across all facets of transactions. This includes coordinating due diligence, offering insights on optimal structuring, and actively engaging in the preparation and negotiation of transaction documentation. The team provides diligent advice to all parties involved in M&A transactions, sellers, buyers, and third-party investors alike.

Contact: Dr Michał Pawłowski, Managing Partner; Filip Urbaniak, Partner; Dr Rafał Woźniak, Partner

Dispute Resolution, Dispute Resolution: Arbitration

DWF Poland's team successfully supports clients in complex arbitration and court proceedings. This applies, inter alia, to proceedings conducted under the auspices of the International Court of Arbitration at the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), the Arbitration Institute of the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce (SCC), the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA) and ad hoc arbitral proceedings. The firm's lawyers have direct relations with potential arbitrators and experts. They regularly act as arbitrators in teams appointed by the institutions or parties to the dispute. They use this experience when they act as advisors and decide what methods and strategies may prove most effective before an arbitral tribunal.

Contact: Maciej Jamka, Partner

Employment

DWF Poland's employment lawyers are local practitioners who provide comprehensive services to Polish and multinational employers. They provide seamless services for employers, whether wholly in Poland, entering Polish markets, or expanding beyond the national borders. The team provides clients with the full spectrum of business-focused legal advice on employment and labour law issues. The Warsaw office lawyers have many years of experience in providing employment and labour law services to clients. They ensure that advice on employment and labour law is concise, understandable, and - most importantly - practical.

Contact: Dr Izabela Szczygielska, Local Partner

Energy & Natural Resources

DWF Poland has a distinctive, full-size, comprehensive practice devoted entirely to renewable energy. It is one of the most recognized RES practices on the Polish market, and a one-stop-shop for clients active in renewables. The firm's lawyers assist in all legal matters related to the RES sector, including investments (development, permitting and licences, grid connections, transactions, environmental issues, M&A), day-to-day operations, as well as disputes. They have been involved in acquisitions and development of a vast number of solar and wind projects, both onshore and offshore. The team is also renowned for advice in regulatory and legislative matters. The firm's lawyers assist sector chambers and organizations, as well as individual clients, in solving complex regulatory matters and building their position on sectoral issues.

Contact: Dr Karol Lasocki, Partner

Environment

DWF Poland's experts focus on environmental law issues linked to construction and development projects and therefore cooperate closely with renewable energy and projects and infrastructure departments. In this respect they assist in wide range of environmental issues, including environmental impact assessment, industrial emissions, carbon dioxide emissions trading, waste management, water and sewage management, damage to the environment (including land contamination), environmental permits (including IPPC permits), zoning and construction permitting and environmental aspects covered by projects-related contracts. The lawyers advise on environmental matters of high-end and large-scale projects from their outset, through development, commissioning, and operating stage. They provide regulatory compliance at all these stages. They are experienced in environmental litigation, including administrative and judicial-administrative matters relating to project development, NIMBYism, protected species, regulatory compliance, various permits and environmental sanctions.

Contact: Wiktoria Rogaska, Local Partner

Intellectual Property

DWF Poland's lawyers specializing in intellectual property provide assistance to a wide variety of Polish and international clients with respect to their intellectual property rights. They assist in the protection of copyright and other intellectual property matters, including litigation, customs protection procedures, and criminal proceedings with respect to anti-piracy and other disputes in this field. They also prepare motions and writs to the Patent Office regarding registrations, proceedings of trademarks and patents, as well as protection of clients’ valuable trademarks. The team has extensive experience relating to taking action against unfair competition. The lawyers have represented clients in disputes relating to unfair competition acts of other market participants. They have also assisted in trials, including in obtaining injunctions to secure clients’ urgent interests. Oftentimes the IP team served to assist in anti-unfair competition matters involving advertising. The provided assistance also embraces issues such as protection of company goodwill.

Contact: Oskar Tułodziecki, Partner

Insurance

DWF Poland ensures expert advice of an experienced team of lawyers who have been providing legal services to the insurance sector for years. The Insurance Department specializes in providing full scope of advice to insurance companies and insurance distributors. Its strength comes from genuine expertise and depth in both insurance matters and commercial services. The lawyers advise insurance clients on the full spectrum of their needs, from managing claims, advising on coverage, through to corporate and commercial transactions, regulatory and compliance issues and all commercial services. They provide solutions to the challenges in running their businesses and help them with first class multi-disciplinary teams to guide them through both their 'business as usual' work, as well as more complex areas requiring specialist and high level advice.

Contact: Paweł Stykowski, Local Partner

Private Equity

The firm's lawyers specializing in mergers and acquisitions advise leading private equity and venture capital funds, as well as other players in private equity and venture capital transactions. The team offers comprehensive legal counsel to clients, addressing all aspects impacting their businesses. With extensive mergers and acquisitions experience the lawyers assess economic requirements, devise custom-tailored structures, and implement solutions geared towards fostering growth and development of clients' investments, capital transactions and financings operations. The team offers guidance across all facets of transactions conducted in the private equity and venture capital markets, from fund formation to investment and exit. What makes the practice stand out is combination of legal knowledge with solid business experience and judgment, along with industry know-how and network of contacts.

Contact: Dr Michał Pawłowski, Managing Partner; Filip Urbaniak, Partner; Dr Rafał Woźniak, Partner

Projects & Infrastructure

Over the past several years, DWF Poland's team has advised and supported many entities in the construction sector in Central and Eastern Europe both at the stage of litigation and investment preparation. The lawyers have experience of working on various types of investment projects including road, rail, power, cubic structures, office buildings, hotels, residential buildings, industrial and R&D facilities, warehouses, pipelines, fibre optics, LNG terminal, oil platform, wind farms, photovoltaic and biomass combustion installations, etc.

Contact: Maciej Antoniak, Partner

Public Procurement

DWF Poland's team has extensive experience in advising Polish and international clients on public procurement, construction contracts, government contracts and regulatory issues. DWF Poland's lawyers have in-depth knowledge and an excellent understanding of the law, regulatory issues, as well as the administrative practice involved. The firm is recognised as one of the most experienced and reputable law firms in Poland in the field of public procurement and government contracts. For more than 20 years it has successfully participated in numerous public procurement proceedings.

Contact: Łukasz Gembiś, Local Partner

Real Estate

The firm's real estate lawyers advise clients with regard to the entire spectrum of their real estate-related legal needs, with main focus on transactions. The firm offers a broad national and global platform with on-the-ground local capability in the markets, equipping the practice to meet clients’ real estate legal needs, regardless of the issue or location. DWF Poland's real estate clients range and include institutional and private investors, commercial developers, tenants and landlords, global and regional financial institutions, real estate and investment funds, real estate service providers, brokers and property managers.

Contact: Joanna Wojnarowska, Partner

Restructuring/Insolvency

DWF Poland's team combines reliable knowledge of bankruptcy and restructuring law and local court practice with international experience. The lawyers set the standards in corporate and financial restructuring and bankruptcy by advising in the largest and most famous restructurings in Poland. They assist Polish and international clients in corporate and financial restructuring, as well as in banking and finance and private equity.

Contact: Radosław Cebeliński, Partner

Tax

The team is part of the firm’s European Tax Practice and has extensive experience in assisting local and foreign clients and multinational corporations in a wide range of tax matters of national and international tax law. DWF Poland's tax lawyers and advisors work across borders and cooperate closely with other practice areas. The team advises companies, investors, banks, insurance companies, property developers, asset managers and providers of domestic and international tax law services, with a particular focus on drafting structures for domestic and international acquisitions, tax due diligence, tailored financing and refinancing, or joint ventures.

Contact: Adrian Jonca, Partner

TMT

The firm's Data Protection, Cyber Security and Technology team has unique experience combining privacy and legal expertise with deep understanding of technology. The lawyers offer a broad spectrum of support, including implementation of GDPR and complex compliance systems using legal tech tools and risk assessment, assistance in due diligence in M&A transactions and preparation of data processing structures for multiple industry sectors. In their approach, they focus on building processes and implementing GDPR in such a way that it can be part of an organisation's DNA.

Contact: Gerard Karp, Partner

White-Collar Crime

DW Poland deals with criminal compliance issues in a comprehensive manner. The team designs and implements compliance systems, advises as part of the ongoing implementation of the criminal compliance function, as well as supports organisations and companies in the event of irregularities, preparing crisis management strategies, including management of relations with law enforcement agencies, contractual advice and labour law advice. It acts for clients in all spheres involving Polish and international law enforcement agencies and criminal courts.

Contact: Maciej Antoniak, Partner