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LEADELL Vītols Law Office welcomes Attorney at Law Māris Paipa to our team of professionals. In his new role, Māris will ensure excellence in the office’s legal performance, focusing particularly on: Personal data protection and compliance with General Data Protection Regulation requirements; Corporate and labor law; Contract preparation and...

Work disputes are a prevalent issue in both local and international labor markets. Our employment law specialists most frequently provide legal assistance in situations where the cause of the dispute is a breach of contract or workplace regulations, termination or dismissal of employment, or where disagreements often arise from...

Storm damage and the need to mitigate it is an issue is an issue faced not only by rescue services and those who have suffered physical or material harm in Latvia. It also affects the relationships between employers and employees and is here to stay. What should be done...

LEADELL Vītols experts of cross-border deals recommend 8 precautionary steps before trusting a new business partner from Latvia. In the best interests of the foreign company interested in doing business in Latvia, it is essential to acquire thorough insights into potential business partners. Such insights enable the assessment of...

Whistleblowing is a set of systematic actions aimed at promoting lawful, ethical, open and transparent operations within organizations in both the public and private sectors. This is done by exercising the right to freely express one’s opinion. The Whistleblowing Law helps prevent violations and harm to public interests while...

Looking for legal support in the creation of a whistleblowing system, a client employing several hundred employees turned to LEADELL Vītols labor law specialists. Since the Whistleblowing Law provides for the creation of a whistleblowing system in companies with more than 50 employees, it was the company’s obligation to...

Workplace mobbing or harassment must be addressed not only for ethical reasons but also due to legal liability. Unfortunately, experience shows that mobbing situations are often ignored out of fear, ignorance, or other reasons. How to avoid mistakes when identifying mobbing? Not every failed joke among colleagues will be...

After the recent implementation of the Personal Data Protection System, we contacted our client – the skincare salon SKINPRO, whose services are used by more than 6000 individuals in Riga, Liepaja, and Daugavpils. We asked them to describe their experience in the system development process and also asked how...

To ensure that video surveillance aligns with personal data protection requirements, its user must adhere to a series of legal requirements. These include establishing a legal basis and documenting the surveillance, adhering to data minimization principles, implementing proper data storage procedures, assessing recording formats, enforcing security measures, respecting the...

LEADELL Vītols law firm Managing Partner Kārlis Vītols has been appointed to the esteemed Country Selection Committee for the 2023 CEE Deals of the Year Awards. These awards stand as the pinnacle of peer recognition within the legal sphere across Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). CEE Deals of the...

On 24 April 2023, the Council of the European Union, following the adoption of the European Parliament,  approved the Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council to endorse the principle of equal pay for equal work or work of equal value between men and women (so-called Pay...

General Data Protection Regulation (2016/679) is a prevalent topic among entrepreneurs; however, the day-to-day work of our law firm sheds light on an ever-present confusion – entrepreneurs do not always have a clear road map for fulfilling the mandatory requirements. In addition, very often the reason for disorganized processes...

An industry leader has just joined the list of few entrepreneurs in Latvia who implement a socially responsible management model in the company whereby it devoted special attention to the assessment of observance of the principle of gender equality within the company. “Gender equality is not only a requirement...

In response to signals from a senior employee about experienced mobbing in the work environment, one industry-leading company invites the specialists of the LEADELL Vītols law office for an in-depth investigation of the case. As a result, facts confirming the suspicions about mobbing are revealed, opening up opportunities for...

An overview of the most important amendments to laws and regulations, most of which will enter into force already on 1 January 2023, has been prepared by LEADELL Vītols legal experts. Among them – several regulatory changes concerning shares and their owners. Performers of economic activities in the field...

Amendments to the law “On Maternity and Sickness Insurance” regulate the procedure for paying paternity allowance, as well as aid to solve the issues related to the allowance in situations where the child’s paternity is not established. Amendments also affect paternity leave. Amendments to the law “On Maternity and...

On 1 July 2023, the reform of joint stock companies will enter into force, as well as a series of changes in the regulation of the payment of share capital and access to information. In like manner, the daily management of capital companies will be affected by novelties in...

As of 1 January 2023, amendments with regard to the electronic environment enter into force – changes in the regulation of electronic addresses and electronic identification. Please note that the regulation on the need for an official electronic address applies to all legal entities. Amendments to the Law on...

As of 1 January 2023, procurement specialists should take into account a series of novelties, including divergences in the approach to tax payment arrears, professional misconduct, unfulfilled contractual obligations, etc. LEADELL Vītols team offers to get acquainted with the most important of them. Amendments to the Law on Public...

In public administration, 2023 will bring new Law on Municipalities, while in the field of real estate – the Law on Termination of Forced Shared Property in Privatized Apartment Buildings.  Law on Municipalities When expropriating real estate (land, buildings), the right of first refusal will not have to be...

In the framework of cooperation with the magazine iTiesibas, Lauris Broks – LEADELL Vītols lawyer – analyzes whether it is possible to agree that an employee works seven days in a row from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. with a two-hour break, followed by seven days off. Is it...

An employer has given notice of termination to an employee. The employee’s trade union had not consented to this notice, hence the employer is demanding the termination of the employment contract in court. In parallel with the legal proceedings, the employer issued another notice to the employee, which the...

How to contest a decision of the shareholders of a capital company in the Baltic States? As the tense economic and political situation unavoidably influences the business environment, the number of disputes surrounding decisions of shareholders’ meetings of limited liability companies and joint stock companies (hereinafter – capital companies,...

Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) decision has expanded the scope of sensitive personal data, viz., at the end of the summer, CJEU adopted a judgment of significant importance regarding the protection of personal data that, while not being directly considered special categories of data, reveal other...

In the framework of cooperation with the magazine iFinance, Lauris Broks – LEADELL Vītols lawyer – analyzes whether an allowance for a business trip can be considered remuneration and in which cases can the daily allowance paid to an employee be considered as part of his wage. In this...

A Canadian lumber company, which had concluded a transaction with a Latvian company, found itself in an intricate cross-border dispute over the receipt of a low-quality product. After involving oneself in resolving the dispute, LEADELL Vītols attorneys discovered that the parties’ liability had not been thoroughly stipulated in the...

In collaboration with the magazine iFinanses, labor law expert Ilze Jankeviča frequently helps to resolve uncertainties that the readers of the magazine encounter. This time, lending a helping hand is needed in a situation where it is necessary to find out how and whether the time when the employee...

The leading international publication “Legal 500” has recognized LEADELL law firms for 16 times in their latest rankings. According to the feedback given by our clients, LEADELL attorneys at law in Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia have been recommended as experienced and excellent experts in the following practice areas: –...

LEADELL firms in Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania appreciate the support shown by the international alliance of law firms TAGLaw to the initiative of collecting donations for the people of Ukraine. The aim of the initiative is not only to invite the members of the alliance to donate but also...

One of the most important conditions for a successful real estate market is legal regulation establishing the procedure for the development of real estate projects on state-owned land. According to the current legal regulation in Lithuania, no additional fee had to be paid for the possibility to build buildings...

LEADELL Pilv and LEADELL Vītols dispute resolution teams of experts joined forces to successfully defend the interests of a client – an Estonian company offering services in Latvia – in a cross-border dispute. By distorting the facts of the transaction, a payment for the purchase was owed to the...

The team of LEADELL Vītols dispute resolution experts has defended the interests of the Austrian high-tech company Frequentis, which participated in the procurement procedure for the supply, installation, and provision of support for complex equipment and software in Latvia. The total value of the procurement exceeded 2 million euros....

Expert in labor law Ilze Jankeviča, in cooperation with the magazine iTiesibas, frequently helps to resolve uncertainties that the readers of the magazine encounter. This time, assistance is needed in a situation where a distinction needs to be drawn between calendar, rest, and working days in context with the...

To protect both the people and the economy, Baltic States have been making serious efforts to contain and control the spread of the Covid-19 virus. All three countries have developed and implemented unique approaches for managing the spread of the virus. Given that legislation often “lags one step behind”...

Dear clients and colleagues, as you already expected – this is #LEADELLVītols choice #2021 among the children’s made charity cards to greeting you all in the Holiday season. We present the new and promising artist Toms Lehtonens. He is a pupil at Riga Ziepniekkalns Primary school and the author...

LEADELL Vītols team of experts has defended the interests of a Latvian company in a dispute with a Belgian undertaking, obtaining a decision to stay the enforcement of ajudgment certified as European Enforcement Order (EEO). As part of the execution of this judgment, a sworn bailiff in Latvia had...

Together with Estonian and Lithuanian colleagues we analyzed whether, how and when the employer has the right to demand from the employees to be vaccinated against Covid-19. EMPLOYERS RIGHT TO DEMAND VACCINATION FROM EMPLOYEES

On 9 October 2021, the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Latvia adopted Order No. 720 “Regarding Declaration of the Emergency Situation” (hereinafter – the Order), declaring an emergency situation in the entire territory of the state from 11 October 2021 until 11 January 2022. In collaboration with...

We are sincerely grateful and appreciative to our clients and team for being together all these years and looking forward to our continuous growth and success. On 25.08.2016 three Baltic Law Offices, today LEADELL Pilv in Estonia, LEADELL Vītols in Latvia, and LEADELL Balčiūnas & Grajauskas in Lithuania founded...

Estonia was the first country to introduce and offer the e-residency scheme and it is open to individuals from all countries who work digitally, are location- independent, and want to start and run an EU company. Lithuania and Latvia, following the example set by Estonia, are also launching their...

The leading international publication “Legal 500” has recognised LEADELL law firms for 16 times in their latest rankings. According to the feedbacks given by our clients, LEADELL attorneys at law in Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia have been recommended as experienced and excellent experts in following practice areas: – Banking, Finance...

Continuing the series of articles on the information to be included in the employment contract, in the final article we will look at the information that can be included in the employment contract based on an agreement of the parties. There are a number of details to be included...

COVID-19 has put almost every undertaking around the world facing an unexpected crisis of a significant scale, the duration, impacts and consequences of which are still unknown. To help companies (and thus the economy of the European Union as a whole) survive difficult times and avoid mass bankruptcies, the...

Where and by which date to register true beneficiaries? Amendments to the law stipulate that the true beneficiaries must be revealed until 1 January 2021. If the branch or representative office is registered in the Register of Enterprises of the Republic of Latvia, the information on the beneficial owners...

An employment contract is a fundamental document that governs the employer-employee relationship, henceforth, it is important understand its components and be aware of their purport. In cooperation with the magazine “iTiesības”, we begin a series of articles in which we are going to explain the nuances of the employment...

Continuing the series of articles on the information to be included in the employment contract, this time we will look at the information that must be included in the employment contract, as well as the information that can be included on an optional basis, i.e. based on an agreement...

Continuing the series of articles on the information to be included in the employment contract, we will look at the information that must be indicated in the contract regarding employee’s occupation and remuneration. Choosing the occupation in conformity with the Classification of Occupations The Labour Law (LL) stipulates that...

What you should know about State Aid Nowadays, Start-ups are becoming increasingly popular as a way of implementing innovative business ideas. As borders are almost non-existent in the business enviroment since the international element plays an important role, it is highly important to choose the most suitable country for...

When the requirement to register beneficial owners comes into force? As of 1 July 2020, branches and representative offices of foreign entities registered in Latvia are obliged to register information on their beneficial owners. This obligation follows from the amendments to the Law on the Prevention of Money Laundering and Terrorist and...

The leading international publication “Legal 500” has recognised LEADELL law firms for 16 times in their latest rankings. According to the feedbacks given by our clients, LEADELL attorneys at law in Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia have been recommended as experienced and excellent experts in following practice areas: – Banking,...

  Experts in financial and corporate law In the latest edition of 2020, IFLR1000, the world’s leading guide to financial firms, has recognised LEADELL as experts on financial and corporate law. Customer feedback The principle of research in such independent evaluators is mainly based on customer survey and reporting,...

“LEADELL Fogels & Vitols” law firm’s international legal alliance, TAGLaw, has again been recognized by Chambers & Partners as “Elite” for 2019—the highest ranking awarded to legal networks and alliances. This is the sixth time TAGLaw has received the distinguished “Elite” designation. “In addition to being honored to author...

On May 10, 2018, the signing of the General Agreement (General Agreement) on the establishment of the minimum wage in the construction industry in Latvia was started. For now more than 210 construction companies with total turnover of ~90% of the necessary quorum (EUR 713 million) for the conclusion...

We have just received a feedback from our client “Achema Group” about the case that has recently been closed where transfer of UAB “Litagra” trading business and grain elevator network in Lithuania and Latvia has been made to the “Achema Group”. Transaction amount – more than EUR 25 million which...

We are delighted to announce that Ilze Jankeviča is appointed a LEADELL Fogels & Vītols partner and head of Banking and Finance practice group in Latvia. Ilze joined the Law Office in 2011 and proved herself as a strong professional, reliable and passionate colleague. “I would like to emphasize...

Year 2018 will come with some significant tax reforms in Latvia and Estonia affecting businesses of all size. Latvia is introducing 0% tax rate on reinvested profit, Estonia is lowering the income tax rate for regular profit distribution and other measures to improve the competitiveness of each country are...

The law office has successfully represented interests of its client in a dispute over a debtor attempt to conceal its assets from debt collection. According to the information furnished by the client, during debt collection the debtor attempted to conceal company capital shares owned by him through disposing them...

Ugis Treilons, a new partner, has commenced work in LEADELL Riga office. His remarkable experience and knowledge in the fields of corporate law, investments and commercial transactions will expand our capacity to provide effectively secure and trustful top-level legal assistance to business clients. “The core values of our firm...

The work of the Baltic team of LEADELL has once again been evaluated by the international publication Legal 500, giving us a total of 14 high evaluations in 8 different practice areas. The Riga office LEADELL Fogels, Vītols & Paipa has reached the best results in such practise areas...

Attorney at law Ilze Jankeviča of LEADELL Fogels, Vītols & Paipa expressed her opinion about the development of regulations in regard to limitation of one’s legal capacity in the article “If and how one’s legal capacity can be limited?” of newspaper Ievas Padomu avīze, as well as consulted the...

Attorney at law Ilze Jankeviča of LEADELL Fogels, Vītols & Paipa consulted the newspaper Ievas Padomu avīze in preparation of the magazine’s article “Guarantor – hostage of a debt?”, as well as expresses her point of view regarding the guarantor’s liability when a guarantee agreement is concluded. Quote from...

Attorney at law Ilze Jankeviča of LEADELL Fogels, Vitols & Paipa together with attorney at law Pirkka Marja-Põldvere and lawyer Irina Meldjuk of LEADELL Pilv provided legal advice on applicable laws and regulations in a situation where Estonian law is stated as applicable law in employment contract between employer...

Attorney at law Ilze Jankeviča of “LEADELL Fogels, Vītols & Paipa” expresses her point of view in the article “Specialized courts have their benefits as well as risks” in the newspaper Dienas Bizness. The topic of the article is the, so called, specialized courts in Latvia – courts that...

Law office LEADELL Fogels, Vītols & Paipa is now located in a new office. Our new address is: Kr. Barona street 36 – 26, Riga, LV-1011. We look forward to seeing you in our new office!  

The managing partner Kārlis Vītols expresses his point of view in the newspaper Dienas Bizness regarding the most significant topicalities in the legal field in 2016 (click here to read the entire point of view in Latvian). A quote from the point of view: “(..) Owing to the fact...

Law office LEADELL Fogels, Vītols & Paipa successfully represented before the court the interests of the client (employer) in an employment dispute. After analysing the opinion of Attorneys at law of law office and submitted evidences, the court found valid employer’s notice of termination. Notice of termination was based...

Law office LEADELL Fogels, Vītols & Paipa successfully represented the interest of the client in a court dispute regarding enforcement of mortgage rights. The court accepted the opinion of attorneys of law office that mortgage entered in State Land Service but is not registered in Land Register, has the...

Law office LEADELL Fogels, Vītols & Paipa offers the opportunity for a student of law to improve the knowledge of law in practice. Test yourself and join our team! More information regarding applying for internship see here (in Latvian).

In a case regarding the responsibility of a guarantor in the insolvency proceedings of a principal debtor – individual person, the Department of Civil Cases of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Latvia recognised that also in the event when the procedure for cancelling the obligation of the...

We are glad to announce that Fogels, Vītols & Paipa Law Office with our long-term co-operation partners Aivar Pilv Law Office from Estonia and Balčiūnas & Grajauskas from Lithuania founded new pan-Baltic alliance of law firms LEADELL, that brings together nearly 50 legal advisors, considered among the best in...

We congratulate our colleague Artūrs Rubins with becoming an associate of our law firm! As a probationer Artūrs started working at our law firm in 2013. After a successful internship at FVP, Artūrs was recruited as a legal assistant. Fulfilling the duties of legal assistant, our colleague has demonstrated...

Legal assistants of FVP Ilze Ieva Vilne and Artūrs Rubins have graduated Faculty of Law of University of Latvia. Our colleague Ilze has obtained Bachelors degree, but Artūrs – Master’s degree in law. Congratulations to our colleagues!

FVP Attorney at law Jevgēnija Ziņģe has expressed her opinion on the liability of board members in the event of business insolvency, tax debts and other financial issues – How to Keep Your Business in the Labyrinths of Liability (click here to read the entire article in Latvian) A...

In an article published with this heading in the Dienas Bizness newspaper, FVP Managing Partner Kārlis Vītols discusses the importance of international ratings agencies in the operation of law offices (click here to read the entire article in Latvian). A quote from the article: “(..) Holding a high rank...

Our Legal Assistant Artūrs Rubins has participated in mock litigation at the Willem C. Vis International Commercial Arbitration Moot, representing a team of University of Latvia Faculty of Law students. During the moot proceeding, the University of Latvia team participated in pre-moots in Georgia, Bulgaria, Latvia, Germany and Estonia....

The Legal 500 Europe, Middle East & Africa 2016 edition has once again commended the experience of FVP in banking and financial law, dispute resolution, and corporate mergers and acquisitions. For banking and financial law Legal500 recommends FVP Senior Associate, attorney at law Ilze Jankeviča and Managing Partner, attorney at...

After a successful internship at our firm, Ilze Ieva Vilne has joined FVP as a Legal Assistant. Our new college is in her third year of studies at the University of  Latvia Faculty of Law and believes a career in law to be her calling. Ilze is also fluent...

FVP attorney at law Ilze Jankeviča has expressed her opinion on how the regulatory standards of guarantee institutions are to be interpreted when a principal debtor’s liabilities are discharged through insolvency proceedings. The article was published in the “Jurista Vārds” periodical. You can read the article in Latvian here....

ZAB “Fogels, Vītols un Paipa” Managing Partner Kārlis Vītols has expressed his opinion on 2014/2015 trends in business and the legal industry in the 2015 edition of TOP500. Notable quotes: “(..) The General Data Protection Regulation will see the light of day very soon, and it will be implemented...

From 4 till 9 October, the International Bar Association (IBA) held its annual conference in Vienna, Austria. Our Senior Associate, attorney at law Jevgēnija Ziņģe, was one of the participants. IBA conferences come together annually, gathering attorneys and legal industry experts from around the world. Participation in this important...

FVP has made a tradition of running the Lattelecom Riga Marathon. In 2015, among the 25931 participants, the Fogels, Vītols & Paipa law firm was represented by a team running 5 km, 10 km and 21 km distances. The FVP team ran a total of 78000 metres at the...

The Legal 500 Europe, Middle East & Africa 2015 edition has commended the experience of FVP in banking and financial law, corporate mergers and acquisitions, and dispute resolution. For banking and financial law, Legal500 recommends FVP Senior Associate, attorney at law Ilze Jankeviča and Managing Partner, attorney at law Kārlis...

TAGLaw is one of the few global alliances of independent law firms to have earned Elite status in the 2015 international legal ranking by Chambers Global. For more information, click here. This repeated high rank from Chambers Global in 2015 confirms the professionalism of TAGLaw members in the legal...