Austria/CEE: Schoenherr to strengthen leadership across Austria and CEE by appointing new equity and contract partners

In total, three new equity partners and two contract partners will join the respective ranks, underlining Schoenherr's strong CEE footprint. The new equity partners consisting of Vladimír Čížek (Czech Republic), Alexandra Doytchinova (Bulgaria) and Miriam Simsa (Austria) are each recognised experts with excellent track records in their specific legal practice areas. Soňa Hekelová (Slovakia) and Dominik Hofmarcher (Austria) are moving up the ranks to become contract partners after consistently achieving exceptional results over the past years. Evelin Hlina, as part of Schoenherr's competition practice, has been promoted to counsel effective 1 October 2021.

With the current round of promotions, Schoenherr is putting a spotlight on its CEE offices and is also placing female leadership in the forefront of the equity partner ranks. 

"Each one of these lawyers has over the years proven to have excellent entrepreneurial and legal skills leading to high local market recognition. It is a pleasure welcoming them in their new positions. I am sure that they will have a significant impact on the future development of our firm", said Michael Lagler, Schoenherr Managing Partner.

Alexander Popp, HR partner in Schoenherr's Steering Committee, believes this newest round of promotions sends a strong signal to the market: "We have followed a clear strategy over the past years with the ultimate goal being to strengthen our firm from within by building upon a new generation of Schoenherr lawyers and lifting next generation talent into our senior ranks. Looking at the skilled individuals who will be promoted in February, I see proof that this strategy is already paying off."  

Equity Partners

Vladimír Čížek (Czech Republic) – As a partner in Schoenherr's Prague office, Vladimir's focus lies in M&A transactions, corporate, banking & finance and capital markets, technology & digitalisation as well as white collar crime & compliance. He advises on top-tier M&A transactions in the Czech Republic/CEE, having particular expertise in financial services regulation, and recently in major local IT start-up transactions, alongside cross-border financing projects. In 2018, he was ranked among the Czech Innovative Lawyers by Economia, a major publisher of economic and specialist press in the Czech Republic.

Alexandra Doytchinova (Bulgaria) – After starting her career with Schoenherr in Austria, Alexandra established Schoenherr’s Sofia office in 2004 and has been leading the firm's Bulgarian operations ever since. Alexandra focusses on corporate M&A, is a highly regarded figure in the Bulgarian market, recognised as a Тier 1 practitioner and has been involved in many headline transactions in the region. Her ability to work to international standards blended with a thorough local understanding of clients' business and strategic, legal and commercial needs, was key to establishing Schoenherr's leading position in Bulgaria.

Miriam Simsa (Austria) - Miriam Simsa is a partner in Schoenherr's Vienna office where she focuses on insolvency & restructuring and banking & finance. She joined the firm in April 2008, starting her career in the M&A department. Since 2011 she has focused on insolvency & restructuring leading up to a secondment at a top international law firm in London in 2013/14. Returning to Schoenherr Miriam was promoted to partner in 2017. From 02/2018–01/2021 Miriam's leadership capabilities were further emphasised while in the role of office managing partner in Croatia. In Austria, Miriam regularly advises national and international financial institutions on all aspects in connection with distressed borrowers, including refinancings and loan sales. She also advises lenders and borrowers on finance and refinance transactions.

Contract Partners

Soňa Hekelová (Slovakia) – As an experienced transaction lawyer, Soňa ranks amongst the leading experts in her areas of practice and is one of the go-to lawyers for complex M&A and finance transactions in Slovakia. She has a particularly strong track record in the energy, automotive and financial sectors. Apart from many years of rich experience, she is known for her strong client-oriented approach and commitment to mandates. Soňa is also the managing partner of the Schoenherr Bratislava office.

Dominik Hofmarcher (Austria) – As a counsel in Schoenherr's Vienna office, Dominik specialises in IP and unfair commercial practices with a focus on copyright, trademarks, B2B competition and trade secrets. He represents national and international clients in court proceedings as well as in contentious and non-contentious matters out of court. Dominik has received excellent rankings from various legal directories over the past years and is known to be a respected author in his legal field. He recently published a book on the transposition of the EU Trade Secrets Directive with the renowned Austrian publishing house MANZ, he regularly comments in law journals, and contributes to Austria's standard legal commentaries.

Counsels

Evelin Hlina (Austria/Belgium) – Working with Schoenherr since 2012 Evelin is specialised in Austrian and European competition law, representing and advising clients in a wide range of industries. Her main areas of practice are merger control, European and Austrian antitrust proceedings, as well as foreign direct investment proceedings. She obtained her law degree from the University of Graz (Mag. iur. 2012) and a postgraduate degree in competition law from the Queen Mary University of London (LL.M., 2016).