DLA targets Central and Eastern Europe with Austrian merger

DLA is taking a massive step into Central and Eastern Europe by way of an imminent merger with Austrian firm Weiss-Tessbach.
As of 1 October, Weiss-Tessbach, which has seven offices throughout Austria and Central and Eastern Europe, will be fully integrated into the DLA partnership.
The move will give DLA an extensive foothold in the region, with offices in Bratislava, Budapest, Prague, Sarajevo, Salzburg, Vienna and Zagreb.
“Over 50 per cent of our practice is based outside Austria,” said Weiss-Tessbach’s Dr Stefan Eder, who will be the managing partner in the region. The firm’s presence in Central and Eastern Europe is likely to generate a significant amount of foreign investment, restructuring and privatisation work, with 10 countries in the region currently working on accession to the EU.
DLA partners voted the deal through on Tuesday, with Weiss-Tessbach partners agreeing the deal a couple of weeks ago.
The Austrian firm will fit into DLA’s partnership structure, with five of the Weiss-Tessbach partners joining the equity.
The Weiss-Tessbach offices will continue to be managed by the firm’s current management committee, which is made up of Eder and fellow partners Monica Horvath and Ivo Deskovich.
Weiss-Tessbach is an 80-lawyer, full-service firm. It has handled a number of large Eastern European cross-border transactions, including Croatia’s largest privatisation, when it represented Deutsche Telekom.