Tatiana Prokopová

Regulatory/Dispute Resolution

• Secured a full victory for the Slovak Republic in an almost €130 million ICSID arbitration initiated by Discovery Global LLC, a US exploration company, arising under the US-Slovakia BIT in connection with an alleged expropriation Claimant’s investment in oil and gas exploration in Slovakia. (ICSID Case No. ARB/21/51)
• Defended the Slovak Republic in an almost €170 million UNCITRAL arbitration arising under the Poland-Slovakia BIT in connection with an alleged indirect expropriation of a company producing mineral water. In 2020, the Tribunal rejected all of the investor’s claims for damages. (PCA Case No. 2017-08)
• Defended the Slovak Republic in an ICSID arbitration arising under the US-Slovakia BIT and Canada-Slovakia BIT in connection with an alleged expropriation of a talc mine in the Slovak Republic. In 2017, all of the investors’ claims were rejected for lack of jurisdiction. (ICSID Case No. ARB/14/14)
• Successfully represented FRUCONA Košice, a.s., a Slovak beverage manufacturer, in a landmark state aid case before the European Court of Justice. The judgment clarifies the key concept of state aid – that of the so-called private investor test – and the Commission’s obligations during its investigation.
• Representing the Slovak Republic in preparation of a statement of intervenient in the proceedings No. T-216/15 Dôvera zdravotná poisťovňa, a. s. v. the European Commission regarding the annulment of the Commission Decision (EU) 2015/248 of 15 October 2014 (Dôvera zdravotná poisťovňa, a. s. v. the European Commission). This case is related to a claim of health insurance company Dôvera regarding alleged unlawful state aid provided to state-owned health insurance companies.
• Advising a Slovak investment company in connection with its representation in an appellate proceeding before the Court of Justice of the European Union regarding a €19.6 million penalty for breach of competition rules (a cartel of calcium carbide and magnesium for the steel and gas industry) by its former subsidiary, and representing the client before the European Commission regarding enforcement of the imposed penalty.
• Represented the Slovak Republic in a UNCITRAL investment arbitration against Achmea B.V., a Dutch shareholder in a Slovak private health insurance company. The arbitral tribunal dismissed all claims at the jurisdictional stage and awarded the Slovak Republic most of its legal costs (PCA Case No. 2013-12)
• Worked on a legal assessment of a possibility to initiate an ICC arbitration by a shopping mall developer with respect to enforcement of liability for defects of construction work in a prime location shopping mall.

Slovak Litigation

• Representing one of the world's largest retailers in a complex real property title litigation relating to property under existing buildings and adjacent land. The representation involves a historical claim of legal title to land originally seized to historical owners by the Slovak state.
• Representing a Slovak municipality in a proceeding before Slovak court on cancellation of an arbitral award issued by a Slovak arbitral court.
• Representing a Slovak municipality in a proceeding before Slovak court on return of unjust enrichment.
• Representing a Slovak municipality in two proceedings before Slovak courts on payment of a contractual penalty.
• Representing a Slovak municipality in a proceeding before the Supreme Court of the Slovak Republic on special appeal relating to determination of ownership rights to land plots that are of significant importance to the municipality.

Real Estate

• Advising a global industrial leader in engineered bearings and power transmission products on the acquisition of a European technology leader and manufacturer of highly engineered cycloidal reduction gears and actuators, including the real estate due diligence and acquisition of two production facilities, including one newly developed state-of-the-art plant in the Slovak Republic.
• Representing a British designer and manufacturer of exhaust systems in the negotiation of a Build-to-Lease Agreement of a production facility in Svit, Eastern Slovakia. The production plant is located in the existing industrial park of a well-known chemicals producer, which, as future landlord, will arrange for new design and all required permits, including environmental assessment, and procure the construction of the plant according to the client’s specifications and the client will install the production technology.
• Advising a Greek food manufacturing company operating in multiple countries around the world in connection with the property acquisition and construction of a new manufacturing plant to employ more than 600 people. This included advising the client, as the purchaser, in property due diligence, the purchase of land for the construction of the plant, construction permitting, and energy, archaeological and other related matters. This transaction demonstrates how combined expertise (the ability to link transaction advisory expertise with excellent real estate knowledge) brings significant advantage to the client and helps effectively manage the transaction while maintaining the high dynamics of the process. The total realization costs are estimated at €63 million.
• Advising the US Embassy in the Slovak Republic in the acquisition of prime location lands and buildings owned by several entities, both from private and public sectors, for construction of the new US Embassy compound, including niche expertise on the specifics of public international law and diplomacy. The process of land acquisition is governed by multiple legal regulations depending on the status of the particular selling public institution. The acquisition includes a detailed historical legal due diligence of title.
• Representing the US Embassy in the Slovak Republic in a publicly known matter of ex-post legalization of a fence that is part of the Embassy’s security perimeter in the prime square in Bratislava, the capital city of the Slovak Republic.
• Advising a local subsidiary of a Finnish residential and apartment developer in property acquisition of lands and buildings. By acquiring additional land, the developer expanded its successful residential project in Bratislava. The whole project will offer hundreds of new flats to the booming residential market in Bratislava.
• Assisting an international insurance company in connection with property insurance in the sale of warehouse and industrial parks in the Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic with a total value of more than €100 million. We provided the client with legal support regarding corporate matters related to the individual transferred parks.
• Advising a British insurance company on title due diligence and title insurance matters relating to an acquisition by a major US real estate investor of two prime real estate projects – an office building and a greenfield site covering approximately 500,000 square meters for future multipurpose development. This was part of the acquisition of a few CEE projects with a total CEE transaction volume estimated by the press at €8 billion.
• Advising a US multinational conglomerate on the sell-off of the Czech and Slovak assets of the client's real estate division to one of the world's leading investment firms. The transaction was part of a global deal whereby the client agreed to divest most of its assets (the entire real estate division) to the investment company and a financial services company for more than US$26 billion. The Czech and Slovak transaction comprised the sale of five real estate assets that were divided into two separate share deals, as well as intragroup financing repayment and assignment.
• Advising a US multinational conglomerate in connection with revitalization of its shopping malls in the Slovak Republic, including review of compliance of the contractual documentation (contract for work, project management agreement) with Slovak law.
• Representing the Slovak branch of an international investment and development group in connection with a high-quality residential project located in Bratislava, including obtaining planning and building permits, preparing contracts on transfer of legal title to apartments and land designated for the construction of family dwellings, as well as complex legal advisory services regarding all corporate, construction, design, permitting, facility management and project financing matters of the client.
• Representing a leading Czech real estate investor in various projects, including:
  • Prague 6 – a luxury residential development of family houses (13 villas and 16 semi-detached houses) in a villa district in Prague
  • Prague 13 – one of the largest developments of residential housing (650 apartment units) in Prague
  • Acquisition of one of the largest shopping office centers in the Czech Republic and in further development and follow-up sale (acquisition, permitting, construction, leasing and sale)
• Representing a joint venture of the Czech railway company, a road infrastructure developer and the leading Czech real estate investor in the revitalization and development of a train station in the center of Prague, which is scheduled to include more than 120,000 square meters of retail and office space.