Event information
The Legal 500 is proud to return to Nicosia with an exciting new edition of the GC Summit: Cyprus, designed exclusively for the country’s in-house legal community. This premier event will bring together leading law firms renowned for their national and international achievements, alongside top in-house counsel, to explore the most pressing and relevant topics shaping the legal landscape in Cyprus today.
The conference will delve into a diverse array of critical topics, including Competition Law from both Cypriot and international perspectives, Employment Law with a focus on the recent Pay Transparency Directive and its implications within the European legal framework, and much more. Through engaging panel discussions and interactive sessions, attendees will gain actionable insights into the evolving legal challenges and opportunities impacting businesses in Cyprus and beyond.
In addition to thought-provoking contributions from our partners, the summit will feature the invaluable perspectives of in-house counsel, ensuring well-rounded and practical discussions tailored to the needs of the corporate legal sector. The day will conclude with ample networking opportunities, creating the perfect environment for building meaningful connections within the legal community.
The Legal 500 extends a warm invitation to the nation’s most respected in-house legal professionals and top practitioners. Together, we will discuss the evolving role of in-house counsel and the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead in 2025 and beyond. For legal professionals seeking both insight and connection, this event is an unmissable opportunity.
Agenda
8.30am – 9.30am Arrival and Registration
9.30am – 9.40am Opening Remarks
9.40am – 10.30am Competition Law in Action: Cyprus and International Perspectives
This panel will provide practical insights into competition law with a primary focus on Cyprus, offering valuable guidance for companies navigating regulatory challenges. The discussion will examine recent mergers and acquisitions within Cyprus, highlighting key transactions that have shaped the competitive landscape and their implications for businesses. Drawing on examples from Greece, the EU, and the UK, the panel will also explore relevant legislative updates, enforcement priorities, and important recent cases to provide context and comparative perspectives. With a focus on actionable strategies, the session will help companies to understand the local application of competition law, anticipate potential risks and adapt to evolving regulatory requirements in key industries.
- Michael Kyriakides, partner, corporate and commercial, Harris Kyriakides
- Angelos Stenimachitis, senior economist, Compass Lexecon
- Eleni Neoptolemou, partner, Harris Kyriakides
- Victoria Mertikopoulou, partner, Kyriakides Georgopoulos
- Hara Nikolopoulou, lawyer and vice-president, Hellenic Competition Commission
10.30am – 11.20am DORA Beyond Compliance: Leveraging Regulation for Competitive Advantage
The Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA) aims to streamline the fragmented regulatory landscape by harmonizing cybersecurity and resilience requirements across the financial sector. By aligning with international security standards, DORA seeks to enhance compliance while fostering a fair and competitive market for firms of all sizes. However, as financial institutions navigate new obligations, the regulation raises a critical question: Does DORA truly create a more resilient and competitive financial ecosystem, or does it add an undue compliance burden? This panel will explore how firms can turn regulatory requirements into strategic advantages, balancing compliance with innovation and growth.
11.20am – 11.35am Coffee Break
11.35am – 12.25pm Panel 3 in association with Hadjianastassiou, Ioannides LLC |member of the Deloitte Legal network
12.25pm – 1.15pm Panel 4
1.15pm – 1.30pm Closing Remarks
1.30pm – 3pm Lunch
Speakers
Michael Kyriakides, partner, corporate and commercial, Harris Kyriakides
Michael Kyriakides leads the Corporate and Commercial practice at Harris Kyriakides. With over 20 years of experience practising law in Cyprus, he specialises in complex corporate and commercial matters, including mergers and acquisitions, corporate restructurings, corporate governance, asset recovery, and competition law. His work includes advocacy in multi-jurisdictional disputes and arbitration and he is an accredited arbitrator of the Cyprus Arbitration and Mediation Centre.
In the field of competition law, he has been involved in some of the most significant cases in Cyprus, including the oil companies cartel cases, the telecommunications abuse of dominance cases (Primetel v CYTA), the Mercedes-Benz case, and the Grain Commission case.
Michael is regularly recognised by leading legal directories, including Legal 500, Chambers & Partners, and Who’s Who Legal, and is consistently ranked as a leading professional across multiple practice areas. He holds an MPhil from Oxford University.
Angelos Stenimachitis, senior economist, Compass Lexecon
Angelos Stenimachitis is a Senior Economist at Compass Lexecon, based in London. Angelos specialises in the application of economic and quantitative techniques to competition and antitrust issues with a focus on merger control and abuse of dominant position matters. He has advised clients in several high-profile competition and antitrust cases before the European Commission, the CMA and the Hellenic Competition Commission, alongside other national competition authorities. Additionally, he has advised in market investigation cases, such as the CMA’s investigation into the energy sector, as well as private litigation in front of national courts. Beyond recent work on digital markets and multi-sided platforms, his industry experience includes telecommunications, retail, manufacturing, aviation, betting, banking, and payment systems.
Eleni Neoptolemou, partner, Harris Kyriakides
Victoria Mertikopoulou, partner, Kyriakides Georgopoulos
Victoria Mertikopoulou, LL.M. (U.C.L.), Ph.D., is an EU and competition law partner at Kyriakides Georgopoulos Law Firm, Athens. From 2012 to 2019, she served as Commissioner and Board Member of the Hellenic Competition Commission and previously as a member of the Directorate General of Competition thereof.
With over 20 years of experience, Victoria represents and advises international and Greek clients in antitrust investigations (cartels, abuse of dominance, vertical restrictions, distribution) and dawn-raids of Competition Authorities and before other Administrative Authorities (including EETT and DIMEA) and Courts, merger control, state aid, regulatory compliance and investigations across various sectors, including pharmaceuticals, medical devices, consumer goods and retail, energy and infrastructure, financial services, electronic communications and digital markets.
A member of the Council of Europe’s Working Group on Judicial Systems, she actively participates in international competition networks, is a member of the Board of Women@Competition Greece and is consistently ranked in all major legal directories.
Hara Nikolopoulou, lawyer and vice-president, Hellenic Competition Commission
Hara Nikolopoulou is a lawyer and Vice President of the Hellenic Competition Commission. She has handled numerous cartels, abuse of dominance and merger cases in a wide range of industries. She has served the HCC since 2011 in various positions of trust, having served as Director, Head of Units in the Legal Services Directorate and responsible for the International Relations of the HCC. Prior to joining the HCC Hara worked as a competition lawyer at the Hellenic Telecommunications and Post Commission, in the competition practice group of law firms in Athens and Brussels and as a trainee at the European Commission. Hara graduated from the School of Law of the University of Athens in 2000 and was admitted to the Athens Bar in 2002. She holds an LL.M in Corporate and Commercial Law from University College London and a Master of Science in Economics (Economic Regulation and Competition) from the Department of Economics of City University in London. She speaks English and French.
In association with...
Hadjianastassiou, Ioannides LLC, established in 2003, is a Legal500 top-tier firm and the sole Cyprus member of the Deloitte Legal network.
Our team of 30+ legal professionals provides a full range of legal services to national and international companies and groups, and practical and pragmatic advice ranging from complex advisory services related to major business events to general legal entity management matters.
Blending business experience and legal excellence, we deliver comprehensive solutions designed to address the evolving needs of the Chief Legal Officer.
Elias Neocleous & Co LLC is an internationally recognised top tier law firm merging law and technology to solve complex legal and business challenges faced by clients operating in key industries worldwide. The firm is a leading choice for Cypriot and foreign banks, multinational corporations, global technology firms, private equity funds, asset managers, credit agencies, and international law firms.
Established in 1976, Harris Kyriakides has grown over the years into one of the largest law firms in Cyprus. The development of the firm has always been founded on principles of integrity, professionalism and adopting standard of excellence, yet at the same time the firm is dynamic and consistently becomes adaptive and responsive to evolving clients’ needs, by introducing technology and modern practices.
The firm maintains over 30 lawyers and over 60 professionals in total. It is structured in separate departments, namely administrative and public law, banking and finance, competition, procurement and regulatory, corporate and commercial advisory, corporate dispute resolution, data protection and cyber law, debt collection, intellectual property, insurance and personal injury, private client (trusts, funds, estate, matrimonial), private client (citizenship and residence), real estate, employment, sanctions, anticorruption and AML, shipping and Admiralty and tax. Each team of lawyers and paralegals specialises on a specific area of law and, where necessary, co-operate in matters which require a multi-discipline focus.