As a Partner at Tuca Zbârcea & Asociatii, Robert Rosu co-heads the firm`s litigation and domestic arbitration practice group, the largest department within the firm. He is also responsible for the implementation of a business-oriented approach aimed at assessing the best course of action to be taken in dealing with litigation matters to the advantage of our clients.
His practice covers a broad range of litigation matters in the following areas: commercial litigation, usually involving company law and shareholder disputes, administrative, competition, employment, intellectual property, taxation as well as enforcement procedures and criminal litigation.
In addition, he is a resourceful litigator who has briefed and argued a number of complex and high-profile cases at the International Court of Arbitration, having acted on behalf of the Romanian government and various foreign investors. Further to his practice in litigation and arbitration, he has been involved in several important state-owned enterprise privatizations as well as acquisition transactions in the private and public sectors.
Tuca Zbârcea & Asociatii is home to ‘a robust team of dispute resolution attorneys’ which is regularly instructed in a number of the most high-profile, complex cases in Romania. The group predominantly acts for private sector clients, however the department is equally strong in assisting public authorities and government officials with disputes. Senior partner Robert Rosu has an established reputation in the dispute resolution arena. Cornel Popa brings more than 26 years of experience in handling commercial and investment arbitration and mediation, and Ionut Serban specialises in sports law arbitration. Ioana Hrisafi and Christina Vladescu are also key senior contacts. Managing associate Mihaela Maxim is a name to note.
Legal 500 Editorial commentary
Testimonials
Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.
‘Our company has been working with Tuca Zbarcea and Asociatii for at least 13 years, primarily in litigation and arbitration cases. The firm has a robust team of dispute resolution attorneys, probably the largest team in Romania. They acted for us on several cases arising from multiple areas of law: fiscal, insolvency, labour etc as well as on different arbitration cases. I would describe them as being professional, committed, excellent strategists with both written and oral skills, focused on obtaining the desired outcome and willingness to constantly improve and develop.’
‘For arbitration, I highly recommend Cornel Popa. Cornel is very experienced, he really sees the bigger picture and acts accordingly. His advice is thorough, efficient and well documented. He exhibits excellent arbitration management skills and great practical judgement.'
'I recommend Ionut Serban and Catalina Mihailescu for litigation. Ionut Serban is a knowledgeable litigator, outstanding at defending our interests. He is an accomplished attorney with a refined approach to client representation. He is a confident presence in court, professional and courteous. Catalina Mihailescu is an efficient, accessible and highly involved lawyer, she is one of the firm’s main partners dealing with insolvency cases. Her analyses are very precise and constructive, she has deep knowledge of the insolvency law and also a high level of commercial insight.’
‘This is a highly regarded team, they are well known in the market for their expertise and the superior results they obtain for their clients. We worked with this team in connection with multiple cases, from forced execution cases, to commercial litigation and even arbitration files. They also assisted us in several public procurement cases. Lawyers are very level-headed. solution-oriented and very responsive.’
‘Robert Rosu is a gifted dispute resolution lawyer who performs outstandingly in court.'
'Ioana Hrisafi stands out as a 100% committed litigation lawyer whose prior expertise as a judge really makes a difference when it comes to presenting the best possible arguments in the courtroom. She is persuasive and to the point.'
‘From our direct experience, the dispute resolution practice stands out in the wide variety of legal services that Tuca Zbarcea & Asociatii has provided to our company over the years. An excellent, but still affordable value-added service would sum it up.’
‘Oana Gavril is an exceptional professional, committed to providing a high-quality service, intuitive and pleasant to work with.’
Key clients
- Amethyst Radiotherapy Limited
- Amromco Energy
- Bekaert Slatina SRL
- BMC Truck & Bus
- BRD Groupe Société Générale
- Carrefour Romania
- CRRC Qingdao Sifang Co., Ltd
- DAF Trucks NV
- Eco Anvelope S.A.
- Electroputere VFU Pașcani SA
- Energy Financing Team Switzerland AG (“EFT”)
- Euroins
- Faist Mekatronic
- Faist Metalworking
- Gabriel Resources LTD (Canada) and Gabriel Resources (Jersey) Ltd
- Generali Romania Asigurare-Reasigurare SA
- Michelin Romania
- Pharmafarm SA
- Retim Ecologic Service
- Romanian Commodities Exchange (Bursa Romana de Marfuri)
- Romanian Tennis Federation (RTF)
- Romairport SRL (Italy)
- The Art Museum of Constanta
- Tiriac Group
- Vodafone Romania
- Webuild S.p.A.WTE Wassertechnik GmbH
- Zoppas Industries Romania
Work highlights
- Acting for Webuild in various disputes.
- Representing the Romanian Commodities Exchange before the European Court of Justice in challenging a State monopoly on the national licensing of for-trade energy platforms.
- Acting for BMC Truck & Bus in public procurement litigation.
Lawyers
Hall of Fame
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Leading associates
Rising stars with regular involvement in their team's key work, and recognition from peers or clients as being ones to watch.
Leading partners
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Cornel Popa is a Partner at Tuca Zbârcea & Asociatii. Cornel combines top technical skills with commercial acumen to deal with complex and diverse matters. His multi-disciplinary approach covers large domestic and international joint-ventures, mergers, acquisitions and privatization projects, as well as dispute resolution. Cornel Popa has represented buyers and sellers from a broad range of industries and various Romanian governmental authorities in relation to multi-faceted, sophisticated matters. He is acknowledged as one of the most experienced dispute resolution lawyers in Romania, having dealt with civil litigation, mediation, domestic and international arbitration and participated in many hearings before ICSID, ICC and the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague. He also acts for clients active in the oil and gas industry, covering upstream and downstream matters (i.e. exploration, infrastructure and pipeline development and services contracts, related M&A issues etc).
Next Generation Partners
Junior partners with significant recognition from clients and peers in the market and key roles on multiple matters.
Ionut Serban is a Partner in the litigation and arbitration practice group at Tuca Zbârcea & Asociatii. As a pleading lawyer, he has appeared before Romanian courts at all levels, domestic and international courts of arbitration in complex civil law, corporate and commercial, contentious-administrative, labour and fiscal disputes, complex bankruptcy and reorganization proceedings, forced execution and debt recovery measures, as well criminal law cases and various arbitral proceedings.Ionut Serban has a strong track record in representing local and multinational companies, credit institutions, non-banking financial institutions, governmental institutions and bodies of the local and central public administration system, as well as renowned public figures.
Christina Vladescu is a Partner in the litigation and arbitration practice group at Tuca Zbârcea & Asociatii. As a former judge, she has built up a recognized business litigation practice by effectively combining a thorough understanding of the local judicial system with impressive advocacy skills gained as a trusted legal adviser and pleading lawyer. Such an in-depth knowledge has been pivotal in her achieving favourable results for the firm’s clients before Romanian courts at all levels, including the High Court of Cassation and Justice and the Constitutional Court of Romania. Christina Vladescu has argued and briefed numerous complex civil and commercial cases, especially in matters concerning ownership and other real rights (restitution claims for nationalized properties and expropriation, disputes on real estate transactions), civil and commercial agreements, enforcement, various contractual and tort liability cases, corporate law litigation (shareholder disputes, withdrawals and buy-outs from the company, annulment of GMS resolutions) as well as unfair competition and insolvency matters. Christina Vladescu also has a strong track record of success in handling disputes from a mixture of legal areas such as administrative-contentious (fiscal and customs matters, disputes involving public procurement and concessions), family and labour law. In addition, she has an important practice in managing arbitration cases.
Practice head
The lawyer(s) leading their teams.
Robert Rosu, Ioana Hrisafi, Cornel Popa, Levana Zigmund, Ionut Serban, Christina Vladescu, Dan Cristea, Oana Gavril, Catalina Mihailescu, Alina Ungureanu, Anca Puscasu