MUŞAT & ASOCIAŢII, one of the most powerful law firms in Romania, invoiced fees worth EUR 15,708,569 in 2007, a performance that reconfirms, once more, its leading position in the law market.
“In 2007 we acted as advisors in many of the most important transactions made in Romania, and this is being reflected in the financial results. I would say we were ahead the market growth, also considering that most of our competitors had, in their turn, significant growth compared to the previous year. In this regard, it is remarkable that in 2007 five law firms (Musat, Nestor, Tuca Zbarcea, Linklaters and CMS Cameron McKenna) exceeded each EUR 10 million (VAT free) as turnover, while other 5 law firms (Popovici Nitu, Stoica, Salans, Badea Clifford Chance and Bostina) achieved around EUR 5 – 7.7 million. These results confirm the supremacy of the Romanian law firms, unlike the cases of the other former communist countries, where the law market is dominated by the foreign law firms”, says Gheorghe Musat, Senior Partner and founder of Musat & Asociatii.
According to the tax returns for the legal services provided, Musat & Asociatii invoiced in 2007 the amount of EUR 15,708,569 (respectively EUR 14,344,306, VAT excluded), collecting EUR 12,846,736 (respectively EUR 11,639,922, VAT excluded), thus registering a profit of EUR 7,075,678. Private clients (out of which more than 80% are foreign clients/investors) accounted for 99.97% of total fees, while only 0.3 came from state entities.
“We want to present our financial results in a clear break-down, leaving no room for interpretations”, specifies Catalin Baiculescu, Co-Managing Partner. “So far, as we have seen in the media, the financial results were presented differently by each law firm, in a less than transparent manner: sometimes, the specified incomes were much higher than the real incomes, while others included amounts without a direct connection with the legal activity per se. For a more accurate presentation of our financial results, we have not included in the amounts above, under any form, the income obtained by the other companies of the group: Musat & Asociatii Casa de Insolventa SPRL and Musat & Asociatii Intellectual Property”, or the incomes of the law firms/individual offices we collaborate with in the territory”.
“2008 will be a year of growth (even if it’s an electoral year) for the entire law market as well, stimulated by the anticipated entries in Romania of the large international corporations and investment funds, but also by the consolidation of the most important law firms; it will be the year when a group of 3-4 law firms will stand apart from all the other competitors, positioning themselves decisively at the top of the Romanian business law market”, says Musat.
About MUŞAT & ASOCIAŢII
MUŞAT & ASOCIAŢII is one of the first law firms set up in Romania after January 1st, 1990. With 11 partners, more than 85 attorneys, and further 40 fee-earners, Musat & Asociatii provides consultancy services for all sectors of the business law, including mergers & acquisitions, privatizations, banking, energy & natural resources, competition, company law, telecommunications & IT, labor law, fiscal law, capital markets, real estate law, environmental law, as well as in litigations & commercial arbitrations.
For more than 17 years, MUŞAT & ASOCIAŢII has been recognized as one of the pillars of the Romanian business law and the foreign specialized publications regularly recommend the company as one of the leaders of the domestic law market. Starting this year, the company is directed by a “managing committee” composed of Gheorghe Musat, Senior Partner, company founder, and two Co-Managing Partners: Catalin Baiculescu and Ion Dragne.
The company portfolio includes more than 2,500 clients, large local or international corporations, among which there are: Enel SpA, NOKIA, ABN AMRO Bank, Fortis Bank, Orange, PPF Investments, European Investment Bank, BERD, Eli Lilly, GlaxoSmithKline, ING Real Estate, General Electric, General Motors, Intel Corp, Oracle, AON, AT&T, KBC Bank, Piraeus Bank, Raiffeisen Bank, OTP Bank, Thyssen Krupp, Generali, Immoeast Corporate Finance Consulting, Equest Investment, Petrom, AFI Europe, Electrolux, SBS Broadcasting Corporation, Liebrecht & Wood, Atlas Estates.