Our Founding Partner Bogdan Gecić and Partner | Head of Corporate/M&A Ognjen Colić spoke with the Managing Editor of the preeminent regional legal publication CEE Legal Matters which invited Gecić Law as a leading regional law firm to take part in its featured interview published in the December edition dedicated to the Western Balkans. They talked about the importance of ESG in the region, the firm’s new practice area and its unique approach to advising clients in the field.
Gecić Law recently became the first independent law firm in the region to expand into the area of Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG) and launched an advisory practice that will focus on the needs of businesses in this increasingly important sphere.
Bogdan explained that the transition to a stand-alone ESG practice was a good fit for the firm’s experience and core competencies in EU law, trade policy, finance, environment, and labor. Speaking of the importance of ESG for businesses in the region, Bogdan said: “The truth is that businesses can no longer afford to remain oblivious to ESG standards. Stakeholders are no longer willing to accept corporate behavior which does not adhere to standards in these areas. This impacts enterprises in the Western Balkans even more than they realize. For companies that are not mindful of these areas, it will become increasingly more difficult to borrow money from creditors, attract investors, sell goods to customers, be competitive in exports, and attract the best employees, as they are all becoming more and more interested in their ESG standing and are acting on it. Therefore, this will undoubtedly affect their success in the market and their financial results.”
Ognjen spoke about the distinctive approach Gecić Law is taking in this area: „For a long time now, we have been addressing the various aspects of ESG partially, while understanding that the issues are so interconnected that fixing one area at a time does not solve the entire problem. Indeed, businesses often emphasize the importance of, for example, carbon neutrality, and neglect other important areas, especially corporate governance. We believe that the most beneficial way is to holistically approach the issue, treating all sides of the matter. By launching our ESG practice, we aim to address the totality of our clients’ needs in this increasingly important area. This is where we see the emerging opportunity and our competitive advantage.”
To read the full interview, please follow the link below:
