Solutions, Not Stuffy Manners

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What were the most important periods in the development of your firm? 
I see two stages in my firm’s development. For the first 10 years we operated quite spontaneously, in the rhythm of the economy. Leszek Koziorowski joining the firm (five years ago) caused us to take a more pragmatic approach. We devised a strategy according to which we are developing to this day. Apart from mergers and acquisitions, the pillars of our Operations are venture capital and private equity, securities law, the German desk and intellectual property rights. Complementary teams develop around these core practices, dealing with taxes, competition Protection, court disputes and real estate (…)

Could you tell us the story of the tiger? 
The tiger on our website is from the first picture I ever bought. It hung in my office at first, and now it is right next to the entrance to our reception. The artist is Ryszard Grzyb. The tiger has become a kind of symbol of our law firm. I want to say, though, that our tiger is not predatory. It doesn’t have to be it knows what it wants and how to achieve it.

What do you see as the firm’s future? Do you have an overriding vision, or do you flow with the cur-rents of economic life, reacting to whatever the market situation brings? 
Of course, like any company we have a strategy of operation. However, we don’t hang on to it at all costs we react quickly to changes. This is made easier by the firm’s independence and its small group of partners there are just six of us. We don’t have to hold a teleconference to decide anything. At the end of every year we draw up our plan for the next year. This time, because of the firm’s 15th anniversary, the plans will also cover the next five years.

Are you afraid of the impact of the U.S. crisis on the Polish market? 
Watching the American crisis not so much terrifies as fascinates me. Toppling giants lay bare the structure of economic mechanisms, the links among sectors and countries. I think that the Polish economy will feel the impact of the U.S. crisis, but not as strongly as Western European countries. Our banks, for example, are subject to stricter controls than American banks. This means they were unable to invest too much in risky instruments. The effects of the crisis could be neutralized in Poland by the ongoing intake of European Union funds and the introduction of the euro. I don’t see any great danger for our law firm. The list of stock exchange debuts is getting a little shorter, but on the other hand we expect new private equity transactions. The amount of work should balance out. I don’t think next year will be worse for us than this year.