Compliance

Faced with the dynamic changes in the business environment, contemporary entrepreneurs must act in advance to minimize the risks that may arise while making most of the business-related decisions. This is mainly due to the increasing number of legal standards which may entail severe sanctions for entrepreneurs, including but not limited to financial penalties, even if the entrepreneur has best intentions and follows the rules of ethical conduct. Our law firm offers solutions that will significantly minimize legal risks and secure the continuity of our Clients’ business. This is possible primarily thanks to training the Client’s employees and managers, developing procedures for responding to changes in legal obligations, as well as drawing up and effectively implementing internal procedures, including emergency procedures in the event of intervention by public authorities.

Audit

It is a control mechanism whose aim is to verify an entrepreneur’s operations at many levels in terms of compliance with the applicable law. What is of particular importance, an internal audit constitutes a highly effective protection measure against external audit by state authorities.

Our compliance services are based on the expert knowledge of our legal team composed of specialists from various fields of law whose interdisciplinary expertise enables to meet all the requirements of contemporary compliance. It also should be noted that each client’s compliance processes are always controlled by a lawyer – a certified compliance oficer, who is responsible for retaining appropriate introductory standards or consistency in post-audit reports.

Our audit services focus primarily on compliance in the following areas:

• Corporate law: e.g. review of agreements and articles of association in terms of compliance with the law and the Client’s needs resulting from the type of business, verification of representation rules, including verification of contracts concluded with members of the management board of companies and regulation of internal and external relations in partnerships;
• Labour law: review of employment contract templates used by the Client and any other documents adopted at the workplace resulting from rights and obligations under the provisions of labour law;
• Personal data protection: verification of the correctness of implementation of personal data protection procedures by the Client and their effective application by all persons cooperating with the Client;
• Civil law: e.g. review of contracts concluded with the Client’s business partners, verification of compliance of the adopted business model with the applicable legal regulations.
• Periodic follow-up audits for the purposes of controlling the compliance unit.

Comprehensive implementation of compliance procedures

A well-trained and comprehensive compliance team comprising professionals and dedicated to professionals will mitigate the risk of violations and minimize their consequences in case of occurrence. Thanks to the customised compliance program, our Clients increase their credibility in the business environment and minimize the risk of attracting the attention of state authorities.

The solution includes, among other things, drafting:

• anti-corruption policy,
• internal code of conduct,
• procedures to combat discrimination and lay down rules for cooperation, including in the event of a conflict of interests,
• procedures for reporting violations by whistleblowers,
• instructions and emergency procedures,
• further procedures whose implementation is necessary due to the specific nature of the industry in which the Client operates.

In addition, we provide comprehensive employee training, assistance in introducing the Chief Compliance Officer function and we represent the Client before state authorities in connection with compliance issues.

Ongoing support for compliance units

We are aware that effective implementation of the compliance policy is only half of the story. It is crucial that the compliance units or the Chief Compliance Officer are up-to-date with the information on planned changes in the law and that they are notified well in advance. Our role is also to provide day-to-day support to persons responsible for compliance, in particular, we offer a dedicated training on any changes in the law that will have an impact on the compliance policy.

Ongoing support may include, among others:

• analysis of planned business decisions in terms of their compliance with the applicable law,
• monitoring the implemented compliance procedures,
• consulting and drawing up legal information for compliance units,
• periodic identification of new risks and updates of the compliance policy,
• follow-up audits of selected areas of activity.

Criminal compliance

In connection with the planned entry into force of the new Act on the liability of collective entities and the Act on counteracting money laundering and financing terrorism, entrepreneurs will be required to implement additional, individually developed procedures in the event of instituting proceedings against the management or the entity itself. To meet the Clients’ expectations, the law firm also provides services in terms of implementing specific procedures, including emergency procedures, in the event of interference by state authorities. Both current and planned regulations include not only financial penalties, the upper limit of which has been significantly increased, but also penalties and preventive measures in the form of a ban on advertising or participating in public procurement tenders and receiving subsidies.