GENERAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF POPOVA AND PARTNERS LAW OFFICE FOR PROVISION OF SERVICES
These General Terms and Conditions of Popova and Partners Law Office for provision of services apply to the assignments for provision of consultancy services, general legal and procedural actions, upon their acknowledgement by the clients by signing a legal service agreement or formal agreement verifying the provision and receipt of these General Terms and Conditions by the client.
1. Team Members
1.1. For the purposes of providing legal consultation and services, Popova and Partners Law Office establishes a work team comprising partners and members of the office.
1.2 Popova and Partners Law Office hereby confirms that all members of the work team are under confidentiality obligations by virtue of legally binding instruments and therefore bear liability for confidentiality breaches by any member in accordance with the general legal regulations.
1.3. Popova and Partners Law Office is not entitled to reassign to third parties any legal services or actions assigned by the Client under a project, without the Client’s prior written consent, however the managing partner has the right to engage other attorneys-at-law for the assignment at his/her own discretion, whereas notifying the client to this effect. In case of reassignment of legal services to third parties, Popova and Partners Law Office is still held liable to the Client for the high quality and correctness of reassigned legal services.
1.4. Popova and Partners Law Office assigns any additional non-legal work required for the provision of services to its own employees only (secretaries, assistants and other auxiliary staff) and to specialists whose professional work is necessary for the performance of the assignment, whereas Popova and Partners Law Office is entitled to use its own judgement when choosing or assigning these works. Popova and Partners Law Office assumes confidentiality obligation for any of the persons engaged in the provision of services.
1.5. The work team of Popova and Partners Law Office – the name, position, contact details (including mobile phone and email) of every member of the team established for the provision of services, as well as the team leader who meets the respective fitness requirements, will be notified to the Client in writing.
1.6. The Client may contact a team member at any time within the usual working hours in Bulgaria, i.e. every business day in Bulgaria from 9.00 am to 6.00 pm local time, and in exceptional cases, outside the usual working hours and on official holidays in Bulgaria.
1.7. Whenever necessary, Popova and Partners Law Office reserves its right to change the work team members. Any changes in the work team during the provision of legal and consultancy services should be notified to the Client.
1.8. Popova and Partners Law Office, attorney-at-law Biliana Popova, and the members of the law office have professional liability insurances in force. The aggregate cover of the professional liability insurance and the cover per case will be notified to the Client upon request. All members of the team of Popova and Partners Law Office are subject to the application of the above insurance, and attorney-at-law Biliana Popova and the partner attorneys-at-law – to the insurance for their independent practice. Upon request, the Client could be provided with a copy of the respective insurance policy/ies.
2. Terms and Conditions for Provision of Legal Services
2.1. Popova and Partners Law Office and/or attorney-at-law Biliana Popova, and/or a member of the law office will sign the respective legal service/ assignment/ procedural representation agreement only after verifying the lack of conflicts of interest and such signing means confirmation on behalf of Popova and Partners Law Office that it is not in conflict with the Client and with the assigned legal services and works.
2.2. The scope of work in Popova and Partners Law Office does not comprise any kind of issues that are not expressly addressed and included in the respective legal service agreement or official agreement, as well as any issues, works, services on criminal, preliminary, prosecutor’s office, investigation, police and administrative and criminal proceedings and procedures. Any additional legal work to be performed, which is outside the scope of the assignment expressly provided for in the legal service agreement will be additionally agreed upon and a new agreement or supplementary agreement will be signed, which specifies the subject matter of the assignment and the service price.
2.3. The respective legal service agreement and the supplementary agreements, if any, together with these General Terms and Conditions govern the relations between the Client and Popova and Partners Law Office only with regard to the scope and term of validity of the engagement for provision of legal services and work expressly assigned with the same legal service agreements and official agreements.
2.4. Legal consultations and services are provided only upon client’s explicit instructions and payment of the respective service price.
2.5. Upon receipt of client’s assignment, Popova and Partners Law Office should replay, as far as possible, depending on the nature of the work, within the time period requested by the Client and in accordance with the possibilities for provision of the respective service within the time periods requested by the Client.
2.6. Popova and Partners Law Office provides legal consultations and services in a way and form as requested by the Client, and the communication is in Bulgarian and/or in Italian language, unless otherwise agreed in writing and/or orally.
2.7. Popova and Partners Law Office is responsible for the correctness and reliability of the legal services with regard to the Bulgarian legislation and the practice of state and municipal authorities, Bulgarian state and arbitration courts. Popova and Partners Law Office undertakes to perform the assignment with due care to the advice and services provided.
2.8. The relationships and the correspondence between Popova and Partners Law Office and the Client are confidential. Popova and Partners Law Office is obliged not to disclose to any third parties any kind of information and documents whatsoever about the works assigned by the Client, its subject matter and scope, and about the Client’s objectives that have become known with regard to the provision of services.
2.9. Popova and Partners Law Office acts exclusively in favour of the Client. Popova and Partners Law Office undertakes not to provide any kind of legal services or to disclose any kind of information to other clients – natural persons and legal entities, in relation to the Client’s affairs assigned under the respective agreements.
2.10. Popova and Partners Law Office should provide the Client with and to perform only the works assigned thereby, however being operationally independent in making decisions about the strategies and ways for performance of the assignment and notifying the Client in timely manner about the method of action so chosen.
2.11. The Client is obliged to provide Popova and Partners Law Office with the entire information, documentation and assistance required for the proper and timely provision of services for the purposes of performing the assignment. Upon hiding or concealing any information, documentation and actions performed by the Client with regard to the assignment, Popova and Partners Law Office will not be held liable for the outcome of the assignment, and for the successful completion of the project, respectively.
2.12. Within the frames of the assignment, the Client is obliged to ensure regular and permanent access of Popova and Partners Law Office to any premises, documentation, correspondence and employees/ successors of the Client, as required for the Client service. The Client is obliged to ensure that its employees/ experts who have specific expertise, skills, knowledge and know-how (such as accountants, operation managers, human resource managers, financial directors, etc.) will provide the members of Popova and Partners Law Office team with full assistance and support for the purposes of the proper provision of assigned legal services.
2.13. The official correspondence with courts, authorities and private natural persons and legal entities with regard to the assigned works and services will be received by Popova and Partners Law Office in writing, unless otherwise instructed by the Client. Popova and Partners Law Office will immediately, inform the client, during the same business day, about any correspondence sent or received, and provides it to the Client’s attention upon request. Provided the Client has instructed Popova and Partners Law Office that the official correspondence with courts, authorities, bodies and private natural persons and legal entities with regard to the assigned works and services will be sent and received by the Client or by third parties nominated by the Client, the Client is obliged to immediately notify Popova and Partners Law Office, during the same business day, about the correspondence sent or received and to deliver it to Popova and Partners Law Office.
3. Fees and Expenses
3.1. The fees of Popova and Partners Law Office with regard to the Client’s assignments should be paid by means of bank transfer, in accordance with the terms and conditions of the legal service agreement, or upon issue of invoice/ proforma invoice. Fees do not comprise any state, municipal, notarial, judicial and other charges and costs, as well as arbitration fees, tax- and VAT-related expenses, which are covered by the Client in addition to the charged fee. The Client hereby confirms that the fees charged by Popova and Partners Law Office will be paid with funds origination from business and/or employment of the client and will not comprise any funds being classified as illegal funds and income. Invoices or payment requests, including proforma invoices issued by Popova and Partners Law Office, unless disputed by the Client within five business days after their delivery to the Client, should be considered proof for acceptance of provided services/ assignment at the expense of the Client.
3.2. If fixed remuneration has been agreed, the fee is payable in accordance with the terms and conditions of the respective legal service or procedural representation agreement with the Client, irrespective of the number of hours and team members required for the provision of legal services and for completion of the works assigned to Popova and Partners Law Office.
3.3. For the purposes of determining the remuneration for an assignment (procedural representation and/or specific service/ assignment/ project), Popova and Partners Law Office uses the legal service tariff adopted by Popova and Partners Law Office, taking into account the fact that remunerations could not be less than the established minimum amount of attorney fees as set out in Ordinance № 1 of 9 July 2004 on the minimum amounts of attorney fees issued by the Supreme Bar Council. The payment terms and conditions are arranged with the client in the legal service and/or procedural representation agreement.
3.4. Upon determining the remuneration for provision of monthly subscription legal service, Popova and Partners Law Office takes into account the working hours requested by the client for the provision of monthly legal service as well the nature of the work and the professional scope of business of the Client in accordance with the legal service tariff adopted and established by Popova and Partners Law Office.
3.5. The funds required for performance of the assignment (such as telephone bills, travel expenses for trips outside Sofia, consumables, translation costs, external expert and consultant fees, etc.) are not included in the fee and are due and payable by the Client to Popova and Partners Law Office within three days as from the date of notifying the client for the incurrence thereof. Popova and Partners Law Office cannot be held liable in case the Client fails or becomes in arrears to provide the required funds covering the expenses related to the provision of the main legal services and to the performance of the assignment. Immediately after being incurred, a bill/ report/ proforma invoice should be issued to the Client stating the respective costs in details, and the Client is obliged to make the specific payment within the time period as set out in the document. In the event of incurrence of additional expenses exceeding BGN 1.000,00 (one thousand Bulgarian levs), Popova and Partners Law Office should obtain the prior written consent of the Client for their incurrence, respectively for the performance of the assignment by the specific external specialist (translator, accountant, financier, etc.).
3.6. Any fees or refunds/ provision of funds for the performance of legal services and assignments will be payable to Popova and Partners Law Office in the agreed currency or its equivalent in Bulgarian levs at the official exchange rate in accordance with the applicable legislation. All payments will be considered made at the time the respective funds are available in the bank accounts of Popova and Partners Law Office or at the time of their actual receipt in cash.
4. General Provisions
4.1. By signing the respective legal service/ assignment/ procedural representation agreement and acknowledging these General Terms and Conditions of Popova and Partners Law Office, the Client agrees that legal and contractual relations between the Client and the law office/ the attorney-at-law have been established with view of the respective assignment, and they will be governed in accordance with the provisions of the applicable Bulgarian legislation, and in particular, the provisions of the Bar Act and its implementing regulations.
4.2. Any disputes in relation to the conclusion, interpretation, enforcement and performance of the contractual obligations as set out in the legal service agreement or the official agreement will be settled by means of negotiations between the parties. Upon failure to reach agreement, the dispute will be referred for settlement to the competent institutions.