Deloitte Legal study: Romanian companies expect more insolvency proceedings and disputes related to data and consumer protection

At the same time, the study highlights that there are areas where, although the risk of litigation is moderate at present, the potential for growth in the next three years is significant, such as insolvency proceedings (the difference between those who expect growth in this area and those who estimate a decrease being 47 percentage points), cybersecurity (+32%) or tax (+27%) related disputes. Additionally, about a quarter of the respondents indicated class actions and mass litigation as an area of concern, which places it on the fourth place in the top of risk topics in the vision of companies in Romania.

The use of digital solutions in activities related to litigation is considered beneficial by most companies in Romania, 78% of them already investing in the digitization of this field, and 68% claiming that artificial intelligence and process automation systems through software robots (Robotic Process Automation – RPA) helps to significantly reduce time and costs dealing with litigation cases (vs. 58% at global level). At the same time, the outcomes of disputes are more predictable with the implementation of such solutions (53%, similar to the global average), and blockchain technology provides reliable evidence in disputes (56%, similar to the global average), study participants point out. On the other hand, only 29% of Romanian respondents expect artificial intelligence and RPA systems to replace, even partially, lawyers specializing in litigation (compared to 52% globally).

Regarding the perception of Romanian companies towards the justice system, the study indicates a 6% net increase in trust in local arbitration institutions and, respectively, 3% in international arbitration institutions and in the Court of Justice of the European Union.

According to the study, the main reasons for Romanian companies to resort to external counsels in relation to dispute resolution matters are the access to specialized services, including consulting services related to digital solutions, in the field of taxes and not only, and experts in related fields (44%), lack of internal resources (33%) or limited expertise in the field (25%).

The Deloitte Legal study "New Roads to Dispute Resolution" was conducted among more than 550 tax, finance, and legal executives working for companies around the world. Most respondents are based in Europe, respectively 79%.

Reff & Associates | Deloitte Legal’s tax and non-tax litigation practices, which consist of more than 20 lawyers and benefit from the expertise of professionals in all practice areas within the Deloitte network, including tax and financial advisors, technical and digital solutions experts, cover all types of business disputes, from fiscal, to commercial and administrative litigation.

The multidisciplinary team made of lawyers specialized in tax disputes from Reff & Associates | Deloitte Legal and tax advisors from Deloitte Romania was awarded with the highest distinction for Romania in the Tax Disputes category, at the 2022 edition of the Tax Awards, organized by the prestigious International Tax Review (ITR) publication. At the same time, four team members, respectively Mihnea Galgotiu-Sararu, Partner at Reff & Associates | Deloitte Legal, Vlad Boeriu, Tax and Legal Partner-in-Charge, Dan Badin, Partner, and Ciprian Gavriliu, Partner, Deloitte Romania, are recognized by ITR among the world’s highly regarded practitioners in Tax Controversy in the 2023 World Tax Guide.