‘Sylvia Petkova’ Law Firm has a team of young, ambitious and at the same time experienced specialists, who work in compliance with the principles of trust, loyalty, erudition and individual attention towards each client. We use all legal means to protect the rights and interests of our clients to the fullest extent.
In order to undertake the most effective legal remedies, it is advisable to engage a family law attorney in cases of:
The ‚inheritance law‘ branch reveals serious peculiarities and is subject to special rules, since its subject matter is often movable and immovable property of considerable monetary value. An attorney practicing in the field of succession law can assist in drafting and contesting a will; renouncing an inheritance; dividing an inheritance; recovering an heir’s reserved portion, etc.
Family and inheritance law have not only a legal but also an emotional side. Their rules are laid down in the Family Code and the Inheritance Act.
The family is the main engine of society and the right to private and family life are principles proclaimed and protected by the Constitution of the Republic of Bulgaria and by international law.
The inheritance law consist of legal rules governing the relations of succession, which may arise by operation of law or by will.
‘Sylvia Petkova’ Law Firm has experienced specialists practicing as family law attorneys as well as in the area of the so-called inheritance law. The firm offers the following services:
In the field of inheritance law, the firm offers:
In order to undertake the most effective legal remedies, it is advisable to engage a family law attorney in cases of:
The ‚inheritance law‘ branch reveals serious peculiarities and is subject to special rules, since its subject matter is often movable and immovable property of considerable monetary value. An attorney practicing in the field of succession law can assist in drafting and contesting a will; renouncing an inheritance; dividing an inheritance; recovering an heir’s reserved portion, etc.
Family and inheritance law have not only a legal but also an emotional side. Their rules are laid down in the Family Code and the Inheritance Act.
The family is the main engine of society and the right to private and family life are principles proclaimed and protected by the Constitution of the Republic of Bulgaria and by international law.
The inheritance law consist of legal rules governing the relations of succession, which may arise by operation of law or by will.
‘Sylvia Petkova’ Law Firm has experienced specialists practicing as family law attorneys as well as in the area of the so-called inheritance law. The firm offers the following services:
In the field of inheritance law, the firm offers:
Trade and commerce are the main drivers of business and consumption. They therefore need a strict and comprehensive legal framework. And while the Commercial Law provides such regulation, the need for specialized legal assistance to legal entities and sole traders often arises.
In the field of commercial and corporate law, ‘Sylvia Petkova’ Law Firm offers its clients – legal entities and sole traders a wide range of legal services, including:
The Consumer Protection Act is the main piece of legislation that governs the relationship between individuals and traders in relation to the purchase and sale of consumer goods and the provision of consumer services. It sets out detailed rules regarding the rights of consumers and the obligations of traders.
Among the main rights included in the statutory consumer protection are:
Conversely, consumer protection rules provide for numerous obligations for the traders, including:
Apart from the Consumer Protection Act, as of 01.01.2022 the special Act on the Provision of Digital Content and Services and on the Sale of Goods entered into force. This Act regulates specific cases of consumer protection regarding mainly digital content and digital services. The Act was adopted in order to implement European legislation in the field of consumer protection.
Employment law is a branch of the law which is regulated by the Employment Act and which has two main functions – economic and protective. Through its economic function, employment law ensures the development of production and the supply of services by regulating the relations that arise in connection with the provision of employment. Inseparably linked to this function is its protective function, which ensures the proper application of the principles of freedom of labor and the prohibition of forced labor. It also assures protection of the interests of both employees and employers.
In the field of employment law, “Sylvia Petkova” Law Firm has experienced specialists practicing as an employment lawyer and provides the following legal services:
‘Sylvia Petkova’ Law Firm has a team of young, ambitious and at the same time experienced specialists, who work in compliance with the principles of trust, loyalty, erudition and individual attention towards each client. We use all legal means to protect the rights and interests of our clients to the fullest extent.
We have extensive experience in successful provision of legal assistance and defending the rights and interests of our clients against institutional arbitrariness, including police arbitrariness, most often carried out by conducting unlawful searches, seizures, successive roadside inspections and imposing unwarranted administrative penalties in violation of legal rules.
‘Sylvia Petkova’ Law Firm is a leading law office, which provides specialized and high-quality legal defense against all types of unlawful imprisonment, including unlawful quarantine. We are among the few specialized law firms in the country that provide comprehensive legal services in the protection of human rights before the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg. Our specialists have worked on many landmark cases of serious public interest, including the unlawful detention of peaceful protesters, the unlawful quarantine of foreign arrivals and claims for monetary compensation for such actions.
Our team has consistently successfully defended the interests of debtors in court and enforcement proceedings, as well as employees in landmark cases involving unlawful dismissals, including during the declared state of emergency. We defend our clients in all other areas of law: family and inheritance law, contract law, commercial law, consumer protection and data protection, etc.
When is the issuance of work and residence permit required?
In today’s global and multicultural world, there is a need to provide opportunities for easy movement from one country to another, as well as for permanent employment in a country other than the country of origin. At the same time, the acute labour shortages, especially of unskilled and low-skilled personnel (blue collar workforce), require the adoption and implementation of benign procedures for granting work and residence permits to third-country nationals.
Sylvia Petkova Lawfirm is an international law firm that has the capacity to provide legal assistance in relation to work and residence permits in ten European countries, namely Bulgaria, Romania, Serbia, Greece, Poland, Germany, Italy, Great Britain, the Czech Republic and Portugal.
Our firm operates in close collaboration with licensed HR companies and locally registered law firms from Nepal and Pakistan, through which it provides manpower as required and on demand to employers operating in the manufacturing, agriculture and tourism sectors.
According to official data of the Industrial Capital Association in Bulgaria this year our country will need more than 200 000 workers. Many European countries with economies based on manufacturing, agriculture and tourism face a similar challenge, and many of these countries already have well-established practices of importing unskilled or low-skilled workforce from countries such as Nepal, Pakistan, India, Vietnam, Ukraine and Moldova.
Through our partner companies licensed to carry out recruitment activities, our law firm offers a comprehensive service in finding a suitable workforce in accordance with the employer’s requirements, including the implementation of dexterity tests and other types of tests and examinations, as well as taking the necessary steps to initiate and successfully complete the procedure for the issuance of work and residence permits to employees selected for employment.
When providing legal assistance with regard to the issuance of work and residence permits, ‘Sylvia Petkova’ Lawfirm assumes the responsibility for the entire process, starting with the recruitment, carried out through the firm’s licensed partner HR companies, going through the market test in accordance with the strict requirements of the law and the preparation of all necessary documentation, to the welcoming of the workers who have received work and residence permits and their employment on a work contract, as well as the subsequent management of all legal issues arising concerning the permits.
We have the capacity to provide legal assistance on projects for the simultaneous recruitment of large numbers of third-country nationals or of a single specifically selected worker.
Our lawfirm provides legal assistance for the issuance of work and resodence permits also in Romania, Serbia, Greece, Poland, Germany, Italy, UK, Czech Repuplic and Portugal. Such solution is suitable for employers whose locations are based in multiple European countries.
‘Sylvia Petkova’ Lawfirm provides qualified legal assistance for the issuance of work and residence permits in favour of foreigners – third-country nationals who have received an offer for seasonal or permanent employment from an employer based in Bulgaria, Romania, Serbia, Greece, Poland, Germany, Italy, Great Britain, Czech Republic or Portugal, which does not have a team responsible for initiating such procedures or does not have the necessary experience to do so.
The process of issuance of work and residence permits is regulated mostly by the Labour Migration and Labour Mobility Act,that unfortunatelly still does not sufficiently meet the needs of the labour market when it comes to speed and ease, although in the last few years legislation has provided for significant facilitation.
The procedure for the issuance of residence and work permit goes through the assessment of three state bodies: the Migration Directorate of the Ministry of the Interior Affairs, the Employment Agency and the State Agency for National Security.
In order a work visa for Bulgaria to be issued to a third-country national, several statutory requirements must be met and they are as follows:
the total number of third-country nationals in the preceding 12 months should not exceed 20% of all employees. For small and medium-sized enterprises this number should not exceed 35%;
the employer should not offer unfavourable working conditions for third-country nationals compared to those offered to Bulgarian citizens;
the third-country national should have the knowledge, skills and experience required for the job.
Every third-country national has the right, in accordance with the issued work and residence permit, to work on the territory of the Republic of Bulgaria for up to three years. This term does not apply to seasonal work, for the issuance of which the work and residence permit procedure is considerably simplified.
If both the employer and the employee wish to continue their employment contract after the expiry of this period, the permit may be reissued.
When it comes to the issuance of long term residence permits as well as for family member visas the Foreigners Act is applied.
Copyright and patent law are part of intellectual property law as an institute of civil law. They constitute a system of legal norms governing, regulating and protecting the public relations arising in connection with the creation and use of scientific, literary, artistic and other works, as well as inventions and utility models. In the field of copyright and patent law, ‘Sylvia Petkova” Lawfirm provides:
In all cases of criminal offense charge, it is highly advisable to retain an experienced criminal lawyer in Sofia and across the Republic of Bulgaria.
When it comes to serious crimes, i.e. those punishable by more than five years imprisonment, the involvement of a criminal lawyer in the criminal proceedings is mandatory by law. Serious offenses are, for example, murder, grievous and medium bodily harm, fraud, extortion, robbery, smuggling, participation in and leadership of an organized criminal group, possession and distribution of drugs, etc.
In the case of non-serious offenses, the law does not provide for the mandatory involvement of a criminal lawyer, but such involvement is advisable in order to obtain an acquittal or a lighter sentence. Such offenses include drink driving, drug driving, driving with a suspended license, breach of quarantine, hooliganism, not paying child support, etc.
Criminal law is a system of legal norms that regulate social relations arising from the commission of a crime within the meaning of the Criminal Code. It is the most severe form of state coercion, i.e. punishment, which is used to the most serious extent and affects the rights, freedoms and legitimate interests of citizens who have been found guilty by a final judgment.
The main objectives of the punishment are to reform and re-educate the convicted person to respect for the law and good morals, to act as a deterrent to him or her and to prevent him or her from committing other crimes and to act as an educative and warning influence on other members of society.
In view of the special role of criminal law and procedure in the functioning of the State and of social relations, the law provides that any person accused of a criminal offense or charged with a criminal offense has the right to substantive and procedural defense by a criminal lawyer.
If you are in need of a good criminal lawyer, ‘Sylvia Petkova’ Law Firm offers:
‘Sylvia Petkova’ Law Firm has a team of young, ambitious and at the same time experienced specialists, who work in compliance with the principles of trust, loyalty, erudition and individual attention towards each client. We use all legal means to protect the rights and interests of our clients to the fullest extent.
We have extensive experience in successful provision of legal assistance and defending the rights and interests of our clients against institutional arbitrariness, including police arbitrariness, most often carried out by conducting unlawful searches, seizures, successive roadside inspections and imposing unwarranted administrative penalties in violation of legal rules.
‘Sylvia Petkova’ Law Firm is a leading law office, which provides specialized and high-quality legal defense against all types of unlawful imprisonment, including unlawful quarantine. We are among the few specialized law firms in the country that provide comprehensive legal services in the protection of human rights before the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg. Our specialists have worked on many landmark cases of serious public interest, including the unlawful detention of peaceful protesters, the unlawful quarantine of foreign arrivals and claims for monetary compensation for such actions.
Our team has consistently successfully defended the interests of debtors in court and enforcement proceedings, as well as employees in landmark cases involving unlawful dismissals, including during the declared state of emergency. We defend our clients in all other areas of law: family and inheritance law, contract law, commercial law, consumer protection and data protection, etc.
