Erika Papp

MANAGING PARTNER OF CMS BUDAPEST, HEAD OF FINANCE IN CEE/CIS

BACKGROUND Erika Papp is the managing partner of CMS in Hungary and the head of finance in CEE/CIS. She advises financial institutions and other companies on financial transactions and regulatory projects across the CEE region. She has many years’ experience in advising clients on real estate and project finance as well as corporate lending. She is also well known for her expertise in financial institution regulation, and advises banks and businesses on capital markets, derivatives and investments in Hungary and in CEE. Her clients include many of the largest financial institutions in the region, as well as large corporates with commercial activities in energy, real estate, telecommunications and manufacturing. Papp regularly speaks at international conferences and LMA seminars. She has published numerous articles and has co-authored several finance law publications. She is the founder of a charitable foundation at the Law School of Debrecen. OF WHICH ACHIEVEMENTS ARE YOU MOST PROUD? Well, I am most proud of my son and family. In my professional life, I have been honored (and fortunate) to work together with some of the finest professionals in Hungary and CEE at my workplace. I am also proud that, somehow, I managed to create a balance between my professional and private life, a balance between being a mother of a wonderful son and also being a practicing lawyer, and manager of the largest law firm in Hungary. I’m also proud of the balance we’ve struck between a profit-making business and charitable projects. This balancing act is not easy and sometimes is still a daily juggle, but most of the time I get it right, more or less.

WHAT DREW YOU TO LAW AS A PROFESSION? Actually, I come from a family of lawyers, so it was a quasipre-determined, straightforward path for me to follow. My mother was a judge, my father was a lawyer, my sister is a university professor of law, and even my grandfather was a lawyer, working in-house. We have all chosen our own areas

of law, which fitted our personality and interests best, and that inspired us within the many layers of law. Law provides so many different career options and lifestyles, each for their own personality. You do not even have to be a lawyer: with a law degree you can be a good business person, a manager or a politician. So what drew me to law as a profession is that it gives you a flexible career path, where you can, with relative ease, move into something else if you want to. Also, law is a huge, fascinating, developing, everchanging profession, which inspires you to keep learning all throughout your career. For example, my specialization, banking and finance law, is such a massive area of law, and I

“I come from a family of lawyers, so it was a quasi-pre-determined, straightforward path for me to follow. My mother was a judge, my father was a lawyer, my sister is a university professor of law, and even my grandfather was a lawyer, working in-house.”

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Name of law firm CMS Cameron McKenna Nabarro Olswang LLP Magyarországi Fióktelepe

Name of associate non-Hungarian law firm or cooperation network CMS

Address 1053 Budapest, Károlyi utca 12.

Managing partner Erika Papp

In charge of position since 2018

Year of Hungarian law firm's establishment 1989

No. of attorneys with license to practise in Hungary on Sept. 15, 2020 62

No. of partners of Hungarian law firm on Sept. 15, 2020 11

cannot claim to know all of it. Everyday new laws are passed and they are always connected to recent developments in the world. Global warming leads to green legislation. An economic crisis brings restructuring legislation. It is always current, interesting, and one never stops learning.

HOW DID YOU PICK YOUR LEGAL SPECIALTY AREA? I started my career at Nagy & Trócsányi, where I spent five years practicing corporate law and M&A transactions. Later on, with the support of Péter Nagy, I studied international finance and business law at Fordham University in New York, USA. International finance was the core of my studies. One of the professors was a lecturer in banking regulatory law. He was actually one of those very strict but charismatic professors who made the subject of banking regulatory law fascinating. This is how I realized that I wanted to work as a banking lawyer. After completing my Master’s degree, I searched for an opportunity to work in the banking sector and continue developing my knowledge of banking law. This is how I joined CMS (McKenna & Co) at that time. Back then, the firm had six lawyers in total in Budapest and every one of us worked on banking matters. Years have gone by and now CMS has its own standalone finance practice.

WHAT WOULD YOU CHANGE TO IMPROVE THE LEGAL ENVIRONMENT IN HUNGARY? I do not believe the Hungarian legal environment needs any major changes. Our law society has both outstanding academics as well as excellent domestic and international practicing lawyers who serve clients at a very high standard. Many Hungarian legal professionals and academics are at the forefront of legal developments in digitalization, environment and other areas. These people are highly specialized. Our academics are invited to teach at foreign law schools and our lawyers can make it to the top in-house positions or international law firms. I am proud of so many of my colleagues both at CMS and at other firms who are passionate about law.