Unfavorable Austrian judgment for Ajdovska Bia Separations
The key contracts between the Austrian company Bia Separations and the Slovenian Sartorius Bia Separations company, on the basis of which the latter claimed the ownership of intellectual property rights and the exclusive right to distribution, were legally void, according to the court, according to the court, the bankruptcy administrator of Austrian society said. They were based on counterfeit documents.
The court found that the Slovenian company Sartorius Bia Separations claimed ownership of the intellectual property of the Austrian company and demanded exclusive rights to distribute on the basis of contractual relations that never existed in a legal way. The key cooperation agreement and several annexes to formalize these rights were void. In addition, the court ruled that the Slovenian company had unduly received two financial transfers in a total amount of € 1.2 million, the bankruptcy administrator of the Austrian company reported by press release Michael Wagner.
The court accuses Bie Saparations Director Aleš Štrancar for falsifying documents. Photo: Katja Žela
The verdict states that in 2012, the auditors pointed to the discrepancies regarding patent ownership. They are the director of the buckwheat company at the time Aleš Štrancar, who has also been the owner of the Info360 media in recent years, and a former procurator Matej Penca tried to cover up irregularities by changing the content of the contract of transfer of intellectual property rights – maintaining the original date to give the impression that the contract existed from the beginning. According to the court, the management was aware that it was a fake that wanted to retroactively deprive the Austrian society ownership of intellectual property and thus weaken it financially. The court also found out the planned creation and antidated contracts without the knowledge of the shareholders, which means a gross violation of legal certainty and business customs – both in Austrian and Slovenian law. These contracts have been concluded or subsequently amended without the labels of changes, by false displaying legal continuity and concluded past bodies that should approve it. Such conduct was referred to by the court as unfair and illegal, so the cooperation agreement, its annexes and the adapted contract transfer contract were declared invalid and void – due to secret and harmonized behavior involved, abuse of powers and harmful operations with its own company, the bankruptcy administrator said.
The court recognized the actual background and confirmed responsibility for acts that had concrete consequences for value and property relationships.
“This is an important victory. The judgment clearly confirms that the legal basis for the ownership of intellectual property, which was claimed by the Slovenian company Sartorius Bia Separations, has never existed, « said bankruptcy administrator Wagner. “From the very beginning, we have sought to clarify the facts and protect the long -term interests of all involved. This judgment means a clear dividing line between business practices based on trust and legality, as well as those who seek to create the appearance of legal justification through subsequent interventions. We are pleased that the court recognized the actual background and confirmed the responsibility for actions that had concrete consequences for value and property relationships. «
The partial judgment is not yet final, and the court will decide in the next phase of the proceedings on the financial consequences of these acts. This raises the question of what a possible final judgment would mean for the future of the buckwheat company.
Long -term dispute
The dispute between Slovenian and Austrian societies has been ongoing for years. BIA Separations GmbH, which was also the largest owner and creditor of the Slovenian company, unsuccessfully tried to reach the bankruptcy of the Idaho company, which, after the 2018 compulsory settlement, received new owners with the recapitalization and conversion of capital claims. Finally, in one of the larger transactions in our country in 2020, they sold the company to a German company Sartorius for € 360 million.
This, as said, did not create a litigation battle with former Austrian owners. Among other things, the Nova Gorica District Court rejected a lawsuit last fall for payment of € 83 million filed by the Austrian company. The court dismissed the lawsuit as unfounded.
Business with a loss
While Sartorius Bia Separation has noticeably increased revenues to nearly 60 million euros during the pandemic, they have returned to the pre -partemic level in the last three years. Last year, they generated EUR 23.6 million in revenue, with almost ten million euros in net loss. In the annual report for 2023 – it has not yet been made public – they wrote that in 2024, due to wide economic instability, they feel reducing orders, and the demand for products and services for the development of oncological and genetic drugs is increased.
