Senior Associate

Vladěna Svobodová

Languages

Czech
English

Social media

Vladěna is a senior associate in the Commercial, Regulatory & Disputes team at CMS Prague. She advises clients on regulatory matters in the life sciences sector, competition law, data protection, public procurement, and foreign direct investment. Vladěna holds a Master’s degree in Czech law and an LL.M. in European Competition Law from the Vrije Universiteit Brussels, and she completed the Data Protection Programme at Maastricht University.

Before joining CMS, Vladěna worked at the European Commission’s DG Competition on cartel investigations and as a legal adviser in Brussels, monitoring the transposition of EU directives into Czech law. She is fluent in English.

Relevant experience

Multinational corporations in relation to merger control procedures involving companies across diverse industries, including media, energy, construction, IT, and industrial manufacturing.
Foreign investors on foreign direct investment (FDI) screening processes, ensuring compliance with national and EU-level regulatory frameworks.
Joint venture partners in relation to competition law aspects of both fully functioning and non-fully functioning joint venture arrangements.
Investment companies on the design and implementation of public procurement procedures, from strategic planning to execution.
Hospitality and gastronomy operators in relation to the application of state aid rules within the sector.
Subsidy recipients and public bodies on procedures concerning state subsidies and changes of control, ensuring regulatory continuity and compliance.
Financial institutions, logistics operators, educational organisations, and healthcare providers in relation to the development of internal data protection and compliance policies.
Pharmaceutical companies on the drafting and negotiation of Data Processing Agreements.
Food and supplement manufacturers in relation to health and nutrition claims, ensuring conformity with EU and national food law requirements.
Manufacturers of medical devices on the implementation of compliance frameworks, covering both regulatory and operational dimensions.
The European Commission (Cartel Unit) in relation to the drafting of Article 101 decisions.

Publications

June 2025 - First Foreign Investment Ban in the Czech Republic, CEE Legal Matters.
Jan 2025 - How To Avoid Becoming a Data Controller, CEE Legal Matters.
Oct 2024 - Greater Certainty in M&A reviews? Court of Justice of the European Union Limits European Commission's Broad Powers, CEE Legal Matters.
Sept 2024 - How Are Other Countries Combatting Cartel Agreements?, CEE Legal Matters.
July - 2024 - Is an Amendment to the Competition Act in the Works?, CEE Legal Matters.
June 2024 - Pay or Enjoy Behavioural Advertising, CEE Legal Matters.
Feb 2024 - Have Medicine Shortages in the Czech Republic Been Resolved? Yes and No., CEE Legal Matters.

Memberships & Roles

Czech Bar Association.

Lectures list

2025 - Speaker - CEE GC Summit.

Education

2023 - Data Protection Officer Programme, Maastricht University, the Netherlands.
2013 - LL.M., Programme on European and International Law,Vrije Universiteit Brussels, Belgium.
2009 - American Law and Dispute Resolution System, John Marshall Law School, USA.
2007 - Mgr., Law and Legal Science, Faculty of Law, Masaryk University, Czech Republic.

Practice Areas

Antitrust, Competition and Trade Foreign investment screening State aid and EU subsidies Public Procurement

sectors

Life Sciences & Healthcare TMT - Technology, Media & Telecommunications

Insights

Global Reach