Ivona Vidović is an alumna of the CEU Legal Department’s International Business Law program. After graduating from CEU, Ivona joined one of Croatia’s most prestigious law firms – Babić and Partners – where she currently works as a senior associate, practicing mainly in the areas of M&A deals, banking/finance, capital markets, and corporate law. Ivona has advised clients on cross-border M&A deals, corporate restructuring, and refinancing projects in various industries. On top of this, she has provided general assistance for clients to set up and maintain business operations in Croatia.
Ivona says that her time at CEU was both challenging and rewarding, and that it gave her great insights into legal academia and practice in both common and civil law jurisdictions. She enjoyed all of her classes, but found the Comparative Bankruptcy Law, Capital Markets, Comparative Secured Transactions, and Company Law courses to be particularly insightful. Her research interests at CEU included comparative analysis of Croatian and US out-of-court debt restructuring systems, as well as research related to the Entrepreneurial and Innovation Legal Clinic course. This led her to pursue an internship at a boutique law firm in Budapest.
One of the most important takeaways from her CEU studies is that interdisciplinary approaches open many doors. She believes that the study of a “combination of different legal systems, academic and practical approaches, and a combined legal and economic analysis of each problem can go a long way”.
When she was asked if she had any advice for prospective and/or current students, Ivona replied: “Do not hesitate in applying to CEU. Take up everything the great set of permanent and visiting faculty has to offer, profit from different perspectives, and have fruitful discussions with peers from all over the world.”