An in-depth look at Roger Gladei of Gladei & Partners covering his career path, education, and top projects as a lawyer as well as a few insights about his as a manager at work and as a person outside the office.
Career:
- Gladei & Partners, Managing Partner, 2008-present
- Turcan Cazac, Partner, 2006-2007
- Victoriabank, Counsel, Vice-President, 1995-2006
- National Police Academy, Assistant Professor, 1994-1995
Education:
- Grenoble Graduate School of Business, MBA, 2006
- Moldovan Academy of Economic Science, LLB in Finance, 2005
- Moldovan State University, LLB in Law, 1999
- Moldovan State University, LLB in History, 1994
Favorites:
Our of Office Acivity: Travel, yoga, neuroscience
Quote: “Earn with integrity, spend with compassion” – Radhanath Swami
Book: Inner Engineering by Sadhguru (Jaggi Vasudev)
Movie: Da Vinci’s Demons
Top 5 Projects:
- Assisting Vetropack in the acquisition of the largest Moldovan glasswork, Glass Container: a multi-jurisdictional project involving corporate restructuring and ensuring technology spillover;
- Assisting the EBRD-led consortium in their acquisition of Moldova’s largest bank, MAIB: a unique project based on special law and back-to-back state sale-purchase;
- Assisting MAIB in its share IPO: the first-ever Moldovan company IPO on a foreign stock exchange;
- Assisting the EBRD in its legal and business support to SMEs: a multi-jurisdictional (Ukraine, Georgia, and Moldova) project helping SMEs to survive during the pandemic;
- Advising the Word Bank on the local insolvency regime reform: modernizing Moldovan insolvency laws and ensuring the survival of sound but distressed businesses.
What would you say was the most challenging project you ever worked on and why?
Gladei: I guess it’s the pending lawsuit between the Moldovan independent Pre-vetting Commission and the judges who did not pass the ethical and financial integrity evaluation. Thus far, in less than three months in 2023, we’ve been representing the Commission in more than 20 cases, participating in more than 100 court hearings before the Supreme Court of Justice, sometimes even three or four hearings a day. That’s a pretty different experience: to litigate with judges in front of the other judges.
And what was your main takeaway from it?
Gladei: This collection of cases is existential for Moldovan judiciary reform. Not that the failing candidates are corrupt or otherwise unworthy – it’s rather a lesson to learn, where each and every judge aspiring to the highest auto-administration body ought to realize that the highest standards of integrity imply not only a zero tolerance to wrongdoings, but also an exemplary financial discipline and day-to-day conduct. Not an easy task, having in mind the post-Soviet legacy of double standards and ‘parallel words.’
What is one thing clients likely don’t know about you?
Gladei: That in high school I was the shiest pupil, blushing with no occasion, and that in university I was always the one to speak last (after all classmates had already been graded).
Name one mentor who played a big role in your career and how they impacted you.
Gladei: My father was and will remain (even after he passed away) my first and greatest mentor. Wise while humble, he was a true self-made man, who played what he prayed, remaining vertical in Communist times – not an easy task for an intellectual. Even when having become an accomplished man, he’d never forgotten his roots: I guess he’d always been keeping the inner spark of a free peasant (razes) alive.
Name one mentee you are particularly proud of.
Gladei: My current Partner, Iulian Pasatii. Stepping in years ago as a Junior Associate, Iulian’s had a brilliant career. I guess his recipe is to always put heart and soul into what he’s doing. Open-minded and creative, he’s trusted by the clients and well-respected by his peers. I am as proud of him as I am proud of my kids.
What is the one piece of advice you’d give yourself fresh out of law school?
Gladei: Gain, then give. Your mission is to serve, to make the world better. So, wake up, make your bed, and go do.
This article was originally published in Issue 10.4 of the CEE Legal Matters Magazine. If you would like to receive a hard copy of the magazine, you can subscribe here.