 After completing his degree in medicine in Vienna and specialization in internal medicine as the first Croatian internist, in 1874-1880 he led the internal department of the "Bolnica milosrdne braće" hospital in Zagreb.Afterwards and until 1892 he served as a secretary of the Health Department of the Provincial Government, and was responsible for many health laws and regulations improving the state of public health in Croatia.As a president of the Croatian Medical Association (1880-1882, and in 1893-1906) he is credited for bringing the association to a high scientific and organizational level, and in his honor the Ladislav Rakovac Award has been established for contributions to the improvement of the Association.