The Legal 500 international ratings recommend Pepeliaev Group for projects in Russia

The international legal directory The Legal 500 has again recognised the professional pre-eminence of Pepeliaev Group on the Russian legal market.

The firm remains the nation's best in tax and tax disputes (Tier 1). According to the rating, Sergey Pepeliaev has ‘has strong expertise in corporate and personal tax issues, and frequently handles contentious matters in judicial and arbitration proceedings’. Senior partners Rustem Ahmetshin and Ivan Khamenushko are also key figures, ‘advising on the full gamut of tax issues including VAT assessment, audit procedures and budgeting’.

Pepeliaev Group's antimonopoly team (Tier 2) exhibits ‘excellent value for money and a result-oriented approach’. Senior partner Vladimir Sokov is ‘very good at managing client expectations and identifying relevant legal issues’, and head of practice Elena Sokolovskaya ‘frequently advises on antimonopoly and advertising legislation, as well as providing due diligence’.

The Legal 500 also gave a high rating to Pepeliaev Group's employment and migration law practice (Tier 2). Partner Julia Borozdna heads the team, which has ‘a deep knowledge of labour legislation’, and provides ‘highly valuable and professional advice’.

The key figures at IP and Trademark Practice (Tier 3) are head of practice Valentina Orlova and head of group Yuri Yahin, who both represented DIO Corporation before the Chamber for Patent Disputes on its objection to a patent given by a patent office to a Russian company.

The practice of real estate and construction remains one of the strongest on the Russian market (Tier 3). Pepeliaev Group's team acted for Volkswagen Group Rus on a large-scale development project, advising on the construction and acquisition of a warehouse complex in the Moscow Region. Clients recommend Vladimir Sokov along with ‘tough negotiator’ Natalia Stenina, one of the heads of real estate practice.

The Telecoms team at Pepeliaev Group (Tier 3) takes ‘a business-oriented approach and studies the issues in detail, which produces high-quality work and optimal results’. Tax lawyer Rustem Ahmetshin leads the group along with Natalia Ivashchenko, who has strong regulatory expertise.

The ratings recommend banking and finance practice (Tier 4). Pepeliaev Group has recently been involved in a number of finance disputes, while also attracting strong transactional mandates. Igor Marmalidi heads the practice and Lidia Gorshkova is the other key contact.

Pepeliaev Group’s team of ‘well-qualified professionals’ in the dispute resolution practice (Tier 4) is ‘extremely competent in the litigation sphere’, providing ‘smooth, fast and flexible assistance at a reasonable price’. Yulia Litovtseva, head of the bankruptcy group, ‘immediately finds arguments to support the client’s case’, and Yuri Vorobyev is also recommended.

Pepeliaev Group’s offshore projects team (Tier 5) is headed by the ‘outstanding’ Pavel Kondukov, who advises on tax legislation and regulatory issues affecting large-scale projects. The ‘highly professional’ Rustem Ahmetshin has handled numerous tax disputes in the energy sector.

The Legal 500 has praised the St Petersburg corporate practice of Pepeliaev Group (Tier 2). The lawyers at Pepeliaev Group provide ‘highly professional, valuable advice’, and the group has been particularly active in the real estate sector. Managing partner Sergey Spasennov is the key contact.

Pepeliaev Group is a leading Russian law firm offering the full range of legal services in all regions of Russia, in most former Soviet countries and abroad. Over 160 lawyers in Moscow, St Petersburg, Krasnoyarsk, Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk, Vladivostok, Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Seoul provide legal assistance to over 1,500 companies operating in various industries. 50% of these are international corporations implementing long-term investment projects in Russia.