Category: Ukraine

PwC Legal Ukraine is reporting that Dmytro Donets will join the firm as a Partner on September 20, 2017 to lead the Dispute Resolution Practice.

PwC Legal describes Donets as “a senior tax lawyer with extensive experience in dispute resolution, as well as a profound knowledge of corporate taxation (including financial accounting and reporting), transfer pricing, investment structuring and profit repatriation issues,” and says that “his expertise comes from more than ten years of working as a tax consultant and two years of experience in leading the tax dispute department of the State Fiscal Service of Ukraine (the SFS).”

At the SFS, Dmytro managed the tax litigation and pre-court appeal functions, both at headquarter level and regional level (overseeing around 2,000 employees in total).

Prior to joining the SFS, Dmytro spent about 7 years with DLA Piper Ukraine as a Senior Tax Associate, advising local and multinational clients on various tax, customs and regulatory issues, and assisted clients in the course of tax audits and post audit negotiations with tax authorities. 

“During my time at the SFS, my colleagues and I managed to implement a number of projects, and we established a dialogue with the business community, so that the service is not solely looked upon as an exclusively punitive body,” said Donets. “However, I now feel the need to change profession – it’s time to move in a new direction. I see an opportunity to share the practical experience which I received while working with the SFS with the private sector. This involves high-level consulting on the preparation of tax documentation, qualified preparation procedure for tax audits, assistance in the development of protection strategies, and defending client interests in disputes with the tax authorities. During my time in government agencies, I used to collaborate with the legal and tax teams of PwC Ukraine, and I was really impressed by their professionalism. I look forward to working with my new colleagues and to ensuring the firm’s continued growth and the protection of our client’s businesses.”

Andrey Pronchenko, Managing Partner of PwC Legal Ukraine, said: “We are happy to welcome Dmytro to our team. Dispute Resolution and solving tax disputes is one of our key practices. PwC Ukraine established this practice in 2008, and during this time we significantly expanded our client portfolio and strengthened our position in the market – an achievement which has been recognized regularly in key national and international ratings. I am pleased to have appointed Dmytro as our Dispute Resolution Practice Leader and I am convinced that his experience and expertise will assist our clients operating in Ukraine in many ways in the years to come.”

The PLP Law Group has assisted Germany’s Cordenka GmbH and Co. KG, a producer of premium-quality industrial rayon, with its acquisition of manufacturing facilities in Ukraine.

According to PLP Law Group, its services to Cordenka included “the performance of legal due diligence, drafting all necessary documents (including letter of intent, purchasing contract), and providing legal support in negotiations with the seller.”

The PLP Law Group advising on the project was led by Senior Partner Andrii Popko and Managing Partner Ivan Legeida. 

The PLP Law Group explained it was prohibited that additional details about the deal, including the nature of the manufacturing facilities, the seller, or the law firm representing them, was confidential.

Redcliffe Partners has announced that Oleksandr Markov has joined the firm as Counsel and Head of the Tax Practice.

Markov joins from Sayenko Kharenko, where he spent the previous two years, after spending the previous three with PwC. In recent years, Markov’s practice has focused primarily on tax dispute resolution, including providing legal support in criminal proceedings related to tax evasion.

“Oleksandr is one of the best tax practitioners in Ukraine,” says Dmytro Fedoruk, one of Redcliffe’s Founding Partners. “His experience will diversify our capabilities in tax and our clients will benefit from the integrated expertise of our tax and regulatory experts. We look forward to his contributions to the firm.”

Oleksandr Markov commented: “The opportunity to strengthen Redcliffe’s tax presence with my experience and at the same time to expand the scope of my work is exciting. I am delighted to lead the tax practice of such a renowned team.”

Vasil Kisil & Partners has successfully represented Sumitec Ukraine in judicial proceedings to recover amounts owed for services rendered for repair and maintenance of equipment.

Sumitec Ukraine is a distributor of equipment and provides business solutions for the mining industry and mineral production, construction, and warehouse logistics. The company has been operating in Ukraine since 2003. Sumitec Ukraine is a part of Tokyo’s Sumitomo Corporation.

According to VKP, “first and appellate instance courts held that the claims raised by Sumitec Ukraine relating to the payment for services were reasonable and recovered from the customer what was due, including the penalties. Since the debtor and a part of its property were located within the anti-terrorist operation zone in the Eastern Ukraine, both the court and the plaintiff had to take additional measures to notify the defendant properly of the claims filed, scheduled court hearings and court decisions rendered. Vasil Kisil & Partners lawyers managed to ensure that the case was heard within the period required by the law and to obtain a positive decision to recover the indebtedness and penalties from the defendant.”

The VKP team was led by Partner Alexander Borodkin, supported by Senior Associate Yuriy Kolos.

PLP Law Group has assisted Poland’s Hanplast on its entrance to the Ukrainian market.

Hanplast produces photovoltaic panels and solar energy devices. According to PLP Law Group, “the production capacity of Hanplast is located in the Polish city of Bydgoszcz. The company has been operating since 1993 and for more than 20 years has consolidated its leading positions in the plastics industry and has long been engaged in the manufacture of photoelectric panels according to innovative technologies and world standards.”

The PLP Law Group reports that its lawyers, “in particular, developed  the company’s charter according to the  individual characteristics inherent in the Polish corporate governance system, [and] provided services for the registration of the company Hanplast Solar Ukraine.” In addition, the firm reports, “in order to streamline the relationship between the founders of the company, [we] developed a draft corporate agreement, within the framework of labor law practice, provided consultations on the organization of labor relations in the company, and also initiated procedures for the protection of the Hanplast brand in Ukraine.”

PLP Law Group’s assistance on corporate matters was provided by Associate Andrii Lozko. The firm’s assistance on Hanplast’s entry into Ukraine was led by Senior Partner Andrii Popko.

 Axon Partners is advising Dao.Casino on fundraising for its project to build a new gaming industry infrastructure based on blockchain.

According to Axon Partners, Dao.Casino “is raising money for project development using a revolutionary investment vehicle: A Token Sale Campaign. During the first bidding hour, the company raised the equivalent of USD 9.5 million, and in total raised the equivalent of USD 18 million.

According to Axon Partners, “starting from choosing a jurisdiction for incorporation, right until successfully raising funds, we have been proud to partner with such a ground-breaking project. On the face of it, a Coin/Token Offering on Blockchain seems to fall outside of any regulatory framework. However, this is a popular misconception. The main risks of using this investment vehicle include licensing, financial markets regulation and international tax treatment.”

The firm’s FinTech team of Nazar Polyvka, Orest Gavryliak, and Vlad Likhuta worked on the matter.

The Ukrainian office of DLA Piper, working together with global counsel Herzog Fox & Neeman, has advised Citi on its provision of financial advice to Aristocrat Leisure related to its USD 500 million acquisition of Plarium Global.

The deal is expected to close before the end of this year and DLA Piper describes it as “likely to be one of the largest deals of its kind within the Israeli market.”

According to DLA Piper, “both companies are involved in producing popular entertainment content. Aristocrat Leisure Limited, based in Australia, is one of the largest manufacturers of gaming solutions in the world. Plarium Ltd, headquartered in Herzliya, Israel, is a social gaming developer with over 1,200 employees worldwide and offices in the US and Europe, including Ukraine and Russia.”

DLA Piper advised Citi on the Ukrainian legal aspects of the transaction, including due diligence of the Ukrainian business division of Plarium, and preparation of necessary transactional documents.

The team was led by Partner and Head of Competition in Ukraine Galyna Zagorodniuk, Senior Associate Dmytro Tkachenko, and Associate Artem Hrytsak. Additional support was provided by Partner and Head of Real Estate Natalia Kochergina, and Partner and Head of Intellectual Property Natalia Pakhomovska, and their teams.

On August 21, 2017, Avellum Senior Associate Serhii Uvarov was appointed Secretary General of the Ukrainian Arbitration Association by UAA President Olena Perepelynska after discussions with UAA Board members.

The Ukrainian Arbitration Association is a non-profit organization that unites lawyers (irrespective of their nationality or place of residence), who are professionally engaged or interested in international arbitration.

According to Avellum, Uvarov’s experience includes representing Ukrainian state authorities in UNCITRAL arbitration and Ukrainian state companies before foreign courts and international tribunals. He also advises clients on transnational insolvency and receivership, fraud investigations (including anti-bribery probes) and matters involving the recognition and enforcement of foreign judicial and arbitral awards in Ukraine.

“It is a great honor for me to be appointed to this position,” commented Uvarov on his appointment. “The Ukrainian Arbitration Association brings together the whole Ukrainian arbitration community and allows the development of arbitration in our country, as well as exchanging experience and international best practices. I hope that in my new role I will contribute to its further development.”

Ukraine’s AGA Partners has announced that it has agreed to provide legal services to the Ukrainian Skiing Federation.

According to AGA Partners, “as part of the sports arbitration practice, we will provide the federation with assistance in a wide range of legal issues that arise in the course of its activities. AGA Partners, as a legal partner, will represent the interests of the federation, as well as advise on settling disputes. The objectives of this agreement are the support of Ukrainian sport and fruitful cooperation for both parties.”

Redcliffe Partners has advised a Chinese consortium consisting of Zhengzhou Coal Mining Machinery (Group) Co., Ltd and China Renaissance Capital Investment Inc. in their successful application for merger clearance from the Ukrainian competition authority for the EUR 545 million acquisition of Robert Bosch GmbH`s Starter Motors and Generators business. 

According to Redcliffe Partners, “Robert Bosch Starter Motors Generators Holding GmbH, a subsidiary of Robert Bosch GmbH, is a world-wide leader in the field of automotive energy supply with a product portfolio that includes high-efficiency generators and starter motors for petrol and diesel engines as well as the economical and CO2-reducing start-stop and hybrid systems. SG has 16 locations in 14 countries, including Germany, China, Brazil, Hungary, India, Mexico, South Africa, Spain, and the United States.”

Redcliffe Partners describes Zhengzhou Coal Mining Machinery as “a global leading manufacturer of coal mining machinery and auto components … listed on both the Shanghai and Hong Kong Stock Exchange,” and reports that the company “has 22 wholly-owned subsidiaries, stock-holding subsidiaries and joint-stock companies all over the world covering equipment manufacture, financing, service and trade & commerce.” According to the firm, “CRCI is a leading alternative investment management firm that focuses on investment opportunities across a broad range of industries in Greater China with over USD 2 billion of total assets under management.”

Redcliffe’s team consisted of Counsel Anastasia Usova, Associate Yulia Eismont, and Junior Associate Kateryna Chumak.