Category: Ukraine

The Ukrainian Engarde law firm has announced that Partner Irina Nazarova has been re-elected to chair of the Ukrainian Bar Association’s Alternative Dispute Resolution Committee. Oleksandr Volkov, an attorney at Egorov Puginskiy Afanasiev & Partners in Ukraine, was elected Deputy Chair of the Committee.

Nazarova has over 15 years experience in dispute resolution, including commercial litigation, cross-border litigation, international arbitration, and mediation. She has also acted as Of Counsel to the Head of the State Property Fund of Ukraine. 

Nazarova said of her re-election that: “I am very thankful to all Ukrainian colleagues for the trust that you have placed on me, which I will do my best to stand up to! It is a great honor for me to be elected to the position of the Chair of the Alternative Dispute Resolution Committee of the Ukrainian Bar Association.”

Sayenko Kharenko has advised the EBRD on a USD 26 million loan to the Ukrainsky Grafit public joint-stock company.

According to the firm “Ukrgrafit will use the funds raised for financing of the reconstruction and modernization of the manufacturing facilities and introducing energy efficient technologies into the production cycle.”

Ukgrafit is the only Ukrainian manufacturer of graphite electrodes for electric steel, electric-arc furnaces, and other applications in the steel, aluminum, magnesium, and titanium industries.

Sayenko Kharenko’s team was led by Partner Nazar Chernyavsky, and included Senior Associate Igor Lozenko and Associates Marta Hontaruk and Taras Shyb.

This is another in a series of EBRD-related transactions in Ukraine in recent months. As reported previously, the EBRD has made 2014 loans to Danosha, UBC-Promo, New Europe Property Fund, Raffaisen Bank Aval, and Concern Galnaftogaz, and has purchased a minority stake in Amtel Properties.

Sayenko Kharenko has acted as legal counsel to the EBRD on its provision of a EUR 35 million loan to Danosha, a major Ukrainian pig farming company.

The firm explained that the funds raised will be used to expand Danosha’s operations, improve its waste disposal capabilities, and restructure its balance sheet. In addition, “with the help of the EBRD support, the company will improve its biological security and animal welfare standards in line with EU regulations.”

Sayenko Kharenko’s team for the transaction was led by Partner Nazar Chernyavsky and included Senior Associate Igor Lozenko, supported by Associates Marta Hontaruk and Taras Shyb.

The EBRD has been advised in other recent Ukrainian deals by Asters (see April 24, 2014 and December 20, 2013), Dentons (see March 17, 2014), and Vasil Kisil & Partners (see March 27, 2014 and May 22, 2014).

Lavrynovych & Partners and lawyers from DLA Piper’s Ukraine office have defended Swissport International in the Kiev Economic Court against Ukraine International Airlines, which claimed that Swissport International violated a purchase and sale agreement.

The dispute arose in 2012 when UIA accused Swissport International of breach of contract. The courts of first instance and appeal agreed with UIA, and granted the company full control over Swissport Ukraine. The Supreme Economic Court reversed the decision, however, and remanded the case back to the lower court with new instructions. The second time around led to a different result, as the Kiev Economic Court completely dismissed UIA’s claim against Swissport International and returned 70.6% of Swissport Ukraine to the parent company.

Swissport International provides ground services for around 224 million passengers and 4.1 million tons of cargo a year. The company is active at 263 airports in 45 countries on five continents and generates consolidated operating revenue of USD 3.4 billion.

Caroline Buttes, Senior Legal Counsel of Swissport International, commented that: “We hope that this success story will find its continuation in the appellate court, but now I am grateful to the team of DLA Piper for good news and great work on the project for two years.”

The Lavrynovych & Partners’ team was led by Partner Stanislav Skrypnyck, assisted by Senior Associate Arthur Kiyan and Associate Anastasiia Borysenko. The DLA Piper team was led by Managing Partner Margarita Karpenko, working with Legal Director Alla Kozachenko, Senior Associate Michael Byelostotskyy, and lawyer Tatyana Zamedyanska. Karpenko explained, of the two firms working on behalf of Swissport International, that, “we both were litigating for the benefit of the client and worked as one team.” For his part, Byelostotskyy was both pleased with the result and optimistic about its significance. “We found that a panel of judges carefully reacted to review the case, examined in detail all the circumstances and evidence. Hopefully this approach will be fundamental and Ukrainian judges to further demonstrate the same integrity and consistency. “

The Ukrainian office of Integrites is advising the Ecopharm manufacturer of herbal medicines on its search for project financing for its intended purchase of equipment.

According to Integriters, “the project includes a comprehensive assessment of the potential risks of hedging instruments and registration of financial and security documents.”  

Integrites Partner Alexander Alexeenko leads the team.

Egorov Puginsky Afanasiev & Partners in Ukraine has acted as Ukrainian legal counsel to Richmont Holdings, a private equity fund, on the acquisition of Agel Enterprises, a nutritional supplement supplier.

EPAP Ukraine advised on the Ukrainian part of the deal, including deal structuring, preparation of transactional documents, and general advice on the Ukrainian law matters. The Firm’s antitrust team also assisted with merger control matters. Baker Botts acted as global lead counsel for Richmont Holdings coordinating with 15 other Lex Mundi member firms.

Richmont Holdings is a Texas-based and family-owned company that owns direct capital investments in operating companies and investment vehicles, as well as active and passive investments in which it provide capital, resources, or both to support the growth of innovative business opportunities.

Founded in 2005 and based in Utah, Agel offers a line of nutritional gel supplement products in over 55 countries around the world, including Argentina, Australia, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Hong Kong, Hungary, Israel, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, the Netherlands, Poland, Russia, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, Ukraine, the United Kingdom and USA.

Sayenko Kharenko acted as Ukrainian legal counsel to Pamplona Capital Management in its March 14, 2014 acquisition of a majority stake in Alvogen.

Sayenko Kharenko describes Alvogen as “one of the fastest growing generics companies in the pharmaceutical industry.” The Luxembourg-based Alvogen is a multinational pharmaceutical company focused on developing, manufacturing, and distributing generic pharmaceuticals and OTC medicines. Alvogen employs 2,000 people and currently operates in 34 markets in the US, Central and Eastern Europe, and the Asia Pacific region with manufacturing hubs in New Jersey, Romania, and South Korea.

Pamplona Capital Management is a London and New York-based specialist investment manager with over USD 6 billion in assets under management.

Sayenko Kharenko’s work included due diligence regarding the Ukrainian assets and general advice on Ukrainian law matters. The firm’s team was led by Vladimir Sayenko and included Counsel Leonid Antonenko and Associates Oleksandr Bevz and Kateryna Zhebanova.

Egorov Puginsky Afanasiev & Partners (EPAP) Partner Oleksii Reznikov has been appointed a Member of the High Council of Justice of Ukraine and has been sworn in. Reznikov’s appointment followed the Congress of Advocates of Ukraine held on 27 April, 2014.

According to EPAP, “the High Council of Justice is a collective independent body responsible for the formation of highly professional corps of judges capable of qualified, honest and unbiased conduct of justice on a professional basis, as well as for decision making relating to judges’ and public prosecutors’ infringement of incompatibility requirements and, within its terms of reference, of their disciplinary accountability.” 

The High Council of Justice includes 20 members, out of which 17 members are appointed by the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, the President of Ukraine, the Congress of Judges of Ukraine, the Congress of Advocates of Ukraine, the Congress of Representatives of Higher Legal Educational Establishments and Scientific Institutions, and the All-Ukrainian Conference of Employees of the Public Prosecutors Office. The Chairman of the Supreme Court of Ukraine, the Minister of Justice of Ukraine, and the Prosecutor General of Ukraine are ex officio members of the High Council of Justice. All members, except for those appointed ex officio, are elected for six years. 

Reznikov heads EPAP’s Litigation Practice in Ukraine. According to the firm, “Reznikov has extensive experience in Ukrainian litigation, commercial, civil and electoral law, as well as in the field of privatization and securities, and protection from hostile takeovers (including corporate raids). He specializes in the resolution of disputes with tax, customs and other state authorities. His experience includes protection of clients in the Supreme Court of Ukraine, Supreme Economic Court, Higher Specialized Court, and Higher Administrative Court of Ukraine.” He is also the Vice-President (as reported on April 11, 2014, he was temporarily made Acting President) of the Ukrainian Bar Association.  

Vasil Kisil & Partners has announced that it provided legal advice to the EBRD on its April 2013 loan of USD 10 million to UBC-Promo to provide financing for its expansion of existing manufacturing facilities and construction of a new product line.

Vasil Kisil & Partners advised on Ukrainian law matters with regard to the project, including drafting of the transaction documents and issuing a legal opinion for the EBRD. The firm’s team was led by Partners Oleg Alyoshin and Yulia Kyrpa, who were assisted by Senior Associate Anna Sisetska. 

The EBRD has been advised in other deals by Asters (see April 24, 2014 and December 20, 2013) and Dentons (see March 17, 2014). The bank also purchased a minority stake in Amtel Properties, a deal in which Vasil Kisil & Partners represented the seller (March 27, 2014)

Acting Prosecutor General of Ukraine Oleg Makhnytsky has appointed Arzinger Partner Vitalii Kasko Deputy Prosecutor General of Ukraine. According to Arzinger, one of Kasko’s primary responsibilities will be issues of international legal cooperation. 

Kasko started his career in 1998 as an investigator in Lviv District Prosecutor’s Office. Later he worked as a senior investigator and deputy chief investigator of the Prosecutor’s Office in the Lviv region, where he led investigations into complex white collar and corruption crimes. In early 2002 he was transferred to the Prosecutor General’s Office of Ukraine, where he worked first as a Senior Prosecutor and then headed the international legal department.

Prior to joining Arzinger Kasko gained experience in complex criminal proceedings, criminal assets recovery, and relations with law enforcement agencies as well as representation in the European Court of Human Rights.

Arzinger released a statement explaining that “representatives of the Prosecutor General’s Office note that the international legal cooperation is the present-day key area of activity, as to solve the urgent problems, in particular, to return stolen assets from abroad one requires prompt and high-quality solutions.  To improve the organization of prosecution of Ukraine in the field of international cooperation and to bring it closer to the European standards, the General Department for International Legal Cooperation was established as a result of reorganization.”

Timur Bondaryev, the Managing Partner of Arzinger, commented that, “his appointment is a great honor and a sign of huge confidence which Vitalii will surely justify by helping even more effectively to implement important reforms in the country. We truly believe and hope that Vitalii’s appointment will let us see and experience systemic changes not only in the prosecution, but also in the establishment of the rule of law in Ukraine.”