Specialist Legal Services in Ukraine

Voropaev and Partners (hereinafter Voropaev and Partners Ltd.), is a boutique law company, that primarily works within the legal services market in Ukraine. We interviewed lawyer and advocate, Anna Nechai to find out more about the firm’s work, staff and the clients they serve.

Voropaev and Partners Ltd. was incorporated on 1st August 2005, after which it has been providing its clients, with top quality legal assistance. The firm’s client base consists of both international and local business representatives.Voropaev and Partners Ltd. was incorporated on 1st August 2005, after which it has been providing its clients, with top quality legal assistance. The firm’s client base consists of both international and local business representatives.

Lawyer and advocate, Anna Nechai provides a short overview of the firm’s scope of legal work and the type of clients they serve.“We provide legal services to clients in many areas of law, including corporate, tax, real estate, copyright and media law, construction and land law, company and contract law, estate and family law, as well as representation in courts.“Among our major clients, is the largest vertically integrated mining and metallurgical holding company in Ukraine, one of the largest financial and industrial groups in Ukraine, as well as the largest private firm carrying out business in the country’s energy sector.

“We follow the principle that each client we serve is unique. Certainly, the human factor plays significant role in all our client relationships. It is relevant not only to provide legal services professionally, but to continuously update the client and provide them with feedback. So, that is why we take an individual approach, as we like to ensure that the client feels comfortable at all times.”Even so, there are some preliminary measures the firm undertakes, prior to accepting a new client, namely that Voropaev and Partners Ltd verifies:

• A potential conflict of interest;

• Trustworthiness and legality of fund sources, via their KYC procedure and;

• International sanctions, if any are imposed.

At Voropaev and Partners Ltd., they have highly skilled specialists on their team. Their advocates, possess a deep level of knowledge and have enormous practical experience in the arena of law, as well as an understanding of the clients’ specific business spheres.“This gives us opportunity to propose both full-fledged legal assistance and efficient, in support of different complex deals.

Each client we serve is always accompanied by two substitutional lawyers.“Our firm works with one of three in Ukraine certificated trust and estate practitioners, whose experience and skills allows our firm to assist clients in arranging the management of business in different jurisdictions, efficiently. We also assist with the protection of our clients’ assets worldwide, estate planning, as well as rendering wide range of services from the making of wills and establishment of trusts and foundations, right up to complicated schemes of inheritance of property, including those located abroad.

“As a professional firm, in addition to providing traditional legal services, we also provide clients with the services of independent representatives in the governing bodies of holding companies.“In addition, Voropaev and Partners Ltd. maintains close contacts with lawyers from Czech Republic, Cyprus, Slovakia, Switzerland, Great Britain, the Netherlands, the USA and other countries, so that we can react promptly and attract the assistance of foreign colleagues when the protection of our clients’ interests demands so.

“We consider our developed partnership with companies rendering professional administration services in different jurisdictions, to be an advantage for us. This certainly gives our clients the opportunity to create efficient structures of management within their business, and to extend it into different jurisdictions.“At present, Ukraine is experiencing volatile political and economic conditions, which are not getting any better owing to the present conflict in the east of the country.

Those conditions have certainly affected the demands of our clients, during the last two years. The issue of keeping both their personal and business assets protected – against possible illegal encroachment – has become the most acute problem of our clients. Also, the demand from our clients for the establishment of trusts and foundations outside Ukraine, has increased. “However, due to our regional peculiarities, our clients are generally distrustful towards foreign professional providers practicing in this sphere, especially where the peculiarities of trust and foundation structures are both concerned. Where our firm steps in, is to assist in the creation of such structures, which correspond exactly to the interests of the client concerned. So, our experts assist, to co-ordinate the management of these aforementioned structures.”

The firm’s specialists always work as the team. Anna tells us that any internal competition or competing for the business of a client, are far from welcome at Voropaev & Partners Ltd.The firm’s specialists always work as the team. Anna tells us that any internal competition or competing for the business of a client, are far from welcome at Voropaev & Partners Ltd.

“Our lawyers are experts in different branches of law, indeed they possess various skills as well as both seasoned professional and life experience. It is only the exchange of this knowledge, professional skills and experience that can provide a high professional level of legal services, always providing a qualitative result, as the client expects.“Any aspiration to education and self-development are strongly supported at our firm. Indeed, we encourage the employees themselves to make decisions on what to study and which skills to develop, rather than the management doing so on their behalf. At that, we believe that the employees define the areas in which they wish to develop, which of course will ultimately benefit the firm and contribute towards the provision of legal services to our clients.

“That is why when we are seeking new staff, so when we do this we pay attention to not only to knowledge and skills, but also to both human characteristics and life experience.

”In closing, Anna tells us that Voropaev & Partners Ltd. are planning to enter markets abroad and to therefore provide legal services in jurisdictions such as Czech Republic, Slovakia, Switzerland and the Netherlands. She then outlines some of the wider industry challenges they are facing.

“We consider that tax legislation and the taxation scheme here, will change in the future. Such changes, we believe, will be substantial. In the Ukraine, the number of people requiring assistance in relations with the tax authorities, completing tax returns and reports will increase. Soon, the general submission of tax returns will be introduced, which will lead to an increased demand for legal assistance, where tax issues in this country are concerned.”

Name: Anna Nechai

Email: [email protected]

Web Address: voropaevltd.com.ua/en/

Address: 3А Desiatynna St, Kyiv, 01001 Ukraine

Telephone: +38 445017773, +38 0939815988