We handle cases in 16 jurisdictions
We support cross-border transactions and the structuring of the client’s assets: property, stakes in foreign companies, accounts and trusts. We coordinate complex international matters from a single point of contact in Moscow, without the need to hire a local lawyer in each country separately.
We represent clients in international arbitration (ICC, LCIA and local venues) and review the requirements of currency legislation and CFC tax planning, so that a lawful transaction does not turn into a currency control problem after the event.
The practice is overseen by the firm’s General Director.
What the service includes:
From our practice
How we work
We handle the matter where the client’s business and assets actually are.
Jurisdiction analysis
We establish where the client’s assets and interests are located, and which law and which jurisdiction genuinely apply to the situation.
Structuring or the deal
We prepare the ownership structure or support the transaction, taking into account the requirements of all the jurisdictions involved at once.
Currency control and compliance
We check compliance with currency legislation and bank compliance before the money is transferred, not after.
Support where the asset is
Where necessary we coordinate with partner offices and local lawyers, so the client deals with a single point of contact.
In numbers
A presence where the client’s business and capital are.
Other practices
Sanctions risks in cross-border payments
A money transfer between Russia and most jurisdictions is subject not only to Russian currency control but also to compliance screening by the correspondent bank, which checks the parties against OFAC, EU and UK restriction lists regardless of the participants’ nationality or residence. A payment that is entirely lawful under Russian law may be blocked if the settlement chain includes a bank whose internal restrictions are wider than the law requires.
Before a large transfer or a deal with a foreign element, we check the counterparty, its ultimate beneficiaries and its ownership structure against sanctions lists, and assess the risk of secondary sanctions for a counterparty in a third jurisdiction. This check must come before the terms of the deal are agreed, not after the event, when the payment is already stuck in a chain of banks.
A settlement route that worked a year ago may be closed today, as individual banks’ compliance policies change faster than legislation. For the client’s existing structures we periodically review the payment arrangements and banking relationships, rather than relying on a scheme agreed once.
What we check before payments:
Recognition of foreign court judgments in Russia
A judgment of a foreign state court, unlike an international arbitral award, falls outside the 1958 New York Convention and is not enforced in Russia automatically. Recognition requires either a bilateral treaty on legal assistance in force between Russia and the country where the judgment was given, or reciprocity proved in the specific case, which the Russian commercial courts do not apply uniformly.
Before litigating abroad, we assess whether the client has a realistic prospect of later enforcing the judgment in Russia or in the country where the defendant’s assets are located. Without that, a won case risks remaining a formality that gives no real ability to recover anything.
We conduct recognition and enforcement of a foreign court judgment in the Russian commercial court under Chapter 31 of the Arbitrazh Procedure Code: we prepare the application, substantiate reciprocity or rely on the specific international treaty, and answer the defendant’s objections of improper notice and breach of public policy.
Recognition rests on:
Redomiciliation and moving a structure between jurisdictions
Moving a structure is not a change of registered address. It means reviewing the company’s contracts, banking relationships and tax residency as a whole.
Companies move their structures between jurisdictions for many reasons: bank accounts closed in the former country of registration, secondary sanctions risk for counterparties, inability to renew a licence through a local agent, or the wish to relocate to a special administrative region (SAR) on Russky or Oktyabrsky Island, where international holding companies enjoy a separate tax and currency regime.
Before starting the procedure, we check that the move does not interrupt the company’s contractual obligations, does not create dual tax residency during the transition period and does not breach the terms of bank accounts already open. With poor preparation, a company risks being left without an active account for several months.
Frequently asked questions
Does the client need to hire a lawyer in every country?+
No. We coordinate international matters from a single point of contact in Moscow, involving partner offices where necessary.
Do you help open an account or a structure abroad?+
Yes, as part of asset structuring, taking into account currency legislation and the compliance requirements of the specific bank and jurisdiction.
What is a CFC and does it affect me?+
A controlled foreign company. If you hold a stake in a foreign structure, notification and tax obligations may arise in Russia. We review this case by case.
Do you work with international arbitration?+
Yes. We represent clients before arbitral institutions (ICC, LCIA and local venues) in disputes with a foreign element.
How is currency control taken into account in transactions with a foreign counterparty?+
We check the requirements of Federal Law No. 173-FZ and bank compliance before any money is transferred, so that a lawful transaction does not turn into a currency control problem.