Commercial
disputes

Our client is a large Russian energy company.

We have developed a strategy for asset tracing in foreign jurisdictions and the return of the client's illegally withdrawn assets. Our task was complicated by the fact that the former management of the client's companies had destroyed the majority of information on the withdrawn assets. Moreover, a considerable time has passed since withdrawal of assets.

The client became the victim of a high-profile fraudulent scheme carried out against a number of companies in the energy sector of the Russian Federation by the former management and beneficiaries of these companies. This criminal scheme attracted attention of some of the highest officials of the Russian Federation and the heads of the law enforcement agencies of the country.

One of the key objectives of the asset tracing and recovery project was to obtain interim measures against violators and affiliated foreign companies and banks in the state court of Cyprus. In particular, a court order was received on the disclosure of information by the Bank of Cyprus. As a result, identification of the persons in whose favor the assets were withdrawn became possible.

Together with Cypriot consultants, we have developed a strategy to bring violators to justice. Thus, we file a claim in the Court of Cyprus to to recover damages caused by the withdrawal of assets.

As part of the damages process, we, in cooperation with Cypriot lawyers, managed to secure the adoption of interim measures for the disclosure of information by the secretaries of a company registered in the British Virgin Islands. New information about the defendants obtaining through the interim measures allows the client to expand the circle of defendants and collect the evidence necessary to win the dispute and recover damages effectively.

The contractor undertook to repair the electric heat carrier, for which he had received a preliminary payment. Having divided the electric heat carrier into 2 groups of components, he handed them over to two subcontractors for repair. The contractor has not fulfilled its obligations under the contract so far, and the subcontractors continue to unreasonably retain parts of the electric heat carrier.

Our specialists have developed a strategy based on a system of claims, which aims to provide a protection of the client's rights. We represent the client in disputes concerning the recovery of property from the illegal possession of subcontractors, the recovery of preliminary payment, penalty and damages. The case is significantly complicated by the cross-border nature of the dispute, the necessity to apply the provisions of Kazakh law in the Russian court.

As a result of the US sanctions imposed in 2018, European companies and banks refused to cooperate with our client. Due to this, he was forced to start the liquidation procedure in Italy.

Before the start of the liquidation, the opponents demanded that our client pay the principal debt and began to charge a penalty, which amounted to almost a third of the debt by the time of the hearings.

We have developed a position justifying the penalty reduction. Currently, we are leading a process in a Russian court, representing the client’s interests in a dispute with a Russian bank.

Our client's contractor has undertaken to carry out the work in accordance with the contract. Our client, the customer under the contract, made an advance payment for the work. Subsequently, due to the restrictions imposed to counteract the coronavirus infection, the contractor was not able to perform the work. Our client had to hire another contractor to perform the work and sent a notice of termination to the previous contractor, since, given the nature of the client's activities, delay in performing the work was unacceptable.

Currently, we are leading a case in Russian courts to recover the prepayment made by our client under the contract. The case is complicated by the cross-border nature of the dispute and the necessity to apply Kazakh law.

Our client is a Swiss company, a shareholder of a Russian agricultural holding.

As a result of the director’s crimes, the principal asset of the company, shares in the subsidiary, was stolen and the company was led to bankruptcy.

We develop a strategy for the client to recover damages caused by the director in different proceedings, both criminal and civil ones. Commitment of frauds at different levels of the holding structure and considerable time period expired from the moment when damages were caused (the criminal case against the director was being investigated for more than ten years) contributed to the complexity of the project.

In 2011, our client entered into a contract for the construction of a bridge across Nadym River in the amount of about RUB 14 billion.  Later, the client had disagreements with the contractor, who went to court to collect about RUB 2 billion debts for work.

This conflict lasted more than four years.  In 2016, the Moscow Arbitrazh Court granted the judgment to the contractor to recover the debt from our client, based on the construction and technical expertise carried out.  This position was supported by all higher authorities, including the Russian Supreme Court.

Later, within the framework of the criminal case, the expert's opinion was recognized as knowingly false. However, due to the expiration of the limitation period for bringing the expert to criminal liability, the investigator adopted a resolution to terminate the criminal case.

The PB Legal | Panin, Bayramkulov & Partners team has proven that the conclusion about the deliberate falsity of the expert's opinion made in the resolution to terminate the criminal case is a newly discovered circumstance that allows revising judicial acts.

As a result of our work aimed at revising judicial acts on the basis of newly discovered circumstances, all adopted judicial acts were canceled, and the case was reviewed.  The Moscow Arbitrazh Court dismissed the claim against our client.

PB Legal | Panin, Bayramkulov & Partners provides asset tracing services in foreign jurisdictions.

Our client's foreign counterparty failed to pay for delivered goods worth over $70 million. The tribunal rendered the arbitral award in favor of the client, but the debtor is in a difficult financial situation.

PB Legal | Panin, Bayramkulov & Partners team cooperated with lawyers from the U.S. to develop a strategy to search for debtor’s assets and its controlling persons, including the American parent company. PB Legal | Panin, Bayramkulov & Partners is currently coordinating a lawsuit in the USA to disclose the information on debtor's assets by the controlling persons.

Our Client is a shareholder of a German construction company where a corporate conflict between the shareholders occurred during the completion of a major project. A Cypriot court imposed interim measures prohibiting the Client from disposing of his assets.

As part of cooperation with the Client, PB Legal provides legal support for the dispute with drafting of legal position and procedural documents, as well as coordinates the work of foreign (German and Cypriot) counsels for participation in court proceedings abroad. PB Legal also develops a legal strategy and strengthens the Client's procedural defence.

A positive outcome of this dispute will allow the Client to improve the financial performance of the joint venture, as the Client's assets abroad of RUB 500,000,000 are currently placed under interim measures.

Our Client is the largest agro-industrial enterprise in the Tver region. The Client previously acted as a customer under a service agreement. The Client refused to fulfil the contract due to loss of interest as the French company (service provider) had improperly fulfilled its obligations.

The counterparty applied to the ICAC at the RF CCI (MKAS) for recovery of the entire cost of the services of the first stage, as well as a penalty for failure to fulfil the obligation to pay. The contractor also believed that the advance payment had not been made for all stages, but only for the first stage.

The PB Legal team, in turn, prepared a counterclaim, in which we demanded the refund of the unearned advance payment.

The ICAC at the RF CCI refused the counterparty in full and satisfied the client's claim.

The PB Legal team then applied to the Moscow Arbitrazh Court to obtain a writ of execution to enforce the decision of the ICAC panel. The court confirmed the client's position that state courts are limited in their powers to review the legality of interpretation and application of Russian legislation and granted the request for the writ of execution.

Our Client is a large agricultural producer. The client is a party to a number of court disputes in relation to land plots: on recognition of title to a land plot; recognition of a lease agreement as valid; termination of a lease agreement.

As part of a complex structured transaction, the Client was to obtain ownership of a land plot. Due to the opponents' activities, the ownership to the land plot was not registered for the Client. At the same time, the opponents filed a claim to seize the land plot from the Client.

We developed a strategy to protect the Client's rights. As part of its implementation, our team achieved (1) nullification of the sale and purchase agreement for this land plot between the opponents and (2) the court's dismissal of the claim to seize the land plot from the Client.

Our team is currently representing the Client in a court proceeding to recognise the ownership of a land plot. The opponents arranged the exclusion of the defendant company from the commercial registry, which was successfully appealed by us. The opponents then arranged a controlled bankruptcy of the defendant company, which our team is currently successfully opposing.

The PB Legal team also developed a strategy of declaring the Client's lease agreement valid in respect of another land plot and obtained a court judgement restoring the Client's lease rights. Our team is currently representing the Client in a dispute over the cancellation of the said lease agreement.

By representing the Client's rights PB Legal creates judicial practice in complex disputes on recognition of rights to land plots, as well as practice on counteracting controlled bankruptcies.

Successful implementation of the project will help the Client to use land plots for agricultural production freely.

Our Client is a management company of one of the largest international hotel chains. The client is interested in acquiring a premium hotel chain owned by a insolvent foreign bank. The hotels are subject to ongoing legal disputes in the Russian Federation regarding the bank's pledge rights over them.

The Latvian bank granted a secured loan to a third-party company for the development of hotels in three regions of the Russian Federation. When the bank was declared bankrupt, the bankruptcy trustee discovered that the mortgages had been disbursed and the loan was no longer being repaid. He therefore applied to the court to recover the loan amount, restore the mortgage and foreclose on the pledged property.

In the proceedings in the courts of first and appeal instances, the loan agreement was declared void and the reinstatement of the pledge was refused.

Our Client is a potential buyer of rights of claim who has engaged our team to assess legal risks and ways of cancelling judicial acts in the court of cassation instance. The client is also considering alternative (non-judicial) ways of acquiring assets.

PB legal team analysed the documents, prepared a negotiation strategy and legal opinions on:

1. the content of the decision of the court
2. possible ways of challenging the judgement
3. the judgement of the appeal instance
4. the prospects of cassation challenge
5. the legal grounds for cancelling earlier court decisions.

Our Client is a food producer who entered into a supply contract secured by a guarantee with a foreign entity and a foreign bank. The supplier failed to fulfil the contract, and the bank refused to pay the guarantee, citing restrictive measures imposed on Russia.

The foreign supplier and financial institution, when refusing to fulfil their obligations, unreasonably grounded their actions on the European sanctions imposed on Russia.

PB Legal lawyers have elaborated an effective strategy to protect the Client's interests in a dispute with dishonest counterparties, which includes exequatur of a Russian court judgement in foreign jurisdictions.

Our team also:

1. Works on litigation representation;
2. Prepares a defense of non-application of sanctions legislation to the contract.

Our Client is Denis Nikolayevich Simachev, a well-known modeller, designer and restaurateur.
At the claim of a foreign company, the Client's trademark was cancelled.

Our team developed a strategy to protect the Client's rights to his brand. As a result of its successful implementation, the trademark of a foreign company was cancelled. The cancellation of the legal protection to the trademark will allow the Client to restore the rights to his trademark.

As a result, the Client will be able to conduct further creative and entrepreneurial activities using his brands.