White-Collar Crime & Crisis Management
International and Russian companies are facing an increasing number of legal challenges in Russia and other countries of the former USSR. The fines that various governmental bodies impose on corporations are on the increase. Corruption crimes, money laundering and aggressive tax schemes are drawing more attention from the competent agencies. Multinationals operating in post-Soviet states are more frequently engaging specialized experts, seeking assistance from them in sensitive and non-standard situations.
The multidisciplinary White-Collar Crime & Crisis Management Practice at Nordic Star Law Offices offers advisory services to companies and individuals. Our team provides services involving representation in courts in all regions across Russia and in most former USSR countries in crisis situations, including with respect to financial crimes (what is known as ‘white-collar crime’) such as fraud, tax evasion, and the embezzlement and misappropriation of funds.
Areas of Expertise
We offer advisory services and legal representation in the following cases:
- When senior management is accused of fraud, either within the company or by state authorities
- When a whistle-blower reports commercial bribery, embezzlement and/or other breaches of law and applicable ethical standards
- A so-called corporate raid (the taking over of a business with the use of criminal mechanisms)
- Corporate investigations and crisis situations arising in connection with the operation of subsidiaries in the countries of the former USSR
- Other situations relating to criminal law issues
Within the scope of our multidisciplinary practice’s efforts, we, among other things, perform such tasks as searching for assets, identifying the affiliation of persons and performing procedures to identify the actual beneficial owners of assets, projects and companies. We accomplish the above tasks both by relying on our internal resources (by using the largest global databases) and by engaging specialists with a narrow focus from relevant industries.
Recent Cases
- Advised a client on criminal law and criminal procedure in connection with a case commenced at the initiative of the tax authorities against the client’s former CEO, who was accused of committing crimes under article 159 (fraud) and article 199 (tax evasion) of the Russian Criminal Code during the period in which he managed client’s business
- Represented a client (a shareholder in a leasing company) which was a third party in a dispute between the leasing company and another shareholder over corporate transactions that were being challenged. These were consummated without the approval of the shareholders and, according to the shareholder in question, with the use of forged documents. The case has a foreign element and is made more complicated by there being a corporate conflict
- Represented a client, a former CEO of a large Russian bank in a criminal prosecution initiated against him in connection with a fraud case and with respect to extradition. The case was complicated by widespread publicity and a corporate conflict between former partners
- Advised a renowned distributor of industrial chemicals on aspects of Russian criminal and tax law and assessed the risks associated with a tax audit. We advised the client, inter alia, on the volume of information which should have been disclosed in response to requests of the Federal Tax Service
- Participated in a case over the recovery of losses caused to our client as a shareholder of one of the oldest insurance companies in CIS because of a fraudulent scheme that a group of minority shareholders and the former CEO of the company had concocted. The scheme involved the disposal of trademarks owned by the insurance company, with such trademarks subsequently being transferred back for use under a licensing agreement on conditions known to be unfavourable. The case was complicated because it required the application of provisions of foreign law. This case is part of a global campaign that our client, a large foreign bank which invests in CIS countries, has undertaken to search for assets
Rankings
Pravo – 300
- White-collar crime, Federal ranking (Group 3: 2018)
- White-collar crime, Regional ranking (Group 2: 2022-2023)
Best Lawyers
- Criminal Defense: Lyubov Erigo
Kommersant
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Criminal law. Economic crimes. Regional ranking (Band 1: 2023)