Kuzmina Tatyana Mikhailovna Gazprombank year of birth. Okur.rf invites you to a business breakfast and conference from the series “Lawyers and Business. Olga Fadeeva, “Power Machines”
According to her horoscope, she is Leo. Leo is a kind of iron lady. 230 subordinates is a whole legal army! And everyone needs to be managed without room for error. Give each person a task that corresponds to his knowledge and experience, control all decisions, and integrate them into a system so that it works for the benefit of the common cause. Oh, this is not a woman’s job...
Law is a complex system
I never had a goal to succeed. On the other hand, I always want to be the best in everything. But not just to say: “I am the best!” - namely, to achieve the highest results. It is very important for me that knowledge has an applied nature. For example, as a child I really loved mathematics. I didn’t sleep at night, tried to find a difficult problem, and could solve it all night long. To do something that no one could do before, to find a way out of a difficult situation that no one had thought of - this brings me pleasure.
In general, I have been a leader since childhood. Even in kindergarten I asked myself the question: “Why is everyone listening to me?” It was easy to set up friends, for example, to run away into the forest. And late in the evening you are greeted by your parents with a belt...
As I got older, I began to think about who I could be, what benefit I could bring with my knowledge? Of course, I found out that there is applied mathematics and cybernetics, but, unfortunately, in Kaliningrad, where I grew up, there was no such faculty. There was a physics and mathematics department where I was accepted without exams for my success at the Olympiads, but I thought it was too easy.
Having seen the Faculty of Economics and Law, I decided that since the word “economics” was there, then there should also be mathematics. And I entered the Faculty of Economics and Law. From economics, it turned out that everyone else at the law faculty had the same: accounting, political economy... The first two courses were very difficult to study because they were not interesting. They taught one story in its different forms. It felt like my brain was frozen. I never prepared for exams, I went solely from memory. A teacher once caught me solving logarithmic equations during a lecture. I was very offended and suggested moving to another department.
The discovery came during a civil law exam in the third year. It suddenly dawned on me that law is also a system, everything is divided into certain structures. Depending on how I can connect them with each other, I can come to very interesting solutions. As soon as this was revealed to me, I became a better student, everything became interesting to me. I realized how I could put my knowledge into practice.
The conductor of orchestra
I worked for eleven years in the Promsvyazbank team. These were very interesting years. The bank gradually grew, and so did I. The shareholders gave me complete freedom of action, and there was recognition of what I did. And my greatest achievement is the team of lawyers that remained after I left.
I believe that pulling all tasks onto yourself is a trap. Then you must be at work 24 hours and always know everything. It’s much more interesting for me to “invest” in people, discover their capabilities, build bridges from their knowledge to the use of their skills for the benefit of the company.
I can be called a systems person; I like to structure everything. Working in complete chaos with constant changes in the functionality of the same person is simply unrealistic for me. However, there should still be a little room for chaos. I can't imagine creativity within strict limits. And creativity is very important to me. Therefore, on the one hand, I create systemic structures, and on the other, I have areas in which I act absolutely relaxed, without strict rules.
My team is a large orchestra, where everyone plays their part. All I have to do is wave my baton and I can feel everyone at my fingertips. It is important to me that everyone receives a task that they can perform better than others. Very often, talented lawyers have everything in their heads, and there is no bridge through which all their ideas are transmitted.
Tatiana Kuzmina. Photo: Roman Konovalov What are we needed for? So that the entire organization works with profit and maximum effect. And the maximum effect is deals, specific business, new products, competent positioning of the company.
And when lawyers with excellent experience and good knowledge cannot contribute to achieving a result, these are formalist lawyers (“as asked, so answered,” “I did everything I could, and you decide”). As a rule, they have a lot of narcissism, they like to talk about lofty things, but in reality they are nothing.
A person like a peacock shows that he has finally figured out the problem and discovered sacred knowledge. At the same time, the answer to the question: what does all this mean? - No. As a result, customers (those who ask questions) become confused and annoyed. That is why it is important for a lawyer to learn to answer the question: what does this mean?
Hard style
At Gazprombank, where I now work under the leadership of First Vice President Elena Borisenko, a talented lawyer and modern manager, we are already finishing the process of fine-tuning our relationships with the team. Every person is a unique personality. We need to give him the opportunity to grow and open up. We conducted individual assessments of team members. Now every lawyer has the opportunity to reach their potential.
Thanks to Elena Adolfovna, the bank now has its own unique orchestra. We are learning to interact with each other and with business, building a task management system. The team is large: there are 80 people in the legal department at the head office and 150 lawyers in the branches.
Lawyers in Vladivostok and Moscow must clearly and predictably assess the same risk. A situation in which everyone invents their own approach is, from a business point of view, unpredictable and opaque. And there should be predictability in our behavior. Plus - in this case, people will spend less time on the same tasks, which is more efficient.
It is important that lawyers deal with the most complex and interesting projects. When a highly professional specialist spends his time on routine, we, having bought him expensively on the market, will simply waste our money.
I can say: in some ways I have a tough leadership style. If, for example, we fail to meet deadlines or answer questions poorly, this can lead to the destruction of the deal. Or to serious claims that are tangible for the company. Here I am strict in ensuring that deadlines are met and the quality of work is at the same level. Otherwise, why are we present in the company? Just because we can draw a beautiful visa or create obstacles for transactions? The most convenient option is to always be against... Development of professional qualities, meeting deadlines, fulfilling schedules - I am quite strict about this.
But in some ways I am softer. For example, I realized that an employee should be given the right to make mistakes. Even your exactingness can be shown in different ways. If an employee comes to you and you talk to him too harshly, he will simply freeze, and this will completely block all his possibilities. He is no longer able to come up with ideas, because he is afraid to express any thought.
I'm constantly looking for balance. Of course, it is important to clearly tell the person where he is wrong. But you also need to leave room for creativity. Not only point out mistakes, but also encourage them. And celebrate where it’s really done with talent. When a lawyer is given a task, his job is to clarify it in detail, and then no one touches him. It took me quite a few years to get to this point. I realized that we need to give people the opportunity to achieve something on their own. When we start setting tasks and at the same time telling how to do it, we are putting our head into someone else's. Or maybe this should be done in another, shorter way? And someone will find a more interesting solution.
Tatiana Kuzmina. Photo: Roman Konovalov But if it is important for a lawyer to work exactly from nine to six, to have only his own narrow specificity, we have routine tasks for him. They need to be isolated so that those who are interested in developing have more time for it. It turns out that we satisfy the needs of people with different needs.
Sometimes all lawyers need to do technical work. It's not a problem for me. If the task is to urgently register a transaction, and I am left alone with the documents, it is not difficult for me to take them and flash them. But I met lawyers who said: “this is not the king’s business,” “I didn’t come to work for you for this.” It turns out that this is not a team member, but some kind of narcissistic citizen.
Wedge with wedge
There was a time when I could only support a professional discussion, because I spent 14 hours at work. And in my free time, I study new regulations and read professional journals. I suddenly realized that from a sociable lady I had turned into a person who could only talk about problems of law and management of the legal function.
But what about cinema, theater, books, films? I realized this about five years ago. I myself noticed that in discussions that do not concern law, I always remain silent. Moreover, there is not even a single idea! But I was once fond of music and went to the theater. I have read a lot of books, but a long time ago. When it comes to books, I have always been an omnivore, reading everything I could get my hands on. And only later I began to choose.
And suddenly there was a feeling that there was emptiness around. The first thing I did was start listening to music. It turned out that for the last 10 years I haven’t turned on music at home at all. Then I remembered that I love ballet. I started going to it, to classical music concerts.
Now I still listen to music often. There is such a group - Parov Stelar. She is very optimistic: funny, amusing and even adventurous. I listen to them often. I love the organ. But this is when there is a certain touch of sadness. Wedge wedge, as they say. Then, as a rule, a good mood comes.
I like to walk in parks. At one time, for a very short time, I was jogging. And I came to the conclusion that I prefer to just walk. It is impossible to walk with me: I walk very quickly, it can be difficult to keep up with me.
Family is an important part of my life. The most dear and close people. I am proud of my son Dmitry and rejoice at his successes. I love my friends. It just so happens that many of them are lawyers.
It is important for me to do what I like. If there is a drive to complete some project instead of going to the theater, that is my own choice. Who said there has to be a clear balance in life? Why am I obliged to live within certain limits? While I'm passionate about the work. And if I want to travel, I will travel. The main thing is to be happy.§
The editors would like to thank the World of Music music salon for their help in organizing the shooting.
On behalf of the business newspaper Vedomosti, we invite you to take part in the III annual conference " Institute of bankruptcy in Russia. Bankruptcy practices and technologies", which will take place on September 15, 2017 in Moscow at the Marriott Royal Aurora Hotel.
The institution of bankruptcy is considered one of the main regulators of economic processes in society, ensuring the stability and sustainability of economic turnover. In the modern world, development continues in all spheres of the economy, which, in turn, gives impetus to the constant change of all institutions, including bankruptcy.
Today in Russia, relations in the field of bankruptcy are regulated by a law dated 2002, to which a myriad of amendments are constantly being made. But do they increase the effectiveness of the institution?
On an already proven platform, recognized experts will talk about directions for changing legislation, consider the emerging practice of bankruptcy, including for individuals, the concept of the “corporate veil”, conduct a comparative analysis of “high-profile bankruptcies” from the times of the Russian Empire and modern Russia and find answers to problematic questions industry.
Key topics of the conference
- Bankruptcy legislation in Russia and the world: about the practice of application, effectiveness and development trends.
- Bankruptcy of financial organizations: historical retrospective and comparative analysis of “high-profile bankruptcies” from the times of the Russian Empire and modern Russia.
- Bankruptcy of individuals and guarantors for corporate loans.
- Technologies for conducting bankruptcies (using the example of the bankruptcy of the Transaero and SU-155 companies).
- Two sides of the same “corporate veil”.
Among the speakers:
Evgeniy Akimov, Managing Director, Head of the Compulsory Collection and Bankruptcy Department of the Troubled Assets Department, Sberbank
Leonid Afendikov, Managing Director, Alvarez&Marsal CIS LLP
Eduard Bekeschenko, partner, law firm Baker McKenzie
Vladimir Bublikov, partner, law firm RKT
Pavel Bulatov, Counsel, White&Case Law Firm
Inna Vavilova, Managing Partner, Prime Advice
Larisa Valueva, Head of Legal Block, Promsvyazbank
Dmitry Vodchits, Head of Tax Practice, KSK Group
Alexey Dudko, Partner, Head of Litigation and Investigations, Hogan Lovells (CIS)
Oleg Zaitsev, consultant, Research Center for Private Law named after. S. S. Alekseeva under the President of the Russian Federation
Mark Karetin, Partner, Yukov and Partners
Alexey Karpenko, senior partner, law firm Forward Legal
Andrey Kovalev, chief accountant, Transaero
Igor Kopenkin, lawyer, partner, office of jurors and attorneys "Freytak and Sons"
Mikhail Krapivin, Managing Director, Alvarez & Marsal CIS LLP
Pavel Kuzmin, founder of ILB practice, Investment & Legal Solutions; Director of Legal Services, Tsargrad Group of Companies
Tatiana Kuzmina, Vice President, Head of Legal Department, Gazprombank
Yulia Litovtseva, Head of Bankruptcy and Anti-Crisis Business Protection Practice, Pepeliaev Group
Sergey Massarsky, Managing Director for Legal Affairs, Otkritie Bank
Yulia Medvedeva, Director of the Expert Analytical Department, Deposit Insurance Agency
Rustem Miftakhutdinov, Candidate of Legal Sciences, Associate Professor of the Department of Business and Corporate Law, Moscow State Law Academy named after. O.E. Kutafina; judge (retired), Supreme Arbitration Court of the Russian Federation
Alexey Moiseev, Deputy Minister of Finance of the Russian Federation
Vladimir Nazarenko, Director of the Legal Protection Department, VEB
Natalia Okuneva, Director of Legal Department, UniCredit Bank
Eduard Olevinsky, Chairman of the Board of Directors, Law Bureau "Olevinsky, Buyukyan and Partners"
Denis Panchenko, General Director, SU-155
Sergey Petrachkov, Senior Consultant, Dispute Resolution Practice, Restructuring and Bankruptcy Practice, Alrud Law Firm
“BUSINESS BREAKFAST WITH LEADERS”Chuichenko Konstantin Anatolyevich - Assistant to the President of the Russian Federation - Head of the Control Directorate of the President of the Russian Federation.
Conference “RISK MANAGEMENT:FROM THE PARENT COMPANY TO SUBSIDIARIES"
Nowadays, risk management has become the main task of the first person of the company's legal function. The head of the legal department is concerned about how to make the risk management process in the company end-to-end. Are there systems in place to manage litigation risks and government audits? Is it possible to plan litigation and set KPIs based on litigation planning? How to correctly evaluate and plan the outcome of a judicial perspective and set goals for lawyers of subsidiaries? And finally, how to build functional risk management for a group of companies while overcoming conflicts of interest? By what criteria does a business determine deviation from its goal?
In addition to risk management, the head of the company’s legal department manages people, the budget, consultants, his own time and the time of his team, sets goals for his subordinates and controls execution. If the legal department is small and concentrated in one place, it is easier to prioritize. What if the company is a holding with many legal entities located in different cities, or even different countries? What are the principles of managing a team of lawyers?
SESSION 1. “Legal risk management in a vertically integrated company using the example of litigation risks”
Moderator – Alexandra Nesterenko, President, OKUR
“Trends in the development of the legal profession”
“Planning, budgeting and control of litigation risks”
Roman Kvitko, Director of Legal Affairs, Gazprom Neft
“Measurability of the effectiveness of the legal department. Formation of a unified approach as the basis for improving the culture of legal risk management"
Representative of the IT company Corus Consulting
Discussion with participants. “Unified legal policy vs individuality and professional creativity.” Tatyana Kuzmina, Deputy Chairman of the Board - Head of the Legal Block, Promsvyazbank
"Effective management of the company's budget and management of consultants"
Alexey Nikiforov, Director of the Legal Department, SIBUR HOLDING
SESSION 2. “Time to change stereotypes: Best practices for interaction between lawyers and business”
"A fresh look"
Elena Borisenko, First Vice President, Gazprombank
"A View from the Inside"
Ruslan Ibragimov, Vice President for Corporate and Legal Affairs, MTS
“Time for a change: the legal function is moving beyond the cost center model.
Yana Zoloeva, partner, PWC
Victoria Harutyunyan, Senior Associate, Corporate and M&A Practice, PwC
Discussion “Once again about the client focus of corporate lawyers: does it need to be measured and, if so, how?”
Alexander Smirnov, Director of the Legal Department, Moscow Exchange Valery Sidnev, Director of the Legal Department, Eurochem
Once a year, heads of legal departments gather at OKUR to discuss issues of managing the legal department and the role of a lawyer in the company.
We called this project “Lawyers and Business” 7 years ago, but yesterday, at a conference, Evgeniy Zhilin, managing partner of YUST, noted that this name sounds like a contradiction, since the company’s lawyers have long been a key part of the business. He was supported by Ruslan Ibragimov, MTS vice-president for corporate and legal issues, member of the board of the OKUR. Ruslan agreed that in recent years the role of corporate lawyers has increased so much that one might consider a more precise name for the OKUR initiative.
Be that as it may, the chief lawyers of large companies gathered in the spacious hall of the Baltschug Hotel enthusiastically joined in the conversation. I was especially pleased that in addition to the main lawyers of Moscow companies - Efes, Eldorado, Nike, Rosvodokanal, Megapolis, Philip Morris, etc., directors from St. Petersburg came to the conference. These are Marina Gassiy, Vodokanal of St. Petersburg, Natalya Shvanvich, Mediterranean Shipping Company, Olga Fadeeva, Power Machines, Tatyana Strizheva, Gazpromexport. OKUR intends to develop its activities in St. Petersburg, so the involvement of our St. Petersburg comrades in such events is especially important.
The conference was preceded by a breakfast at which V.N. spoke. Pligin, Chairman of the State Duma Committee on Constitutional Legislation and State Building. The theme of the breakfast was “Interaction between business and government in building an effective legal system.”
Vladimir Nikolaevich drew the audience’s attention to two documents. The first, the Code of Administrative Procedure (CAC), recently came into force. Within the framework of the CAS, 300-400 thousand cases per year will be considered. When discussing the CAS, there was an idea to create administrative courts, but they abandoned it. Lawyers were asked to carefully study the CAS and, if inaccuracies or errors are discovered (anything can happen!), bring this information to the Duma. At the same time, the letter should be short and precise, without emotions, the speaker smiled.
Also V.N. Pligin said that today a proposal for a new edition of the Code of Administrative Offenses (COAP) will be posted on the website of the State Duma Committee. In this document, lawyers were asked to specifically study Chapters 23 (administrative liability in the field of entrepreneurship), 27 (violations in the field of competition) and Chapter 30. “This is a failed document, one of the goals of which is to eliminate the profanation of administrative liability. It’s no secret that of all administrative sanctions imposed, about 5% are implemented,” the speaker emphasized. And he concluded with an appeal to send proposals for the editorial office, since the importance of the Code of Administrative Offenses in the life of companies is great.
After V.N. Pligin’s theme was continued by Mikhail Galperin, Deputy Minister of Justice of the Russian Federation.
When discussing ways to make laws more effective, Mikhail said, we must not forget that in the economic sphere, in private law, as a rule, laws today are initiated not by some abstract subject, but by specific people and interest groups. Along with the legislation of ideas, based on doctrinal provisions and analysis of judicial practice, the legislation of interests, or more precisely, the legislation of compromise of interests, is actively developing. This is neither good nor bad, this is reality. When you see a law that, from your point of view, is bad, overly casuistic, unclear or ineffective, never rule out the possibility that one of your colleagues could have initiated it.
M. Galperin said that he recently participated in a meeting with practicing lawyers to discuss the initiative of the Ministry of Justice to systematize the legislation on business companies.
The meeting participants unanimously spoke about the imperfection of corporate legislation. However, lawyers reacted more than reservedly to the proposal to prepare a full-scale project to change it. One part of the meeting participants expressed concern that the future project, the preparation of which will take considerable time, will change unrecognizably during its passage through the Government and the State Duma, and after its adoption the situation will become worse than it is. Another part of the colleagues honestly admitted that the development of a new project could slow down the “spot changes” they had prepared, into which significant efforts had been invested.
The Deputy Minister recalled that responsibility for the quality of legislation today lies with all of us. Tools of civilized lobbying: regulatory impact assessment, public discussion, independent anti-corruption expertise, expert council under the Government, various expert formats under government bodies, and now also regulatory impact assessment, allow you to actively influence lawmaking.
“It is you, company lawyers, who advise business owners and top management on what legal decisions should be supported, what is beneficial and what is unprofitable for the business,” Mikhail addressed the managers. “Of course, lawyers tend to be pragmatists, but let’s be a little idealistic. “And when criticizing certain bills, we will try together to make them better, let’s think not only about the regulation of certain situations, but also about the common good, about the systematic nature of legislation, its instrumental convenience in the long term,” urged M. Galperin.
I really liked M. Galperin’s idea about the social responsibility of business in the field of lawmaking.
In conclusion, Mikhail thanked the OKUR for cooperation with the Ministry of Justice and invited him to take part in the first meeting of the Ministry of Justice working group on corporate legislation. He recalled that one of the platforms for discussing the problems of the development of economic legislation is the St. Petersburg International Legal Forum, which will be held from May 18 to 21, 2016 in St. Petersburg, and offered to send ideas for round tables to the St. Petersburg International Legal Forum and, of course, actively participate in raising and discussing problems that are of concern to the legal community.
Elena Borisenko, First Vice President of Gazprombank, in the recent past Deputy Minister of Justice of the Russian Federation, said kind words about her colleague M. Galperin, noting the high class and creative spirit of the team created by Mikhail. An experienced official who became a top manager of the country's largest bank, she also notes the casual nature of rulemaking and the fact that, having gone from a draft to publication in Rossiyskaya Gazeta, a document sometimes loses its original intent.
The second part - the Conference itself - was opened by a speech by Andrei Gennadievich Lisitsyn-Svetlanov, Director of the Institute of State and Law of the Russian Academy of Sciences. We invited the only academician in the field of law to speak in order to enrich top lawyers with the vision of an experienced scientist and practitioner about the trends in the development of the legal profession. Advice from A.G. Lisitsyn-Svetlanov are based on their own 42 years of experience. Andrey Gennadievich divided his speech into several parts: legal education, legal professions and professional skills, interaction of legal professions, accents of professional work in Russia and abroad, professional challenges or what to expect in the legal profession. It is impossible to describe the academician’s comprehensive speech. I will talk about the professional challenges for lawyers identified by the scientist.
This part of his speech by A.G. Lisitsyn-Svetlanov began with the words “Let me remember the future.” To make a forecast about the future, he turned to the experience of the Russian judicial system, noting that “we have a judicial system, but there is no implementation of the provisions of the Constitution on the judiciary.” Lawyers can expect the development of the regulatory framework taking into account two factors - excessive rulemaking and the complication of passing projects, especially bills. To these factors is added lobbying, which “like any action, gives rise to opposition.”
According to the scientist, a serious change in routine work will be associated with the beginning of innovative activation. The pace of legislative change is accelerating: there are now 620 federal laws and 26,000 government resolutions in force! “Even the admiral of justice will feel like a cabin boy in the ocean of legal acts,” the recognized admiral of justice noted with humor. “And when creating a law, you need to start with a good concept. If the concept is worked out, it will be accepted and the law will work,” the Admiral of Justice concluded his speech.
If we continue the allegories, then Roman Kvitko can be called the admiral of practical jurisprudence. His presentations are distinguished by thoughtfulness, a high degree of preparedness and openness of information, which he shares with his colleagues.
This time Roman shared ways to manage risks in crisis conditions. He noted that the growth of legal risks in Russia and abroad forces us to look for new ways to manage risks, and provided data on judicial work in the Gazprom Neft group. From the above analytics, he draws conclusions that 1) it is necessary to strengthen judicial work both in terms of the quality of work and in terms of using all possible resources and 2) planning of judicial activities is necessary.
By the way, Roman began his speech with the words “I want to consult with you,” which immediately endeared him to the audience.
In order to manage litigation risks, you need to define them: material/intangible, Russian/foreign, public/private law.
To manage risks, Roman said, the following tasks need to be solved: 1. Planning; 2.Assessing the likelihood and significance of risks; 3. Development of minimization measures; 4.Reporting and control.
The legal directorate, led by Roman, developed tools for managing legal risks: a budget, a decision-making system, a planning system, a reporting and control system, the content of each of which he disclosed in detail. Reporting and control is provided by the Curacao system, which allows you to build accurate reports based on various criteria. The system was created by the company KORUS Consulting, whose representative spoke after Roman.
Tatyana Machkova, head of the Sberbank of Russia department, said in the discussion that Sberbank has a BPM system that has similar tasks. She was interested in the question of the level of materiality of the claims. Roman replied that there are cases involving small amounts, the value of which is great as a precedent, and there are cases involving large amounts, in which winning even part of the amount can be very difficult. He was also supported by Ruslan Ibragimov, who spoke in the second part of the conference about the structure of judicial work in MTS.
Alexander Nevinchany, Director of the Microsoft Basic Solutions Department, KORUS Consulting, introduced the lawyers to the KORUS company, a Russian system integrator that provides useful services to companies. This includes maintaining a database of court cases, maintaining a database of inspections by government agencies, maintaining a database of claims work, maintaining a database of enforcement proceedings, maintaining a database of intellectual property violations, assessing the effectiveness of the legal department, and others.
The listeners were interested in Alexander’s story, because the system provides complete and up-to-date information, minimizes the human factor, increases the efficiency and level of competence of the function.
And then Tatyana Kuzmina, Deputy Chairman of the Board - Head of the Legal Block, Promsvyazbank, raised the topic of the relationship between typical and individual in the work of a lawyer. What is typing? Is it a blessing or the “blinders” that a lawyer finds himself in, begins to get bored and loses interest in creativity? This topic is directly related to employee motivation, because we are all interested in retaining creative people, but how to do this in times of crisis?
Tatyana described in detail how she is creating a unified legal policy in a large company: developing technologies for providing legal services, reducing routine and technical work, introducing comprehensive legal risk management, centralizing the management of the legal function and setting client-focused standards.
It raises the question of how to find a balance between standardization and quality control, on the one hand, and initiative and individual creativity, on the other.
Thinking about how to build quality management through team building and motivation, he quotes Marc Benioff, CEO of Salesforce, “The secret to successful recruiting is this: look for people who want to change the world.” Tatyana described what qualities such people should have: professionalism, result orientation, systemic and strategic thinking, creativity, openness to change, proactivity, passion for work and team leadership.
Oleg Mizgirev, Director of Legal Affairs, RUSNANO, joined the discussion, proposing to consider this topic through the prism of a person - a specific lawyer. And, of course, through
the prism of his leader.
What is the function of a lawyer, he asked his colleagues. And he answered himself: a lawyer combines his concretely existing life with pre-established formulas. Usually life either works well with the formula or it doesn't.
If a simple real-life incident is combined with an understandable formula, then the lawyer has nothing to think about, it is hardly interesting to him. If life refuses to fit into the framework allotted to it, you need to invent a way to live it, force it to obey - then there is room for creativity and inspiration.
The lawyer’s manager is able to typify simple and uninteresting cases, freeing his subordinate from the need to deal with them, which leads to two consequences:
1. Shifting the balance of a lawyer’s activities in favor of interesting things by reducing the second element. This increases interest in work and creativity, improves work results in general and reduces irritation and fatigue from it.
2. Savings for the company, because Due to the absence of the need to approve certain documents, working time is freed up for solving other problems, and business processes begin to proceed faster.
At the same time, excessive enthusiasm for typification can also have the opposite effect if a non-standard situation is misinterpreted and resolved using standard means that are unsuitable for the given case.
Each organization should analyze its activities and select functions/cases suitable for typing, taking into account its characteristics (from the explanation of the English teacher present simple with the abbreviation VOPR - Generally, Usually, Habitually, Regularly). These same functions performed by VOPR are the first candidates for typing.
If, in general, we identify 5 main blocks in a lawyer’s work, enormous opportunities for typification open up:
1. Coordination of contracts, transactions, powers of attorney.
VOPR (administrative and economic purchases - for all organizations, loan agreements for banks, powers of attorney for branch managers) can be typed and no longer agreed upon. In RUSNANO, the bulk of contracts - services in various areas - when using a standard contract form do not require the approval of lawyers.
Unusual, rare, large, important and complex transactions and contracts, of course, are not typed. Which, however, does not prevent us from at least developing templates for use in negotiations.
2. Coordination/development of internal documents.
Personnel orders and standard decisions of management bodies can be standardized and no longer require their approval by lawyers.
3. Judicial claims work.
For example, it is quite possible for credit institutions to type statements of claim against defaulters on loans, etc.
4. Legal advice
You can summarize the company’s experience in certain areas and prepare methodological explanations of the most frequently encountered issues (although, of course, nothing can replace the warmth of human communication, especially on legal topics).
5. Interaction with regulators.
For example, if a lot of approvals from the Federal Antimonopoly Service are required, it is quite possible to type requests to the regulator with the link to the automatic preparation of a group of persons using software. Or, a current topic is the preparation of information on CFCs - there are inexpensive solutions for automating this data and sending it to the Federal Tax Service.
II. The second question in the topic under discussion is how much can a lawyer improve the life around him, being within the limitations of typification? There is one nuance here. On the one hand, constant communication with this environment allows a lawyer to identify the “cons” of the created legal management system, and on the other hand, after a while he ceases to see these “cons.” Thus, typing can be considered as a tool for unlocking a person’s potential.
Just as a computer, according to S. Jobs, should have become a bicycle for the brain, so typing should be a bicycle in the work of every lawyer, allowing the freed up energy to be used for complex and creative tasks, summed up the chief lawyer of RUSNANO.
The discussion was continued by Zhanna Lobeiko, Director of the Legal Support Department, Rostelecom.
Zhanna was talking about how to avoid suppressing initiative/individual creativity during automation/standardization?
Paradoxically, the more legal work that is done “automatically” according to the standard, she believes, the more time is freed up for lawyers to do creative/non-standard work. In the absence of automation, a lawyer must do more routine work. Especially in a large company, where lawyers in different regions “reinvent the same wheel” every day. Therefore, standardization is the first condition for freeing up lawyers to solve problems outside the template. The more standardization, the more opportunities for initiative and creativity of lawyers.
On the other hand, Zh. Lobeiko asked herself, how to prevent legal creativity from being reduced to technology? (b) impairment of legal entities. functions, (c) increasing business risks?
Lawyers set standards not so much for themselves as for the business. When a lawyer himself works according to a template, this is rather an exception to the rule. But even in such a case, this does not mean that he is limited in his initiative. Rather, he is insured against mistakes, works with less stress, and takes less time to complete a task.
Quality templates that are periodically updated and validated against business needs do not detract from the value of lawyers. Against. Firstly, the quality of a standard legal product directly affects the business result (for example, a concise, understandable and readable contract with a subscriber helps sell services). Secondly, standardization (a) increases the reputation of lawyers (since they “have everything thought out in advance”), (b) disciplines business units (you cannot “agree” with a lawyer to deviate from the standard), (c) saves them time for approval - all this reduces risks and affects the productivity of the company as a whole. Therefore, it turns out that standardization works in the opposite direction: it reduces risks and increases the value of the legal function, and not vice versa.
At the same time, it is very important that lawyers, freed from routine through standardization, have the opportunity to show their initiative and creativity. We need to create conditions for this and set new tasks. This is the role of their leadership.
After listening to Zhanna, I thought what a broad view she has, and what a wonderful leader she is!
Elena Chugunova, acting Director of Legal Affairs, T Plus, spoke about the typification carried out at T Plus, which helps the legal function become a true business partner.
Alexey Nikiforov, Director of the Legal Department, SIBUR Holding, spoke on the topic of effective management of the company’s budget and management of consultants.”
Alexey noted that Sibur is the largest petrochemical company in Russia, producing a wide range of products in the field of plastics, organic synthesis, base polymers, and rubbers. Currently, Sibur is implementing several large investment projects aimed at building new gas processing and petrochemical facilities. Sibur employs 25,000 employees, 30 operating sites throughout the country, and products are sold in 70 countries.
Like any large company, we work a lot with external legal consultants, Alexey said. Like all corporations, we have certain standards for budgeting expenses for lawyers and their selection. Every year we qualify legal service providers, selecting those law firms with whom we will work throughout the next year. Qualification is tied to official ratings - legal 500, chambers. For each area of law or area of business, we select the most proven lawyers, thereby specifying for ourselves who we will choose from when any project arises. When a new project appears, we begin selection. It is carried out according to the criterion of price, as well as the flexibility and attractiveness of proposals in terms of other related parameters. The best offer gets the contract.
We are not unique in this. And our form of selecting consultants is quite standard. And that’s why I wouldn’t want to focus on it now.
I would not like to because much more interesting things are now happening with the content of this process. I'm talking about trends in the Russian legal services market that are significantly changing it. We can say with all confidence that the 2015 market is already in many ways different from what we saw five years ago. And it is almost certain that in 2020 we will see something even more different from today.
What do I mean and what factors am I talking about? I can highlight 3 of them. It seems to me that the main ones. Intensifying competition in the market; Pressure on legal budgets; Increasing the professionalism of buyers; Intensifying competition in the market.
At this point, we can highlight the content and structural aspects. In essence, what we are seeing today is called tightening price competition among law firms. It is no secret that, in general, almost all law firms today have become more accommodating when agreeing on working conditions. Even if we do not take into account new forms of competition, companies have definitely become more aggressive in terms of their pricing policy. But now I would like to dwell on the structural changes in the market, which have already begun and will continue to influence the competitive environment there.
a) Legal boutiques
In recent years, international and large Russian law firms have cultivated a large number of specialists who are looking for employment. Some, realizing that they are not in danger of partnership in the near future, make themselves partners, creating small, usually highly specialized firms, and offer the same services that they offered in ILF, but for significantly less money. Moreover, sometimes such firms are created by former partners of international law firms, who bring a large number of clients to such boutiques.
What does this mean for us, customers? First of all, we get an additional player in the tender, which allows us, at a minimum, to significantly reduce the price. We like the absolute flexibility of small firms and the complete confidence that your project will be given personal attention by a partner, and not by one of his many lawyers. Probably, for large, high-status transactions, we will not allow ourselves to stay only with such a company. We will, of course, take a large ILF for the project, but even in this case, a small boutique, like an auxiliary boat, will give us the opportunity to use less of a large expensive ship called ILF.
About a year ago, an interesting article appeared in the Economist about a new trend in the legal services market - the expanding presence of Big Four companies in it. The article noted that the big 4 had already healed the painful memories of the Enron case, when they were effectively prohibited from consulting, and were gradually returning to the market, either growing organically or buying smaller players in the legal services market.
Russia is no exception to this trend. What advantages do Big Four companies have over traditional law firms and why is there a future for them?
A more comprehensive approach to the service. In one window you can buy an inexpensive due deal, good drafting, and also receive related advice on tax and financial law. Not that bad for the price Big 4 offers. I, of course, can take the same from ILF, but what will it cost me?
More flexible pricing policy. The Big Four do not and have not lived in the reality of the hourly dollar economy. The salaries of local lawyers there are not tied to the dollar exchange rate, and caps in these cases work better because they are not supported by billing that constantly goes beyond them.
It’s trite a more serious resource for marketing. What any of the big 4 can do in order to sell themselves well, many of the modern law firms cannot do.
Finally, subjective factors. It's no secret that the legal budget of any large company is influenced not only by the chief lawyer. The CFO has no less, and often more, influence on the budget. And for CFOs, Big Four companies are much more understandable counterparties. And from this point of view, the traditional direct access of BIG 4 to the CFO may at least allow them to be considered on an equal basis with other law firms.
c) Alternative providers
In the 2000s, Richard Susskind’s acclaimed book “The End of Lawyers” was published. At first it seemed like some kind of science fiction, not the most relevant for the Russian legal services market. Now much of what is written there is beginning to come true. And one of the trends is the expansion of the line of so-called alternative providers of related legal services. Any project that requires legal support involves identifying a number of areas of legal work. And such a decomposition of legal support allows us to separate services that are really worth purchasing from an expensive law firm, and which it makes sense to outsource to another, cheaper provider. Translation, due dil. We previously ordered all this from one company that led the project. Now her involvement in the project may be more targeted.
Pressure on legal budgets
According to the latest PWC survey, 78% of legal departments surveyed had no plans to increase legal budgets in 2015. Everyone understands that in 2016 the pressure on budgets will not decrease. This means that we will buy fewer services and be much more selective in choosing legal consultants.
Here I would like to separately highlight the topic of the influence of exchange rates on rates. As the exchange rate of the dollar and euro increased, the cost of consultants' services also increased proportionally. Moreover, we are often talking not about foreign lawyers working in Western offices, but about Russian lawyers located in Russian offices, practicing Russian law. The explanation in this case is quite simple: we have a dollar economy, our salaries are tied to conventional units. Even if this is so, then this is, of course, a significant competitive disadvantage, a weak point of law firms. Sometimes the parties agree to fix a specific exchange rate. But, firstly, this is done within a certain corridor. And secondly, this still does not explain why today we fix the price of services at the rate of 65, while just a year ago the same services cost 2 times less. At the same time, let me remind you that today our competition has increased, today we count money more.
Therefore, I believe that those firms that can afford to refuse dollar rates will benefit from others.
Increasing buyer professionalism
Who heads the legal departments of large holding companies today? In a huge number of cases, these are people from law firms. People who know the economics of consulting, approaches to pricing for legal services, methods of working with clients. Who is currently working on transactions and investment projects in the in-house? In many cases these are yesterday's ILF associates. This certainly increases the selectivity of large clients in purchasing legal services. External lawyers will be involved only in those areas of work where they are needed. As part of tenders, the selection of external lawyers will be stricter. Monitoring the quality of consultants' work by in-house former consultants will be more thorough.
This is our view of the trends in the development of the legal services market. This is not an apocalyptic scenario, but rather a new reality, which now cannot be ignored, believes A. Nikiforov.
Alexey’s speech raised many questions and comments, because every lawyer of the company faces the task of doing quality work while spending a minimum of money.
The topic of interaction between companies subject to 223-FZ and legal consultants was covered by Katerina Kharitontseva, Director of the Legal Department of the United Rocket and Space Corporation.
Katerina pointed out the restrictions on the choice of consultants associated with the provisions of 223-FZ:
They include a brief analysis of possible methods of purchasing legal entities. services: 1) from a single supplier (advantages: fast, no need to develop documentation, compare received applications; disadvantages: corruption component; claims from inspection authorities); 2) request for proposals/competition (pros: choosing the best through a competitive procedure for comparing applications; cons: long, difficulties in determining evaluation criteria); 3) auction (pros: fast, one evaluation criterion; cons: only price evaluation criterion).
I drew attention to the advantages of conducting prequalification (PQS): - with proper planning, it allows you to form a limited pool of legal entities in advance. consultants meeting the Customer's requirements; - allows you to conclude confidentiality agreements and general terms of service in advance; - subsequent procurement procedures can be carried out among a limited number of participants; - does not limit the Customer’s ability to carry out future procurement procedures on the market; - allows you to ensure the future selection of a consultant on a competitive basis; - IMPORTANT: it is necessary to specify the PQS procedure in detail in the Procurement Regulations.
The chief space lawyer gave practical recommendations on the formation of technical assignments and procurement documentation: - it is necessary to carefully consider the evaluation criteria, the ratio of the weight of the price criterion to other parameters; - it is necessary to use the opportunity to include in the draft agreement provisions that meet the interests of the Customer (payment methods, currency, procedure for interaction between the parties, responsibility, etc.); - it is necessary to use the opportunity to include various assurances in the documentation (absence of conflicts of interest (including in relation to subsidiaries, if necessary); information processing only on the territory of the Russian Federation, etc.); - it is necessary to indicate the possibility of attracting legal entities by the parent company. consultants in the interests of the subsidiary.
After the coffee break, the participants returned to the stylish hall with renewed vigor. The topic of the second part: Time to change stereotypes: Best practices for interaction between lawyers and business.” Elena Borisenko, First Vice President, Gazprombank, a skilled moderator, gave the floor to Ruslan Ibragimov, Vice President for Corporate and Legal Affairs, MTS.
Ruslan's speeches are always very informative, as they reflect the diverse activities of the legal, corporate and GR departments of MTS.
This time, Ruslan turned to the topic of litigation, calling his bright presentation “Judicial Function: Diagnosis and Treatment of Business Processes.”
Ruslan, who comes from a family of doctors, built his imaginative presentation using medical terms, comparing business to the body, which also requires long-term measures to develop muscle mass, agility, strength and improve endurance. And the usual judicial function is usually characterized by symptomatic treatment, in which the judicial unit acts as a rapid response unit to emerging problems.
According to Ruslan, legal work, deeply woven into business processes, leads to an understanding of new goals. However, the fire-fighting nature of the work of judicial officers does not allow the judicial function to unfold. Therefore, a transition should be made from fire brigade to fire prevention. The Judicial Department conducts a structural analysis of business problems in order to identify the causes of “diseases”.
As a result of diagnostics, Ruslan's team classifies spores by type and type; studies the causes of “regular” disputes, looking at their dynamics; identifies the most active subjects of disputes; identifies problem areas of business processes; forms recommendations based on the results of the analysis. And businesses receive legally clean, optimized, efficient business processes. Lawyers reduce time for routine disputes, freeing it up for important disputes. In conclusion, Ruslan cited the dynamics of bankruptcy and advertising disputes (SMS-SPAM), confirming the correctness of the chosen methodology.
Roman Kvitko asked Ruslan a question about whether litigation lawyers are separated into a separate division at MTS? Ruslan replied that he allocated forensic lawyers to a separate department, which increased the efficiency of the work of trial lawyers and explained in detail why. At that moment I thought how great it is that we can exchange experiences at OKUR!
Next, Yana Zoloeva, managing partner of PwC Legal and Victoria Harutyunyan, senior lawyer in the corporate and mergers and acquisitions practice of PwC Legal, presented a very visual material on the topic “Time to change stereotypes: the legal function goes beyond the cost center model.”
Yana and Victoria spoke about changes in the work of corporate lawyers that occurred in 2008 and 2014, about new opportunities for strengthening the role of corporate lawyers, about the growing role of legal directors in Russia, about the 4-level role of the legal department in a company. Right at the conference, Yana and Victoria held a vote on what role the legal representative plays in your company.
The best international practice on the areas in which company lawyers can add value to business turned out to be very useful
And if we already know such an area as reducing costs for external consultants, then the introduction of comprehensive reimbursement and cost savings programs proposed by PWC experts seems new and little tested.
What are we talking about? What is a reimbursement program? This is a formalized program initiated by lawyers, approved at the level of the General Director or Board of Directors of the company, implemented in close cooperation between the Legal Department and other divisions of the company, involving training of business units in terms of identifying violations of the company’s rights and opportunities for compensation.
Strategic goals of the program: to ensure the protection of the rights, legitimate interests and assets of the company (but not by increasing the number of disputes!); bring additional profit and reduce company costs; demonstrate the financial value that the legal department brings to the business, going beyond the cost center model.
Examples of compensation: damage to goods during transportation; unfair competition; claims against a supplier who is a client.
When I listened to this detailed report, I remembered the call of S. Puzyrevsky, deputy head of the Federal Antimonopoly Service of Russia, that persons who have suffered as a result of violations of antimonopoly legislation should apply to the courts for compensation for losses. So far there are few such requests. Perhaps due to the lack of a technique that will soon be developed.
Next, we were presented with a strategic map of the legal department. And finally, here are the results of the global study Global Legal Post/Terra Lex “The General Counsel Excellence Report”, 2015 on what issues will concern the head of the legal department in the next 18 months.
The legal department's biggest concern is creating business value; in second place is cost management of the legal department; in third place are issues of company risk management; on the fourth - reorganization of the legal department to increase its efficiency; fifth - the company's reputational risks.
How would you prioritize?
And for the dessert of the conference, there was a discussion “Once again about the client focus of corporate lawyers: does it need to be measured and, if so, how? "Pros and cons"
Alexander Smirnov, Director of the Legal Department, Moscow Exchange, spoke about the NPS index, used as a KPI for the legal department of the Moscow Exchange, when departments that provide services to everyone (HR, lawyers, accounting, etc.) are assessed by all employees of the company.
Valery Sidnev, director of legal affairs at EuroChem, took the exact opposite position, arguing that he is assessed only by the CEO, and not by other functions, and assessment in the private company EuroChem is based on compliance with goals, not performance indicators.
Nina Belozertseva, director of the legal department of TEVA, shared the experience of a company in which service level agreements are concluded between the legal department and other departments, establishing the expectations of one function from another. She also revealed a tool such as Legal Business Initiatives (LBI) - initiatives of the legal department that influence the achievement of the company's business plan.
As always, we did not have enough time to discuss all the issues of concern. Next time, we decided, we'll leave more time for discussion!
I thank Anna Kotova-Smolenskaya for her assistance in preparing the conference.
After the conference I heard a lot of kind words.
Here is one of the reviews from a manager whose opinion is very important to me:
"Alexandra! As I have already noted, the agenda for today’s event was impeccably drawn up. You have touched, in my opinion, on the most pressing topics of corporate legal services.
I exchanged contacts with many colleagues, with whom I agreed to continue sharing experiences.
What I also liked was the level of the invited leaders. Probably, no conference held in Moscow can compare in terms of the composition of participants.
Finally, the format of round tables, without an official “square” or, even worse, an “auditorium,” greatly contributed to a lively discussion.”
Let's continue!
Selected one hundred of the best in-houses in Russia in the GC Powerlist rating for 2017. The list was compiled based on the opinions of law firm partners and attorneys. The authors of the rating hope that it will help improve the efficiency of inhouses on the Russian market. The best included representatives of the banking sector, large manufacturing, retailers, pharmaceutical and other companies. The specialists in the rating are listed in alphabetical order, without additional gradation.
“GC Powerlist is the latest publication from The Legal 500 to turn its attention to the in-house function and recognize those corporate advisers who are driving the legal business forward. The latest edition of GC Powerlist: Russia identifies some of the most influential and innovative internal consultants operating in the country,” the ranking’s compilers note.
~A~
Artem Afanasyev, DIXY Group of Companies
And compliance control of DIXY Group, member of the Management Board, member of the Board of Directors
At Dixie Group, Afanasyev built a legal practice based on transparent mechanics for promoting professionals. Dixy attracts the most talented students from Russian universities for internships. Dixie's legal team itself received awards from Corporate Counsel magazine for effective risk management.
At Dixie Group, Afanasyev built a legal practice based on transparent mechanics for promoting professionals. Dixy attracts the most talented students from Russian universities for internships. Dixie's legal team itself received awards from Corporate Counsel magazine for effective risk management.
One of Artem Afanasyev’s last significant achievements in the ranking is a major transaction to purchase the assets of an unnamed competitor Dixy, which was closed in just a few weeks.
Vladimir Alexandrov, Aeroflot
Deputy General Director for Legal and Property Issues
Alexandrov has been working at Aeroflot since 2013. During this period, the company continued to expand ambitiously. In particular, Alexandrov helped conduct several transactions for the purchase of 50 Sukhoi Superjet aircraft and Boeing B737-800 aircraft. Now Aeroflot, according to The Legal 500, has one of the newest and safest fleets in Europe.
Mirshod Aliyev, Metalloinvest
Head of Legal Projects
Despite sanctions, an economic downturn and lower product prices, Aliyev’s team manages to protect the company. This is achieved through prompt communication with management and monitoring of current legislation. According to Aliyev, lawyers should spend more time with non-legal employees, since “over-specialization is outdated and redundant.” Aliyev notes that the company needs universal, commercially oriented lawyers.
Despite sanctions, an economic downturn and lower product prices, Aliyev’s team manages to protect the company. This is achieved through prompt communication with management and monitoring of current legislation. According to Aliyev, lawyers should spend more time with non-legal employees, since “over-specialization is outdated and redundant.” Aliyev notes that enterprises need universal, commercially oriented lawyers.
Arthur Allaliev, Kia Motors Rus
Allaliev's work is noted in terms of antimonopoly legislation. In connection with FAS inspections, the company adjusted its long-term business strategy in Russia.
Allaliev’s team was also highly noted in the marketing projects of the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup and the 2018 FIFA World Cup. In 2016, despite staff reductions, Allaliev introduced an effective process for dealing with consumer disputes and, in general, “mobilized internal resources and effectively distributed roles.”
Allalive's work is noted in terms of antitrust legislation. In connection with FAS inspections, the company adjusted its long-term business strategy in Russia.
Aliyev’s team was also highly noted in the marketing projects of the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup and the 2018 FIFA World Cup. In 2016, despite staff reductions, Aliyev introduced an effective process for dealing with consumer disputes and generally “mobilized internal resources and effectively distributed roles.”
Alexey Andronov, TC MEGAPOLIS JSC
Director of the Legal Department and Compliance, Member of the Expert Council of the Federal Antimonopoly Service for the Development of Competition in the Tobacco Products Market
Alexey Andronov supported the expansion of the company's product portfolio worldwide. His team achieved high efficiency in logistics and sales.
Megapolis, being a leading distributor of tobacco products, beer and other goods, is under the careful control of the FAS. A new professional challenge for the team was a change in legislation regarding the tobacco industry. Alexey Andronov noted that working in highly regulated industries with multi-billion dollar turnover “requires an extremely careful legal approach, in-depth legal analysis and fundamental knowledge of each industry.”
Maria Appak, Nike
Director of the Legal Department
The compilers of the rating call Maria Appak one of the most outstanding lawyers in the field of consumer goods in Russia. Work with antimonopoly issues, as well as litigation with foreign companies, is noted as experience. Previously, Maria Appak worked in the Russian branches of Canon and Ruukki.
~B~
EXPAND COMPLETELY
Dmitry Babenko, LLC Management Company "Metalloinvest"
Director of Corporate Affairs
Dmitry Babenko and his team are working in the face of new challenges in the mining sector. They are commended for their first-class commercial and technical skills to overcome these challenges. Dmitry Babenko has two higher education degrees in “Economics and Business Administration in Mining and Geological Surveys” and “Jurisprudence”.
Alexander Bardyugov, Banca Intesa
Director of the Legal Department
Alexander Bardyugov reformed the company's contractual framework and formed a clear structure in the legal department. After EU and US sanctions against Russia affected the bank's activities, Bardyugov was able to minimize the negative side effects together with other divisions of the company. “Legal services should be considered from the point of view of their usefulness for business and the overall commercial goal - maximum profit with minimal risks,” advises Bardyugov.
Natalya Blokhina, Radius Group
head of legal department
Natalya Blokhina participated in the signing of the largest deal in the history of Radius Group with Auchan in 2016: the company will build a large logistics center for the French retailer.
Blokhina’s innovative activities are especially noted: she launched an electronic contract system, all legal actions are reflected in digital form. This helps increase transparency and reduce errors in processes. In addition, Blokhina organized close work between all Radius legal teams.
Maxim Bobin, Amway
director of legal department
While working at CTC Media, Bobin negotiated a deal worth more than $200 million related to the new media law. Since 2016, he has become legal director at Amway and is responsible for subsidiaries in Russia and Kazakhstan. It is noted that at different times Bobin also worked at Mail.Ru and Lukoil.
Alexey Bolshakov, BASF
Head of Legal Department
Alexey Bolshakov is called a leading lawyer in his sector. Working for the largest German chemical concern, he is not only responsible for legal issues in Russia and the CIS, but is also the managing director of the company. Bolshakov is recognized for his risk management and commercial know-how in a multinational corporate environment.
Boris Bunkin, Coca-Cola HBC
Legal Director of the Director for Legal Affairs for a group of countries (Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova, Poland, Armenia, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia)
The authors of the rating note Bunkin’s work in various jurisdictions with unique problems. Previously, he served as Director of Legal Affairs in Russia. “This is a very important role, given that the United States has identified Russia as a key emerging market for business,” the ranking notes.
Vadim Bynkov, Russian Railways
Head of Legal Department
In 2012, Bynkov played an important role in the purchase of a 75% stake in the logistics operator Gefco for the amount of €800 million. In addition, his work in the purchase of Electric Multiple Unit trains worth more than 2.6 billion rubles is noted. Previously, Vadim Bynkov held significant positions in the diamond mining company Alrosa.
~B~
Valeria Voronkina, Bank St. Petersburg
Deputy Chairman of the Board
She began her career at the bank in 2008 as a general counsel. After four years of successful work in other companies, she returned to the bank in 2014 as Deputy Chairman of the Board. In her position, Voronkina controls issues of strategic business development and monitors the activities of the bank’s legal service.
Diana Vinokurova, Carrier Corporation
Legal Manager
Vinokurova developed the legal department from scratch, implementing all internal protocols, systems and processes. Over the course of the year, Vinokurova assembled an effective, business-oriented team and was praised for its excellent knowledge in the areas of corporate governance, litigation, M&A and government cooperation. Vinokurova and her team provide risk analysis and practical solutions to problems in any matter. Prior to this, Vinokurova worked in the financial services sector at Raiffeisen Bank and Alfa-Bank.
Sergey Viktorov, Novo Nordisk
Director of Quality and Legal Affairs
Novo Nordisk is developing drugs for the treatment of diabetes. Viktorov has been working there for about a year, his first experience working in a large company. Prior to this, Viktorov spent several years in various medium-sized firms, which were mainly involved in investments in natural resources. When asked to give advice to other lawyers, Victor says: “Be committed to change, don’t be complacent and continue to develop yourself, become a partner to the business, not just an advisor.”
Yulianna Vertinskaya, GE Renewable Energy
Vertinskaya heads the legal team that oversees GE's support for renewable energy in Russia and the CIS, and is also involved in projects in the Baltic countries, Israel and others. Through her flawless execution of day-to-day legal tasks and her proactive approach to risk management, she covers a wide range of legal and business issues. Vertinskaya stands out for her work in fostering a culture of collaboration and knowledge sharing within her team to cope with large-scale investment projects. She says: “The devil is in the details - always be careful and diligent in what you do because ultimately it affects the business you are in and the company. Never be too serious – find the right balance between legal requirements, business needs and a sense of humor.”
Maxim Vasyunin, pharmaceutical company "Akvion"
Director of the Legal Department
Vasyunin’s work on organizing a new archival system, which helped to significantly reduce the costs of work related to document flow, deserves special attention. “This has allowed the company to use its capabilities more effectively,” he notes. Vasyunin says: “A creative outlook on work is necessary, and the accumulation of new knowledge about law enforcement practice gives creative freedom in solving the company’s legal problems. Therefore, it is necessary not to neglect legal seminars and read special literature.”
Pavel Vasiliev, insurance company Coface Russia
Thanks to Vasiliev's long-term foresight and professionalism, the team was able to solve problems associated with EU and US sanctions imposed against Russia. Vasiliev successfully led the department to find innovative solutions to allow the company to conduct business while avoiding any harm to shareholders who are subject to EU requirements. Vasiliev developed his insurance expertise at Coface, having previously served as a senior project manager and head of debt collection.
Larisa Valueva, Promsvyazbank
Head of Legal Block
Valueva became head of the bank's legal department in 2016. The range of experience she has accumulated throughout her career, as well as the quality of the institutions in which she has worked, means that Valueva can be considered one of the best legal advisers in the Russian financial sector.
Andrey Valovoy, Eli Lilly and Company
Head of Legal Department for the CIS and Israel
Andrey Valovoy heads the legal department for Russia, the CIS, Israel and 12 central and southern European countries. In addition to introducing changes related to interaction with clients, Andrey simplified work with external consultants and introduced a new practice in which lawyers are involved from the very beginning of business processes, which allowed the company to save resources.
~G~
Leonid Goldman, Rosbank
Director of the Department of Legal Support for General Banking Activities
Leonid Goldman has significantly increased the efficiency of the legal department, both for the head office and subsidiaries. In addition, he launched a system for making decisions on loans. She made the process transparent and understandable, and also reduced the level of credit risk and approval time. Goldman has been included in significant Russian ratings more than once.
Boris Gramotkin, Bayer
Head of Legal Department
At the company, Boris Gramotkin optimized internal regulations and processes, which subsequently led to a reduction in workload, increased cost efficiency and strengthened internal control. His department has successfully completed a number of acquisitions, divestitures and localization projects that have helped shape the company's future business strategy.
Valeria Grigorieva, Petrol Plus Region
Legal Director
With the help of Valeria Grigorieva, a unique project was launched to combine fuel and bank cards. Her team took part in the development and selection of the implementation scheme, negotiations with partners and technical contractors, and also developed and adapted operational processes.
Mikhail Grishin, Alfa-Bank
Member of the Board, Deputy Chairman of the Board, Director of the Legal Department
Mikhail Grishin began working for the company in 1994, and since 2002 he has headed the legal department. It is noted that such experience provides excellent opportunities for strategic decision-making. In addition, Grishin is deputy chairman of the board of Alfa-Bank.
Alexander Gudzenko, GPB Resource
Head of Legal Department
Working for a subsidiary of Gazprombank, Gudzenko consults on projects in the field of oil and mineral resources and is actively involved in business strategy in Russia and in various parts of the globe, including Africa, South America and the Middle East. The strategic thinking of Alexander Gudzenko, as well as his leadership qualities, are noted.
Olga Gulyaeva, Nokian Tires
Head of Legal Service
Gulyaeva played a key role in identifying legislative norms and implementing judicial practice in the tire business. She is recognized for her work in risk management in real estate, intellectual property and trade secrets matters. Olga Gulyaeva strengthened and developed the company’s position in both pre-trial and judicial strategies.
Roman Gurochkin, Capital Partners Russia
Head of the legal department
During his time with the company, Roman Gurochkin was directly involved in the construction projects of the Ritz-Carlton hotel and the Metropolis shopping center. In addition, he successfully expanded the size of the legal department and rethought its key priorities, changing its focus on legal support for construction and leasing of retail space. Gurochkin previously worked at Uralsib Bank, where he headed not only support functions, but was also responsible for certain front office tasks.
Alexey Guznov, Bank of Russia
Director of the Legal Department
Guznov headed the legal department at the Central Bank in 2014, having worked in the organization since 1995. Guznov is one of the most respected financial sector lawyers in Russia and is an academic specialist in the theory of laws and government, the use of coercive measures and financial market regulation. He also received the Order of Merit, Second Class, and other awards. Guznov has written about 50 publications on legal theory and financial market regulation, including numerous textbooks and monographs.
~D~
Liliya Danilova, Pfizer
Director of the Legal Department in Russia, the Caucasus and Central Asia region
One of the prominent specialists in the field of pharmaceutical law and intellectual property. Last year, Liliya Danilova helped negotiate a deal for joint investment by Pfizer and NovaMedica in the construction of a plant in the Kaluga region. Danilova is recognized for her outstanding contributions to the field of corporate law.
Anastasia Demenkova, Gazpromneft-Sakhalin LLC
Head of the Department for Legal, Property and Corporate Affairs
Anastasia Demenkova is developing a concept for changing the operating model for managing offshore projects. Also, with her participation, the concept of reorganization was created, as well as proposals for additional tax benefits and an assessment of legal risks. Demenkova systematized the functions of her department and also introduced automation of the contract process.
Yuri Dyachuk, JSC Cherkizovo Group
Currently, Yuriy Dyachuk heads a team of 95 employees. The team structure is divided into contract support, litigation and real estate. Yuri Dyachuk participates in all major decisions of the company. It is noted that in his approach he uses specialist knowledge in several areas of legal practice.
Nikolay Dubik, Gazprom
Member of the Management Board of PJSC Gazprom, First Deputy General Director of LLC Gazprom Export
Nikolay Dubik was awarded the title “Honored Lawyer of the Russian Federation” and also has an MBA degree. He has been working at Gazprom since 1997, holding legal and management roles. The contribution of his recommendations at the highest level is noted.
Oraz Durdyev, SUN InBev JSC
Director of Legal Affairs and Corporate Relations
Oraz Durdyev’s team helped the company close production buildings with equipment worth $4.6 million. Separately noted is the work to protect the Sibirskaya Korona and Klinskoye trademarks from violation of the use of the trademark. Together with industry colleagues, Durdyev took part in the development of the concept of separate regulation for beer. Thanks to active work within the Union of Russian Brewers, it was also possible to freeze the excise tax rate on beer until 2019 and maintain the maximum permitted volume of PET containers at 1.5 liters instead of a complete ban.
Artem Dyachenko, Stroytransgaz
Head of the Department of Legal Support for International Projects,
Dyachenko is responsible for overseeing all aspects of risk assessment and consultation with company projects. His work requires extensive cross-border knowledge, which he possesses. Dyachenko’s activities allowed Stroytransgaz to receive several valuable contracts for construction projects.
~E~
Anton Egorov, EVRAZ
Before joining EVRAZ in 2015, Egorov held senior positions in the legal departments of Russian Post and RUSAL. He successfully supported the IPO of Rusal and the restructuring of credit and trade debts. Egorov took part in the implementation of various investment projects in Russia and abroad, carried out corporate work, participated in legislative work, interacted with regulators in various markets, and also has judicial practice.
~Z~
Marianna Zakharova, "Norilsk Nickel"
First Vice President - Head of Corporate, Shareholder and Legal Affairs
Marianna has led a team of 350 lawyers at the Norilsk Nickel holding since 2015. During this time she managed to achieve impressive results. She closed a series of transactions worth $100 million each. Zakharova is also working on automating the legal service and introducing new information systems into this process.
~And~
Ruslan Ibragimov, MTS
Member of the Board, Vice President for Corporate and Legal Affairs
Ibragimov and his colleagues are actively involved in the development of all legal provisions relating to legislation in the field of telecommunications, and in preparing opinions on the regulation of legislation in the sector and draft relevant amendments. One of Ruslan Ibragimov’s latest achievements at MTS is the creation in Russia of the first of its kind integrated antitrust risk management system, which covers all types of activities in the company with a “fair principle”.Ibragimov’s team managed to create not only a reliable system for supporting business processes, legal protection and corporate governance, but also an effective risk management system.
Victoria Illarionova, Hewlett Packard Enterprise
Director of Legal Affairs (Russia, CIS, Eastern and Southern Europe)
Victoria Illarionova began working for the company in 2013, as head of the legal department. At that time, she and a team of five provided full legal support to the company in Russia, and also assisted with HR, tax, treasury, trademark patents and software licensing issues. Illarionova’s high competence in court cases is noted. She has now moved to the position of Director of Legal Affairs, where she oversees legal operations in Russia and Eastern and Southern Europe.
Irina Ipeeva, Mechel
Director of Legal Affairs
Irina Ipeeva began working for the company in 2003, and took up her current position in 2009. Her work is noted in the acquisition by a subsidiary of Mechel of a controlling stake in the Vanino-Morsk trade port for 15.5 billion rubles, and then in its resale, which took place in 2012. Ipeeva received a diploma from the Faculty of Law of Kuibyshev State University and is a member of the company’s board.
Mikhail Irzhevsky, Rostelecom
Vice President of Legal Affairs
In 2017, Irzhevsky helped the company sign a strategic partnership agreement with Gazprom Neft to implement the industrial Internet of Things and other innovative technologies. He also negotiated the purchase of SafeData, Russia's largest supplier of commercial data centers, for RUB 2.26 billion.
Sergey Isanov OJSC "Bashspirt"
head of the legal department
Thanks to his innovative thinking and ambitious attitude, Sergei Isanov protected investments and increased assets for the company. Before he joined the company, the legal function was distributed among factories, which was inefficient. Isanov's restructuring resulted in the legal team being centralized and processes and procedures standardized, increasing competence and efficiency. In addition, Isanov formed and led groups in the regions with law enforcement agencies on the problems of illegal trade in alcohol.
Igor Makarov, Basic element
Igor Makarov is working on the implementation of a unified electronic project management system in the company. “The system allows us to store all the information about each project in one place and integrate all formal corporate decisions and decisions that need to be made by various corporate bodies,” says Makarov. “After the project has been officially approved, the system also stores an electronic archive of completed documents and related correspondence. The program also includes a calendar for board and shareholder meetings, which allows us to track all corporate schedules and ownership structures for various sub-holdings and provides information on the corporate bodies of hundreds of companies."
~K~
Pavel Kabardin, Merz Pharmaceuticals
Head of the legal department
At the company, Pavel Kabardin restarted all processes related to contract work and marketing activities from scratch, and was also able to successfully implement the corresponding procedures. Sales of pharmacists decreased greatly due to the fall of the ruble, and the company entrusted the increase in market share to the legal team. Before that, he worked at the Moscow School of Management "Skolkovo" and dealt with a wide range of issues: from creating a corporate structure for commercial and non-profit organizations to issues of legal relations with foreign organizations.
Alexander Kalinov, group "Ilim"
Head of Legal International Affairs
Alexander Kalinov, working in the largest pulp and paper enterprise, significantly reduced external maintenance costs. His work has been recognized in large-scale multinational infrastructure and financing projects, trade transactions and mergers and acquisitions. Previously, Alexander Kalinov worked as a lawyer at Coudert Brothers in Washington and St. Petersburg.
Igor Kapshuk, Polymetal International
Deputy General Director for Legal Affairs
Igor Kapshuk played a key role in the company's fortunes, promoting strategies and managing mergers and acquisitions. He also led two major transactions: the acquisition of gold in Kazakhstan from Glencore for $100 million, as well as a mine from the Canadian international gold mining group Dundee Precious Metals. Kapshuk's team was highly appreciated by the company's management.
Dmitry Kasiev, OMS Outsourcing Partner
Director of Legal Affairs
Dmitry Kasiev, due to the large number of inspections by government agencies, created a separate division within the legal service: the department of administrative and legal practice. As a result, over two years, conditionally imposed administrative fines were reduced by 3 million rubles. In addition, Kasiev has developed an effective motivation system for all employees within the framework of legal services. The work of a professional in a tax dispute is noted: all the demands of the government agency in the amount of 250 million rubles. were declared illegal.
Kirill Kochetkov, ZARUBEZHNEFT-Production Kharyaga LLC
Deputy General Director for Legal and Corporate Affairs
Kirill Kochetkov demonstrated impressive organizational skills required to simultaneously manage a range of operational tasks. Over the past decade, he has built and managed legal departments on large and complex corporate projects, developed a well-organized contract management system, and created an effective system for scheduling, quality control and cost control of external law firms. Before working at Zarubezhneft, Kochetkov worked at Shtokman Development.
Sergey Koltunov, Rusagro Group of Companies
Deputy General Director for Legal and Corporate Affairs
Sergey Koltunov single-handedly manages all legal and corporate functions in several regions. In addition, during his tenure as Director of Legal and Corporate Affairs at Rusagro, he demonstrated consistency in his work on mergers and acquisitions, corporate restructuring and litigation. Previously, Koltunov led the legal department at Russian Alcohol Group, where he successfully restructured the legal function, introducing a vertically integrated organization with a significant reduction in headcount.
Irina Kosmina, BTK Group of Companies
Head of the legal department
Irina Kosmina is noted in complex international arbitration cases. Kosmina and her team are actively implementing measures aimed at increasing the collection of receivables and fines from counterparties. Working for a company that carries out government defense orders, Kosmina rebuilt the team to meet new requirements in accordance with 275-FZ (“On State Defense Order”).
Alexander Kotlyar, NAMI
Head of the legal department
Kotlyar created a legal support center consisting of 16 subordinates, including a legal department, an intellectual property department and an industry legal department. Kotlyar is also credited with preparing and reviewing more than 3,000 contracts with leading global and Russian automakers in a short time frame.
Kotlyar has a distinguished career with over 16 years of practice. He began his work as the only in-house employee at the freight company Gruzovovoff, reviewing more than 1,000 claims in two years, saving the company millions of rubles.
Lev Kovalev, Arconic
Head of the legal department
Lev Kovalev takes an approach that aims to navigate the regulatory environment around Arconic's major products, industrial and consumer appliances, that are used throughout the world. In 2016, Kovalev's legal support helped the company generate $12.4 billion in revenue. The department's work spans three segments: global rolled products, engineering products and solutions, and transportation and construction solutions.
Natalia Kovtunenko Efes Rus
Head of the legal department
The brewing group occupies a dominant position in Russia. Natalia Kovtunenko, as part of her work, sets ethical standards, and also acts as an initiator of responsible alcohol consumption and puts forward a number of initiatives, including those related to environmental issues. Kovtunenko became part of the team that sets the tone for the brewing market in Russia.
Yana Kryuchkova, Russian aircraft manufacturing corporation MIG
Deputy General Director for Legal and Corporate Affairs
Yana Kryuchkova has supported the corporation's full product line since 2016, consisting of interceptors, multi-role combat aircraft, training equipment, as well as light general purpose aircraft. Kryuchkova structured key internal processes, achieving noticeable improvements in work. She also previously worked in the aviation industry.
Tatyana Kulyabina, Sanofi
Tatyana Kulyabina and her team formed the basis for the company's important initiative to share the risks and costs associated with patient care. Kulyabina also created and negotiated agreement standards specifically designed for specific complex service providers, resulting in significantly reduced contract approval times while increasing document quality.
Tatyana Kuzmina, Gazprombank
Vice President, Head of Legal Department
Tatyana Kuzmina oversees a wide range of Gazprombank's activities in the financial services sector: corporate banking, retail banking, investment banking and custody services. Gazprombank's banking activities also include securities trading, foreign exchange transactions, precious metals transactions, clearing operations and settlement services. Kuzmina also helped conclude a recent agreement with the Chinese Chengtong Holdings Group to create an investment fund in the amount of $1 billion.
Alina Kuznetsova, VTB Capital
Head of Corporate Affairs, Legal Department
Mikhail Kadyshev, Tarkett Eastern Europe
The Tarkett company produces floor coverings. Mikhail Kadyshev is developing the company’s ambitious plans, thanks to which the company is increasing its influence in Russia and Eastern Europe (Tarkett’s main office is located in Paris). The company is looking for new ways of development, despite recent economic difficulties. To achieve this goal, Tarkett increasingly relies on Kadyshev and his team to avoid and prudently resolve all legal issues.
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Anton Malginov, Mail.Ru Group
Head of Legal Department
Anton Malginov began working for the company in 2010. Malginov is one of the brightest lawyers in the field of information technology in Russia. He has extensive experience representing the state in arbitration courts and courts of general jurisdiction of the Russian Federation, as well as working in various Internet companies.
Oleg Mubarakshin, AFK Sistema
Vice President, Head of Legal Affairs Complex
Oleg Mubarakshin joined the company in December 2014 and actively supervised a number of transactions. The company recently acquired 100% stake in nine regional Hotel Chain hotels for RUB 2.6 billion. VIYM and separately has a controlling stake in OJSC Lesosibirsk LDK No. 1, the largest wood processing enterprise in Russia, through its subsidiary LLC LesInvest. Mubarakshin also helped the company sell a 50% stake in OJSC SG-trans, transferring it to one of the leading Russian railway freight operators, to a group of unaffiliated buyers for RUB 6 billion.
Evgeniy Moskovets, GlavUPDK at the Russian Foreign Ministry
Head of Legal Department
Evgeniy Moskovets successfully redesigned the legal department, introducing important structural changes to its work. These changes included the creation of three specialized divisions, the development of clear guidelines for the distribution of work across all sectors, and the introduction of internal communication and reporting systems. In addition to achieving greater work flexibility within the division, Moskovets' efforts led to a fundamental change in culture, with employees becoming much more results-oriented than before.
Petr Maksimov, Rusal
Director of Legal Affairs
Petr Maksimov, General Counsel of RUSAL, has headed the legal department since July 2012. Bringing his experience in mergers and acquisitions, international investments and corporate governance to the company, he has built and strengthened the legal team into a solid asset to the business. In this capacity, he led the acquisitions and spin-offs of some of the largest assets in Russia and abroad.
Alexander Matveev, Alrosa
Head of Legal Department
Matveev began his professional career in the public service, working in the prosecutor's office for four years before moving to private internal work. Here, from 2001 to 2009, he worked at SIBUR, then at Russian Communal Systems and RusHydro as head of department, legal support department and deputy head of legal department, respectively. As such, he has valuable legal experience proven in a wide range of settings, with a broad skill set that makes him more than suitable for any job he may encounter.
Ivan Maslyaev, Lukoil
Vice President, General Legal Counsel
Ivan Maslyaev occupies a prominent position in Russia's domestic legal market as vice president and general counsel of Lukoil, one of the country's largest oil companies and one of the world's largest oil producers. Maslyaev has been with the company since 1994, initially serving as head of the legal department for five years and heading the main legal aid division from 2000 until he took up his current position in 2012. His 23 years of experience with the company means he has an advanced understanding of LUKOIL's operations.
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Egor Nuzhdin, AGC Glass Europe
Head of Legal Department
Nuzhdin and his colleagues are developing and implementing a program to comply with antitrust laws; in the spring of 2017, Nuzhdin implemented his plan to reorganize the company’s business in Ukraine. Nuzhdin also worked with debt and bankruptcy proceedings in the amount of 30 million rubles. He participated in anti-dumping investigations in Turkey and Ukraine.
Alexey Nikiforov, Sibur
Head of Legal Support
After four years of working as an associate in the legal department, Nikiforov was promoted to the position of senior legal counsel in 2011, and in 2015 he was promoted to his current position. Throughout his time at Sibur, Nikiforov has established himself as a specialist who can provide effective legal support to Sibur's diverse subsidiaries.
~O~
Natalya Okuneva, Unicredit
Director of the Legal Department
Natalya Okuneva is among Russia's leading financial consultants who have spent their careers leading legal departments at the country's largest multinational banks. She participated in the reorganization of the group aimed at changing the shareholder of UniCredit Bank Russia from Bank Austria to UniCredit SpA. At the beginning of 2016, Okuneva helped resolve a difficult situation in the Republic of Bashkortostan and the Republic of Tatarstan (Ufa branch of the bank), where several lawsuits were filed against the bank in connection with violation of the law “On the Protection of Consumer Rights,” according to which the bank allegedly obliged clients buy insurance policies without the right of refusal. After the participation of Okuneva’s team, judicial practice in two regions was changed in favor of the bank, while the number of claims decreased from more than 300 to 12.
Tatyana Odabashyan, Heineken Russia
Director of Legal Affairs and Compliance
She participated in the sale of Stepan Razin's brewery. She says: “I was responsible and successfully completed the project for the sale of Stepan Razin’s brewery. It was difficult for me because this project involved not only legal issues, but also the commercial and management parts of the project." Domestically, Odabashyan participated in the reorganization and merger of all legal entities of Heineken Russia, a project that took three years and resulted in the consolidation of 40 legal entities into one.
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Sergei Prokofiev, “Lenta”
Director of Legal Affairs
Prokofiev constantly uses specialized legal and commercial know-how and is an experienced in-house lawyer in the food retail market. Prokofiev worked at Metro Cash & Carry for 11 years in various positions, including as legal director.
Polina Presnyakova, MSD
Head of Legal and Compliance Control Department
Presnyakova has been with the company since 2011 and is considered a specialist in Russian pharmaceutical law, as well as corporate law and corporate governance.
Sergey Potanin, Exclasses Holdings
Head of Legal Department
Potanin also worked to introduce the company's helicopters to the Russian and CIS markets, ensuring the delivery of AW139 helicopters assembled at the company's Russian joint venture. He developed and implemented a new delivery system. “International transactions with Russian companies are becoming more difficult due to the impact of sanctions,” Potanin says.
Dmitry Popov, ABB
Vice President of Legal Affairs
To make work within the legal function even more efficient and less dependent on workload, Popov expanded the professional qualifications of lawyers in his team after several years of specialized practice with each lawyer. Working to apply new theories of Russian law, Popov and his team recently won an important case that many lawyers and financial professionals thought was a loser.
Nikita Polozov, Canon Russia
Head of Legal Department
Under Polozov's leadership, Canon's Russia and CIS legal department has been involved in several important projects recently implemented by the company in Russia and Eastern Europe. For example, Polozov recently contributed to the launch of direct sales and service in Russia, assisted in adjusting the company's commercial policy in country and was directly involved in introducing the company to the market of another CIS country.
Konstantin Pogrebezhsky, “Kronospan”
Head of the legal department
Pogrebezhsky joined the company as legal counsel in December 2010 and was appointed senior legal counsel in July 2014. He was promoted again in September 2014 to his current position as Head of Legal. Pogrebeysky advises on foreign trade policy, taxes, and supplies.
Artem Podshibyakin, Inditex Russia
Head of Legal Department
In addition to winning disputes regarding customs value and labeling of imported goods, as well as disputes in the field of real estate leasing, Podshibyakin has formed a well-organized legal department that supports the activities of Inditex. Podshibyakin introduced innovative software to solve real estate leasing issues that the company faces. “Leasing store space is one of the most important tasks for our department and company,” he says. The system allowed Podshibyakin's team to work more smoothly and efficiently, which came in handy given their ever-increasing workload.
Inna Panteleeva, Roche
Head of Corporate Communications, Head of Legal Affairs
Some of her recent accomplishments include promoting an efficient and antitrust business model, developing business ethics, healthcare compliance, and optimizing business processes within a larger company. She is highly respected in the industry for her contributions to pharmaceutical law efforts in relation to the implementation of the Pharma 2020 strategy. She also jointly developed the practice of distributing pharmaceuticals in Russia under the auspices of the European Union Health and Pharmaceuticals Committee.
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Alexander Rodionov, PNK Logistics
Head of Legal Department
Supporting the activities of one of the largest industrial and warehouse developers in Russia is no easy task, Rodionov and his team resolve legal issues arising from various areas of law, while at the same time supporting key transactions and projects for the company.
Vera Reznikova, M.video
Head of Legal Department
Vera Reznikova has been working as Chief Legal Adviser since 2009. She now manages a legal team of 44 people. Reznikova was responsible for the restructuring of the legal department, as well as the processing of M&A transactions and the management of corporate disputes.
Ekaterina Regeda, Donstroy
Head of Legal Department
She has been working in this position since 2015. She worked on a deal to purchase eight construction sites; since the beginning of 2017, she managed to win a case worth 2 billion rubles. accounts receivable. During his tenure, Regede also managed to improve the morale of his team by introducing a system of employee motivation.
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Aidar Sultanov, Nizhnekamskneftekhim
Sultanov has demonstrated remarkable knowledge and competence in assisting clients before the Russian Constitutional Court, the Supreme Arbitration Court and the European Court of Human Rights. Working in close cooperation with the constituent entities of the Russian Federation at the federal level, Sultanov made a significant contribution to improving the legal system of Russia.
Anna Serebrennikova, Megafon
Director of Legal Affairs
Has been working for the company since 2006. She was appointed to her current position in 2016. Serebrennikova was a key employee in the company's recent acquisition of a controlling stake in Mail.Ru Group for $740 million.
Irina Savina, Astellas
Head of Legal and Compliance Control Department
To inform the company's more than 1,000 employees in 13 markets about new legal requirements, Savina overhauled the legal and regulatory culture within the organization. “Traditional training methods have been enhanced with innovative and engaging ways to connect with employees to maximize program effectiveness,” says Savina. “To accomplish this, a target audience analysis was conducted which determined that interactive communications, the use of visual content and the ability to tailor the program to the needs of individual participants should be a priority.”
Olga Samoilenko, Emerson
Head of the legal department
In 2006, Samoilenko began working at Emerson as legal counsel. Four years later, she was promoted to deputy head of the legal department, and a year later she became senior lawyer and head of the legal department. Thus, having gone through several steps, she fully knows and understands the company’s activities in Russia.
Anna Salivon, OTTO Group Russia
Director of the Legal Department
He has been working in his position since 2006. Salivon resolves issues related to the expansion of Otto Group Russia, for which €50 million was allocated in 2013. Previously, Salivon was a lawyer at Friedlander & Associates, a lawyer for the largest manufacturer of alcoholic beverages Rosspirtprom. She has a law degree from Krasnodar State University, as well as degrees in English from the University of Washington and Moscow State University. M.V. Lomonosov, as well as an international diploma in the specialty “Business School of the University of Manchester”.
Yulia Sycheva, Viacom International Media Networks
Director of Legal Affairs
He has extensive practical experience in the field of civil law and intellectual property law, and is an expert in such areas as copyright, licensing, and legal regulation of certain issues in the entertainment industry.
Evgenia Solomentseva, Ricoh Rus
Head of Legal Group
Solomentseva has built a strong legal department in Ricoh's Russia business, recruiting a team of specialists who support all areas of corporate, contract and litigation work. “We are close to business, like business partners,” says Solomentseva. Solomentseva is currently in the process of implementing electronic internal document management for contract approvals, which is expected to integrate legal and other functions over a significant period of time. Solomentseva expands Ricoh's presence in other CIS countries and directly contributes to the creation of a network of distributors with special conditions.
Michael Smith, Renault Nissan Alliance
General Counsel
Smith performs at a high level and is trusted by the company's senior management, contributing to the company's strategy on many global projects. Michael Smith showed his professionalism in the process of recapitalizing AvtoVAZ and the majority company Renault-Nissan Alliance. This led to an increase in capital, which amounted to 26 billion rubles.
Alexander Smirnov, Moscow Exchange
Director of the Legal Department
Smirnov restructured the legal team to improve the integration of the team with the business, achieving this by introducing a process of centralization of legal functions in the group of companies that are part of the Moscow Exchange. Smirnov introduced a “satisfaction index” for clients, which allowed clients to rate team members. “Lawyers began to focus on achieving goals set by internal clients, both front and back office departments,” he explains. In addition, Smirnov participated in a number of large successful projects, most notably his role in the sale by the Central Bank of Russia of a block of shares in the amount of $500 million to Russian and foreign investors.
Alexey Sirotenko, PhosAgro
Director of the Legal Department
Alexey Sirotenko is the head of the legal department at the company in 2011, and the firm is staying afloat despite falling oil prices and economic sanctions. Sirotenko also served as Deputy General Director for Corporate and Legal Affairs at PhosAgro. As the world's third largest phosphate producer, PhosAgro benefited significantly from the combination of a weak ruble boosting its exports and domestic agricultural growth. Sirotenko provided the company with sufficient flexibility to capitalize on these opportunities and contributed enormously to strengthening the business.
Valery Sidnev, EuroChem
Head of Legal Department
Sidnev has almost 20 years of experience in private practice and provides legal support to the company producing nitrogen and phosphate fertilizers, EuroChem. Sydnev oversees all aspects of the company's corporate governance and certain control functions, leading a team of more than 70 lawyers based in 12 locations. In January 2017, the EuroChem Group and the China National Chemical Corporation signed a memorandum on the creation of a joint industrial production, which will require a huge amount of work from the legal department.
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Dmitry Timofeev, Rosvodokanal group of companies
Director of Legal Affairs
Timofeev has been working at Rosvodokanal since 2014. In 2015, the legal department of the enterprise was recognized as the best in the category “Energy and other resource supply companies.” Timofeev manages legal and corporate functions with great flexibility and talent, preparing them to handle IPO and SPO processes, as well as complex cross-border M&A transactions. Timofeev has extensive experience in conducting complex corporate legal restructuring and reorganization projects, including projects aimed at helping companies improve the efficiency of key business and management processes.
Natalia Totahevage, Abbott Laboratories
Director of Legal Affairs
Totahewage is as professional in business matters as she is in legal matters. She works as the company's legal director for Russia and the CIS, and managing legal affairs for this large company requires cross-border expertise and high-level management skills.
Alexander Tarabrin, "Opening"
Head of Legal Department
Tarabrin has significant knowledge of corporate law and commercial issues in Russia. Before joining Otkritie, he headed the legal department at Gunvor Group in Russia for two and a half years. He previously practiced in the Moscow office of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom for almost six years, focusing on cross-border M&A, venture capital investments, joint venture agreements and capital markets transactions.
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Ksenia Ushakova, M.video
Head of Real Estate Department
Led by Ksenia Ushakova, M.video's real estate team has consistently demonstrated the agility required to successfully leverage its experience to resolve disputes arising at the regional level throughout Russia. Ushakova currently leads the team in implementing a number of new legal regulations and compliance policies and is actively involved in training the firm's staff on how to respond to unexpected legal issues.
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Igor Chekunov, Kaspersky Lab
Deputy General Director for Legal Affairs
Chekunov has been working for the company since 2000. The authors of the rating consider the issue of cybersecurity to be the most “controversial and interesting” from the legal side. Chekunov is a candidate of legal sciences; his work experience in the Ministry of Internal Affairs and a number of ministries of Russia is noted.
Elena Chelembeeva, Volvo Group Russia
Head of Legal Department
Elena Chelembeeva's department brings significant commercial benefits to the company. She herself rationalized the work in the department. Chelembeeva's leadership led to a reduction in legal cases involving the company. Her work was also highly appreciated during the merger of Volvo and Renault Trucks.
Anton Chertkov, Delo Group of Companies
Director of Legal Affairs
Despite his short period of work in a major transport and logistics company, Anton Chertkov managed to organize an effective and compact legal unit. In 2016, he participated in the successful restructuring of the company.
Previously, Chertkov worked for the railway freight company Freight One, and also served as vice president for legal and corporate affairs at Russian Platinum Group.
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Marina Shvetsova, Uralkali
Director of Legal and Corporate Affairs
At the time of the merger between Uralkali and Silvinit, Marina Shvetsova was the Legal and Corporate Director and therefore played an integral role in overseeing the legal issues associated with the merger and integration of the two organizations. She joined the company in 2005 as head of legal and a member of the board, and upon completion of the merger assumed her current position as director of legal and corporate affairs. One of Shvetsova's most significant deals is a five-year pre-export agreement worth $850 million with 11 international banks.
Anastasia Shkarina, Unilever
Director of Legal Services
Under Shkarina's leadership, Unilever's legal department is actively implementing a corporate antitrust compliance program. With the active support of Unilever's legal team, a platform is being created for self-regulation of disputes in the field of advertising between association members. She participated in interaction with the FAS on the development of recommendations on the application of the Law “On Trade”.
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Olga Fadeeva, “Power Machines”
Director of Legal Affairs
Olga Fadeeva’s merits include the agreements that she controlled. We are talking about a joint venture between Power Machines and the Linde Group, which will produce equipment for liquefying natural gas.
Prior to this, Fadeeva worked as an attorney at the Baker McKenzie law firm.
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