Tokyo, 18 December 2008 – LawFuel – Legal Announcements Service – International law firm Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP (Orrick) has advised Dentsu Inc. (Dentsu), one of the world’s largest advertising agencies, which is based in Japan, in creating a joint venture advertising agency based in Moscow, Russia. Completed on 12 December, 2008, the new joint venture, Dentsu-Smart LLC, represents the first acquisition by a Japanese advertising agency of a Russian advertising agency.
A team of Russia-qualified lawyers from Orrick’s Tokyo office, led by partner Sergey Milanov, helped also by Orrick’s London office, advised Dentsu on the formation of the joint venture and the acquisition of its assets. The operations of Dentsu-Smart LLC will be managed by Dentsu through a jointly-funded holding company, Dentsu-Smart Holdings B.V., established in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, with Dentsu owning 51% of its capital.
Sergey Milanov, partner resident in Tokyo and head of Orrick’s Russian Far East Practice, explained: “We are delighted to have successfully advised Dentsu in this milestone joint venture. Our firm has seen an increasing trend in Japanese companies investing into Russia and our Japan and Russia law capabilities enable us to advise such clients. Dentsu’s joint venture is a good example of the overdue development of mutual economic ties between the two countries.” He added: “With the predicted growth of the Russian advertising market*, Dentsu-Smart is expected to become one of the best performing agencies of the Dentsu Group.”
Comprising an experienced team of Russia- and New York-qualified lawyers led by partner Sergey Milanov, Orrick’s Russian Far East Practice is a unique Japan-based international legal practice advising Japanese as well as Russian clients on sophisticated inbound and outbound transactions between Russia and Japan.
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