NEW YORK, Aug. 3, 2005- LAWFUEL – The Law News Network -Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP announced today that it has launched a new 19-lawyer Russia practice, anchored by a new office in Moscow, to advise clients involved in the increasingly active Russian M&A, private equity and capital markets.
Orrick’s new Russian practice group includes lawyers well-placed to serve clients in Washington, D.C., and London, as well as Moscow. The Moscow office, which was inaugurated on June 20 with three new partners, is now adding two of counsel and eight associates for a full complement of 13 lawyers. Five lawyers—two partners and three associates—are in London, and this month, a new of counsel joined Orrick in Washington, D.C.
In Moscow, all 13 of Orrick’s lawyers—nine Russians, three Americans and one dual Russian-American citizen—are fluent in Russian and English. Seven of Orrick’s new lawyers have received advanced law degrees from U.S. or U.K. universities.
“These lawyers are leaders in the Russian market,” said Orrick chairman and CEO Ralph Baxter. “This is a remarkable team that combines deep knowledge about the way business is done in Russia with a command of the law in Russia, the United States and Europe. The addition of this team underscores Orrick’s commitment to be where our clients need us to be, today and tomorrow.”
Added David Syed, Orrick’s European managing partner, “Russia’s fast-growing economy is attracting increasingly high levels of direct foreign investment. The opportunity to expand into the Russian market is an excellent one for Orrick, one that improves our service offerings to our European clients and clients around the world.”
The new Moscow lawyers include John Sheedy, a leading expert on oil and gas law in Russia, who advised an affiliate of Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company S.A. in its purchase of juice company ZAO Multon for more than $500 million—the largest deal in Russia in the second quarter of this year; Larisa Afanasyeva, who focuses on M&A and corporate restructuring; and Olga Anisimova, a litigator and international arbitration lawyer. Anisimova recently won a decisive victory in the Russian Supreme Court for Orrick client Telenor. In London, the Russian practice team is led by Peter O’Driscoll, who focuses on M&A, private equity and financing transactions in Russia and other emerging markets. Of counsel Catherine Brizhik, based in Orrick’s Washington, D.C., office, focuses on Russian M&A transactions.
“This is an exciting time to be in Russia, and my colleagues and I are very pleased to be here with Orrick, a firm whose culture and core values we recognize as our own,” said Moscow partner John Sheedy. “The firm’s international reach and strong U.S. base is combined with a vision and strategy in Europe that will enable us to develop our practices while expanding and improving the services we offer clients.”
Russia’s strong economic growth in recent years makes it an attractive market for businesses throughout the world and the lawyers who advise them. Russia is one of the 10 largest economies in the world, as measured by gross domestic product. According to The Economist, the country’s GDP has grown on average 6.8% annually over the past five years. In addition, a Central Bank report cited by The Moscow Times indicates that foreign direct investment in Russia rose to $9.3 billion in the first half of 2005, compared to $4.5 billion in the first half of 2004, and that investment in Russian stocks and bonds is up 20% for the same period.
About Orrick’s Russia Practice
Orrick’s Russia practice provides a wide range of legal services in industries ranging from natural resources and infrastructure to telecommunications, banking, capital markets and private equity. Based in Moscow, London and Washington, D.C., the firm’s Russian practice lawyers advise and represent clients in M&A, private equity, capital markets and other financing transactions, dispute resolution, consumer protection, employment law and intellectual property rights.
About Orrick
Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP is an international law firm with more than 700 lawyers in North America, Europe and Asia. The firm focuses on litigation, complex and novel finance and innovative corporate transactions. Orrick clients include Fortune 100 companies, major industrial and financial corporations, commercial and investment banks, high-growth companies, governmental entities, start-ups and individuals. The firm’s 15 offices are located in New York, Washington, D.C., San Francisco, Silicon Valley, Sacramento, Los Angeles, Orange County, Pacific Northwest, London, Milan, Moscow, Paris, Rome, Taipei and Tokyo.
