Legal services

Disputes settlement, proceedings at state courts, arbitration courts, cross-border/ cross-jurisdictional disputes

  • Claims settlement;
  • Clients representation in state arbitrazh courts, courts of general jurisdiction, arbitration courts;
  • Negotiations on disputes settlement and reconciliation procedures;
  • Debt recovery;
  • Enforcement of foreign arbitration and court judgments in Russia;
  • Enforcement of Russian arbitration and court judgments in Russia and abroad;
  • Representing company owners and advising them on various legal issues, related to cross-border disputes and investment projects abroad.

Citizenship and Residency Abroad

  • End-to-End Client Support: Comprehensive turnkey assistance for obtaining citizenship in Turkey, Argentina, St. Kitts and Nevis, Vanuatu, and Grenada, as well as residency permits in Kazakhstan, Turkey, Argentina, Switzerland, Poland, the Czech Republic, and Spain. This includes: verbal and written consultation on all procedural matters, with engagement of foreign immigration specialists as needed; procurement, preparation, completion, and submission of all required documentation; direct liaison with competent foreign government authorities and Russian consular offices abroad.
  • Full-Service Real Estate Support: Turnkey legal assistance for the acquisition and rental of foreign real estate. This covers both property purchases made for citizenship-by-investment purposes and acquisitions (ownership or lease/rental agreements) for personal use.
  • International Bank Accounts: Services for opening and maintaining bank accounts abroad.

Sanctions Compliance

  • Compliance Audits: Conducting thorough reviews of client operations to ensure alignment with the sanctions legislation of the EU, United Kingdom, United States, and Russia.
  • Regulatory Monitoring: Continuous tracking of developments in the sanctions regimes of the EU, UK, U.S., and Russia to provide clients with timely updates on potential risks.
  • Sanctions List Screening: Monitoring and analyzing sanctions lists to identify potential listings of specific companies and individuals.
  • Transaction Structuring:Designing client transaction frameworks that account for and adhere to applicable sanctions requirements.
  • Risk Mitigation Strategies: Developing and implementing tailored measures to minimize clients’ sanctions-related exposure.
  • Dispute Resolution: Representing clients in both out-of-court settlements and litigation proceedings arising from the application of sanctions.

Contract Law

  • Drafting and analysis of commercial contracts, negotiations on conclusion of contracts;
  • Preparation of supporting documentation for contracts (acts of acceptance, contract prolongation agreements, contract termination);
  • Negotiations with counterparties, assessment of risks related to contract execution, pre-trial settlement of disputes arising from the contract.

Due Diligence, acquiring and restructuring of assets

This practice includes legal services in the following areas:

  • Comprehensive due diligence for medium and large-size companies;
  • Corporate restructuring, including corporate structure optimization;
  • Establishing joint ventures;
  • Due diligence of real estate.

Real Estate

  • Legal support for land plots and other real property transactions;
  • Due diligence of land plots;
  • Identification of legal risks, recommendations to minimize risks;
  • Comprehensive protection of real estate owner rights;
  • Litigation support in rights disputes;
  • Representing “deceived co-investors”;
  • Litigation support during disputes in courts with state authorities regarding securing land rights.

Family and Labor Law

  • Representation in a divorce and the division of property;
  • Drafting marriage contracts;
  • Custody disputes – determining child(ren)’s custodial parent, parental rights of non-custodial parent;
  • Judicial and extrajudicial settlement of labor disputes.
  • Legal support of investment projects
  • Representation of clients’ interests with the state and local authorities;
  • Representation of investor’s interests, structuring of business in various jurisdictions

Crisis Management Solutions

  • Comprehensive Support for Management and Control Transition Procedures
  • Crisis Management Consulting and Financial Audit
  • Ongoing Crisis and Operational Management
  • Resolution of Corporate Conflicts and Deadlocks
  • Asset Protection and Challenging Transactions of Any Complexity (Major transactions, Related-party transaction, etc.)
  • Corporate Defense Against Hostile Takeovers
  • Protection Against Corporate Espionage and Competing Business Schemes
  • Judicial and Out-of-Court Settlement of Disputes with Creditors and Debtors
  • Shielding Company Executives from Secondary (Subsidiary) Liability
  • Recovery of Damages from Company’s Bad-Faith Management
  • Business and Debt Restructuring
  • Bankruptcy Proceedings Representation (for Debtors and Creditors)

Stock Corporate Law

In the area of stock corporation law, we advise and represent unlisted and listed stock corporations, boards of management, supervisory boards, founders, and shareholders on all issues relating to the formation, restructuring, and dissolution of stock corporations as well as the entry and exit of shareholders. In addition, we also focus on the review of shareholders’ compensation claims and legal issues in connection with company valuations.

Company Incorporation and Corporate Structuring Services

  • Advisory services on selecting the optimal corporate legal form
  • Drafting and legal review of corporate charters and bylaws to ensure compliance with legal requirements and alignment with business objectives
  • Preparation of shareholder agreements and participation agreements to safeguard investor rights and define governance relationships
  • Implementation of employee participation models, including the design and establishment of Employee Stock Ownership Plans (VSOP, ESOP) and stock option programs

Board of management and Supervisory board

  • Preparation and design of employment contracts for members of the board of management
  • Composition of the supervisory board and formation of committees
  • Preparation and design of rules of procedure
  • Manager and Supervisory board liability (D&O Liability)
  • Revocation of the board of management and the supervisory board

Restructurings, transformations

  • Demerger, merger, change of legal form, and other measures
  • Profit transfer and control agreements
  • Squeeze-out

Shareholders, rights to information and shareholder actions

  • Representation of shareholders at general meetings and assertion of rights to information and other shareholder rights at general meetings
  • Advice and representation in shareholder lawsuits: Information enforcement proceedings, Disputes concerning defects in resolutions, Proceedings for the conduct of a special audit, Proceedings for the appointment of a special representative, Actions for damages due to omitted or incorrect management, Award proceedings to determine and control appropriate compensation in the event of structural measures and the withdrawal from the company

Bankruptcy

  • Preparation and filing of a bankruptcy petition.
  • Creating a list of creditors;
  • Challenging the claims of dishonest creditors.
  • Participation in creditors’ meetings.
  • Challenging the debtor’s transactions.
  • Recovery of property into the bankruptcy estate.
  • Pursuing administrative, civil, and subsidiary liability against dishonest debtors.
  • Comprehensive legal representation in bankruptcy courts.

For detailed information on our bankruptcy services for individuals and businesses, please visit the dedicated “Bankruptcy” section of our website

Customs law

  • Representing client for customs authorities;
  • Appealing customs authorities rulings;
  • Administrative offences representation, regarding customs law violations

Wills and Estates Law

  • Inheritance law
  • Determining inheritance awards, legal opinions on inheritance preparation, including cases involving a foreign residents, property and benefactors;
  • Representing clients in the all courts levels;

Provision of services in foreign jurisdictions

  SDL Legal boutique provides a wide range of consulting services, permanently cooperating with many foreign partners from different jurisdictions, including Republic of Belarus, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, CPR, Latvia, Germany, Italy, Belgium, Netherlands, the Great Britain, Poland, Switzerland, Turkey, Cyprus, Saint Christopher and Nevis, Qatar, the UAE, British Virgin Islands, Republic of Panama and the USA.