The Legal 500

This ranking is based on quality, but also scope of service. Therefore, narrowly focused practices may be ranked lower in the table than a quality competitor with a broader base but may still be considered outstanding in its chosen discipline.

Baker & McKenzie – CIS, Limited’s ‘very good’ team routinely represents some of the major banks, manufacturers and commodities companies present in the market, and recently advised the international creditors’ steering committee on BTA Bank’s multibillion-dollar debt restructuring. Other clients include Alcon, BNP Paribas, Benetton Real Estate Kazakhstan, GlaxoSmithKline and Lukoil. Managing partner Azamat Kuatbekov is a highly rated litigator, and Curtis Masters is also recommended.

Dewey & LeBoeuf LLP is ‘very strong and one of the most business-oriented legal teams in Central Asia’, focusing on top-end financing, project and corporate mandates for a fair mix of local and international clients. In January and February 2011, it completed $500m Eurobond issues for Development Bank of Kazakhstan and Halyk Bank, respectively. It is advising the senior creditors’ committee on Astana Finance’s debt restructuring. The firm also advised JSC Ekibastuz GRES-2 Power Station on a $700m financing to build a third power unit, and represented new client Eurocopter in establishing a joint venture with Kazakhstan Engineering. Managing partner Aset Shyngyssov and counsel Klara Nurgaziyeva are recommended, as is corporate and project finance expert Brian Zimbler, who splits time between Almaty, London and Moscow.

Michael Wilson & Partners provides ‘excellent service with respect to speed and quality of product, particularly the in-depth understanding of the commercial environment; and value for money is good’. Highlights included advising the Assaubayev family in settling disputes with Polyus and KazakhGold, and representing Hambledon Mining plc on its acquisition of Akmola Gold. Other clients include Credit Suisse, HSBC, Deutsche Bank and Eurasian Bank, and it advises Rio Tinto plc on copper, gold and uranium projects in Kazakhstan and Central Asia. Michael Wilson has ‘vast knowledge and produces quality reports that are thorough and well written’. Associate Richard Chudzynski is ‘very sharp and incisive’.

SNR Denton ‘does a fantastic job on the legal advisory front’. This full-service practice is especially active in the infrastructure, energy, natural resources, and financial sectors. It advised ENRC on acquiring coal assets, and advised on HSBC’s acquisition of RBS’ retail business as an asset transaction. It is on HSBC’s legal panel and also represents Deutsche Bank. Joel Benjamin and regional managing partner Marla Valdez are highly rated, and Victoria Simonova and Almas Zhaiylgan are also recommended.

Salans LLP’ 32-lawyer practice is routinely rated ‘very good’ or ‘excellent’ for banking and finance, tax and dispute resolution. It is advising Kazakhmys on its proposed Hong Kong IPO; advised ENRC and Kazchrome on obtaining a $500m credit facility from Samruk Kazyna; and is representing oil industry players in dispute resolution matters. Other clients include Agip KCO, Eurasian Bank and Halliburton. Managing partner and head of dispute resolution Aigoul Kenjebayeva is superb. Head of banking Abai Shaikenov is ‘very commercial’, and head of tax Kanat Skakov is also recommended. Yuliya Mitrofanskaya left the firm in December 2011.

White & Case Kazakhstan LLP ‘provides excellent service on a transactional level’, and ‘prompt answers with alternative solutions’. It has a fine reputation across a range of industries and disciplines, being particularly excellent for banking and finance, and ‘very strong in capital markets and M&A matters’. It advised BTA Bank on its $16.65bn debt restructuring. It also advised the joint lead managers on revising the $7.5bn medium-term note programme of KazMunaiGaz Finance Sub BV and KazMunaiGas; and advised Eurasian Bank on acquiring Société Générale’s ProstoKredit retail banking business. Recent arrival Maxim Telemtayev is ‘an addition that significantly strengthens the local expertise’; he and Marat Ibragimov are ‘strong professionals with high ethics’. Kairat Baizakov and Michael Rayson are also recommended.

Aequitas is ‘always on time, sharp, and to the point. It has excellent knowledge of the Kazakh market and specifics in many fields of activities’. This multidisciplinary domestic firm represents oil, gas and mining companies, banks, consumer product manufacturers, and IT companies. Highlights in 2011 included advising Eurasian Development Bank on $100m financing for Altyn Almaz to develop a gold mine and acting for the Russian uranium producer Atomredmetzoloto on the acquisition of two local companies. It represented international lenders on debt restructuring in the country’s large grain industry. Managing partner Olga Chentsova is considered the ‘absolute number one’, and has ‘deep knowledge and expertise in almost all aspects of Kazakh legislation’, especially for energy and natural resources matters. Nataliya Braynina is ‘a very reliable, quick, responsive lawyer with wide experience in mining law’, and Nurlan Sholanov and Yuliya Chumachenko are also recommended.

Chadbourne & Parke LLP focuses on high-end oil and gas matters, or broader corporate mandates. The team advised Caspian Pipeline Consortium on developing a transportation system to export oil from Kazakhstan and Trans-Asia Gas Pipeline Co on the Kazakhstan-China gas pipeline. Other clients include EBRD and HSBC regarding restructuring of loans; Alfa-Bank in debt recovery disputes; and Roxi Petroleum plc on divesting participation interests in Galaz & Company. Managing partner Kenneth Mack, litigator Sergei Vataev and corporate lawyer Victor Mokrousov are the names to note.

Major international clients report that at Grata Law Firm the ‘overall level of service is excellent; more particularly, its timely delivery and good knowledge of local legislation and industry specifics’. This sizeable full-service, Kazakhstan-based firm has operations across Central Asia and the Caucasus, a network that is appreciated by its predominantly international client base, although the departures of several team members to newly formed breakaway Colibri Law Firm did see several well respected partners leave the firm’s network. It has particular expertise in banking and finance, subsurface use industries and projects, and is handling increasing volumes of disputes. It advised on IFC’s purchase of a 10% stake in Centercredit Bank, and on Punjab National Bank’s acquisition of 63% of Dana Bank. It is local counsel on the Ekibastuz HPP 2 power plant reconstruction. Other regular clients include EBRD, Lufthansa, and Procter & Gamble Kazakhstan. The team is on a ‘very good professional level’, and delivers ‘in-depth legal analysis and excellent price/quality ratio’. Samat Daumov is ‘an experienced and very reliable lawyer’, Assel Ilyassova is ‘a very good expert in tax matters’, and Rashid Gaissin is also recommended. Akhmetzhan Abdullayev, Tlek Baigabulov, and Aidar Sarymsakov are the senior partners. Counsel Maksim Grekov joined from White & Case Kazakhstan LLP in October 2011.

Norton Rose Kazakhstan LLP is an inheritance from Macleod Dixon ELP, following the Canadian firm’s absorption at the beginning of 2012. The Almaty team remains fronted by its former Macleod Dixon ELP partners Yerzhan Kumarov and Tatiana Muratova. The firm has a particularly strong client base among banks, providing top-end financing, corporate and regulatory advice, often with regard to loans to subsurface industry clients. Recent work includes advising Deutsche Bank on a $300m syndicated loan to KazMunaiGas Finance Sub BV; Bank of China on a $200m secured loan to JV Kaspi Bitumen LLP; and Altynalmas on consolidating its gold mining assets and a subsequent listing in Toronto. It also advised IFC on a syndicated loan and Eurasian Development Bank on a large project financing.

The six-partner firm of Sayat Zholshy & Partners runs a full-service practice with particular strengths in M&A, antitrust and litigation. Clients include oilfield services giant Halliburton and electronics company LG as well as certain Russian banks. Managing partner Vitaliy Vodolazkin is highly recommended.

VSB Partners was founded at the beginning of 2011 by former Bracewell & Giuliani LLP lawyers, following that firm’s decision to quit the market in 2010. As such, the new firm carries over a strong reputation and remains ‘very impressive’, particularly for its finance, capital markets and corporate capabilities, and especially regarding subsurface use industries. Clients include Frontier Mining, Marubeni, Oman Oil, and Red October Resources. Senior partner Gregory Vojack is highly recommended, and managing partner Kairat Serikpayev is ‘excellent: perfect English, local legal knowledge and sound grasp of general business principles and the pragmatic need for maintaining relationships’.

Curtis, Mallet-Prevost, Colt & Mosle LLP’s offices in Almaty and Astana focus primarily on financing, contracts and business support for the oil and gas sector. International arbitration is another strength. Askar Moukhitdinov heads the team.

Linkage & Mind LLP primarily focuses on corporate support, and also advises on taxation and litigation. The group recently advised Fortis Mining on a potential acquisition of shares in a potassium deposit, and advised Tau-Ken Samruk mining company on a cooperation agreement. Sembol Construction and Sumitomo Corporation are clients for tax advice. Managing partner Madina Sypatayeva and Arnur Amirgaliyev are the main contacts.

ORIS handles corporate and finance-related matters. This three-partner firm has been earning referral work from international law firms, and recently acted for Pilkington plc, EBRD and RTS. Managing partner Amir Tussupkhanov and Aituar Madin are recommended.

Olympex Advisers has ‘very deep knowledge and substantial experience in petroleum law, tax law and government affairs. Overall, the firm provides an excellent legal service’, spanning corporate, commercial, regulatory and litigation support. It advised KazMunaiGas Exploration Production on its $1.66bn indirect acquisition of a 50% stake in Mangistaumunaigas; Temir Service LLP on subsurface use laws; and Nazarbayev University on strategic agreements with overseas institutions. Other clients include KazTransGas, KazTransOil and LSE-listed Zhaikmunai LLP. Clients say ‘the team is knowledgeable, response times are among the shortest we have ever experienced, and fees are very competitive’. Managing partners Bolat Toktarov and Diyar Yereshev are recommended, as are corporate lawyers Yessen Massalin and Kuanysh Sarsenbayev – both are ‘organised and attentive to detail’. Yereshev and Massalin are ‘highly experienced lawyers with deep knowledge in the sphere of subsurface use and fiscal policy’.

PwC Legal Kazakhstan is ‘gaining ground here as a first-class legal services provider’. It primarily represents subsurface use and pharmaceuticals industry clients in M&A and corporate matters, with the majority of clients currently by referral from PwC accountancy colleagues. Legal services director Walter Daniel, whose extensive experience includes a stint in-house at Occidental Petroleum, joined in June 2010. He is a ‘very commercial lawyer; very approachable’.

Four-partner Signum Law Firm is recommended for oil and gas and mining matters, and recently advised Amber Petroleum on selling oil exploration blocks for $500m. It is also attracting corporate, commercial and tax advisory instructions from FMCG companies. Managing partner Sofiya Zhylkaidarova and Abylkhair Nakipov are recommended.