The Legal 500

Lawin represents numerous significant clients in the shipping, aviation and wider transport sectors, and clients say ‘quite a distinguishing feature is that this firm has teams of lawyers who are truly specialised’. It recently advised Credit Industriel et Commercial on financing of the sale and lease of Lithuania’s first Airbus aircraft. Other clients include airBaltic, Flylal Charters, Transaviabaltica and Avion Express. Litigator Vilija Vaitkute Pavan and finance expert Gediminas Reciunas are recommended.

Ramanauskas ir Partneriai Law Firm’s small but expert team is one of the market’s few shipping law specialists and is located within convenient reach of the Lithuanian seaport of Klaipeda. Name partner Vytas Ramanauskas advises on the full range of wet and dry shipping matters.

Sorainen brings top-level corporate and dispute resolution expertise to the transport sector. It advised If P&C Insurance regarding a fire on the ferry LISCO Gloria, which caused a total of €60m of damage. Kaunas International Airport is also a client. Clients say the firm clearly understands instructions and note its ‘professional attitude, knowledge and personal assistance throughout’. Laura Cereškaite-Kinciuviene is recommended.

bnt Heemann Klauberg Krauklis APB acts for a CEE airline on everyday legal and regulatory matters, and is advising Lithuanian transport and freight-forwarding company Cargotrans on a range of issues. Clients value the firm’s ‘very good network all over Eastern Europe’.

Balciunas & Grajauskas’ recent instructions include advising Greenchem Baltic on issues relating to the transportation of fuel and dangerous chemical materials through EU countries. Marius Grajauskas is ‘very constructive, quick and decisive’.

Baltic Legal Solutions Lithuania, led by Gytis Kaminskas, acted as local counsel to Swedish law firm Magnusson Advokatbyrå in the implementation of a transportation agreement for Statoil. The team also recently handled a cross-border dispute between a Lithuanian transportation company and a Polish entity.

Law Firm Bernotas & Dominas Glimstedt’s substantial shipping practice is headed by Egidijus Bernotas, who is ‘a good leader and concrete adviser’. He advises Limarko Shipping Company on vessel inspections and fleet expansion, and advises Blue Tide on a range of maritime issues. Associate Sarunas Basijokas is a specialist in the field.

Attorneys at Law Borenius recently advised Baltic Freight Services in a high-value dispute with a Belarus transport company. Other clients include Kuehne+Nagel and DHL Lithuania. The ‘broad-thinking’ Vaidas Mackonis and senior associate Jurate Rusteikaite-Bakšiene are shipping law experts.

Eversheds Saladžius’ transport sector client roster includes industrial distributor UAB Brenntag and Volvo Financial Services, as well as a major airport and a global transportation company. The firm recently handled a claim following a serious ship accident in the Baltic Sea.

Tark Grunte Sutkiene’s Andrej Rudanov is ‘extremely good at arranging relations with administrative bodies’ and is advising Lithuanian Railways on devising new legislation to facilitate the proposed Rail Baltica, an EU-standard railway connecting the Baltic states with the rest of Europe.

Varul acts for Mediterranean Shipping Company on various matters, and advises the Ministry of Transport on the feasibility of intelligent transport systems.