The Legal 500

Alexander Chmelev’s ‘very competent’ tax team at Baker & McKenzie – CIS, Limited ‘gives value for money’. The group is currently advising Heerema Marine Contractors Nederland BV on various Russian tax and customs law matters related to the design, transportation and installation of deep-water facilities on the Russian continental shelf. In Moscow, Maria Kostenko is recommended, as is Sergei Zhestkov, who is ‘an expert in both private and corporate tax matters’. In St Petersburg, Ivan Smirnov is highly experienced.

Pepeliaev Group ‘has competitive advantages that include the brand, its successful track record and its expertise in the local market’. The firm’s tax advice and litigation practice comprises 13 partners that include highly regarded tax experts Sergey Pepeliaev, Andrey Nikonov and Valentina Akimova. The firm’s clients include Volkswagen and METRO Group.

Salans’ standalone tax group has grown over the last year, reflecting its increasing appeal to clients. Group leader Evgeny Timofeev is praised for his ‘diversified theory and practical knowledge, strong experience and outstanding logic’. He has a ‘creative approach in finding solutions, an open mind and gets results fast’. The firm is instructed by HeidelbergCement, Sara Lee, Diebold, Alstom, Schlumberger. Recent client gains include Siemens and ABB. Akexei Panich is also highly regarded.

The tax group at CMS Russia is led by Stanislav Tourbanov. The team advises on all areas of tax law for corporate and private clients and assists companies in customs related issues. The firm recently advised a cosmetics company on implementing its group transfer pricing policy and assisted in drawing up the documentation and negotiation with tax and customs authorities. Charles-Henri Roy and Dominique Tissot are also recommended.

DLA Piper has a standalone tax practice that benefits from on-the-ground and global resources thanks to its international tax capability. It ‘has the ability to find hidden problems in existing situations’. The highly regarded Ruslan Vasutin and ‘friendly’ Igor Venediktov, who ‘has a deep knowledge of tax legislation’, are based in St Petersburg and Moscow, respectively. The group’s clients include Bauer Media, Carlsberg, General Motors and Maersk.

FBK Legal’s Galina Akchurina leads the tax division of the firm, ably supported by ‘very intelligent’ tax litigator Alexei Yakovlev and Tatiana Matveicheva. The firm recently advised GlaxoSmithKline Russia in successful court proceedings regarding Unified Social Tax (Social Security) claims. One client attests that ‘we engage the firm in crucial, difficult and ambiguous cases’.

Highlights of Herbert Smith CIS LLP‘s recent tax experience include advising Gazprom, its joint venture partners and the project company on tax issues in connection with a €1bn project financing to develop the Yuzhno-Russkoye gas field in Western Siberia. Practice group leader Oleg Konnov is ‘particularly good at strategic thinking. He is always thinking of different ways to solve problems’.

Managing associate Victor Matchekhin leads the tax team at Linklaters CIS. The firm provided tax advice to Total on its joint venture with Novatek to develop the Termokarstovoye gas field; Experian on the formation of a credit history bureau jointly with Sberbank and Interfax group; and Unilever on its acquisition of the Baltimor Group.

PricewaterhouseCoopers CIS Law Offices BV’s tax dispute resolution group won 98% of the court cases it acted on during the last financial year. Yana Proskurina’s team has experience representing Russian and multinational companies, including oil and gas companies in complex tax disputes with the state authorities, pre-trial tax dispute resolution and through all stages of litigation.

Irina Dmitrieva’s tax team at White & Case LLC is closely integrated with the firm’s other practice areas to provide tax structuring advice on transactions and projects across industry sectors, covering both Russian and international tax issues. The firm recently advised MDM Bank and Ursa Bank as joint clients on the tax structuring and implementation of their merger.

Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP was bolstered following the arrival of tax expert Ilya Rybalkin from Hogan & Hartson LLP.

Maxim Alekseyev leads the tax team at Alrud Law Firm. ‘The service is timely and professional. Its advice is to the point and it addresses exactly the question raised – it never goes for a copy-and-paste exercise.’

At Clifford Chance, Alexander Anichkin continues to be the key tax contact. The firm represented Bank of New York in $22.5bn litigation under a lawsuit brought by the Federal Customs Service of the Russian Federation in the Moscow court claiming for the damages resulting from the alleged participation of BoNY in a money-laundering scheme facilitating avoidance of Russian import taxes and duties.

One of Gide Loyrette Nouel’s biggest recent tax mandates involved advising Eurocopter on obtaining over €1m of Russian VAT refunds. Other clients include Sunitomo and Thales Avionics. Tatiana Kirgetova is recommended.

Goltsblat BLP was boosted by the arrival of tax team leader Andrey Shpak from PricewaterhouseCoopers CIS Law Offices BV. Clients include Mars, Lafarge, Chrysler, General Motors and LG Electronics,

Noerr appointed Maxim Vladimirov as its new head of tax for Moscow in November 2010, following Sergei Schelkalin's departure to KPMG.

At Vegas Lex, head of the tax practice Oleg Bazhenov and tax expert Andrey Tsyb are praised for their ‘skills and knowledge’ in this area. The firm recently acted for Media-Markt Saturn providing legal support in challenging the results of cameral tax audits.