The recent addition of Svitlana Glushchenko, former Deputy Minister of Justice of Ukraine, to the VB Partners team strategically strengthens the firm’s Dispute Resolution practice.
Founding partners Denys Bugay and Volodymyr Vashchenko, as well as counsel Svitlana Glushchenko, spoke about the development of the practice, management nuances, priorities, and plans.
— VB Partners is known primarily as a highly specialised White-Collar Crime firm in Ukraine. What is the place of Dispute Resolution in your portfolio?
Denys Bugay: Dispute Resolution has always been one of our key practices, even if it sometimes remained in the shadows. Colleagues and clients have consistently recognised VB Partners’ expertise in this practice in national and international rankings. Recently, my partner Volodymyr Vashchenko, as the head of the practice, was once again recognised by Lexology as a Global Leader in Commercial Litigation.
— How is the DR practice developing at VB Partners and what features can you highlight?
Svitlana Glushchenko: The key feature of VB Partners is that our lawyers have not only high legal expertise but also practical experience in the business environment. This allows us to take a systematic approach to dispute resolution, identify risks in advance and offer effective solutions.
Our proactive approach is based on our in-depth knowledge of banking and tax legislation, financial monitoring, and criminal law and procedure.
Not only is our background in Dispute Resolution fundamental, but also our expertise in related practices. For example, we represent shareholders and top managers of banks in criminal proceedings related to embezzlement, tax evasion and abuse of office.
Public disputes are our key competitive advantage, which is based on our in-depth expertise in WCC cases.
— What business processes does the company have in place to work with DR?
Denys Bugay: Our business processes are equally universal for both practices. The most important element is building a team of experts that reflects our corporate culture and spirit.
Project management, delegation, and formalisation of all algorithms are a must-have for every team member. Our rules clearly regulate our work, ensuring discipline and consistency in everything we do. This approach is the main factor of efficiency.
— What does VB Partners focus on when developing its DR team?
Svitlana Glushchenko: VB Partners always focuses on the development of the team as a whole and, at the same time, each lawyer individually. We use a dualistic approach: on the one hand, we provide motivational support, and on the other hand, we provide in-depth instruction and help solve specific legal tasks. Sometimes it can be a professional consultation, and sometimes it can be a sincere conversation over a cup of coffee.
The main emphasis is on the result, which can be achieved through continuous improvement of expertise, systematic and in-depth study of each case. We encourage continuous development as it is the key to the success of our team.
Denys Bugay: To ensure efficiency, our lawyers must be adaptable. Our attorneys must be both masters of the process and experts in criminal cases. Some of them spend 70% of their time on criminal proceedings and 30% on litigation, while others do the opposite. This flexibility and versatility allows us to effectively solve our clients’ problems and provide them with more than just legal advice.
— What are the peculiarities of managing White-Collar Crime and Dispute Resolution teams? What are the similarities and differences?
Denys Bugay: White-Collar Crime and Dispute Resolution practices really have a lot in common, especially in the context of procedural actions, risk analysis and development of a defence strategy. They are much more interconnected than, say, antitrust and corporate law practices. That is why we have focused our development on DR and WCC.
In addition, the Sanctions practice also has a lot in common with the WCC and DR, as it has elements of both dispute resolution and white-collar crime.
Our in-depth theoretical knowledge, understanding of court practice, dedication to our client’s interests and well-coordinated business processes are the basis of our extraordinary quality.
— What challenges do you see in the field of Dispute Resolution, and what risks do you face when dealing with national judicial authorities? How do they affect the development of DR in Ukraine and the firm’s practice?
Volodymyr Vashchenko: One of the main challenges in Dispute Resolution is the difficulty of interacting with the courts due to uneven enforcement and bureaucracy. This leads to delays in cases and unpredictable decisions, especially in public disputes where there are administrative and political factors.
Such challenges force us to improve our business processes, which enables us to quickly adapt to changes in the legal environment and maintain high-quality services. In addition, our interaction with international jurisdictions is growing, which opens up new opportunities for international cooperation in Cross-border Investigations. We also constantly analyse new trends to minimise risks for our clients.
— What new opportunities do you see for the development of DR in the current environment?
Volodymyr Vashchenko: The war in Ukraine has significantly changed the legal environment. This creates difficulties for law enforcement, but also opens up new opportunities for international cooperation, particularly in cross-border sanctions cases. Cooperation with foreign jurisdictions has become an integral part of our work.
Another important opportunity is the post-war reconstruction of Ukraine, which will lead to an increase in the number of cases related to the restoration of infrastructure and protection of investors’ interests. DR practice will be a key tool for resolving such issues.
The digitalisation of court proceedings and the introduction of electronic tools also open up new opportunities for optimising work, especially in the context of an overloaded judicial system.
The development of DR is also influenced by legislative changes in the area of sanctions and asset nationalisation.
— What key areas do you plan to focus on in the coming years? What are your plans for the future?
Svitlana Glushchenko: In the coming years, I plan to focus on three key areas.
First, it is the professional growth of our team with a focus on preventing burnout. It is important that colleagues continue to improve and maintain a work-life balance.
Secondly, it is expert navigation in legislation and court practice, as well as monitoring market trends.
And finally, the introduction of artificial intelligence technologies into our work so that routine tasks are performed by technology and people can focus on creative ideas.
In an interview for Yurydychna Praktyka