Ernst & Young LLP

The firm 

Since opening of EY’s law practice in Armenia in 2015 it has expanded its team and expertise to cover multiple disciplines, securing its firm place in the Armenian legal market. We serve clients across a wide range of industries, covering mining, infrastructure, power and utilities, telecommunications, IT & technology, transportation, banking & finance, insurance, retail, pharmaceuticals etc. Our clientele varies from corporations and individuals to international organizations, state agencies of the Republic of Armenia and other sovereigns.

Our team is composed of internationally trained lawyers, licensed advocates and practitioners with profound experience. Our client-focused legal services are offered in close collaboration with other service lines to provide clients with high-quality, multidisciplinary advice in a cost-competitive manner. With our multidisciplinary, one-stop shop approach, we help reduce the gap between business advisors and legal counsel, increasing efficiency and speed to market, while reducing costs.

We operate as part of a global organization with the capacity to bring in expertise of our colleagues from across the globe when dictated by the clients’ needs. EY Law now unites more than 2,100 law practitioners in more than 80 countries of the world and is continuing to grow at a rapid rate.

Areas of practice 

We provide a wide array of legal services, including but not limited to the following:

Transaction law. Integrating EY law practitioners with the professionals from other service lines, we are able to handle a range of issues that can arise in a single transaction. In addition, we complement transactional skills with extensive knowledge, covering a wide range of business areas including anti-trust, employment and benefits, environmental law, intellectual property, and tax. To help you manage uncertain environments, EY provides detailed legal transaction advice and support, including carve-outs and separation, transaction structuring and negotiation, buy- and sell-side due diligence, share and asset purchase agreements, investment and shareholders’ agreements, JV agreements, transaction financing, competition law clearance, as well as completion and post-transaction reorganizations.

Corporate. We represent companies in many aspects of their corporate life – from establishment through to various aspects of evolution. EY advises clients on corporate structuring, incorporation, reorganization, liquidation, as well as registration and de-registration of branches and representative offices for foreign entities. Our lawyers advise on shareholders’ controversy, corporate governance, including director and officer liability, insolvency, restructuring.

Contracts. EY counsels businesses in connection with their ongoing contractual relationships with domestic and international customers, suppliers, and distributors. EY lawyers provide advice on all forms of commercial contracts to support day-to-day and strategic business activities. Our experience extends across sectors and regulatory regimes, including contracts covering outsourcing conducted through detailed procurement processes, services distribution, software licensing, development, product marketing, manufacturing, supply, maintenance and support, online terms and conditions etc.

Contracts with the state and public law.  We advise clients in their participation to state procurement tenders, as well as negotiation of terms (deviations) from template contracts (such as FIDIC) to ensure full protection of their interests by uniting knowledge of local laws and international best practices. EY advises clients on PPP arrangements, structuring and on the relevant legal framework. We have advised sovereigns and sovereign funds in their negotiations and execution of treaties with the state and contracts governed by municipal law. We help ensure regulatory compliance across various industries and represent the interests of the client in administrative process or litigation as the case may be. 

Litigation. EY’s litigation team represents clients in complex legal disputes and has over years accumulated a successful portfolio in strategic litigation, complex tax litigation and regulatory compliance disputes, cross-border insolvency matters, complex commercial disputes and employment disputes. EY’s local legal team has acted as local legal counsel in major international commercial disputes, as well as local legal advisers in pre-arbitration phases of investor-state disputes.

Employment law. EY advises clients on various employment law matters, ranging from advise on drafting and review of employment law contracts and internal policies to representation in employment disputes and performance of employment DDs. EY supports its clients throughout the entire evolution of their businesses, helping to manage the people-related legal aspects of restructuring, mergers, takeovers and all types of business transformation.

Entity compliance & governance. Whatever your organizational structure, EY can provide seamless entity management services, keeping your entities in good standing and avoiding penalties and breaches. These include corporate health checks, annual compliance services, as well as routine event-driven corporate changes, such change in director or registered address, changes in shareholding or share capital, requirements around PoA or document execution and changes in legal documents such as charters and bylaws. We assist clients with all year-end formalities, help maintain company records, prepare and file recurring returns with the local registry, provide reminders of upcoming compliance deadlines etc.

IP law. We assist clients on various IP related issues, ranging from trademark and license registration to review and drafting of complex franchise arrangements, royalty/license provisions in supply contracts and IP disputes. Our advice touches upon complicated policy matters such as preparation of a roadmap for the phasing out of usage of certain GIs to ensure compliance with obligations under CEPA.

Digital law. We help clients build the legal framework of an e-commerce business by drafting legal agreements, advise on the contractual basis for contracting online, including preparation of user terms and conditions and use of digital signatures, assist with software licenses, website design agreements and R&D agreements, address consumer protection and competition laws as e-commerce capabilities develop and evolve, help protect digital IP, facilitate compliance with data privacy requirements.        

Tax law. Our tax professionals offer services across all tax disciplines. EY has competencies in business tax, international tax, transaction tax and tax-related issues associated with people, compliance and reporting and law. By leveraging the power of our global network, innovative technology and insights, we can help clients address tax risk, better manage tax controversy and resolve tax disputes regardless of the industry. Our indirect tax professionals join technical knowledge with industry understanding and access to technologically advanced tools and methodologies. We identify risk areas and sustainable planning opportunities for indirect taxes throughout the tax life cycle, helping you meet your compliance obligations and business goals. We help clients spot, manage and minimize PE risks. We help review and safeguard clients’ existing operations, liaise with local tax authorities, advise on new overseas projects and help develop systems to manage PE risk.