WALLESS > Vilnius, Lithuania > Firm Profile
WALLESS Offices
UPES STR. 23
08128 VILNIUS
Lithuania
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WALLESS > The Legal 500 Rankings
Lithuania > Banking, finance and capital markets Tier 1
WALLESS has quite an enviable client roster consisting of major financial institutions including Bank of America, JP Morgan and Morgan Stanley. This client base has been largely drawn to the team’s expertise in major financings, capital markets and regulatory compliance. The team has also focused on Lithuania’s fintech sector as well as the country’s increasing interest in sustainable financing. Aviation financing is another core strength. Andrius Ivanauskas was a new arrival in April 2022.Other key lawyers:
Key clients
Bank of America
JP Morgan
Morgan Stanley
UBS
Swedbank
BnP Paribas
Luminor Bank
ING Bank
Jyske Bank
Pareto Securities
BayernLB
Work highlights
- Advised a syndicate of international banks on Ignitis Group’s entry to stock markets in Lithuania and the UK.
- Advised BNP Paribas and J.P. Morgan on the debut eurobond offering of Akropolis Group.
- Advised BayernLB on the financing of the E energija Telsiai 68.9MW onshore wind farm in Lithuania.
Lithuania > Commercial, corporate and M&A Tier 1
WALLESS has been particularly active in the technology sector, and counts major crypto company SimplexCC as well as the cloud server operator RackRay among its client roster. Povilas Zukauskas, who is highly skilled in M&A, joint ventures and general corporate matters, leads the team alongside Laura Ziferman, who focuses on regulatory and competition issues. Managing partner Dovile BurgienePractice head(s):
Other key lawyers:
Testimonials
‘The team is highly competent, hands-on, delivering on time and with the highest quality.’
‘Povilas Žukauskas – truly great lawyer with deep market and juridical knowledge, bringing out-of-box suggestions and delivering great results.’
‘The team with its lead Indre Jonaityte-Grice ahead is exceptional with work quality and fast delivery, conceptual view and business orientated solutions; the team has well diversified knowledge of main fields and can provide fast and trusted advice on all commercial, tax and legal questions.’
‘Indre Jonaityte-Grice is exceptional with work quality and fast delivery, conceptual view and business orientated solutions.’
‘They are dashing, energetic team with a lot of potential. Skillful and experienced individuals.’
‘Povilas Žukauskas has good knowledge of M&A matters. He is experienced and solid in his field of work. Always trying to find the best possible solutions. He has great communication and analytical skills.’
‘Key team’s strengths are reliability and competence. WALLESS always helps us to create strategies for our business development that are both actionable and compliant with our goals. For example, this year we worked with WALLESS Commercial team while launching our new business platform (car lease via mobile app). WALLESS team offered irreplaceable support to us and their communication was very attentive. We are very happy that our partnership allowed us to focus on daily legal issues while WALLESS took this matter into their hands and mastered it. We believe that the success of the project was also related to the fact, that all questions (from corporate to commercial and competition) were curated by one key person responsible for the effective organization of the project and risk management of legal issues in overlapping areas’
‘In general, I believe Walless is the most innovative, flexible and diverse team among Tier 1 legal firms in Lithuania.
Key clients
Vilnius City Municipality Administration
Kaunas City Municipality Administration
Affidea Group
Yukon Advanced Optics Worldwide UAB
KINZE Manufacturing, Inc.
Huracán Coffee
DAO Family
Blockchain.com
Booking.com
Modus Group
Kotryna Group
SumUp
LEONHARD WEISS OÜ
Alwark
Bank of America; J.P. Morgan; Morgan Stanley; Swedbank and UBS
UAB Urban Invesment and UAB GS Invest
Evli Growth Partners
UAB Vertės technologija
Sapiens International Corporation
Press Glass
Inchcape
Work highlights
- Advised the syndicate of international banks – Bank of America, J.P. Morgan, Morgan Stanley, Swedbank and UBS – as Joint Bookrunners on Ignitis Group’s entry to stock markets in Lithuania and the United Kingdom.
- Advised Simplex, a payment solution provider to the cryptocurrency industry, on an acquisition transaction with Nuvei, a Canadian-based payment technology company.
- Advised and represented shareholders of RackRay (major technology and cloud servers company) in sale of 100% shares to Meralm Bidco AB.
Lithuania > Fintech Tier 1
WALLESS is highly skilled in assisting fintech companies with licensing and e-licensing matters, corporate transactions and regulatory compliance. The firm has been particularly advising fintech companies on relocating from the UK to Lithuania because of Brexit. In addition, other recent work included assisting credit unions with their conversions into specialised banks. Gediminas ReciunasPractice head(s):
Other key lawyers:
Laurynas Narvydas; Lina Radaviciene; Simona Kisunaite; Akvile Marozaite; Andrius Ivanauskas
Key clients
Square
SumUp
RIA Financial Services
Simplex
Nayax
Railsbank / Payrnet
PayRay
DiPocket
BLender
Stanhope Financial
Work highlights
- Advised Simplex, a payment solution provider to the cryptocurrency industry, in an acquisition transaction with Nuvei, a Canadian-based payment technology company.
- Advised Trust Pay on obtaining by its Lithuanian subsidiary Crius LT a specialized banking licence from the Bank of Lithuania and the European Central Bank.
- Advised RIA Financial Services Ltd in setting up its payments business in Lithuania.
Lithuania > Real estate and construction Tier 1
WALLESS excels in advising on real estate transactions, infrastructure developments and commercial leasing. Planning law is another area of expertise; Evaldas Klimas is a key name to note in this space. He is also well-versed in environmental law, having recently assisted the Ministry of Environment on land use regulations. Laura Ziferman is a procurement specialist and often advises on PPP construction projects. Indre Jonaityte-Grice focuses predominantly on real estate transactions, with a recent workload involving both commercial and residential asset classes. Akvile Mackay and newly-promoted senior associate Mantas Lideika are also recommended.Practice head(s):
Other key lawyers:
Mantas Lideika; Akvile Mackay
Testimonials
‘I have no doubt that associates like Mantas Lideika will be one of the biggest leaders in the industry.’
‘Evaldas Klimas has great understanding of law and commercial operations.’
‘Walless is one of the top legal firms when it comes real estate transactions and development.’
‘The firm is competitively priced, ambitious and is also known for transparency and investment into their personnel development.’
‘Indre Jonaityte-Grice is a very experienced and leading transactions lawyer (among top 3 RE partners in Lithuania by number/size) and is known for hands on approach and thorough guidance of the clients through transaction process. Indre also excels at managing intra-firm collaboration to address diverse client needs She is probably the top choice for institutional RE clients in Lithuania today.
‘WALLESS real estate team is one stop team, holding all necessary competencies for real estate development and transactions. We are happy to receive all necessary support under one roof from the best experts in the market. WALLESS real estate team is unchangeable when it comes in explaining new regulations and recent judicial practice, as they invest a lot in being upfront other firms.’
‘WALLESS partner Evaldas Klimas is best known for dealing and solving the most difficult regulatory issues. He is the best when it comes to zoning and planning, land use, construction regulations. WALLESS partner Indre Jonaityte Grice is known in the market to work with major real estate investment deals and is known as excellent negotiator always striving to make a deal. Always, when we have a real estate deal we call for help only to Indre.’
Key clients
BCP Logistic Property
Ignalinos atominė elektrinė
Lidl Lietuva, UAB
Lords LB Asset Management
Vilnius City Municipality Administration
REWO (subsidiary Žygimantų 12, UAB)
Ministry of Environment
Baltic Horizon Fund (BHF)
Eastnine
Hanner
Work highlights
- Advised Eastnine (Swedish-listed investment company) on acquisition of a multi-tenant office building and the Danske Bank IT service centre building, both located in prime Vilnius CBD.
- Advised on implementation of newly enacted Law on municipal infrastructure development, significantly changing the rules for private development.
- Advised Tamro Baltics in a built-to-suit long term lease transaction for its new logistics center. The project will be developed in Kaunas Free Economic Zone.
Lithuania > Tax Tier 1
WALLESS‘s tax team is led by Aiste Medeliene , who formerly worked for the Commission on Tax Disputes under the Government of the Republic of Lithuania and is highly skilled in tax litigation, wealth management and general compliance. She is supported by Mindaugas Lukas, who similarly has experience working in the public sector and previously worked for the Lithuanian tax authorities and Ministry of Finance. This deep sector insight means that the team covers a broad range of areas across tax, customs and transfer pricing.Practice head(s):
Other key lawyers:
Testimonials
‘Client oriented, result driven, truly expert.’
‘Aiste Medeliene – looking deep into legal problem and finding new ways to move forward.’
‘Very responsive firm and professional.’
‘Mindaugas Lukas has very deep knowledge and he is very responsive.’
‘We feel like we have our team member inside and there is no distinction or line separating client and the legal team of Walless. Creative attitude and solutions is the real strength of the Walless team.’
‘Availability, team player attitude and creativeness.’
‘The team maintained a close relationship with the client, caring that he is fully informed and takes part in the process, while providing an adequate advice.’
Key clients
Eastnine
BNP Paribas
J.P. Morgan
Luminor
SBA Group
Bank of America
Morgan Stanley
Swedbank
UBS
Girteka Group
UAB Sprusas
AB BE group
SumUp Payments Limited
The Lithuanian Chamber of Insurance Brokers
UAB Thermofisher Scientific Baltics
Veolia Group
Telia Lietuva AB
Work highlights
- Advised the joint bookrunners for the IPO of the AB Ignitis grupė, Lithuanian state-owned energy company
- Represented Enteco Baltic in a multi-million tax dispute on import VAT matters in Lithuanian courts and the CJEU, creating European level precedent
- Provided tax advice to BNP Paribas and J.P. Morgan, as Global Coordinators and Joint Bookrunners, and Luminor, as Joint Bookrunner, on the debut Eurobond offering of Akropolis Group.
Lithuania > Dispute resolution Tier 2
Arbitration is a notable strength of WALLESS, which has expertise in both international and domestic cases and ‘highly respected arbitration practitioner’ Gediminas Dominas fronts the team. Simona Drukteiniene also has a strong focus on arbitration, particularly in relation to investment disputes. Construction and infrastructure-related disputes are another core area of focus, with Renata Jatuzyte-Muleviciene a key name within these areas.Practice head(s):
Other key lawyers:
Testimonials
‘The dispute resolution team is true to its motto – the client is what matters. And they really mean that: you share your problem and may be comfortable that it will be dealt as a personal one. Simona Drukteiniene is a well known and respected expert in civil law, especially in tortious and contractual liability, liability of public authorities, insurance law.’
‘Gediminas Dominas is a highly respected arbitration practitioner. The size of the team perfectly reflects the needs of the client – you always have a partner (or both of them in most complicated matters) on the team, accompanied by a suitable number of highly competent associates. If needed, specialized knowledge of other teams is shared by the dispute resolution team. They always start with the strategy of the issue at hand rather than focusing on an isolated matter.’
‘The cases we’ve been working with WALLESS’ dispute resolution team over the past twelve months raised particularly complex issues which have not been dealt with in Lithuanian case law and legal literature before, thus they required deep theoretical background, high litigation skills and solid reputation. We were very satisfied with the results reached.’
‘Simona Drukteinienė is very good on the strategy of the issue. She thinks several steps ahead and always has several scenarios in mind. Gediminas Dominas is a highly respected arbitration practitioner.’
‘The team possesses extremely talented and highly experienced litigators. The lawyers are able to always respond quickly and provide quality advice based on business specifics.’
‘The lawyers understand business practicalities. Provide clear advice without too much legal jargon.’
Key clients
UAB LOGICHEMA
Kopparbergs Bryggeri AB
Luminor Bank AS
E-energija
UAB Krasta Auto
UAB Prime Leasing
VINGE, law firm
Baltic Fert
Kinnarps AB
LEONHARD WEISS
Vilnius City Municipality Administration
Work highlights
- Acted for Leonhard Weiss OÜ in a construction contract dispute against AB LTGInfra – a state-owned company, which operates public national railway infrastructure and implements Rail Baltica projects in Lithuania.
- Advised YIT Lietuva in a dispute against UAB Mitnija over refusal to pay for works performed under construction contract at NATO base.
- Advised LOGICHEMA in a claim against its 40 % shareholder and former key employee for breach of non-competition restriction.
Lithuania > EU and competition Tier 2
A relatively new name to the market, WALLESS has recently strengthened its team with the hire of competition and state aid specialist Darius Miniotas from TGS Baltic. The team has been particularly active in state aid notification procedures and handling allegations of illegal use of state aid. Procurement is another core area of expertise, with practice head Laura Ziferman specialising in public procurement and public-private partnership compliance. Andrius Ivanauskas was a new arrival in April 2022.Practice head(s):
Other key lawyers:
Testimonials
‘Laura Ziferman is an experienced lawyer in this field. She is proactive.’
‘Attention to details, long term vision.’
‘Excellent knowledge and attitude.’
‘An exceptional team with a strong understanding of client needs.’
‘The whole team have an outstanding approach to the issues that they have been assigned to and proactively communicate with clients, once necessary.’
‘We admire the dedication of Darius to client’s matters as well as his urgency, involvement, and high expertise. He has a great experience of communicating with the competition authorities, and high leadership skills.’
Key clients
Panevėžio statybos trestas
Capital Realty
REWE-ZENTRALFINANZ eG
Voodoo SAS
Lithuanian Cable Television Association
Antano Rinkevičiaus valymo įrenginiai
EPSO-G
Mandatum Life Insurance Company Ltd.
OP Financial Group
Northway Group
Rimi (ICA Gruppen)
Tamro
Siemens
Kautra
Omniva
Biotechpharma
ACME Film
Vilnius City Municipality Administration
Kaunas City Municipality Administration
Elecnor
Palink (REWE Group)
Orivas
Affidea Group
Topo Centras
Baltic Horizon Fund
Thermo Fisher Scientific
Orlen Lietuva
Work highlights
- Advisd EPSO-G – state-owned holding of Lithuania’s largest state energy companies on state aid notification procedures.
- Advised REWE – a leading Europe’s retail and tourism group – in an acquisition of an innovative quick commerce (sale and instant delivery) service provider.
- Advising Vilnius City Municipality in the state aid notification procedure before the European Commission.
Lithuania > Projects and energy Tier 2
WALLESS focuses predominantly on public private partnerships and public procurement mandates. It acts for the Ministry of Environment, as well the municipal authorities of Vilnius and Kaunas. Laura Zifermanw co-heads the practice with Evaldas Klimas, who is an expert in property and land issues.Practice head(s):
Testimonials
‘The team is highly competent, technologies and billing techniques are well organized, reactions are always on time.’
‘Great attitude, careful mindset.’
Key clients
Siemens
Elecnor S.A.
Vilnius City Municipality
Kaunas City Municipality
Atzwanger S.p.A.
UAB Kauno švara
IDEMIA group
Ignalina’s Nuclear Power Plant
Ministry of Environment
Ministry of Health
Leonhard Weiss
Ministry of Energy
Elektrum Lietuva
Work highlights
- Advised Vilnius City Municipality on a PPP project involving the development of a national stadium.
- Advised Elecnor S.A. and Instalaciones Inabensa S.A. on a contract for electrification works of a Vilnius-Klaipėda railway.
- Advised Leonhard Weiss on a contract for the construction of a railway section for the Palemonas-Kaunas section of Rail Baltica.
Lithuania > Shipping and transport Tier 2
Aviation is a particular area of strength at WALLESS, whose team is experienced in advising on the financing, leasing and purchase of aircraft. Elsewhere, it is also sought after in matters concerning rail and road transport, particularly in relation to the public procurement of infrastructure projects. The group is led by aviation expert Gediminas ReciunasPractice head(s):
Other key lawyers:
Marius Dobilas; Enrika Tamasauskaite
Testimonials
‘Walless legal advice is reliable and to the point. We use Walless services in the aviation sector and have found the law firm to understand the aviation business very well.’
‘Gediminas Reciunas has profound knowledge of aviation and thus is able to provide legal advice without us having to explain any of the business aspects, for which legal advice is needed.’
Key clients
AerCap
Aviation Capital Group
Avolon
Biseris
Charter Jets
Civil Aviation Association (in Lithuania)
DAT
DVB Bank
Elecnor S.A.
Girteka Group
Kautra
Leonhard Weiss
Modus Group
Novaturas
Instalaciones Inabensa S.A.
Work highlights
- Advising UAB Girteka Logistics on its debt financing by Credit Suisse AG, together with a selected group of international banks, of purchase of new trucks and trailers in the scope of the company’s fleet renewal and expansion project.
- Advised a consortium of Elecnor S.A. and Instalaciones Inabensa S.A. in the implementation of a contract for electrification works of railway section Vilnius-Klaipeda.
- Advised Leonhard Weiss OÜ on the implementation of a contract for reconstruction of railway section Palemonas-Kaunas of Rail Baltica.
Lithuania > TMT Tier 2
WALLESS regularly acts on corporate transactions in the TMT sphere, particularly in the IT and telecoms sectors. Its team also advises on the IT, licensing and data protection aspects of M&A deals. The team is led by commercial and regulatory specialist Laura Ziferman, who is supported by corporate partner Dovile BurgienePractice head(s):
Other key lawyers:
Testimonials
‘High expertise, keeping promises, operativeness, cooperativeness, ethics.’
‘I love them being human, not only strict and serious lawyers, but warm and nice people as well. They create a deep trust between them and a client and makes feel you always welcomed.’
‘Key team’s strengths are motivation, adaptability and tech-minded focus. One could be pleasantly surprised that all key members of WALLESS TMT practice are female lawyers who are very tech driven. They always exemplifiy enthusiasm for projects that include new innovative products lacking clear legal framework.’’
‘Members of WALLESS TMT team are unique in their own fields and really stand out for their deep knowledge and personal touch to every case. They have helped us more than once and we feel confident and strong when our projects are in their hands.’
‘Partner Laura Ziferman is a very strategic and creative lawyer with a no-nonsense approach. Her positive can-do attitude affects even us. All her projects are marked by quality from top to bottom. She is exceptional in automotive industry and understands this business well.’
‘Walless have a very dedicated and professional team that is always on top of things. They act proactively, are always in the know, and the availability sometimes even scares me (i.e. reacting to emails at midnight). I think they are also the top practice in the healthcare sector, which is important to us.’
Key clients
Kaunas City Municipality Administration
Affidea Group
Yukon Advanced Optics Worldwide UAB
KINZE Manufacturing, Inc.
Huracán Coffee
Blockchain.com
Booking.com
Modus Group
Northway
Association of Lithuanian private healthcare organizations
National Association of Medical Spa and Rehabilitation centers
Deeper
Tamro
BENU
SumUp
Railsbank
Payrnet
Bank of America
J.P. Morgan
Morgan Stanley
Swedbank
UBS
Evli Growth Partners
Sapiens International Corporation
Inchcape
Mybee
Solera
Sapiens
Work highlights
- Advised the shareholders of RackRay (major technology and cloud servers company) on the sale of 100% of shares to Meralm Bidco AB.
- Advised Mybee on the launch of its new car lease project.
- Assisted Sapiens International Corporation with its acquisition of a major Lithuanian IT company Tia Technology Group and providedfull scope legal services related to TMT aspects
Lithuania > Employment
WALLESS > Firm Profile
WALLESS is a modern law firm with a wall-less attitude. Clients are our driving force and motivation. We unite forces behind each case to achieve the highest possible result for our clients. We place transparency at the forefront of our interactions, where professionalism and high standards are their main values, and no hidden catch exists. By implementing lean working processes and low leverage (1 partner per 3-4 associates), we are able to give clients direct access to our highly experienced team, while our decision-making process remains smooth and personalised. WALLESS cohesive team does not see walls or boundaries, and is driven by the philosophy that our client goals are like our own and we will always reach them, irrespective of the challenges they pose.
Main Contacts
Department | Name | Telephone | |
---|---|---|---|
Corporate and M&A | Dovilė Burgienė | dovile.burgiene@walless.com | +370 68677649 |
Banking and Finance | Gediminas Rečiūnas | gediminas.reciunas@walless.com | +370 61154460 |
Financial Regulatory and Compliance | Joana Baublytė-Kulvietė | joana.baublyte.kulviete@walless.com | +370 68714642 |
Arbitration and Dispute Resolution | Gediminas Dominas | gediminas.dominas@walless.com | +370 69888335 |
Tax Advisory and Litigation | Dr. Aistė Medelienė | aiste.medeliene@walless.com | +370 61227333 |
Tax Advisory and Private Wealth | Dr. Mindaugas Lukas | mindaugas.lukas@walless.com | +370 61883668 |
Competition and Regulatory | Laura Ziferman | laura.ziferman@walless.com | +370 64041 036 |
Energy and Commercial | Vaidotas Puklevičius | vaidotas.puklevicius@walless.com | +370 69954681 |
M&A and Distressed Transactions | Povilas Žukauskas | povilas.zukauskas@walless.com | +370 61686333 |
RE Development and Construction | Dr. Evaldas Klimas | evaldas.klimas@walless.com | +370 62036055 |
Aviation and Aircraft Finance | Gediminas Rečiūnas | gediminas.reciunas@walless.com | +370 61154460 |
Fintech and Funds | Joana Baublytė-Kulvietė | joana.baublyte.kulviete@walless.com | +370 68714642 |
Real Estate Transactions | Indrė Jonaitytė – Gricė | indre.jonaityte.grice@walless.com | +370 61495783 |
Investment Incentives and Venture Capital | Dovilė Burgienė | dovile.burgiene@walless.com | +370 68677649 |
Restructuring and Insolvency | Povilas Žukauskas | povilas.zukauskas@walless.com | +370 61686333 |
Public Procurement and PPP | Laura Ziferman | laura.ziferman@walless.com | +370 64041036 |
Investment Services | Joana Baublytė-Kulvietė | joana.baublyte.kulviete@walless.com | +370 68714642 |
Insurance | Gediminas Rečiūnas | gediminas.reciunas@walless.com | +370 61154460 |
White Collar and Government Investigations | Dr. Simona Drukteinienė | simona.drukteiniene@walless.com | +370 686 22224 |