Interview with: C. David DeBenedetti, NY Attorney, Partner

How has the Russian invasion of Ukraine affected Poland? Does the the outbreak of the war so close to you change the perspective of a lawyer?

Poland has already accepted over 1.8 million refugees and the number continues to grow. The worst case scenario I have heard is that 10 million refugees may come to Poland. Many will not stay long term, but in a population of app. 37 million, and since the refugees are concentrating in the major cities, the refugee influx has had an incredible effect on Poland: feeding, clothing, housing, helping, and trying to heal the war scars of millions of people is stressing Poland’s infrastructure and law in countless ways. So far Poland has responded in an incredibly positive way: we have all taken refugees into our homes, exchanged clothing, and done what we can to help people adjust. We are the lucky ones who have not been physically attacked.

I believe this is Poland’s finest hour and I am proud to be a part of it, personally and professionally.

The outbreak of war so close to home inevitably changes your personal and professional perspective. On the personal side, there’s the refugee influx, which is affecting day to day life in every way. Second, there’s the change in focus of all governmental organizations towards helping Ukraine and Ukrainian refugees. Third, there’s the client hesitation about their investments in a country so close to war. Fourth, which should not be underestimated, the psychological effect this is having on everyone, including lawyers, Judges, and Prosecutors. There is a palpable hesitation, and whether it’s fear of war, helping victims of war who are everywhere, or simply from watching the news every day is hard to tell. War is the elephant in every room, and it needs to be appropriately addressed. Fifth, while remote, it’s in people’s mind: the spillover risk. I had always dismissed various conspiracy theories about a Russian attack, but since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, I still doubt such concerns, but I can no longer say a Russian attack is impossible.

With the continuing kaleidoscope of change in society, a lawyer’s work and perspective are inevitably affected. I have associates, partners, staff, counterparts and adverse parties who are all personally concerned and scared for Ukraine, for Poland and for the world. It is necessary to adjust advice with risk factors of war, it is necessary to instantly change positions as commercial advice changes, and of course, clients and situations are changing. At first, the world stops and watches events. Then when things start again, it’s with a desire to get things done quickly, by then usually in spite of or because of the war (yes, I’m aware the two reasons may contradict).

What’s the main change you’ve made in the firm to help deal with the changing environment?

Our firm pivoted from day 2 of the invasion by advising refugees pro bono on immigration and registration issues. We hired a Ukrainian and Russian speaker who fled from Ukraine, allocated two attorneys with all of us backing them up when overwhelmed and we have advised countless families and new friends on registration issues. That work inevitably spills over to many other ways to help: we’ve gone to the border to pick elderly people up and dropped them off at the airport, we’ve housed and clothed many personally, and we’re starting to see the trickle of helping these refugees start their businesses and go back to work.

Many refugees are educated professionals working in international companies, so aside from assuring basic necessities and getting over the shock, these people will go back to work and re-join the work force with a fervor previously unknown.

What do you think will be the biggest challenges when the situation in Ukraine is more or less under control? How do you see the role of your firm then?

If and when the situation in Ukraine is more or less under control, or even without getting things under control, at some point, the “honeymoon” of governments working with people, the EU, the U.S., and many other countries helping Poland and other border countries will end, and everyone will realize that the same problems we focused on before it all started are still there (albeit adjusted), plus new ones. If and when hostilities end, there will be a new normal to which we will all adjust. Our firm’s role will continue, as adjusted by this new normal, to advise and represent clients with the major change being the stronger bond we have built with clients, fellow law firms, and friends as a result of working together for the common good.

Which practices do you see growing in the next 12 months? What are the drivers behind that?

Just like COVID was bad for most businesses while good for some, war in a neighboring country is bad for many businesses but very good for some. The influx of refugees will solve old problems while creating new ones. Assuming a significant number of refugees stay, residential real estate will be stronger, hotels and retail will be better for the course of the crisis and then have their problems, and some service companies will be busier and others less so. For that reason, I guess that our bankruptcy practice will be busier. Renewables and energy should tick up as well, given European trends pre-invasion and strategic discussions post-invasion. Litigation of every type will probably increase slightly given that, when the crisis fades, there are inevitably disagreements which were not addressed, breaches of contract, purchase of goods not for purpose given the accelerated tender (if any tender), etc. When things are done in a hurry, mistakes (or worse) are made, and litigation will eventually follow.

M&A may increase or decrease depending on the resolution of the conflict. If it creates strategic uncertainty, then standard M&A may go down, but if the cessation of hostilities gives greater security assurance, then I could see M&A going up tremendously. Plus, when Ukrainians start to rebuild their country Poland may serve as a producer, place to import from, seek advice and ask for coordination, which is when big business and so corporate and banking practices will grow significantly.

Can you give us a practical example of how you have helped a client to add value to their business?

The simplest examples of adding value are being tough in negotiations or winning in litigation. We tend to represent investment funds, which are relatively unknown entities and smaller foreign investors, and often work against large law firms who are working for large clients. Some make the mistake of thinking they can win by reputation and name recognition alone. When you put the work into learning a file, or surprise them with negotiation tactics, they may be easy prey.

I believe our pro bono outreach to help refugees will also add value to our client’s business in the long-term. When meeting the refugees, we have also met the stakeholders helping refugees in their own way, and on a personal level, we’ve asked some of our clients and friends to help those organizations, whether it be granting access to a restaurant kitchen to make meals, or finding a place to stay, or helping family members and friends get through the refugee process.

And as market participants, especially since so many of our clients are located outside of Poland, we act as a liaison for many of our clients, passing on opportunities and market intel. We are legal advisors and we understand that our work is part of an overall decision we have to make.

Finally on this point, we are one of the firms active in the field of litigation funding, where an investor makes a (usually small) investment to cover the costs of litigation in exchange for a share in the proceeds when successful. I am a firm believer that court claims and disputed receivables are an asset class in itself, which should be considered as such. That change in view can add value to most companies stuck with disputed receivables and court claims. Many companies are unwilling to let good money follow bad money, and litigation finance structure resolves that quandary.

Cooperation and trust are key words in difficult times. How important is, from your perspective, forging strategic alliances with other law firms and maintaining good relations with various organizations or communities?

Trust is the key word of being a lawyer. Clients never come to us with a simple issue or when everything is fine. We are here to solve problems, and we must help our clients through difficulties. Without trust, this is impossible. In good times, forging strategic relationships are important. In bad times, these relationships become crucial. Our pro bono outreach is being done in coordination with law firms sharing the border with Ukraine, with several other countries waiting to help. We’ve already helped refugees work out immigration and travel issues so they could go to the U.S., while others are planning on moving to Germany, Ireland, France, Lithuania . . . our work with the law firms of Globalaw (www. globalaw.net) has proven crucial to coordinate EU issues, immigration issues, and to serve as a conduit for international support of refugees.

I said at the outset that I am now a wartime consigliere. In the Godfather, Tom Higgins, the consigliere was accused of not being a wartime consigliere, because he only focused on the business when the rest of the family was focused on the war. Through this invasion of Ukraine, I learned once again that lawyers need to concentrate on everything that is important to clients, not just the legal issues. This is how we add value every day: by trying to help our clients in all fields in addition to doing an excellent job on the legal issues.