Sayenko Kharenko

Managing Partners: Vladimir Sayenko, Michael Kharenko

Number of partners: 19

Number of other lawyers: 100+

Languages: English, French, German, Russian, Ukrainian

Main Areas of Practice:

Antitrust:

Sayenko Kharenko’s antitrust team is one of the largest on the market, and includes lawyers with over 20 years of experience in practicing antitrust/competition law in Ukraine. The firm’s antitrust lawyers cover every aspect of Ukrainian competition law including merger control, concerted practices control, anti-competitive concerted/restrictive practices, cases relating to abuse of dominance, unfair competition, anti-competition practices by state authorities, state aid and public procurement, sector-specific regulation.

Banking & Finance:

The firm is a recognised leader in banking and finance work involving Ukraine and is ranked top tier for finance by all major international and local rankings. The firm’s team has a strong track record of managing all types of financing, which allows it to provide both quick but high-quality advice on simple deals and to tailor ‘one-of-a-kind’ or unconventional legal structures for complex transactions.

Capital Markets:

Sayenko Kharenko has established the reputation of No.1 in capital markets among Ukrainian law firms. The firm helps its clients to implement groundbreaking capital markets transactions in Ukraine, advising on most of Ukraine’s international capital market deals, introducing new structures and instruments, and shaping local capital markets regulation. The worth of capital markets transactions is over USD 50 billion.

Corporate & M&A:

Sayenko Kharenko is widely recognised as the country’s leading advisor on M&A and other corporate law matters. Having the largest and one of the most experienced teams of lawyers specialising in complex cross-border acquisitions, joint ventures and corporate restructurings across a wide range of industries, SK offers a combination of exceptional transactional skills and deep industry expertise that enables to remain business-oriented while rendering high quality legal advice and helps to create cutting-edge legal solutions for clients.

Corporate Security:

Sayenko Kharenko has represented the business interests of many of the world’s largest multinational corporations, including Fortune 500 companies, industrial groups, financial institutions and individual business owners for over ten years, allowing the firm to gain extensive experience in tailoring comprehensive corporate security solutions designed to identify, eliminate and prevent external and internal threats.

Criminal Law:

Sayenko Kharenko’s criminal defence practice group consists of the country’s leading fraud and criminal defence lawyers with years of experience working on the most challenging issues in this practice area. Fortune 500 companies, national industry heavyweights and corporate executives turn to the firm’s criminal defence practice to guide them through all kinds of investigations, enforcement actions, and compliance issues. The firm’s team, with its valuable insights, offers clients 24/7 business protection and tailored compliance policies.

Debt Restructuring:

Sayenko Kharenko stands out as one of the market leaders in financial restructuring and workouts offering clients deep understanding of complex debt structures involving multiple creditors, multilevel corporate networks and wide diversity of debt instruments. As one of the most involved legal advisors on complex finance deals, Sayenko Kharenko is the natural choice for Ukrainian borrowers, foreign lenders and financial advisors to assist in forming strategies and implementing debt restructuring deals.

Government Relations:

Sayenko Kharenko’s GR practice adheres to the best international standards in the field and operates at the intersection of public policy, law, and business. The firm’s GR practice combines the unmatched legal knowledge and advocacy skills with strategic experience to advise local and multinational clients in numerous industries on legislative, regulatory, and policy projects.

Intellectual Property:

Sayenko Kharenko’s IP practice is highly rated at the international level and stands out for its attention to detail and substantive engagement. The firm assists its clients across the entire gamut of IP services, from IP consulting to IP litigation and the fight against counterfeiting. Sayenko Kharenko’s IP practice features a strong team of IP professionals who are able to safeguard your brands and IP portfolio in Ukraine.

International Arbitration:

Sayenko Kharenko is a heavyweight player in the world of complex international arbitration and crossborder litigation. The firm’s team has an impressive record conducting various proceedings in Ukraine and foreign jurisdictions. The team has significant experience in acting as arbitrators under globally recognised arbitration rules as well as in providing expert opinions on Ukrainian law.

International Trade:

Sayenko Kharenko has unrivalled expertise in Ukraine when it comes to advising clients on all aspects of international trade law. Based on its extensive experience in this field, the firm’s team is ready to come up with sophisticated commercial solutions for clients to help them to expand their business globally. A combination of expertise that is unique on the Ukrainian market with in-depth industry knowledge allows Sayenko Kharenko to offer its clients a full range of services in international trade.

Labour:

Sayenko Kharenko’s labour team specialises in all areas of labour and employment law and enjoys an international reputation of highly professional and experienced experts in the field. The firm’s labour and employment law practice is one of the leading and largest in Ukraine, which allows it to handle multiple projects simultaneously.

Compliance & Investigations:

Sayenko Kharenko helps companies operate in difficult and fast-changing environments without breaking any rules. The team of experienced and internationally trained lawyers helps to navigate through all applicable rules and develop the most efficient solutions. In cases where a company suspects or has already found itself in trouble, the firm helps to carry out in-depth investigations and provide remedies that would mitigate any negative consequences to the maximum extent.

Litigation:

SK focuses on the most complex, high-stakes and sensitive matters, providing clients with practical and creative legal advice in all major areas of law. Clients entrust the firm with their most critical litigation issues, relying on its ability to handle all aspects of the dispute resolution process. Sayenko Kharenko combines its deep understanding of the clients’ businesses with extensive experience of the firm’s other specialised practices to achieve favorable resolutions including settlements in the most efficient and cost-effective manner.

Private Wealth Management:

SK advises clients on all issues related to private wealth management including developing efficient personal holding structures, creating trusts, foundations and family offices, drafting trust deeds, declarations of trusts and letters of wishes, tax efficient investment structuring including foreign investments for Ukrainian residents, personal wealth succession planning, obtaining foreign tax residency status, residence permits and citizenship, acquisition and registration of foreign property, disclosure of information on beneficiaries in foreign jurisdictions, opening of foreign bank accounts, etc.

Real Estate:

With a team of experienced lawyers dedicated to real estate matters and close ties with technical and construction experts throughout the industry, Sayenko Kharenko has all the necessary capacities to advise clients on all types of real estate transactions including acquisitions and disposals, property and land leases, investment and construction arrangements, and regulatory clearances. The team is equally efficient in real estate transactions, construction activities and dispute resolution due to on-site experience and deep understanding of industry-specific legal issues.

Tax:

Sayenko Kharenko tax group delivers seamless and highly practical tax advice. It effectively addresses a full spectrum of international and domestic tax issues faced by clients. The firm offers a one-stop-shop advisory, including tax advice; tax administration; tax compliance; transactional tax advice; tax disputes.

Key Clients:

Sayenko Kharenko has provided legal services to over 1800 clients from more than 60 countries around the globe. It is the firm of choice for the leading international corporations, including over 70 Fortune 500 companies (AbbVie, ADM, Citigroup, Coca-Cola, Comcast, Dell, DuPont, HP, Intel, Merck, Microsoft, Pepsi, Pfizer, Procter & Gamble, Walt Disney and others), and the world's top-tier investment banks (Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan, UBS).