Alexandr Yakovlev

Advising a major global leasing company on Russian sanctions and insurance regulations in a litigation in an English court. The dispute arose between the client and insurance companies, which refused to treat the failure to return more than one hundred aircraft leased to Russian airlines due to Russian export restrictions as an insured event.

Representing the client in a dispute in ICC arbitration over the client’s claim against its counterparty, one of the world’s largest manufacturers of wind turbines. The client won tenders for the production of “green” electricity and started the construction of wind farms. The wind turbines were to be produced, supplied and maintained by the opponent. However, due to the sanctions, the respondent terminated its contracts with the client, that resulted in substantial losses for the client. Thanks to the efforts of the team, the parties settled the dispute on terms which were favourable for the client.

Defending a major French financial conglomerate in a dispute with one of the largest dairy plants in Russia, which arose due to the client’s refusal to pay for bank guarantees due to EU sanctions. The plant appealed to the Russian court with a demand to recover about EUR 5m from the client. Moreover, the Russian court took interim measures against the client, and the claimant seized the client’s assets worth almost RUB 1bn (including property not specified by the court in the ruling on interim measures).

Participation in preparing an expert report for the High Court of England in a dispute related to a conflict over a strategic enterprise producing special steel. The former owners of the plant appealed to the English court claiming that a raider seizure was carried out against their asset, and demanding compensation for damages. The team and the expert are faced with the task of evaluating the asset seizure scheme referred to by opponents and assessing the prospects for recovering losses from the client.

Participation in preparing an expert report for an LCIA arbitration arising out of a credit line agreement. The report covers complex issues of invalidity of foreclosure of an LLC share by leaving it with the pledgee; fiduciary duties of the pledgee towards the company whose shares are pledged to it and unjust enrichment allegedly arising on its side; interpretation of an arbitration clause and applicable law clause in a situation where a pledge agreement and a financing agreement contain diametrically opposed clauses.

Participation in preparing an expert report on Russian law issues for LCIA proceedings in relation to a dispute concerning the recovery of US$1.3bn of debt under a loan agreement. The case was complicated by the respondent’s extraordinary argument that the Board of Directors of the client’s parent company lacked authority to approve commencement of the arbitration proceedings. Thanks to the expert report and persuasive testimony of Maxim Kulkov, the Tribunal issued a preliminary ruling in favour of the client and did not terminate the proceedings.

Participation in the preparation of an expert report on Russian law issues in a dispute before the High Court of London related to a long-standing corporate conflict between the co-owners of a large mining and metallurgical holding. The disagreement began when the client bought a stake in the holding, but was settled by signing a 10-year shareholder agreement that consolidated the roles in the management of the holding. Shortly before the end of the agreement, the client filed a claim in an English court against another co-owner, in which he insisted that the defendant failed to fulfil his duties as a managing partner in the holding, as a result of which the latter lost a number of assets, and its shareholders suffered losses that the client intends to recover. Maxim Kulkov, with the support of the team, substantiated the position on the filing of ordinary and double (multiple) indirect claims by the shareholder, and the admissibility of the shareholder’s recovery of the losses on the basis of a corporate agreement.

Preparing a legal opinion on the client’s (a medical clinic) defence strategy in two separate disputes regarding invalidation of debtor-client transactions on special bankruptcy and general civil grounds. The project is complicated by the fact that the invalidation of transactions would entail the withdrawal of the client’s main asset for the continuation of medical activities.

Representing clients (former members and directors of the company) in a major corporate conflict in order to restore lost control over the company and protect against the recovery of corporate losses under 12 parallel cases on the expulsion of participants from the company, challenging corporate decisions, transactions on the disposal of shares and assets, recovery of losses and subsidiary liability.

Preparing a pre-bankruptcy asset protection strategy to minimise the risks of the company’s key assets being sold to third parties. The development of the strategy was complicated by the presence of a corporate conflict in the company, where each of the company’s shareholders wanted to keep key assets for themselves.