Expert reports

Preparing an expert report for Autostore Technology AS v Ocado Group PLC & ors case (Top 20 Cases of 2020 according to The Lawyer). The client (Ocado) was sued by rival company Autostore in connection with an alleged patent infringement. The claim was aimed at blocking the import, manufacture, sale, and use of the client’s invention, which Autostore claims infringes its patents.
Our client’s defence strategy was built on the absence of patentability criteria (i.e., “novelty”) of the invention under dispute, which can be established if the claimant had previously, before the patent priority date, disclosed information about the invention to any third parties who are not bound by a duty of confidence – thus, the previous disclosure point is of paramount importance. Following the hearing, the English court found the report and testimony of Maxim Kulkov convincing and, in 2023, ruled in favour of the client.

Preparing expert reports for the High Court of England in ABFA Commodities v Petraco dispute. Our client – Petraco Oil Company SA (one of the oldest independent oil trading companies in Europe) – filed a claim for damages caused by unlawful interim measures for petroleum products that were never delivered to it. The opponent filed a counterclaim for recovery of damages, insisting that our client had “intercepted” previous oil deliveries from the Antipinsky Oil Refinery, which were allegedly intended for the opponent, and also demanded recognition of its ownership of the petroleum products subject to the interim measures.
Maxim Kulkov’s reports included analysis of highly controversial issues of Russian law, such as interference in another’s contractual relations expressed in the form of a double sale of a generic thing. Guided by Maxim’s expert reports and oral testimony given during two days of cross-examination, the court preferred his conclusions to those of the opponent’s expert.

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.

Preparing an expert report and giving evidence before the High Court of England in Tatneft v Bogolyubov and ors on over a hundred issues of Russian law, including the possibility of bringing a tort claim against a company’s controlling persons in response to the company failing to perform contractual obligations and thereby ignoring the ‘competition of claims’ principle and insolvency rules on subsidiary liability, as well as issues of pure economic loss and interference with contractual rights.
After a 12-week trial, the High Court agreed with the testimony of Maxim Kulkov. As a result, the firm’s efforts helped the defendants defeat a US$300m claim.

Preparing an expert report and giving evidence before the High Court of England on a number of Russian law issues, including recovering damages in connection with the alleged rigging of an auction in the Yukos bankruptcy case (Yukos Finance B.V. v Stephen Lynch). Maxim Kulkov’s expert evidence helped to defeat a US$40m claim by the former management of YUKOS Oil Company against the defendants. Having reviewed over 400 pages of expert opinions and cross-examined experts over four days, the English Court agreed with the testimony of Maxim Kulkov.

Preparing an expert report by Maxim Kulkov in an SCC case with regard to the statute of limitations for a contractor agreement. The client was a contractor for a leading Russian producer of nickel. The Tribunal agreed with Maxim Kulkov’s opinion, and the client defeated a US$15m claim.

Preparing expert reports by Maxim Kulkov for an English court in a dispute initiated by Gazpromneft against Mr Drelle (the client), who was accused of embezzlement. The reports included issues of corporate law and bankruptcy proceedings, in-depth analysis of Russian court judgments against the client for violations of fundamental principles of fair trial, and analysis of the grounds and possible violations in the criminal prosecution against the client.

Preparing an expert report on the concept of "trust" in Russian law in a dispute between top manager of one of the world’s leading producers of phosphate-based fertilizers and an opponent who filed a claim against our client demanding the transfer of the client’s shares, which it allegedly holds in a trust in favour of the claimant.

Preparing an expert report on Russian law issues in a dispute heard in the BVI court and related to a borrower’s provision of false accounting statements and misrepresentation regarding the financial parameters of a transaction when obtaining a bank loan. Funds originally intended to finance a coal mining company were eventually withdrawn through complex ‘round-tripping’ transactions.
The dispute is complicated by issues of causal connection between the actions of the joint defendant and the claimant’s losses in a situation where the defendant was not the organiser of the unlawful scheme but only participated in an individual stage thereof, and by the fact that it was actually a technical company whose will was carried out by third parties.
The case is important for the whole legal system because it raises issues such as ‘harm’, ‘causation’, ‘wrongfulness’ and ‘joint infliction of harm’ in the context of joint liability for auxiliary and occasional participation of an offender in unlawful schemes.

Preparing an expert report for the Royal Court of Jersey in relation to a claim issued against the world’s largest aluminium producer concerning alleged infringement of the Claimant’s patents totalling over US$1bn.

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.

Preparing an expert report regarding the applicable law and the validity of agreements based on which the parties settled a corporate dispute between the JV partners arising from the actions of a former partner of the client and his affiliated company. The client, a major holding company in the oil industry, and its former partner entered into settlement agreements stipulating that the partner – a former shareholder and his affiliated company – were obligated to pay compensation of US$10m, as well as transfer shares of a company whose assets constitute claim rights against the client amounting to over US$74m. Subsequently, the former partner and his affiliated company refused to fulfil these agreements, claiming that they were entered into under duress and without the consent of the former partner’s spouse.
Maxim Kulkov opined on whether Russian law is applicable to the agreements notwithstanding the fact that the agreements are governed by English law, and whether it is possible to challenge the agreements as being signed under duress and without spousal consent.

Preparing an expert report for the High Court of Singapore in support of the client’s claim against one of Russia’s 200 richest businessmen. We thoroughly researched the legal basis for holding the opponent liable for fraudulent misrepresentations made by him to persuade the client to enter into agreements with companies owned by the opponent.

Preparing an expert report on Russian law for the High Court regarding whether a Russian court would recognise and give effect to a restructuring scheme involving a group of the world’s largest investment banks and groups (including The Big 4). The court sanctioned a restructuring scheme, basing its decision, inter alia, on Maxim Kulkov’s report.

Preparing an expert report in a complex corporate dispute arising out of a claim brought by an ex-business partner seeking his share in the joint business and recovery of multi-bullion damages allegedly caused by the breach of numerous joint venture agreements. The dispute was recently settled to the mutual satisfaction of the parties.

Preparing expert reports and giving evidence before the High Court in order to stay proceedings in the High Court in favour of arbitration proceedings in Russia (ICAC) on the basis of an arbitration clause in the contract. The case was recently settled.

Preparing an expert report by Maxim Kulkov for an LCIA arbitration under UNCITRAL Rules between the client and a major Cyprus investment company. The dispute arose out of REPO agreements with the client entered into in accordance with the Global Master Repurchase Agreement 2000 (GMRA) under English law. The crucial issue for the dispute was the qualification of types of temporary administration under Russian law as a bankruptcy procedure and the corresponding occurrence of an Event of Default under English law.

Participating by Maxim Kulkov as a Russian law expert in an LCIA arbitration of a long-term corporate dispute between the owners of one of the largest coal deposits in Russia over the issue of violation of parity in business management.

Participating by Maxim Kulkov as a Russian law expert in the LCIA arbitration in a dispute arose out of a SHA and a personal guarantee under English law on the issues of the arbitrability of corporate disputes, the possibility of an indirect shareholder bringing a derivative claim, and Russian law on major interested-party transactions.

Preparing an expert report for the Economic Court of Minsk in a dispute between the Republic of Belarus (RB) and the client, arising from a loan agreement for financing of Osipovchiskiy rail car plant, secured by a RB guarantee and guarantee of individuals, and relating to the validity of restrictions from the guarantees.