AGA Partners is known for representing high net worth individuals (HNWIs) in private client litigation, and is a counsel in complex family law matters. The team is approached by Ukrainian and foreign private individuals, representing them in agreements on concluding marriage contracts, spousal property division issues, divorces, maintenance for children, alimony recovery, and inheritance disputes. The firm is a point of choice for foreign couples in legal assistance when going through surrogacy programs. The practice is led by two partners – Aminat Suleymanova and Iryna Moroz. Oleksandr Gubin and Olena Sibirtseva are the main practitioners.
Ukrainian full-service powerhouse Asters has standalone wealth management and family law practices that act for a variety of high net worth individuals, their family members, entrepreneurs and top managers. The team offers legal support on structuring, investing, accumulating, inheriting, transferring and protecting their wealth and business assets. The firm has of late been advising on the tax implications arising from relocation, structuring of personal and family assets, wealth structuring, tax disclosure and compliance related to newly-implemented rules on controlled foreign companies (CFC). The firm’s family law practice team acts on the drafting of various contracts regarding family matters and inheritance, advising on dissolution of marriage, division of common property and recovery of alimonies on child maintenance, multijurisdictional inheritance, and supports clients in the surrogacy program in Ukraine. Oleksandr Onufrienko and Kostyantyn Solyar are lead partners of the wealth management practice. The family law practice is led by Talina Kravtsova and Olga Lepikhina.
AVELLUM is focused on high-profile wealth management, inter alia, wealth management structures, succession instruments, wealth transfer matters, tax compliance matters. The client roster includes high net worth individuals and politically exposed persons (PEPs). The team also represents client interests in strategic immigration planning, acquisition of personal assets, such as foreign high-end real estate, investment instruments, antique items and pieces of art, yachts, and aircrafts. The practice team notably advises on PEP declarations, KYC procedure and CFC rules. AVELLUM represents Mr. Petro Poroshenko, the fifth president of Ukraine, in a high-stake cross-border litigation before the High Court of Justice under the claim brought by the Surkis brothers and their related shell LLPs established in the UK, who allege that the client failed to pay the purchase price under a USD 140 million sale and purchase agreement. The practice is led by the firm’s partners with multijurisdictional expertise – Mykola Stetsenko leads corporate and private wealth management; while Vadim Medvedev acts on tax advisory mandates.
Baker McKenzie has a global wealth management group sought after by high net worth individuals and their families for international tax planning, regulatory, compliance and related services to private banks, trustees, wealth management professionals. The firm advises on personal tax residence, structuring of personal wealth, preserving, managing and transferring wealth in core investment centers and new wealth management jurisdictions around the globe. Furthermore, the firm advises on succession planning mechanisms and compliance with national tax reporting requirements. Partner Hennadiy Voytsitskyi heads the firm’s tax practice group and wealth management practice in Kyiv. Tax associate Roman Koren is an important figure.
Ukrainian law firm ESQUIRES advises private clients on the structuring of private assets and risk mitigation, asset acquisition, as well as family law matters. In 2021 the firm acted on the spouse’s property division in the Supreme Court of California; inheritance matters in a civil partnership; participation of a father in the raising of a child. Viktoria Kovalchuk is lead partner of the private clients and family law practice.
Eterna Law is retained by high net worth individuals on private wealth structuring, property acquisitions, tax planning, opening savings accounts in foreign banks and appropriate compliance procedure. The firm has lately been acting as a Ukrainian legal counsel and providing private wealth management advice and comprehensive legal support to a private individual on an equity release matter (arranging receipt of funds over pledged property in Italy); advised an ultra-high net worth individual regarding obtaining financing to purchase a 44-meter long yacht. Art financing is another area of expertise. Nickolas Likhachov was a partner of the banking and private client sector.[1]
EXPATPRO is a domestic law firm that is focused on providing immigration law services for foreign citizens who live or relocate to Ukraine, inter alia, supports applications for visas to Ukraine, work permits and residence permits. The firm is approached by both individuals and companies, relocating their staff or hiring foreign citizens in Ukraine. The firm also advises on family law matters, supporting marriages and divorces in Ukraine. Vasyl Cherednichenko is lead partner of the private client practice. Kateryna Zatulko and Tetiana Yashchenko are the main figures.
EY Ukraine has a vast portfolio of private clients. The team kept assisting HNWIs, ultra HNWIs and top executives of international companies with business structuring solutions, estate and succession planning, personal taxation and immigration compliance, pension planning and other matters. In addition, being on the top of tax advisory services, EY provides advisory services related to rules on controlled foreign companies, dealing with a number of CFC advisory and tax-free liquidation projects for HNWI, business owners and C-suite executives of multinational companies. The team also advises on immigration compliance. Olga Gorbanovskaya and Halyna Khomenko are the main point of contact.
Consulting Firm Dominanta, which is based in Odesa, assists its private clients with wealth management, asset and property protection, debt collection and restructuring. The firm is regularly sought for supporting outbound investment of its private clients. Most recently the firm rendered legal support for the purchase of two hotels in Yerevan, purchase of a telecommunications company in the Republic of Armenia, and also provides long-term legal support for real estate investment projects in Ukraine. Furthermore, the firm represented the widow of the former owner of the international brokerage company TeleTrade on defending in court half of the property owned in a business center and half of a hotel located in downtown Odesa. Vitaliy Gritsik and Maksim Kobzov are lead partners.
Ukrainian law firm GOLAW is approached by private clients for advising on international structuring of business, controlled foreign companies and change of residence status, issues related to foreign trusts, immigration and permanent residency permits, sale and purchase of real estate objects in Ukraine. The firm is known for its strong tax practice, advising on a variety of subsequent tax matters related to requests from private clients. Max Lebedev is lead partner.
Gramatskiy & Partners has established practices of private advocacy and business migration. The firm assists high net worth individuals with inheritance and succession planning, establishing family trusts, property deals, structuring investment in overseas property, obtaining work and residence permits. The firm is approached for family matters, advising clients with termination of marriages, division of property, consolidation of alimony and other obligations, and related mediation. Founder Ernest Gramatskiy is the practice head.
Ilyashev & Partners consistently acts as a legal counsel of HNWIs, business owners and shareholders, in a variety of asset acquisition deals, structuring family business, tax structuring of revenues, tax residence. The firm is known for its dispute resolution work, particularly asset disputes and shareholders conflicts. In 2021 the firm rendered legal support in the acquisition of private jets, including deal structuring in the EU. The firm’s family law practice team regularly acts in cases of divorce, separation of property, inheritance matters, alimony recovery, children arrangement orders and custody. Mikhail Ilyashev and Roman Marchenko act as lead partners. Galyna Lefor acts on family law matters.
INTEGRITES is approached by HNWIs, ultra HNWIs, politically-exposed persons and their families on corporate and private assets structuring, succession planning, private investment structuring, asset protection, succession. The firm extends its offering in family law matters, representing clients in divorce proceedings, child arrangement order, custody and division of matrimonial assets, advises HNWIs on the adoption of children and surrogacy in Ukraine. The firm has a strong cross-border litigation and international arbitration track record with representing the interests of private clients. Dmytro Marchukov, partner and head of the cross-border litigation practice, has acted as a Ukrainian law expert in the interests of four individual co-defendants – Gennady Bogolyubov, Igor Kolomoisky, Alexander Yaroslavsky, Pavel Ovcharenko (Ukrainian UHNWIs) in litigation at the High Court of Justice in London brought against them by the Russian oil giant Tatneft. Litigation practice partners Oleksandr Onishchenko leads family law disputes. Viktoriia Fomenko, tax and customs practice partner, is assigned for projects involving structuring private investments, tax residency, personal taxation, CFC rules, tax amnesty, etc.
Jurline, an Odesa-based law firm, renders legal support with the creation of charitable foundations and organizations, socially significant projects, personal issues related to the acquisition of real estate in Ukraine and abroad, as well as obtaining residence permits and work permits for non-residents in Ukraine. The firm is a legal counsel to entrepreneurs and their family members with respect to estate structuring, tax planning, wealth management. Representation in family disputes is another area of focus. It includes property division, settlement of disputable situations regarding children, determining the place of residence of children, drawing up property relations between spouses, as well as persons living as a family without registration of marriage, legal disputes on inheritance. Volodymyr Zubar and Vitaliy Cherkes are lead partners.
Juscutum Law Firm has a variable private client clientele, including public people (Ukrainian celebrities, TV presenters, actors, opinion leaders); state officials (Ukrainians occupying high-level posts of responsibility at local, regional or central government level or in state authorities); politically-exposed persons (public servants in elected positions); and investors interested in tech start-ups and cryptocurrency investments. The team advises on private investments and structuring of private assets and family matters. It also handles criminal defense. The family law practice includes marriage contracts, divorces, settlement agreements. The firm advised on the conclusion of the first-ever official and legally binding LGBT marriage in Ukraine – the first ever civil partnership agreement; represented a Ukrainian celebrity, Volodymyr Ostapchuk, relating to regulating child custody and child visitation procedures. Taisiia Bilotska handles the family law practice.
KPMG Law continued to develop its private client practice. The team is particularly sought after in the structuring of private assets and resolving complex international tax matters, as well as structuring of private investments in various jurisdictions. High net worth individuals hire the team for advising on personal tax residence and structuring of personal wealth, CFC tax implications. The practice also benefits from its international network of offices. The practice is led by partner Oleksandr Boboshko.
Mitrax Law Firm rebooted its private clients and family law practices with the new team and broadened its offering with civil disputes. The firm currently advises on marriage contracts, divorce proceedings entailing property division, determining the place of residence of children, alimony and maintenance recovery, inheritance litigation, and supports clients with amicable out-of-court settlements. In 2021 the practice team extended its offering with a support procedure in the international adoption of children and advised on surrogacy in Ukraine. In particular, the team assisted a couple from France to adopt a child from Ukraine. The firm regularly represents clients in debt recovery claims, recognition of deals/agreements void. Yurii Babenko is the practice head.
Established in March 2021, Kharkiv-based Roland Law Firm represents private clients in their investments in foreign companies, asset management, tax planning. The firm is also retained by foreigners to support their real estate deals and for obtaining residence permits in Ukraine. Furthermore, the firm also acts in dispute resolution, especially property disputes and pension payment matters. The firm recently advised on the establishment of a company in Poland. Partners Serhiy Silchenko and Tetiana Silchenko are the main contacts.
Sayenko Kharenko has a standalone private wealth management practice, assisting clients on various wealth planning issues, including private wealth structuring, advising on creation of effective holding structures for personal assets, assisting with the opening of bank accounts in foreign banks, acquisition of property abroad, restructuring of assets in light of recently introduced CFC legislation, etc. Other services included legal support involving paintings and other works of art, wine collections, jewelry, elite horses, private jets, yachts, football clubs, classic cars, and property located abroad. The firm also provides legal advice on the structuring of personal investment, family assets structuring and business ownership restructuring, establishment of family trusts, compliance and KYC support. Its sizeable team is headed by the firm’s partner, Alina Plyushch. The key team members are Dmitriy Riabikin and Roman Drozhansky.
Our research has also confirmed the strong reputation of Oksana Voynarovska, a partner of Vasil Kisil & Partners, and Kateryna Vlasiuk, solo practitioner, as strong practitioners in family law matters.
[1] In September 2022 he joined Goretskyy & Partners.