Analytics Publications

Dmitriy Motorin for Revista Direito GV: A new legal concept for understanding the essence of production and consumption waste: a view from Russia

Recently, production and consumption waste has been recognized as a distinct legal category in the environmental law of the Russian Federation. This regulatory category has been changed several times within a short period. The study evidences that these changes were ontological, resulting from a change in approach to the distinction of waste from other results of economic activity. In practice, these changes introduced new characteristics into the concept of waste, each of which is related to one of the approaches to understanding the essence of waste identified by the authors of the article. The article reveals handicaps of earlier and contemporary approaches to understanding the legal essence of waste in Russia.

Based on the results of the study, a new subjective approach is proposed. This approach can serve as a starting point for shaping a new conceptual understanding of waste able to improve environmental law and promote quality enforcement.

Anastasia Cheredova for CEE Legal Matters magazine: Pleading and Proof of Foreign Law in Commercial State Courts

Generally, the responsibility for interpreting foreign laws lies with the state commercial court. Parties have a right, but are not obliged to, render assistance and provide the court with information concerning statutory provisions of foreign laws. However, if the content of the foreign law is not ascertained with reasonable expediency, Russian law applies. Anastasia Cheredova, Head of the Special Projects Group, clarified the European magazine 'CEE Legal Matters' on the Russian approach to the nature of foreign law, methods of proof, as well as pitfalls that parties may face.

Bankruptcy payments circulation. Yugra’s bankruptcy assets have been increased under a special scheme

The record amount of RUB 1.4 bn has been included in the bankruptcy assets of the bank “Yugra”, which goes bankrupt. It has been contributed by companies affiliated with Alexey Khotin, the ex-owner of Yugra, for repayment of overdue loans of several debtors of the bank. However, the State Deposit Insurance Agency (SDIA) cannot spend money on payments to depositors: the companies, whose loans have been repaid, are themselves close to bankruptcy, and the bank is merely one of creditors. The lawyers point out that the application of these funds by SDIA may be challenged. Stanislav Shibulkin is commenting on it.

Vegas Lex has commented on one of the first cases over holding a lawyer subsidiarily liable

The lawyer Tatiana Votinova is being held subsidiarily liable for debts of the company to which she provided legal services under a contract. The amount of claims is RUB 23 million. Valeria Tikhonova, Associate of VEGAS LEX’s Bankruptcy projects, is providing her comments. 

Federal anti-monopoly service in mass media: meeting on controlling and supervisory and permitting activities was held during the russian business weeks

On July 14, 2020, during the Russian Business Weeks, the Controlling and Supervisory and Permitting Activities. Future Outlook meeting was held. Alexander Sitnikov, Managing Partner of Vegas Lex, reported on how to make the businessmen’s lives easier beyond using "regulatory guillotine"

Judges will actively identify the laundering of proceeds in civil cases

The Supreme Court has published the Review of Practice for Combating Illegal Financial Transactions.  When examining an administrative or arbitration case, the court may de facto be involved in the commission of a criminal offence. The published document recommends the judges to act actively if there is a reason to suspect that the plaintiff’s demands are invented specifically for laundering the proceeds from crime. The powers and authority are sufficient. The court must not be limited to the formal consideration of a case but it must identify the grounds to suspect the legitimization of income and, if necessary, engage other government agencies, i.e. prosecutor’s office, tax office, customs office and Rosfinmonitoring. Kirill Nikitin, Head of Volga Directorate of the VEGAS LEX law firm, has studied the Supreme Court’s Review.

State Contracts in Russia: Violations and Punishments

According to the Ministry of Finance, annually in Russia there are government purchases totaling several trillion rubles. And there are always those who want to take possession of this money illegally. Some bypass the competitive system so that the tender goes to a "friendly" company. For this, different schemes are used: “enlarge the lot” or make “excessive requirements”. Others immediately purchase from a single supplier and find the necessary reasons for this. Experts explained what needs to be changed in the problem sphere, and FAS representatives spoke about what they had already managed to reform. Commented by Ksenia Podguzova.

The Supreme Court recalled how to prioritize the claims of creditors correctly

The design bureau did not pay dividends to its shareholder. For this reason, the companies agreed that the debtor will repay the debt in several installments. No sooner had the bureau returned the money, it became bankrupt. The bankruptcy trustee decided to go to court to establish the nature of the dividend debt. He believed that these requirements could not be included in the registry. And three courts attributed these payments to current ones. The Supreme Court did not agree with this position and set aside the decisions of lower courts. Comments on Stanislav Shibulkin.

Fake banks mastered Facebook. Fraudsters took advantage of the “current situation”

Facebook has discovered a new fraud scheme promising easy money. All I have in mind is money for clients "in connection with the current situation." In fact, Facebook claims that users should contact them with similar ads. Comments by Kirill Nikitin.

The Supreme Court has explained whether it will have to pay for the failure to fulfill the preliminary contract

The founder signed a preliminary agreement with the company on the sale of a share in the LLC for 170 million rubles. A potential buyer undertook to pay immediately 17 million rubles. But later he changed his mind about making a deal and did not list anything. The seller went to court to recover money from the company. The first instance decided to pay 17 million rubles, and the appeal and cassation denied the claims. Sun told who is right. Commented by Igor Chumachenko.