Clifford Chance office in Kiev will be established as an independent law firm operating as Redcliffe Partners

From 1 December 2015 the Clifford Chance office in Kiev will be established as an independent law firm operating as Redcliffe Partners. Redcliffe will initially have four partners, Olexiy Soshenko and Dmytro Fedoruk, who currently head Clifford Chance's Banking and Finance, M&A and Antitrust practices in Ukraine, as well as Rob Shantz and Sergiy Gryshko, lateral hires who will head the Corporate and Dispute Resolution practices.

Best friends agreement with Redcliffe Partners

Clifford Chance will enter into a "Best Friends" Agreement with Redcliffe Partners that will ensure a continued close relationship between the two firms. Among other things, Redcliffe will have access to Clifford Chance's knowledge, resources and training in order to better service its clients.

The new set-up supports the strategic aims of both parties. It provides Redcliffe with greater flexibility for investment in developing a practice aligned with the opportunities and realities of the Ukrainian market, as Clifford Chance looks to focus on its global strategic priorities. The continued working relationship, under the 'best friends' arrangement, ensures that multinational, major regional and local clients will continue to benefit from high-quality legal advice from an established team in Ukraine, with access to a leading global platform.

What does this mean for clients?

Redcliffe will retain the core Clifford Chance's Kiev-based legal team ensuring a seamless transition of existing mandates. Clients can continue to expect the same exceptional service.

Redcliffe will focus primarily on Antitrust, Banking & Finance, Corporate/M&A, Debt Restructuring and Insolvency. The firm is also investing into capabilities in International Arbitration and Litigation.

Expanded capabilities from 1 December

Starting from 1 December Redcliffe will offer a dedicated Dispute Resolution practice group, led by Sergiy Gryshko, who has recently joined Redcliffe's team as partner. Sergiy joins from CMS Cameron McKenna and has 13 years of experience in Dispute Resolution.

In addition to Sergiy Gryshko, Rob Shantz, a U.S. attorney with more than 27 years of experience - including approximately 19 years in Central and Eastern Europe - is also joining Redcliffe as a partner and the head of the Corporate Practice. Rob most recently was the head of the Legal Practice at PwC Ukraine, and, prior to that, was a tax and legal partner with KPMG Ukraine. Before relocating to the CEE region, Rob practiced for several years with corporate law firms in the U.S.

Zoryana Sozanska-Matviychuk is joining as a counsel and will specialise in M&A and private equity. Zoryana has more than 10 years of experience with leading international law firms in Ukraine and abroad and has advised on many complex M&A, private equity and venture capital transactions, primarily during her time with the Kiev, Sydney and London offices of Baker & McKenzie.

Dmytro Orendarets, admitted in both Ukraine and New York, was promoted to counsel. Dmytro worked for more than 7 years in the Kiev, London and New York offices of Clifford Chance specialising in banking & finance and debt restructuring.