Egorov Puginsky Afanasiev & Partners and Magisters jointly announce that Magisters, a leading CIS-based law firm, will merge with Egorov Puginsky Afanasiev & Partners, the leader of the Russian legal market, making the new entity the largest in the Commonwealth of Independent States (the former Soviet Union) with a strong international outreach. The firm will continue to act under the name Egorov Puginsky Afanasiev & Partners.

The merger will offer unprecedented opportunities for clients in Russia, the CIS as well as further afield. Egorov Puginsky Afanasiev & Partners’ leadership in the Russian market will be further consolidated by bringing in Magisters' international dispute resolution, corporate and PPP practices in Moscow, while adding Magisters’ offices across the CIS which will make the new firm an absolute market leader in the region.

Following the merger, the firm will exceed 300 lawyers, with 27 partners, and expand its presence to Moscow, St Petersburg, Kiev, Minsk, Astana and associate offices in London and Washington, D.C.

The merger will increase the firm’s opportunities for professional development of its Russian and CIS lawyers and provide greater resources for international training.

The firm will continue its commitment to and support of its networks of trusted law firms in the CIS region.

Commenting on the merger, Dimitry Afanasiev, Chairman of Egorov Puginsky Afanasiev & Partners, said:

"This merger is unprecedented for our market. We are a step ahead of any national or international law firm in size, market penetration and regional coverage in Russia and the CIS. Growth through consolidation is necessary to sustain the positive momentum in our development as the leading firm in Russia. Together we can do more. Both firms share the philosophy of international excellence combined with unique local knowledge and this makes us a perfect fit for each other. We are determined to bring new value to our clients through this merger. We are also excited to be the trailblazers in the CIS. And last but not the least, the new partners do like each other and we intend to enjoy working together."


Dmitry Dyakin, Magisters’ Moscow Managing Partner, said:

“The merger of two leading law firms in Russia and the CIS is a real market breakthrough and it will enhance the way we work with international and Russian clients. As a consequence of creating the largest law firm in the region, focused on providing best legal services in its class, the merger of the two great firms will present clients with an unprecedented offer. We are expecting to get perfect synergy from this merger as our firms share the same values, drive and ambitions. It makes us very balanced considering our regional presence and practice areas. We don’t compromise on quality of our services and believe that the quality will be easier to maintain being an undisputed market leader.”


NOTES TO EDITORS

EPA&P and Magisters have been repeatedly recognized as leaders in their respective practice areas. Both firms have been named as winners of the most prestigious legal awards including Chambers Europe Awards for Excellence and The Lawyer European Awards.

About EPA&P

Egorov Puginsky Afanasiev & Partners is Russia's largest and most recognized law firm. Founded in 1993, the firm has over 220 lawyers in its Moscow and St. Petersburg offices and the associated office in London. Being a full-service law firm, it combines extensive emerging markets experience with international professional standards. The firm regularly acts for multinational and national clients as well as the Russian Federation itself in both transactional and contentious matters. It also consistently contributes to the improvement of the Russian legislation, rule of law and investment climate.

Over the last two years, EPA&P has been recognized with over 40 professional awards, including this year’s Russian National Law Firm of the Year from Chambers Europe Awards for Excellence, Advisor to European M&A Deal of the Year from IFLR European Awards 2011, Best Law Firm in Russia from Pravo.Ru-300, Russian Law Firm of the Year in HR Management from Legal Insight magazine, and many others.

About Magisters

Magisters was established in 1997 in Ukraine. In 2006 the firm merged with Reznikov, Vlasenko & Partners (Ukraine). The consequent merger with Legas Legal Solutions (Russia) became the first-ever cross-border merger between independent law firms in the CIS and marked the beginning of the Firm's CIS-wide expansion.

Two years later the firm merged with Belarusian law firm BelJurbureau. In 2009, Magisters launched a representative office in London that became a conduit to service multinational clients investing in CIS markets and for CIS blue chips with interests in the UK.

Today the Firm employs 100 lawyers and is the only law firm in the CIS to have attained the international Investors in People accreditation.

Magisters is consistently top ranked by Chambers, Legal 500, PLC Which Lawyer, and IFLR 1000 for the high quality of its work. The Firm was awarded Law Firm of the Year in Russia & the CIS (The Lawyer European Awards 2010) and Law Firm of the Year in Ukraine (Chambers Europe Awards for Excellence).

Numbers:

- EPA&P is comprised of over 220 lawyers and 16 partners.
- Magisters has around 100 lawyers and 11 partners across the CIS.
- According to The Lawyer European 100 EPA&P’s revenue was EUR 97.2 million in 2010.
- Magisters’ firmwide revenue in 2010 was USD 26 million.

For more information please contact:

Olga Frolova
Tel.: + 7 495 936 8010
Mob.: +7 916 503 2402
press@epam.ru