The Advocates Bureau Yug and Pravo.ru hosted the 17th Southern Russia Legal Forum in Sochi

The second day of the forus business program opened with the first session "What Businesses Need Today." The moderator of the session, Yuri Pustovits , Managing partner of Advocates Bureau Yug, highlighted seven trends in the rapidly changing market dictating its rules of development: a complex economic situation, a high key rate making loans inaccessible, import substitution, the growth of online trade (delivery services and marketplaces), the state regulation, labor shortages, and the introduction of artificial intelligence into business processes. The speakers focused on these issues in more detail, using examples from their practical experience. The attendees discussed the relocation and re-domiciliation of businesses, the transformation of the payment industry in the context of sanctions and ways to establish correspondent relationships with banks from friendly countries, new mechanisms for protecting Russian businesses from unscrupulous foreign counterparties, and the prospects of disputes arising from foreign trade contracts, risk management, opportunities of mutual investment funds in modern times, temporary residence permits and citizenship for investment available to Russians in 2024, and several other issues. The speakers were representatives of the banking sector, investment, and legal companies.

The second session, "Judicial Bulletin: Key Positions of Courts," was moderated by Sergei Kovalev, Managing partner of "Kovalev, Tugushi and Partners." The speakers informed the forum participants about the specialities of judicial practice, in particular: the current practice of notifying foreign persons by Russian courts, determining the amount of court costs and their collection, and disputes related to claims of the Prosecutor Generals Office.Sergey Radchenko, a Partner at Advocates Bureau Yug, presented a report on the study of the calculation of the statute of limitations when challenging transactions in bankruptcy cases and presented to the audience an analysis of a practical case. In 2021, the financial manager, as part of the bankruptcy case, filed a lawsuit with a request to recognize the purchase and sale agreement of the apartment from the year 2001 as fictitious and concluded to conceal property from creditors, apply the consequences of invalidity, namely, recognize the right of ownership of the apartment for the debtor (a relative of the husband of the sole owner) and include the property in the bankruptcy estate. The speakers also mentioned the topic of challenging transactions harmful to creditors, the procedure for repaying claims secured by collateral in bankruptcy, liability for tax errors of the company, and the influence of arbitration court decisions on the criminal risks of top management of the company.

The third session was held in the roundtable format "Real Estate and Construction: Regions vs. Center" and moderated by Anna Zholobova, Managing partner of RegionService. It discussed issues of land expropriation and the peculiarities of calculating losses upon their expropriation, considered cases on land disputes in construction, and the legal status of real estate in bankruptcy.

The fourth session "Changing Business Ownership and Management Structures in 2024" presented to participants the main trends and opportunities in the Russian M&A market, counteracting sanctions and the impact of this counteraction on transactions, the problems of economically significant organizations and their exclusion from the ownership structure of foreign holdings. The speakers talked about forced "deoffshorization", as well as discussed tax compliance and some other corporate law issues.

The fifth session was conducted in the beloved aquarium format by Boris Boltyansky, Chief Editor of the legal portal Pravo.ru, and its commercial director Alexei Otradnov. It was entirely devoted to legal business management. How to maintain management standards and business building when foreign management leaves, where to find new partners and counterparties, why it is important to build a dialogue with the state, how to create internal relationships with partners and competitors, how to determine employee motivation in new conditions, and who the employer is looking for in the legal market today. The participants of the final session of the Southern Russia Legal Forum 2024 tried to find answers to these and other questions.

"Someone who works well rests well". Preferably, in active mode. This proverb always finds a response among the participants of the Southern Forum, as the regatta has become a traditional way to end the event and summarize its results in an informal setting. We hope the time spent together at the forum gave the participants the necessary charge and inspiration for work and development. Advocates Bureau Yug and Pravo.ru are happy to meet with all those present and new participants of this unforgettable legal event again next year.