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Business leaders explore legal support for Korean businesses and investors in Russia

On 17 October 2014, Seoul welcomed a legal seminar on the topic of doing business in Russia that focused on South Korean companies. The organizers of the event were the Russian law firm ART DE LEX, and the Korean International Trade Association (KITA), with the support of the Trade Mission of the Russian Federation in South Korea.

At the seminar, partners and heads of practices of the ART DE LEX law firm, representatives of various businesses, and a number of experts in real estate and construction, public-private partnership, and antitrust legislation discussed the main aspects of current Russian legislation and its implementation. The seminar also addressed the legal aspects of organizing businesses for South Korean companies operating in Russia with respect to such issues as logistics, land-use, public-private partnerships, and trade.

The trade representative of the Russian Federation in South Korea, Mikhail Bondarenko, the head of KITA, Oh Sang-bong, as well as the managing partner of ART DE LEX, Dmitry Magonya, welcomed the South Korean guests with opening speeches. Click here to visit the conference website and to read Mr. Bondarenko's remarks.

Representatives of a number of significant companies in South Korea attended the legal seminar, including Samsung Engineering, LG, Daweoo, E&C, BASCO P&E, Daewoo E&C, Hyundai Engineering, Hyundai Motor Group, GS Global, KOTRACK, CISCO, Shinjung Global Co, Nature Cell, KEST Corporation, SJ Auto, and Mirequip.

public-private partnerships

In his speech, the managing partner of the ART DE LEX law firm, Dmitry Magonya, addressed the key aspects of private-public partnerships in transportation and municipal services, including investment possibilities. Mr. Magonya gave an example of a public-private partnership in the area of domestic solid waste and waste water treatment. He highlighted the positive image of private-public partnership projects in Russia and highlighted their attractiveness for foreign investors.

sanctions

Yaroslav Kulik, an ART DE LEX partner and the head of the firm's South Korean desk, together with Dmitry Letunov, an associate of the Yulchon law firm, analyzed the current sanctions against Russia and their possible enlargement. They paid special attention to the future of Russian and South Korean relations, given the current sanction regime.

cross-border distribution agreements and antitrust risk

Yaroslav Kulik also spoke about the implementation of Russian legislation on distribution and dealership and reported on current trade policies and practices. In order to eliminate risks in partnerships between producers and distributors of goods, Mr. Kulik pointed out some of the peculiarities of signing and executing cross-border distribution agreements, including selective distribution. He also addressed antitrust risk management for companies that do business in Russia, including the topics of trade policies and disclaimers.

the "road map" for real estate

Evgeny Arbuzov, an ART DE LEX partner and head of the firm's real estate and construction practice, shed the light on the latest amendments to Russian legislation related to the "road map" for improving legal regulations that affect town planning and the business climate in the real estate markets. Mr. Arbuzov also spoke about changes in the procedures for transferring land from public to private property, reforms that decrease administrative barriers and speed the approval process.

investments in logistics

The head of the board of directors of Logistic Agency 20A LLC, Dmitry Lebedev, together with the representative director of TransContainer Asia Pacific LLC, Sergey Chepusov, addressed the possibilities of investments in logistics. Both speakers reviewed the industrial real estate market and illustrated the price dynamics for warehouses and production growth in Russia. The representatives of leading logistics companies highlighted the necessity to cooperate in order to improve the infrastructure connecting Russia and South Korea.

Russian-Korean partnerships

The participants of the seminar also discussed Russian-Korean partnerships, in light of the sanctions, considered selective distribution for trans-border agreements that involve retail chains and the purchase of goods produced in Russia, and examined new perspectives on public-private partnership projects for municipalities and for transportation infrastructure.

After each report, participants joined in the various discussions, and they raised a number of issues, including the topic of transaction procedures and money flow with respect to sanctions. The enthusiasm they showed was an indication of the great deal of interest South Korean businesses have in cooperating with Russia.

ART DE LEX is now organizing another seminar in January-February 2015 for Russian and South-Korean companies that will focus on Russian companies investing in South Korea and the possibility of joint projects in South Korea.