On 22 June 2018 Bivonas Law and Pen & Paper had the pleasure of hosting a lunch seminar ‘Corruption in the Russian Legal System: Fact and Fiction’ in London
On 22 June 2018 Bivonas Law and Pen & Paper had the pleasure of hosting a lunch seminar ‘Corruption in the Russian Legal System: Fact and Fiction’ in London. In light of the recent deterioration of UK – Russian Federation diplomatic relations and the current anti-Russia rhetoric, the discussion provided a unique insight in to the Russian legal system and the extent to which corruption and politics play a part. The panel consisted of Konstantin Dobrynin (Senior Partner, Pen & Paper), Anton Imennov (Managing Partner, Pen & Paper), Alexey Dobrynin (Partner, Pen & Paper), Vadim Klyuvgant (Partner, Pen & Paper), Vadim Yalovitsky (Special Counsel on Extradition and International Investigations, Pen & Paper) and Antony Brown (Managing Partner, Bivonas Law). The event was attended by select invitees from international law firms, financial institutes and wealth fund managers.
In a lively debate the panel discussed how prosecutors in the Russian Federation approach criminal investigations and how to best defend your client’s rights when this happens, politically motivated prosecutions, corruption within the government and the current landscape in relation to Unexplained Wealth Orders and the new UK legislation in relation to ‘transparency registers’ regarding off-shore trusts. Of particular interest during questions from the audience was the issue of corruption in the legal system of the Russian Federation. Konstantin Dobrynin, having previously been a Senator of the Russian Parliament, and Vadim Yalovitsky, who was previously Deputy Head of the Department of International Cooperation in the Public Prosecutor’s Office, provided a unique perspective on this topic. Vadim Klyuvgant and Alexey Dobrynin gave the audience an insight in to the difficulties lawyers face when representing client’s accused in the Russian Federation and Anton Immenov provided comment on concerns raised by clients in the Russian Federation in relation to the UK implementation of Unexplained Wealth Orders.
Antony Brown: “It was an opportunity to hear what really happens in Russia with criminal prosecutions without political spin.”
Anton Imennov: “When everything else fails: politics, cultural exchanges, even Olympic games are being boycotted, the only people who can unite the world are us, lawyers.”