Vadim Maklakov

• Dispute Resolution

Practice areas

Dispute resolution

Professional experience

Vadim Maklakov is one of the founders of the Attorneys at Law “Jus Aureum”, and has been a senior partner there since 2005. At present, he heads the Dispute Resolution practice. He has been working as a lawyer since 1993; from 1996 to 2005 he was a partner at the Attorneys at Law “Reznik, Gagarin and Partners”.

Mr. Maklakov represents the interests of clients in arbitrazh courts (commercial courts) and courts of general jurisdiction at all levels, including the higher courts of Russia. Mr. Maklakov's experience includes defending in court the rights of companies and private individuals in disputes related to the application of corporate law and the legislation on securities, the legislation on insolvency (bankruptcy), tax and land legislation, as well as cases arising from a broad range of obligatory and proprietary relations, cases on compensation for losses, including damage caused by crime, in disputes on the protection of business reputation, and other private law and public law conflicts.

Highlights include:

• Successful resolution at the Judicial Panel for Economic Disputes of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation of a high-profile tax dispute on a matter related to the application of “thin capitalization” rules; as a result of this, the RF Supreme Court amended the practice, which had a negative impact on taxpayers, of applying Article 269.4 of the RF Tax Code (the case of Novaya Tabachnaya Kompaniya LLC). 
• Defending the interests of a range of companies belonging to the Megapolis Group of Companies, the largest tobacco distributor in Russia, in tax disputes on a taxpayer's right to return of overpayment on tax which arose as a result of the actions of its tax agent. Upon the results of considering the case, the Supreme Arbitrazh Court of the Russian Federation defined its position, by which it introduced into Russian law enforcement practice the possibility of a taxpayer to select the means for restoring its infringed right: to submit the appropriate declaration for return of access paid tax to the tax authorities, or submit a demand to the tax agent or debtor in civil-law obligation for payment of what was not done under that obligation.
• Taking part in the bankruptcy case involving NOVAYA GOLLANDIYA, LLC, which carried out a reconstruction of the eponymous architectural park in St. Petersburg, with a total amount of creditors' claims presented of more than $85 million.
• Representing the interests of NOVAYA GOLLANDIYA, LLC in a dispute with the French company Soletanche Bachy at arbitrazh courts of the Northwestern Circuit, with stated claims in an amount greater than $2.7 million.
• Defending and arbitrage courts the rights of JSC “Angarskaya neftekhimicheskaya kompania” (Angarsk petrochemical company), including the Presidium of the Supreme Arbitrazh Court of the Russian Federation, in a dispute involving the implementation of an obligation from a bill, connected with a hostile attempt to gain control over a company, with an amount of stated claims exceeding $300 million.
• Consulting and representing the interests of the group of transportation and shipping companies Delovye Linii and arbitrazh courts in 22 interrelated corporate disputes. The conflict was brought to a close by a settlement on the client's conditions.
• Successful defense of the interests of MEGAPOLIS Trading Company CJSC, in the courts of the Central Arbitration District (the cities of Bryansk, Tula and Kaluga) in the course of a lengthy dispute for recovery from the company of 29 million rubles in damages caused by a fire.
• Judicial representation of the Mercury Group of Companies (the retail chains DIXY and VICTORIA) in a dispute with the principal owner and chairman of the Board of Directors of OJSC Moscow Wine and Cognac Plant KiN, upon the results of which the client was awarded more than $1 million in damages caused by crime and interest for use of somebody else's monetary funds.
• Successful representation of the interests of the Megapolis Group of Companies, the largest wholesale seller in Russia of tobacco products under exclusive contracts with JTI, Philip Morris International (PMI), and Imperial Tobacco Group in a series of disputes with OSAO Ingosstrakh for recovery of insurance compensation in a subrogation procedure.
• Successfully defending the interests of shareholders in the largest project organization in the former USSR dealing with construction of enterprises for the production of polymer materials (Giproplast) in a multi-year dispute on the reclaiming of a building of an institute located in Moscow from unlawful ownership. Upon the results of the dispute, real estate with a value of approximately $9 million was returned to the ownership of the company. Subsequent participation in a chain of disputes pertaining to the restoration of corporate control over the company and protection from restitution claims and claims for recovery of unjust enrichment.
• Representing the interests of the leading automobile transport company JSC SovInterAutoService in a dispute with a contractor relating to the construction of a dealer center of the IVECO group of companies. In the company's favor, $2 million in unjust enrichment was awarded, while the contractor was denied a counterclaim for an amount greater than $3 million.
• Involvement in the Moscow Regional Court’s resolution of an administrative case in favor of SovInterAvtoServis PAO, about a challenge to the results of determining the cadastral value of a land plot. The cadastral value of the land plot belonging to the company was established at an amount equal to its market value.
• Successful representation of the interests of Beckhoff Avtomatizatsiya LLC – a subsidiary of the German group of companies Beckhoff Automation GmbH — as part of a claim against the Russian company for recovery of debt denominated in Euro.
• Resolution of a contentious situation pertaining to payment by SK VTB Strakhovaniye (one of Russia’s top 10 insurance companies) of insurance compensation to the POSEIDONIA Medical Center (in Larnaka, Republic of Cyprus), which was engaged in long-term treatment of an insured person suffering from decompression sickness.
• Successful pretrial settlement of a dispute between a top manager of the Russian stevedore company PJSC Novorossiysk Commercial Sea Port and the port itself on a matter pertaining to the application of tax and labor legislation. As a result of negotiations, an agreement was concluded in the client's interests (the president of the company) with payment on the part of PJSC NCSP of an amount equivalent to compensation.
• Holding negotiations on behalf of the international satellite and cable TV channel, World Fashion Channel, with a party that was illegally administrating the domain name on the Internet which contained the trademark of the channel cybersquatting). As a result of the negotiations, the right to administer the domain name was transferred to the company.
• Successfully defending the business reputation of the president and owner of the group of companies Crocus Group (one of the leading development companies in Russia) in a dispute with the Internet resource Compromat.ru.

Education & Bar Admission

Mr. Maklakov graduated from the Moscow State Law Academy (at present known as the Moscow State University of Law by the name O.E. Kutafin (MSLA)) in 1993. In 1996 he was admitted to the Moscow Chamber of Advocates, and since 2005 he has been a member of the Moscow City Bar.