Sergey Sokolov

As the head of the Moscow office of Marks & Sokolov, Sergey has over 30 years of professional experience representing clients in commercial litigations and arbitrations between Western and CIS companies.  He frequently serves as an expert on Russian law in foreign proceedings and has provided expert opinions in numerous U.S. proceedings as well. Sergey advises clients from around the world in mergers and acquisitions, commercial real estate and international trade matters. Sergey earned his undergraduate business degree and law degree from St. Petersburg State University.

Experience

Litigation and Arbitration

• Represented a Russian mining company as plaintiff in a $300+ million litigation in England where Sergey’s client filed a fraud claim against the sellers of shares in a publicly traded company.  After successfully obtaining world-wide freezing orders against defendants, and a search order of several properties in central London, the case was settled.
• Represented the Russian Deposit Insurance Agency as the bankruptcy trustee for a Russian bank and obtained the first ever recognition of a Russian bankruptcy in U.S. courts under Chapter 15.
• Represented the trustee of a high-net-worth individual who had been placed in bankruptcy in Russia and obtained recognition of the Russian bankruptcy in U.S. court under Chapter 15, resulting in recovery of over $7 million of assets in the U.S.
• Obtained recognition of a $40 million Russian judgment in U.S. court on behalf of a Russian bank.
• Obtained a favorable International Commercial Arbitration Court  arbitration award terminating an international franchising agreement and recovering several hundred thousand dollars.
• In arbitrations before the Zurich Chamber of Commerce Court of Arbitration and SCC Arbitration Institute, represented foreign buyers of a Russian aluminum producer in a claim for damages worth hundreds of millions of dollars
• Served as an expert on various areas of Russian law in many litigations and arbitrations, giving evidence through reports, depositions and testimony including:

Belikov v. Huhs, Case No. 12-2-23972-0 SEA, in the Superior Court of the State of Washington

In Re the Application of Natalia Potanina for an Order to Take Discovery Pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1782(a), Case No. 14-MC-31 (LAP) 14-MC-57 (LAP) (S.D.N.Y.)

Alex Goldfarb v. Channel One Russia and RT America, a.k.a. ANO TV-Novosti, Case No. 1:18-cv-08128-DAB (S.D.N.Y.)

In re Foreign Economic Industrial Bank Limited, “Vneshprombank” Ltd., Case No. 16-13534 (MKV) (Bankr. S.D.N.Y.), Dkt. No. 5;

In re Natalia Pirogova, Case No 18-10870 (SCC) (Bankr. S.D.N.Y.), Dkt. Nos. 5, 53

In re Larisa Markus, Case No 19-10096 (MKV) (Bankr. S.D.N.Y.), Dkt. No. 5

In re Sergey Petrovich Poymanov, Case No. 17-10516 (MKV) (Bankr. S.D.N.Y.), Dkt. No. 88

Andrey Kazakov vs. Oleg Pashchenko, et al., Case No. HHD-CV18-6091905-S, State of Connecticut Superior Court, Hartford Judicial District.

Mergers and Acquisitions

• Legal due diligence, negotiation of contracts and closing of the acquisition of several Class A office centers, hotels and shopping malls in Moscow and several Russian regions
• Legal due diligence, negotiation of contracts and closing of the acquisition of a  development of warehouses in Russian regions
• Sale of a development project of a residential village in the suburbs of Moscow

 Transactional Work:

• • Numerous contracts for the International Sale of Goods
  • Shareholder Agreements
  • Financing
  • Real Estate rent and leasing
  • Mortgages
  • Franchise Agreements

Corporate Law

• Drafting and negotiating numerous shareholder agreements, including put and call options;
• Establishment of Russian and foreign companies, Issuance of shares, revisions to corporate documents.