Sanctioned VTB Keeps Its Magic Circle Lawyers and Heads to Court
- Freshfields applied for license to act for Russian bank
- U.K. government granted broad permit to represent VTB
The offices of VTB Bank PJSC in London, U.K.
Photographer: Chris J. Ratcliffe/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
While London’s law firms have struggled to explain publicly whether they can continue to represent certain Russian clients, one of the U.K.’s largest legal outfits had an immediate decision to make.
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP has applied to work for heavily sanctioned bank VTB Bank PJSC in litigation stemming from the fallout of the “tuna bond” scandal in Mozambique. At the beginning of a two day London hearing, attorney David Railton said the U.K. on March 1 granted a “general license” allowing VTB to pay “reasonable” legal fees and expenses to Freshfields, despite the sanctions.