Administrative Law - PRACTICE AREAS

The practice

The Administrative Law Practice brings together experts specialising in advice on matters relating to the exercise of supervisory powers and the provision of public services by state authorities, as well as the development and adoption of regulatory legal acts.

The practice lawyers have extensive experience of public service in divisions responsible for state supervision, representation of the state’s interests in administrative disputes, drafting departmental acts and legal support for the day-to-day activities of executive authorities. Our lawyers have substantial experience in the conceptual development of draft legislative solutions, drafting important regulatory acts and supporting them at the stage of approval by the relevant bodies and agencies (the “zero reading”), as well as participation in the work of the State Duma at various stages of the legislative process. Members of the practice are regular participants in working groups and expert councils under state authorities and major business associations.

Knowledge of the internal regulations governing the work of state authorities and of the decision-making mechanisms they use enables the Firm’s experts to build an effective and professional dialogue with representatives of various public authorities and to find solutions to matters of any degree of complexity.

For more than 20 years, the Firm has been actively involved in projects aimed at enhancing competitiveness and improving the Russian legal framework.

EPAM Law stood at the origins of the Non-Profit Partnership for Advancement of Corporate Law, and in 2012 conducted a study into the reasons for the widespread use of foreign law in major transactions in Russia, which attracted broad public attention. All of this contributed to the successful reform of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, which became an important step towards protecting national legal sovereignty.

Other landmark projects involving the Firm’s experts include the development and full legal support at all stages of the federal law “On Business Ombudsmen in the Russian Federation”, work on draft laws relating to deoffshorisation, capital amnesty and all antimonopoly packages, work on regulatory acts aimed at stabilising the financial system in 2008–2009, as well as the abolition of VAT on waste paper sales and the development of subordinate legislation in the field of bankruptcy.

The practice lawyers also took part in work on draft law No. 154856-8 “On Amendments to Article 6 of the Federal Law ‘On the Protection of Lake Baikal’”, concerning the prohibition of the retail sale and gratuitous transfer of single-use plastic bags and tableware in the central and buffer ecological zones of the Baikal natural territory.

In addition, the Firm’s lawyers participated in the preparation and administrative law support of the draft law introducing amendments to Federal Law No. 214-FZ dated 30 December 2004 “On Participation in Shared Construction…” and to Federal Law No. 384-FZ dated 31 December 2009 “Technical Regulations on the Safety of Buildings and Structures”.

The Firm’s projects repeatedly won the special “Legislative Activity” nomination in the Pravo-300 ranking in 2023–2024.

During the COVID-19 period, the practice lawyers continuously monitored changes in federal and regional legislation and provided clients with legal support on various matters involving interaction with public authorities in light of constantly changing requirements applicable to business.

During the severe flooding in 2024, acting on clients’ instructions, the practice lawyers conducted daily monitoring of regional regulation in order to assist people in the emergency zone and provided online advisory support to lawyers working directly in the disaster area.

Our clients include major companies from various sectors of the economy that regularly face regulatory issues, including pharmaceuticals, medical device manufacturing, subsoil use, the circulation of alcohol and tobacco products, operation of hazardous facilities, jewellery manufacturing, trade, construction, and services in the fields of mass communications, transport, certification, education and others.

Our work includes advice on licensing and permit issues, assistance in the event of inspections (including product and production safety, state and defence procurement, and the use of budget funds), guidance on compliance with labelling requirements and traceability rules for certain categories of goods, and other related matters.

We advise on issues relating to state support measures, budgetary legal relations, the application of offshore restrictions, the conclusion of special investment contracts and agreements on the protection and promotion of capital investments, as well as the establishment of and access to incentives within special economic zones, priority development areas and technology parks, and legal aspects of the use of state-owned property.

The practice lawyers have experience in providing legal assistance on issues relating to information protection regulation, the use of cryptography, the security of critical information infrastructure, anti-terrorist protection, the security of fuel and energy facilities, and transport security.

In response to the challenges of a new era, the practice includes a dedicated Digital Economy Regulation team bringing together experienced experts with more than ten years of experience in legislation, IT, automation and digital markets regulation. As members of working groups on legal regulation and law enforcement in digital markets, our lawyers actively participate in the preparation of draft laws shaping the development of the digital economy and advise on artificial intelligence and blockchain matters. We also successfully advise clients on the state regulation of mining and digital currency circulation, the organisation of mining pools, and the activities of mining infrastructure operators.

The practice also deals with carbon regulation and advises on matters relating to the circulation of carbon units and the implementation of climate projects.

The practice team further includes practising experts in anti-corruption review of regulatory acts accredited by the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation.

The result of our productive work over many years is not only unique experience and expertise, but also a strong reserve of trust on the part of decision-makers.

Services

Our services:

development of concepts and drafts of regulatory legal acts (laws and subordinate legislation), representing clients at all legislative stages;
legal support of amendments to draft legal acts submitted to the Russian State Duma and legislative bodies of Russia's federal subjects;
advising on issues related to non-judicial repeal or amendment of subordinate legislation (edicts, decrees, orders etc.);
advising on issues related to challenging regulatory and non-regulatory legal acts, unlawful decisions and actions (failure to act) of the state authorities, local government authorities and officials (including establishment of the legal position and representation in courts);
advising on licensing and authorization process issues;
advising public institutions and other budget funds recipients on budget process issues;
representing clients during inspections by the state authorities;
representing clients in judicial and non-judicial proceedings on administrative offences;
legislation drafting, guidelines development, monitoring and international regulatory practices analysis in the sphere of the digital economy regulation;
assisting in creation of a Legal Tech company, including independent legal expertise of bot algorithms, including: development of smart contracts, drafting of legal documents, due diligence of counterparties and documents submitted by them;
advising on civil, tax and criminal law matters, as related to the use, storage and transfer of intellectual property, personal data, and data encryption.

Projects

With regard to administrative law, the Firm's employees have experience of the procedures state authorities use to provide services (licensing and granting permits) and carry out inspections (health and safety, government and defence procurement, use of public funds). They also have an in-depth understanding of our clients’ sector profiles (pharmaceuticals, medical devices, oil and gas, mining, operation of hazardous facilities, jewellery making, trade, construction, media, transport, certification, education, etc.)

The team members in this practice area have extensive experience of working with the state civil service in the departments responsible for state monitoring, representation of the state’s interests in administrative disputes, drafting of departmental documents, and legal support for the day-to-day operations of executive bodies.

Examples of the team's successful work include the draft federal law "On Business Ombudsmen in the Russian Federation" passed at the first reading, making a number of amendments to the draft federal law “On Amendments to Parts I, II, III, IV of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation“, adoption of regulatory acts on the financial system stabilisation in 2008-2009, and subordinate legislation on bankruptcy.

It also contributed to the drafting of laws on deoffshorisation and capital amnesty, as well as a number of many other significant laws.

Reputation

The Firm won the Korporativny Yurist (Corporate Lawyer) magazine prize for active contribution to legislative activities.

Its recent work on the draft law “On Business Ombudsmen” has been commended by the Minister of Russian Economy.