# REDCLIFFE Partners

Redcliffe Partners (Ukrainian: Редкліфф Партнерз) is an independent Ukrainian law firm, founded in December 2015 in Kyiv through the transformation of the Kyiv office of the international law firm Clifford Chance.
As of 2024, Redcliffe Partners was among the top 5 law firms in Ukraine according to the IFLR Europe Awards and the top 7 best law firms in Ukraine according to The Lawyer. It is a Tier 1 firm in Ukraine according to The Legal 500 EMEA in practices:
* Banking, Finance, Capital Markets
* Corporate, Commercial, M&A
* Energy
It was also a Tier 1 firm in Banking and Finance according to the IFLR1000 ranking and a leading firm in the Antitrust/Competition, Corporate and M&A and Banking and Finance according to Chambers Europe.

## History

In 1991, the British multinational law firm Clifford Chance, one of five international law firms headquartered in London collectively known as the "Magic Circle," began advising on Ukrainian transactions. In 2008, Clifford Chance opened an office in Kyiv, Ukraine.
In the summer of 2015, citing the unstable economic situation in Ukraine, "opportunities and realities of the Ukrainian market," and the Russian annexation of Crimea and war in the east of Ukraine, the Clifford Chance office in Kyiv was reestablished as an independent law firm, taking the name Redcliffe Partners on December 1, 2015. Olexiy Soshenko and Dmytro Fedoruk, both members of Clifford Chance's Kyiv team, became Redcliffe Partners' leadership. Rob Shantz and Zoryana Sozanska-Matviychuk also joined Redcliffe Partners as partners.
At its founding, Redcliffe Partners entered into a "best friends" arrangement with Clifford Chance, granting the newly founded firm access to "resources, including its know-how and training . . . ." The core Ukrainian team of lawyers which originally comprised Clifford Chance's Kyiv office stayed on with the newly founded firm.

### Operations after the full-scale invasion

Despite power outages in Ukraine as a result of Russian missile attacks on the country's critical infrastructure, Redcliffe Partners has remained fully operational throughout the war.
In reaction to the destruction of Ukrainian infrastructure, cultural heritage, homes, and lives, the firm has researched the issue of compensation for damages caused by Russian aggression against Ukraine—one of the critical areas in which the company is actively developing expertise.

### Social responsibility

Redcliffe Partners strongly supports and fosters the growth of young professionals. To help students learn from experts, the firm's lawyers regularly participate in events where they share their expertise.
The firm is constantly involved in pro bono projects, both globally and in Ukraine. Notably, they provide free legal assistance to Ukrainian volunteer foundations.

### Notable transactions

Redcliffe Partners has acted as Ukrainian legal counsel to the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), International Finance Corporation (IFC), and European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) on multiple projects. In October, 2024, the firm advised EBRD and IFC on a US$435 million financing supporting the merger of Lifecell and Datagroup-Volia. In December, 2023, the firm advised the DFC, IFC, and EBRD on a US$480 million financing to MHP, one of the largest food and aggrotech groups in Ukraine and Eastern Europe, to refinance its Eurobonds, sustain its operations and enhance its capacity for sustainable power generation, reducing its carbon footprint. The transaction was recognised as the deal of the year by the 2023 CEE Deal of the Year Awards.
Redcliffe Partners has scored a courtroom victory for the Nordic Investment Bank, the international financial institution of the Nordic and Baltic countries, at the Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court, whose ruling in this case sets one of the most resounding and important court precedents in the context of cross-border finance deals.
In January 2021, Redcliffe Partners advised US investors Aspect Energy and SigmaBleyzer in connection with the 18-month negotiation and successful signing of a Production Sharing Agreement (PSA) with the State of Ukraine. These are the first US investors to invest via PSA since the exit of Chevron from Ukraine in 2014.
In April 2020, Redcliffe Partners played a key role in facilitating Ukraine's first-ever product enhancement contract (PEC) signed by UkrGasVydobuvannya.
In the spring of 2019, Redcliffe acted as a Ukrainian legal adviser to J.P. Morgan Securities Plc as debt coordinator in connection with financing of the construction of the first phase of a 250 MW wind power plant near Syvash Lake, in the Kherson Region of Ukraine. The signing ceremony occurred at the World Economic Forum in Davos in the presence of the President of Ukraine, Mr. Poroshenko. The deal was included in the list of the best deals of 2020 by the IFLR Europe Awards.
In 2018, Redcliffe Partners acted as a legal counsel to the Saudi Agricultural & Livestock Investment Company (SALIC) in acquiring the assets of Mriya Agro Holding. This is one of the most anticipated and complex transactions in the Ukrainian agribusiness sector to date. The transaction was recognised as the deal of the year by the 2018 CEE Deal of the Year Awards.