I was born in Irkutsk and studied there. In 2007 we had a seminar on tax issues involving representatives of the Supreme State Commercial ('Arbitration') Court and Pepeliaev Group. Sergey Pepeliaev and Vadim Zaripov spoke there.  I was handling tax matters then and had a question about desk tax audits. Our colleagues stood out because of the quality of their answers and the high level of their professional expertise. I made a mental note of the firm’s name. Then, when I came to St. Petersburg to study for a post-graduate degree and I was looking for a job, I came here, to Pepeliaev Group.  I had offers from a Big Four firm. But even so, after I had talked to my future colleagues I instinctively felt that Pepeliaev Group was right for me and I would find myself fulfilled here. It turned out that I was right about the professionalism: Mr Pepeliaev is the firm’s figurehead, and speaks so convincingly as a lawyer that means that the company is also well organised.

How has your opinion about the firm changed over so many years? Have you formed any new impressions, or have you just become convinced that you really made the right choice? 

That was a happy choice. In terms of my professional growth, it has given me everything I could have wished for. I do have a slight regret that I did not join Pepeliaev Group in the beginning of my career. In such case I would my professional advancement would have been far quicker. If a first year student is looking for a job where he or she can apply his or her knowledge, then our firm is a wonderful place. Everything is clearly and transparently set up: you come here, work diligently and move up the ladder based on the efforts you put in. Besides, you get to work on top-quality projects. What counts here is the scope of challenges our clients give us rather than the number of lawsuits one is involved in.  

I think our main advantage is what we call a hands-on approach: when a client approaches us we always have a clear vision of what it needs and this is exactly what we deliver. We do little to help business if we produce overly wordy theoretical advice that offers no solution to a specific problem. We understand what the client needs and respond with this in mind. 

Within the firm, there is a high level of teamwork, with outstanding staff and an excellent atmosphere. This is a pleasant place to work not only in career terms, but also on a personal level. We spend much time at work and it is really important to have people around you whom you enjoy spending time with. Moreover, there is always an opportunity to show your initiative: if I have fresh ideas for ways to attract clients or events we might organise, my colleagues always support them. 

In my opinion, our company has a proper  philosophy: Mr Pepeliaev keeps on saying that Pepeliaev Group is a national firm. I am becoming even more convinced of late of the merits of this approach: the more products we have that are based on our heritage and national values, the stronger our country is. It is enjoyable to work in a national firm, established by a Russian, in which there is in-depth knowledge of specific aspects of the market. By assisting our clients to do their business in the right way, I contribute to our country's development.

I was given an opportunity to work on challenging projects and to communicate with interesting people. We meet with companies’ management and heads of legal. These are high-level professionals who have tremendous experience. When working with them, one derives an understanding of how large companies work, how their business is structured internally, and what needs clients have in such large corporations. 

Two years or so ago we worked on a project for a factory in St. Petersburg that was a subsidiary of a global corporation. They were experiencing troubles with a trade union which started to have an adverse impact on manufacturing and on business processes.  The client was hit by numerous inspections, instructions and fines from the labour inspectorate and state prosecutor's office. All this was aggravated by negative comments in mass media. The situation was difficult but we offered the client a way out. We provided support at all stages, had the state authorities' unlawful decisions invalidated, and won a case in the court in relation to employees being reinstated. As a result, the situation at the factory stabilised and employees started to quit the destructive trade union. With our help, they returned to their regular work. This project took considerable time and effort. However, we stuck to our guns in implementing the strategy we had suggested to the client and we achieved the desired result.