Ukraine Legal Support Platform
As part of its Ukraine support initiatives, the Energy Community Secretariat invites the international legal community to join the platform for pro bono legal support to Ukrainian public energy companies. On this platform, law firms and qualified independent lawyers can join the effort to recover the damages inflicted upon Ukraine’s critical energy infrastructure by dedicating any number of pro bono hours for various projects.
The Secretariat has partnered with the biggest Ukrainian public energy companies, which have incurred significant amounts of damages:
- NPC Ukrenergo (the Ukrainian electricity transmission system operator);
- NPC Energoatom (the Ukrainian nuclear energy company);
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PJSC Ukrhydroenergo (the Ukrainian hydropower generating company).
The pro bono legal support will be made available to those and other interested Ukrainian companies to file claims against Russia in national courts and in international arbitration. Through the platform and in close cooperation with our Ukrainian partners, the legal services offered will be matched with the demand expressed by them.
In addition to legal services, the Secretariat invites experts and companies to support Ukrainian public energy companies by providing litigation-related communication.
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How to express interest?
How to express interest?
- Natural persons and legal entities regardless of the form of organisation may apply.
- If you want to become a part of the initiative and be among the individuals and firms offering legal services or communication in relation to energy-related claims against Russia, please fill in the online application form below. Being a part of the platform of pro bono legal support does not commit participants to any specific services, nor does it commit the Secretariat to accept such services.
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Platform
What is the matching platform?
- The matching platform aims to create a database of qualified legal services providers willing to offer legal assistance free of charge to Ukrainian companies in their endeavour to recover damages from Russia for the destruction of energy infrastructure.
- By being part of the platform, legal service providers will have access to the requests for legal services.
- The matching platform will serve as a pool of qualified service providers to be matched for the provision of specific services with requests of Ukrainian companies, in agreement with the Secretariat.
- Where necessary, service providers on the platform will be requested to work together with other providers to match the requests of Ukrainian companies under the joint supervision with the Secretariat.
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Scope
What is the scope of legal services?
The legal services will be provided on or in relation to energy-related claims against Russia to be filed in national courts on the basis of universal jurisdiction, in front of an arbitration tribunal constituted under the bilateral investment treaty (BIT) between Ukraine and the Russian Federation, and in Ukrainian courts.
What is the scope of communication services?
The communication services will be provided to Ukrainian energy companies in relation to energy-related claims against Russia. Depending on the request of the Ukrainian counterpart it can include advice on strategic communication, communication in international media, review of communication materials etc.
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Assignment
How will specific tasks be assigned?
- Each time a potential mandate is identified, the Secretariat will contact the legal experts falling in the relevant field(s) of expertise and provide them with a description of the services needed and of the expected qualifications and expertise. Our intention is to design the mandates in a way that, if there is no satisfactory offer for the whole mandate, law firms or independent lawyers can apply for parts of it.
- The legal experts will be given a short reasonable deadline to confirm their availability and provide a short description of the team, CVs, timeline and steps they intent to engage in providing the service. Following consultations with the Secretariat, the Ukrainian counterparts will decide which offer best suits their needs.
- Once a particular mandate has been assigned, the legal expert(s) will be required to sign an NDA.