Next Generation Partners

Firms To Watch: Tax

Avance Attorneys Ltd‘s growing tax practice is fully integrated into the transactional services and dispute resolution teams of the firm. Sebastian Kallas leads the practice, which was further strengthened when Antti Leppänen joined as senior advisor in late 2022.
Merilampi Attorneys Ltd‘s tax practice was established in late 2022 with the arrival of the ‘excellent and very experienced’ Sami Tuominen from Bird & Bird. The department provides the full range of tax services to domestic and international companies, private equity funds, individuals and non-profit organisations.

Tax in Finland

Borenius

Borenius’ full-service tax practice handles various kinds of tax matters spanning tax disputes, M&A and real estate-related tax work, VAT issues, indirect taxes and transfer pricing work. The department has specialist experts for transfer pricing and indirect tax mandates, and is also a member of the Taxand network. Co-head Einari Karhu advises on corporate taxes and has extensive experience in international tax matters and M&A structuring work, as well as tax litigation; while fellow co-head Heikki Wahlroos advises on domestic and international tax matters including corporate and personal income tax, M&A tax, and tax mandates relating to the private equity and venture capital sectors. Janne Juusela departed to Castrén & Snellman in January 2023.

Responsables de la pratique:

Einari Karhu; Heikki Wahlroos


Autres avocats clés:

Sampo Viding


Les références

‘The team’s quality of work is always top, and we can trust their advice.’

‘Heikki Wahlroos is very professional and has a deep knowledge of tax issues relating to our quite complex private equity group structure. He can demonstrate complex issues in a practical way and is a great person to co-operate with.’

‘Heikki Wahlroos quickly understands the company’s needs and answers questions posed to him with expertise, but understandably and quickly enough. He is willing to explain things in a way that best suits the situations and needs of each company.’

Principaux clients

Nokian Tyres Plc


Suzano


CapMan Plc


Morgan Stanley Real Estate Investing


Intera Partners Buyout Funds


Agnico Eagle


Aberdeen Standard Investments


Fortum Plc


Harvia Plc


Netflix, Inc.


Kemira Plc


Principaux dossiers


  • Advised TA Associates on its acquisition of Epassi Group together with Warburg Pincus with respect to all Finnish tax matters arising during the acquisition.
  • Acted for a consortium of Finnish public companies in a tax dispute relating to dividend withholding taxation.
  • Advised Norvestor on its acquisition of majority ownership in Rantalainen.

Hannes Snellman (Finland)

Hannes Snellman (Finland) represents clients in high-profile tax disputes and provides tax advice on public and private M&A deals, capital markets transactions, incentive schemes, private equity and venture capital work, and other types of investment funds. The team has particular expertise in indirect taxation, private wealth tax, and transfer pricing issues. Heikki Vesikansa heads up the tax practice and advises on transactional tax structuring and tax planning work as well as tax litigation. Piia Ahonen leads the firm’s VAT and other indirect tax practice; she is a renowned expert in indirect taxation and advises Finnish and international clients in the automotive, real estate, retail and energy sectors.

Responsables de la pratique:

Heikki Vesikansa; Piia Ahonen


Autres avocats clés:

Joakim Frande; Stefan Stellato


Les références

‘Heikki Vesikansa is easy to approach, friendly and vast knowledge.’

‘Excellent tax knowledge, commercially applied with a good understanding of trusts for a non-trust jurisdiction.’

‘Expert advice, great service, pleasant people. Partners Joakim Frande and Heikki Vesikansa stand out, as does associate Stefan Stellato.’

Principaux clients

Ahlstrom Plc


Myrsky Energia Oy


YIT Plc


Caverion Plc


Fiskars Plc


Orange Capital Partners


Quadoro


Areim AB


Smartly.io


Virala Oy Ab


Valmet Plc


Slättö Core Plus AB


Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Company


Kesko Oyj


Metso Plc


A. Ahlström Oy


Uponor Plc


United Bankers


Principaux dossiers


  • Acted as counsel to the offeror consortium consisting of Security Trading, Fennogens Investments, Corbis, and Bain Capital on the recommended public cash tender offer for all shares in Caverion Oyj.
  • Acted as legal adviser to Myrsky Energia on the formation of a joint venture with Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) concerning the investment and development of 1.8GW portfolio of onshore wind power in Finland.
  • Acted as adviser to United Bankers’ UB Timberland Fund (AIF) which agreed to acquire Taaleri Forest Fund III LP.

Roschier

Roschier‘s ‘first-class’ tax department regularly provides tax advice connected to national and cross-border transactions, such as M&A, private equity work, investment rounds for growth companies, public company restructurings and tender offers. The team is also regularly involved in tax planning issues related to fund formations, changes in business models, incentive schemes and VAT. Head of the tax and structuring team Mika Ohtonen and Andreas Bussman are responsible for handling the firm’s transaction related tax work, while the ‘exceptional’ Ossi Haapaniemi focuses predominantly on tax disputes. Merja Raunio is highly experienced in transfer pricing matters.

Responsables de la pratique:

Mika Ohtonen; Ossi Haapaniemi


Autres avocats clés:

Andreas Bussman; Merja Raunio


Les références

‘First-class tax advice, always to the point.’

‘Ossi Haapaniemi is exceptional.’

‘Ossi Haapaniemi is a very experienced tax litigator. He is always available for customer and processes the tax disputes with high professionalism.’

Principaux clients

Pfizer Oy


Nets Holding A/S


Trevian Asset Management


Huhtamäki Oyj


Konecranes Oyj


IK Investment Partners


Nordic Capital


Assa Abloy AB


Ahlström Capital


Stora Enso Oyj


Telia Company


Borealis Group


Bravedo Group (ex. Barona Group)


Axcel


Neles Corporation


Bain Capital


Wolt


Suomen Autokauppa Oy (name changed to SAKA Finland Oy)


Mobidiag Oy


Fortum Oyj


Intera Partners


Nokia


Stockmann Oyj Abp


Warburg Pincus


Tilt Biotherapeutics Ltd


Oura


Principaux dossiers


  • Advising Warburg Pincus on the acquisition of Epassi Group.
  • Advising Bain Capital on the €1.1bn tender offer for Caverion Oyj.
  • Successfully represented a client in the Supreme Administrative Court in a landmark case concerning the deductibility of interest expenses on intra-group loans resulting from an internal reorganisation involving a share acquisition.

Castrén & Snellman

Castrén & Snellman’s tax team advises clients on large-scale transactions and restructuring processes, and has a focus on tax litigation relating to tax audits, tax avoidance or transfer pricing issues. Practice head Mikko Alakare has vast experience spanning direct and indirect tax mandates as well as tax disputes. Janne Juusela, who joined from Borenius in April 2023, specialises in corporate tax, international tax law, mergers and acquisitions, and tax litigation; while Sari Laaksonen has a strong track record in advising on the cross-border aspects and structuring of M&A, real estate and financing transactions.

Responsables de la pratique:

Mikko Alakare


Autres avocats clés:

Janne Juusela; Sari Laaksonen


Les références

‘The team has grown a lot and forms a solid and integral part of an excellent law firm.’

‘Mikko Alakare is clearly the key player and masters all key areas of tax law, which is quite extraordinary, and he is very pleasant to work with.’

‘Very reactive. Very helpful to assist local teams with any issue faced.’

Principaux clients

Fortum Oyj


Vantaan Energia Oy


Oomi Oy


Vattenfall


Nevel Oy


Excelerate Energy INC.


OX2


Impinj Inc.


Litorina Capital


SRC-Sibelco N.V.


Reka Industrial


Mutares


Speechly


Samla Capital


Level Equity Management


F-Secure


Principaux dossiers


  • Advised Vattenfall on an arrangement whereby Vattenfall and Metsähallitus agreed on the development and construction of Finland’s first offshore wind farm in the open sea area.
  • Acted for a German investment management company in a tax dispute concerning the tax treatment of a German investment fund investing mainly in real estate.
  • Advised Excelerate Energy on the conclusion of a lease agreement with Gasgrid Finland Oy for the Floating Storage and Regasification Unit (FSRU) Exemplar.

Dittmar & Indrenius

Dittmar & Indrenius tax and structuring practice focuses on transactional tax advice, tax litigation and other tax advisory work, including issues relating to the structuring and tax optimisation of transactions, investment funds and incentive schemes. Kai Holkeri leads the team and has unique expertise in international tax structuring work and the tax optimisation of M&A transactions, as well as handling tax disputes, especially relating to transfer pricing issues. Elina Hirvonen is experienced in both domestic and international corporate tax matters and advises clients on tax questions related to incentive schemes and indirect taxes.

Responsables de la pratique:

Kai Holkeri


Autres avocats clés:

Elina Hirvonen


Les références

‘Dittmar Indrenius forms a multidisciplinary legal team which is able to cover all the required legal areas and provide guidance taking all aspects into account.’

‘Kaj Holkeri is an expert who is able to provide solid tax support for complicated cases at short notice while keeping the customers’ business priorities always in mind.’

Principaux clients

Colas


Parmaco


MB Funds


Garmin Ltd


Providence Strategic Growth Capital Partners L.L.C.


Norvestor


IKEA Oy


Telenor


AMP Capital Investors


HANSAINVEST Real Assets


AXA Real Estate


Expedia Group


Ratos


The Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities


Aberdeen Standard Capital


Aller Media


Wipunen Asia Capital


Elite Asset Management Plc


Veho


CapMan


Enfuce


Principaux dossiers


  • Advising Handelsbanken on the disposal of its entire Finnish operations.
  • Advised Enerim, a leading Finnish service and SaaS solution provider for the energy sector backed by KLAR Partners, on the sale of its Wholesale Markets business to Volue ASA.
  • Acting for a multinational group in a significant transfer pricing dispute in Finland.

Krogerus

Krogerus' tax practice advises on the tax elements of major private equity, real estate and infrastructure transactions, and has deep expertise in tax and structuring issues associated with fund formations. The team is headed up by Samu Lassila, who focuses on transactional taxes including work relating to capital markets transactions, financing agreements and fund formations; he also handles tax litigation and tax controversy. Antti Lehtimaja has notable experience across the full scope of taxation issues and is particularly well regarded for advice on the taxation of private equity and real estate transactions.

Responsables de la pratique:

Samu Lassila


Autres avocats clés:

Antti Lehtimaja; Anniina Konttinen


Les références

‘Antti Lehtimaja possesses strong knowledge, is result oriented, engaging and service oriented.’

‘Samu Lassila is brilliant, yet a humble person. Also communication towards the other team members has been smooth, and especially happy to work with associate Anniina Konttinen – she is always ready to help even with the smallest details.’

‘Talented and knowledgeable team.’

Principaux clients

TA Associates


Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners


PSG Equity


JC Switzerland


BayWa RE


Swiss Life


Nordea


Voima Ventures


One Equity Partners


CPC Germania / CPC Finland


Principaux dossiers


  • Advised Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) on its entry into a partnership with a Finnish developer Myrsky Energia.
  • Advised TA Associates (TA) on TA’s and Warburg Pincus’ acquisition of a majority stake in Epassi Group from majority shareholder Bregal Milestone.
  • Advised PSG Equity on its $175m growth investment in Hostaway.

Bird & Bird

With extensive knowledge of all tax areas, the Bird & Bird tax department provides the full range of tax services to domestic and international companies, private equity funds and non-profit organisations, with a strong focus on M&A-related tax services and international tax mandates. Ville Alahuhta was promoted to the partnership in May 2023 and heads up the tax team; he is a key name for M&A-related tax questions and tax issues relating to private equity funds.

Responsables de la pratique:

Ville Alahuhta


Les références

‘Flexible rising team with enthusiastic individuals.’

‘Ville Alahuhta is a versatile and very talented individual and eager to develop his own practice.’

‘The practice group is led by Ville Alahuhta who leads by example. He is quick and takes the initiative where necessary.’

Principaux clients

Asuntosalkku Oyj


Cyient Limited


Lehto Group


Owners of Eficode Oy


City of Jyväskylä


Holiday Club Resorts


NordTreat AS


Pinja Group Oy


Juuri Partners Oy


Coda Alternatives


Principaux dossiers


  • Advised Holiday Club Resorts Oy on a significant long-term spa and resort project in the Vierumäki area.
  • Advised Finnish private equity house Juuri Partners on its investment to DAF Group, a Nordic company in charge of managing and developing the business of Subway-restaurants in Finland and Sweden.
  • Advised Fortum Holding B.V. in connection with the sale of its e-mobility business Plugsurfing to Fleetcor UK Acquisition Limited.

HPP Attorneys

HPP Attorneys' tax practice has a strong focus on transactional tax work, especially relating to the environmental and green energy spaces. The group has recently been involved in tax due diligence and structuring work, VAT tax disputes, and reorganisations. The group is led by Jaako Klemettilä, who is well regarded for his ‘knowledge of local Finnish tax matters’ and specialises in M&A tax, general corporate tax, incentive schemes, group reorganisations and international tax work.

Responsables de la pratique:

Jaakko Klemettilä


Les références

‘Fast and reliable.’

‘Jaakko Klemettila’s knowledge of local Finnish tax matters is impressive and his advice has been instrumental.’

‘The level of local tax knowledge and service have been outstanding. The level of advice we have received was of very high quality. The communication has been very good and the team has always made themselves available if any sudden questions and queries arose.’

Principaux clients

Commerz Real AG


VSB Group


Bob W


Principaux dossiers


  • Advised Commerz Real AG on its acquisitions of Finnish windmill parks.

Waselius

Waselius's tax department focuses on transaction-related tax work, structuring issues and tax litigation. The practice regularly advises clients on the tax aspects of corporate reorganisations and restructurings, acquisitions, spin-offs, joint ventures, and financing arrangements. Managing partner and head of the tax team Niklas Thibblin focuses on corporate taxation, particularly in an international and cross-border context, handling international tax planning work, mergers and acquisitions, and tax disputes. Jouni Weckström departed the group to found Weckström Attorneys in January 2023.

Responsables de la pratique:

Niklas Thibblin


Les références

‘Waselius & Wist has a great and agile tax practice headed by Niklas Thibblin.’

‘Niklas Thibblin has a unique combination of deep technical knowledge and a pragmatic and solution-oriented approach.’

‘Niklas Thibblin is splendid at thinking out-of-the-box yet well-grounded in what is realistic.’

Principaux clients

NRC Group Finland


LocalTapiola Finance


T. Rowe Price


Saldo Band UAB


Loomis


NBC Global Finance


Bank of America


Heimdall Terminals AB


Principaux dossiers


  • Acting for several T. Rowe Price funds before the Finnish Tax Administration and before the administrative courts in relation to withholding taxes.
  • Representing the Bank of America in a potential dispute concerning, directly or indirectly, the beneficial owner of dividends and related withholding tax charges related to stock loan transactions and the consequential dividends received in relation to such equity securities.
  • Advised LocalTapiola Finance on the €543.3m public securitisation of a portfolio of Finnish consumer auto hire purchase contracts. The transaction involved complex structural considerations, including VAT aspects.