Anna Shashina

I'm a partner and head of Bird & Bird's Russia Desk in London, offering over fifteen years of practical experience as a Russian qualified lawyer and native speaker to businesses entering and working in the Russian market and advising Russian companies in their outbound activities.

Drawing on my practical experience, language skills and western approach to practising law, I advise our clients on a wide range of Russian law matters, with expertise in commercial, IT, data protection, employment and regulatory transactional work.

I was born, educated and have practiced law in Russia until moving to the UK in order to assist a wide range of clients with developing their business in Russia and expanding from Russia abroad. I have an in-depth understanding of the Russian market and the challenges which multinational businesses face in the region. I assist clients in developing practical solutions in response to fast changing and often overregulated legal environments. I participate in multi-jurisdictional advice working with colleagues in our international offices to support the clients on tight deadlines with complex legal advice on the issues which are at the forefront of the legal profession.

For matters that need expertise outside our practice areas, I provide a coordinated service by working with Russian firms – either by accessing our existing network or working with firms nominated by our clients. The key to assisting our clients meet their business objectives lies in successful project management. I work to ensure an 'added value' service by applying a smooth end-to-end approach in order to deliver prompt, pragmatic and client-focused advice when involving referral law firms in the region.

I am a regular speaker at Russia-related seminars and workshops.