Latest

New appointments at Merilampi

07.06.2023

Annika Luhtanen joins Real Estate and Construction practice group as a partner of Merilampi as of August 14th, 2023.

Maria Solala-Aro is appointed as Specialist Counsel in Tax practice at Merilampi as of September 1st, 2023.

Read more.

We represented Hartela and Ilmarinen in the sale of the Ristikko shopping center

23.05.2023

Merilampi represented Hartela and Ilmarinen in the sale of the Ristikko shopping center to Evli. The total gross floor area of the shopping center is approx. 17,700 sqm, including inter alia the largest climbing center in northern Europe.

Merilampi represented Keva as it acquired Stockmann’s department store property in Helsinki

21.03.2022

Merilampi team Jani Ylä-Autio, William Sjöberg, Niko Kolsi and Henrik af Ursin represented Keva as it acquired Stockmann’s department store property in Helsinki. Stockmann will continue to operate out of the property under a long-term lease agreement and the leases of other tenants will also continue largely as at present. The property is fully let.

Keva has a total of around 130 residential and business properties, mainly in Greater Helsinki and growth centres in Finland, in its real estate portfolio. At the end of last year, the market value of direct real estate investments was around EUR 2.9 billion.

Read more here.

Merilampi advised Schroder Nordic Real Estate Fund in the sale of an office property in Espoo

29.10.2021

Merilampi acted as legal advisor to Schroder Nordic Real Estate Fund in the sale of Finland’s first wooden office building in Tapiola, Espoo, to the independent Swedish investment firm Altaal. The property comprises a basement, a garage and four above ground office floors, totaling 7,189 square meters. 

Merilampi represented Skanska in the sale of tower building

13.10.2021

Merilampi represented Nordic construction and project development company Skanska in the sale of a tower building to Union Investment. The value of the transaction was approximately EUR 100 million. The target is a 33-storey residental tower to be built to Vuosaari, Helsinki, which is the highest tower building Skanska has ever built in Finland. The building has approximately 16,000 sqm of lettable area and it consists of 288 high-end rental apartments and three retail units. The estimated completion of the project is in late fall 2024.

Merilampi represented Pihlajalinna in its acquisition of Pohjola Hospital from Pohjola Insurance

02.07.2021

Pihlajalinna Terveys Ltd, part of Pihlajalinna Group, has agreed to acquire the entire share capital of Pohjola Hospital Ltd from its current owner Pohjola Insurance Ltd. The net debt-free purchase price, to be paid in cash, is EUR 31.8 million. In connection with the acquisition, Pihlajalinna will also sign a new five-year service agreement with Pohjola Insurance.

The acquisition will be subject to Finnish Competition and Consumer Authority’s approval.

Merilampi advised eQ Community Properties Fund in its acquisition of a health care property

04.05.2021

Merilampi advised eQ Community Properties Fund in its acquisition of a health care property located in Espoo from Nordika. The property is approximately 6.200 sqm and located in Espoo Centre. The main tenant is City of Espoo and the property is used for several health care functions.

Merilampi represented Skanska in a development project

18.03.2021

Merilampi represented Skanska in a development project with Union Investment Real Estate Gmbh whereby the objective is to build rental apartments in Helsinki, Finland.

The 24-storey building encompasses 216 rental apartments. The deal value is EUR 74 million and the construction is scheduled to commence in March 2021. The building is expected to be ready in the summer of 2023.

We advised Sweco in respect of an EPCM contract with Keliber concerning a lithium plant

05.03.2021

Merilampi represented Sweco Industry Oy in negotiations relating to an EPCM agreement concerning a lithium plant to be built by Keliber Oy in Central Ostrobothnia, Finland.

The agreement was signed on 1 March 2021. Sweco will be responsible for engineering, procurement and construction management for the project.

The endeavor is one of the most significant battery chemical projects in Europe, answering the growing demand for lithium as a result of increasing digitalization and electrification of transportation. Keliber’s aim is to start production of lithium hydroxide at the facilities in 2024.

More information on the project and press release on Sweco’s website.

William Sjöberg appointed as Specialist Counsel

02.02.2021

William Sjöberg (Attorney-at-Law, LL.M.) has been appointed as Specialist Counsel at Merilampi as of 1 February 2021. William has been a member of Merilampi’s Transactions and Finance team for years now, and he has successfully represented our domestic and international clients. William has wide experience from domestic and cross-border mergers and acquisitions and real estate transactions as well as corporate law matters.

“I am grateful for the opportunity and the appointment as Specialist Counsel. I am looking forward to continuing the hard work with my colleagues and clients to develop our real estate and transaction practice further“, comments William.

“Through his uncompromising and long-term efforts, William has developed himself into a corporate and real estate transaction expert valued by his clients, colleagues and the work community. At Merilampi, we are happy to further increase his role in handling assignments and developing our firm“, says Tommi Elo, Partner at Transactions and Finance team.

We represented Skanska in its so far largest direct property investment in Finland

22.12.2020

Merilampi represented Skanska in its acquisition of the “Pöllölaakso” area in Pasila, Helsinki, where the media company MTV3 is currently operating. After the end of MTV3’s lease in 2023, Skanska is planning to build 600-700 apartments consisting of 43 100 floor sqm area to be zoned for residential use. The area is expected to be completed in the beginning of 2030s.

Finnish Bar Association introduces Media Attorney function – Jussi Ikonen appointed as Media Attorney

15.12.2020

The Finnish Bar Association will introduce Media Attorney function starting from January 2021. Merilampi’s Partner and Chairman of the Board Jussi Ikonen has been appointed as a Media Attorney together with Attorney-at-Law Liisa Pellinen.

The purpose of the new function is to inform the public about the work of attorneys in general and to deal with common questions relating to the administration of justice, defense in court and dispute resolution. The task of the Media Attorneys is also to shed light in an accessible and intelligible way on the role of Attorneys-at-Law in the Finnish legal system, why all defendants have the right to a professionally managed defense, what kind of different tools can be used in disputes and in which cases one should turn to an Attorney-at-Law.

The Media Attorney function follows the example of the so-called Media Judge function introduced by the Helsinki District Court in 2018. The Media Judge function has created new links between the public and the legal system. There is a clear demand for accessible information about the administration of justice.

“Only few know how diverse the profession of Attorney-at-Law is. I mainly work with court cases and arbitrations between companies, but I also often deal with questions concerning contract law, employment related disputes and liability issues. The goal of a Media Attorney, in addition to dealing with the basic questions, is to present this interesting profession to the public – and perhaps also inspire colleagues to join the discussion“, Jussi says in the Finnish Bar Association’s press release.

Jussi serves as a Member of the Board of the Finnish Bar Association. He serves particularly as a representative of Helsinki-based business law firms.

Read more from the Finnish Bar Association’s press release in Finnish here.

Amendments to the Public Procurement Act to the Finnish Parliament – HE 244/2020 vp

10.12.2020

The Finnish Government has 10.12.2020 submitted a Government Bill concerning amendment of the Public Procurement Act and certain other pieces of legislation (HE 244/2020 vp). The Bill proposes certain technical amendments and clarifications to the Public Procurement Act as well as the Utilities Procurement Act which aim to delineate the wording of the Acts more precisely with the wording of the Procurement Directives.

Perhaps the most essential amendment concerns the notification of the maximum amount of the procurement contracts based on a framework agreement. A framework agreement is a contract between one or several procurement entities and one or several suppliers aiming at confirming the prices, amounts and other terms of procurement contracts during a certain period. Framework agreements are used, in particular, when the amount or quality of the procured goods or services or the time of the procurement are not exactly known beforehand. There has been challenges in case-law and procurement practice concerning the definition of the volume of the framework agreements in case of procurements by central purchasing bodies, in particular.

According to the proposal, procurement contracts based on the framework agreement shall be concluded between the suppliers selected for the framework agreement and the contracting entities who and whose combined maximum volume or value have been clearly specified in the procurement documents of the tender competition for the framework agreement. The amendment clarifies that the procurement documents must contain, in addition to the contracting entities participating in the framework agreement, also the combined maximum volume or value of their procurements. It is also noted in the Bill that there is a need to further follow the use of framework agreements and clarify the legislation further if the case-law based on the new Procurement Directives requires. There is at least one preliminary ruling pending at the moment at the Court of Justice regarding this question (C-23/20).

The Bill does not contain a proposal concerning electronic control of the criminal records of the tenderers that was expected by many economic operators and contracting entities. The electronic transfer of criminal records was deemed as a practical and useful way to minimize the administrative burden for both contracting entities and tenderers. However, it was discovered that the transfer of personal data in the electronic transfer of criminal records needed more detailed further preparation due to questions relating to basic rights. The required level of detailed preparation was not deemed possible without setting up a further working group including all relevant fields of the government.

According to the Government Bill, the amendments are aimed to enter into force in 1.3.2021.

The Finnish Competition Act to be amended as of 4.2.2021

06.11.2020

The Finnish Government has issued a Government Bill 210/2020 on 5 November 2020 to amend the Finnish Competition Act. The proposed amendments relate mainly to the implementation of the so-called ECN+ Directive and would, if adopted, inter alia, increase the investigative and decision-making powers of the Finnish Competition and Consumer Authority (the “FCCA”) as well as its powers to propose the imposition of penalty payments. The amendments are intended to enter into force on 4 February 2021, the date by which the implementation of the ECN+ Directive into the national legislation must be completed.

According to the Government Bill, the FCCA would be given competence to establish the existence of a competition restriction and, when deemed necessary by the FCCA, impose structural remedies on the undertakings infringing the competition rules. Following the amendment, the FCCA could, for example, oblige the infringing undertaking to divest a business unit or dispose a shareholding in a competitor. Such measures are, however, intended to be applied only in exceptional cases. In practical terms, a structural remedy would be imposed by the Market Court on the proposal of the FCCA. Additionally, the proposed changes would broaden the FCCA’s powers regarding who it may summon to a hearing when investigating a competition infringement. Accordingly, the FCCA’s right to summon persons to a hearing would extend to any person who may possess relevant information necessary to investigate competition infringement.

Furthermore, the proposed changes would facilitate the exercising of the rights of defence of the parties to a competition infringement. If adopted, a party under investigation would, according to the Government Bill, have the right to access to the documentation relating to the exemption from penalty payment, i.e. leniency, lodged with the FCCA. The use of such documents would, however, be strictly limited to the exercise of the rights of defence in court proceedings by an undertaking subject to investigation.

Additionally, the proposed amendments to the Competition Act relate closely to penalty payments. Changes are proposed regarding the calculation methods for penalty payments and the persons ultimately responsible for the payment of the imposed sanctions. Moreover, following the amendment of the current Competition Act, the undertakings themselves could assess more accurately the amount of the penalty payment to be imposed for restricting competition. The purpose of this amendment, which is not required under the ECN+ Directive but is instead based on national need, is clearly to create a deterrent and dissuasive effect. Interestingly, the Government Bill also proposes an addendum according to which the FCCA could propose and the Market Court impose penalty payments on undertakings for breaches of procedural rules and non-compliance with certain decisions and not only for competition restrictions as is currently possible pursuant to the Competition Act.

The proposed amendments to the Competition Act are intended to apply mainly to competition restrictions implemented or continued after the entry into force of the amendments. However, the Government Bill does not affect cases currently pending before the Market Court and the Supreme Administrative Court since such cases will be tried in accordance with the provisions in force prior to the entry into force of the amendments proposed.

With Brexit, EU registrations will be replaced by national trademarks and designs in the UK

05.11.2020

The implementation of Brexit is approaching, and a no-deal Brexit seems increasingly likely. Follow these instructions to ensure the validity of your Intellectual Property in the UK even after the end of the year 2020.

Valid EU registrations are automatically converted into national registrations

You do not need to do anything if your EU trademarks or Registered Community Designs have entered into force before the end of the transitional period on 31.12.2020. Your EU trademarks and Community Designs will automatically be converted into national trademarks and designs in the UK.

International trademark registrations designating the EU will also be converted into national trademarks in the UK. However, please verify that your trademarks or designs in the UK correspond to your EU registrations.

If your EU trademarks or Community Designs are due to expire after 31.12.2020, you will need to renew them separately in the UK.

If you have requested deferment of publication of your Community Design in the EU until after the end of the year 2020, your design registration will be considered pending and no automatic conversion will take place. Remember to file a corresponding national trademark or design application in the UK by 30 September 2021.

Pending registrations must be separately applied for in the UK

If you have a pending EU trademark or Community Design application that does not take effect before the end of the year 2020, you must file a national trademark or design application in the UK, corresponding to your EU application by 30 September 2021. The application will be treated as a trademark or design application in accordance with the local legislation.

When you act within the nine-month transition period, your application will be deemed to have been filed on the date of filing of your EU application.

In the future, only national applications can be filed in the UK

After 31 December 2020, trademark and design applications and their renewals will have to be filed nationally in the UK in accordance with British law.

Brexit has no effect on patents

As the patent system is not linked to the European Union in the same way as the EU trademark and the Community Design system, Brexit is not expected to have any impact on patents.

European patents that entered into force before Brexit will continue to be valid in the UK. After Brexit, the UK continues to be part of the European patent system.

Extension coming: Listed companies and First North listed companies may hold General Meetings without shareholders being physically present also in spring 2021, a recent government proposal says

17.09.2020

The coronavirus epidemic began in the spring of 2020 in the midst of the busiest Annual General Meetings time. The situation was challenging as the statutory meetings had to be held, and at the same time, physical gatherings had to be avoided by all means possible.

In the spring, the Finnish government brought relief to the situation in the form of temporary legislation. The temporary act allowed, for example, the postponement of the Annual General Meeting until the end of September 2020 and for meetings of listed companies and First North listed companies to be held without shareholders being physically present.

The act enacted in the spring expires on 30 September 2020. As the coronavirus has not been contained yet, the government is now proposing a new temporary act that would be in force for nine months: from 1 October 2020 to 30 June 2021.

The new temporary act includes mainly the same simplified procedures for listed companies and First North listed companies as the current temporary act. The General Meeting may, by a decision of the company’s Board of Directors, continue to be held only as a remote meeting or so that shareholders may exercise shareholders’ rights at the General Meeting only by way of proxy representation.

The reliefs are welcomed given that these procedures, made possible by the temporary act that came into force at the beginning of May, were applied this year by more than 20 companies. The number could have been considerably higher, as many companies had already held their General Meetings by the time the temporary act came into force. Most listed and First North listed companies held their 2020 meetings in accordance with the Companies Act, but applying the exemptions already permitted by it and by the Securities Markets Act (for example, a proxy service provided by the company).

The new proposed temporary act differs from the current one in particular in that the meetings should be held on a normal schedule. This means that it would no longer be possible to postpone the spring 2021 meetings to a period after the deadline set by the Articles of Association or the Companies Act. The new act also no longer applies, for example, to housing companies.

The handling of the government proposal concerning the new temporary act (HE 117/2020 vp) is currently still in progress in the parliament.

Read also

Green light from the Parliament: The Annual General Meeting may be postponed until 30 September 2020 and listed companies may hold the meetings without any shareholders present

No cause for concern: Government proposal to allow postponing Annual General Meetings until 30 September 2020 and holding listed companies’ Annual General Meetings without shareholders physically present

Anu Honkalinna to provide Merilampi with additional financial expertise

05.06.2020

Read in Finnish here.

Anu Honkalinna (LL.M.) will start as Project Counsel at Merilampi on 8 June 2020. Along with this project work, Honkalinna will continue in her existing roles, which include CEO and advisor of a start-up company.

Anu Honkalinna has extensive experience in the financial sector. She has worked for a long time as an executive responsible for legal matters and compliance operations in insurance companies and as an advisor to start-up companies. She was a co-founder of Fintech Finland association, and has been actively involved in the development of its operations as a board member.

Honkalinna has exceptional expertise in cross-border insurance business, licensing procedures, mortgage insurances, payment protection insurances and insurance mediation regulation in several countries, as well as setting up optimal insurance business in a digital environment. She has also been a legal advisor in many projects involving cryptocurrencies, tokens, digital assets exchanges and related licensing processes. Besides legal work, Honkalinna has had a significant role in the leadership, sales and product development of these businesses.

“It is great to join Merilampi as Project Counsel and to develop a new model of working, as well as to make use of my knowledge in many ways in the field of law,” says Project Counsel Anu Honkalinna.

Merilampi wants to ensure that the changes taking place in society and the business environment are reflected in both the service portfolio of the company and the operating methods.

“In the future, even more expertise in special fields will be needed in the legal business. In addition, it is necessary to have the option of working on a project basis when needed. This also benefits the field,” explains Chairman of the Board at Merilampi, Jussi Ikonen.

“We are happy to have Anu Honkalinna joining our team. She has convinced me with her extensive knowledge of insurance matters, digital assets and their exchange and licensing processes,” says Jussi Ikonen. 

Merilampi’s Managing Partner Heidi Merikalla-Teir is also looking forward to working with Honkalinna:

“I am very glad that we can start collaboration with Anu Honkalinna. Anu is not only an expert with considerable knowledge of her special fields but also a great fit for our team as a person,” says Merikalla-Teir.

Further information:

Anu Honkalinna, tel. +358 50 338 6859, anu.honkalinna@merilampi.com
Jussi Ikonen, tel. +358 40 097 8281, jussi.ikonen@merilampi.com
Heidi Merikalla-Teir, tel. +358 40 750 6106, heidi.merikalla-teir@merilampi.com

Aino Jankari joined Merilampi as Associate

03.06.2020

LL.M. Aino Jankari has been appointed as Associate. Aino advises in competition and corporate law as well as in mergers and acquisitions. She graduated from the University of Turku, and she wrote her master’s thesis on the need to amend the provisions regarding the obligation to notify a merger in the EU. Aino has previously worked at Merilampi as a Trainee, and we are very happy to have her back.

Read more about Aino.

The Supreme Administrative Court annulled the decisions of the Administrative Court and the Regional State Administrative Agency in a matter that concerned obligation imposed by the occupational safety and health authority – Merilampi represented Posti Ltd

14.05.2020

We represented Posti Ltd in the matter that concerned the obligation imposed by the occupational health and safety authority to maintain the minimum temperature, defined by a degree, in Posti’s Rovaniemi terminal. On 12 May 2020, the Supreme Administrative Court issued a decision approving Posti’s appeal and annulling the decisions of the Administrative Court and the Regional State Administrative Agency. In addition, the Northern Finland Regional State Administrative Agency is ordered to reimburse Posti’s legal costs by EUR 7,000.

By the decision made on 2 February 2017, the Northern Finland Regional State Administrative Agency’s area of responsibility for occupational health and safety obliged Posti, under threat of fine, to correct the situation which according to the Regional State Administrative Agency was not fulfilling the legal safety requirements at the Rovaniemi terminal. According to the authority, the temperature of the terminal had to be at least +17 degrees in the working area. The Administrative Court amended the decision of the Regional State Administrative Agency so that Posti would have had to ensure that the temperature in the loading and unloading premises was at least +13 degrees. Based on the Agency’s decision, one of the main questions was whether the terminal work should at all be considered as indoor work.

In its complaint, Posti primarily demanded the annulment of the decisions of the Administrative Court and the Regional State Administrative Agency and cancellation of the penalty payment imposed.

In its decision, the Supreme Administrative Court considers that, taking into account the special characteristics of the terminal as a working environment, the nature of the work, Posti’s measures to improve employees’ safety as well as other evidence presented in the case, the authority’s requirement of the minimum terminal temperature must be considered not only inappropriate in relation to the objective pursued but also economically and technically disproportionate.

Green light from the Parliament: The Annual General Meeting may be postponed until 30 September 2020 and listed companies may hold the meetings without any shareholders present

28.04.2020

The Parliament has today passed a temporary act (HE 45/2020 vp) concerning deviations from, among other things, the Companies Act and the Housing Companies Act. The contents of the act are in accordance with the report of the Commerce Committee TaVM 8/2020 vp.

The purpose of the temporary legislation is to allow statutory and regular meetings of corporations to be postponed or attended by means of virtual participation in order to prevent the spreading of the coronavirus at the meetings.

The temporary legislation will enter into force as soon as possible and will remain in force until 30 September 2020. The act applies to meeting to which an invitation has been sent out in accordance with the temporary act and which are held while the act is in force.

The contents of the temporary legislation in a nutshell

All limited companies and housing companies:

• The right to hold the Annual General Meeting following the financial year that ended between 30 September 2019 and 31 March 2020 no later than by 30 September 2020.
• The right to hold meetings by 30 September 2020 also applies to Extraordinary general meetings and general meetings regarding deciding on the approval of a merger or demerger plan.
• The right to postpone the meeting until 30 September 2020 also applies to:
  • Cooperatives and cooperative banks
  • Associations
  • Commercial banks
  • Meetings of the trustees of savings bank
  • Insurance companies and pension insurance companies
  • Fund meetings of unemployment funds
  • Representative bodies of insurance funds
  • Councils of unemployment funds

Listed companies and First North listed companies:

• Pursuant to the decision of the company’s board of directors, the Annual General Meeting may be held solely by means of virtual participation.
• Pursuant to the decision of the company’s board of directors, the Annual General Meeting may be organized in a way that a shareholder may exercise their rights at the Annual General Meeting only by way of proxy representation.
• A combination of the two abovementioned is also possible.
• The provisions apply to Annual General Meeting and the Extraordinary General Meeting.
• The organization of meetings in accordance with the temporary legislation requires extraordinary contents with respect to the notice to convene the Annual General Meeting. The Advisory Board of Listed Companies has prepared in accordance with the temporary legislation a template for the notice to convene the Annual General Meetings.

Cooperatives and registered associations:

• Annual General Meeting may be attended by way of proxy representation or power of attorney or remotely.
• Applies also to:
  • Meetings of representative bodies of cooperative banks
  • Meetings of the trustees of savings bank
  • General meetings of insurance companies
  • Fund meetings of insurance funds

Accounting Act:

• According to 3:6 of the current Accounting Act, financial statements and annual report must be prepared within 4 months following the end of a financial year.
• However, according to the temporary legislation, the preparation of financial statements and annual reports regarding the financial year that ended between 30 November 2019 and 29 February 2020 may be postponed and prepared no later than by 30 June 2020.

Read also:

No cause for concern: Government proposal to allow postponing Annual General Meetings until 30 September 2020 and holding listed companies’ Annual General Meetings without shareholders physically present

Merilampi’s experienced specialists participate annually in the preparation of several private and public companies’ Annual General Meetings and managing the duties of chairman in these meetings.

Financial uncertainty increases risks for management – Make sure you can answer the questions who, what and why

15.04.2020

During this exceptional time, companies must make decisions and find solutions faster than usual. Actions to secure operations and future success, including the related risks, are, from time to time – and especially now – essential. In order to avoid significant harm to the company, it may be necessary or justified to take risks that would not otherwise be taken. At the same time, the risk of making mistakes increases.

For this reason, during this exceptional time, issues of responsibility that face management have now also surfaced in various contexts. If a mistake occurs in the company and it is not feasible or adequate to hold the company itself responsible, criticism is easily directed at the Board of Directors and executive management and, to an increasing extent, also the company’s legal department, among others.

A business decision may prove to be erroneous in the subsequent evaluation. This does not necessarily mean that management acted incorrectly. However, management must be able to reliably indicate that decisions have been made in the right place, at the right time and that there are clear and documented justifications for those decisions and solutions.

The following practical advice may, in its simplicity, be the key for a company to make and dare to make decisions that are both timely and required by the circumstances.

Clear division of tasks among management, the Board of Directors and others in the organisation

Make sure that the assignment of tasks among individuals, both in company management and on the Board of Directors, is clear and carefully documented. The Board of Directors and the CEO can, and often they should, delegate their decision-making power to others in the company’s organisation. Such delegation of tasks and powers should be clear and documented, especially when those tasks are of great importance to the company’s business operations.

Drafting and adhering to internal operating principles

Make sure your organisation knows what to do in different situations. Among other things, it is important that members of the organisation feel they can raise issues with management as early as possible. For example, it is often the case, and quite unnecessary, that growing disputes are treated as “internal matters of a project” and are therefore not reported to management early enough. Especially now in these exceptional circumstances, it is particularly important for management to be kept up to date with how things are going in order to ensure that the necessary actions, such as written statements, are taken in the right form and according to the right timetable; while, on the other hand, this ensures that measures contrary to the company´s legal position are not taken.

Documentation of decisions

Make sure you can demonstrate why and on what grounds a business decision was made. Justify, document and provide the background for decisions carefully.

In the event of possible disagreements at a later stage, it is often of central importance to know what was the deadline by which matters documented should have led to actions by members of management, been investigated or problems should have otherwise been addressed. Regarding the decisions made, it will be assessed, among other things, whether the decision was based on sufficient and appropriate information, whether the assistance of external experts was sought, whether there was a valid reason for relying on the information obtained and whether a rational and consistent decision was made on the basis of the information obtained, also taking into account objectively the assessments of the decision at the time.

The Dispute Resolution Review’s twelfth edition published

06.04.2020

A new edition of the Dispute Resolution Review has been published. Tiina Järvinen and Nelli Ritala from our Dispute Resolution team contributed to the edition by writing the chapter on Finland.

The edition contains an overview of the civil court system and alternative dispute resolution mechanisms of 32 jurisdictions in total, including Brazil, England and Wales, France, Germany, India, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, the United States and most of the Nordic countries. The book offers a broad outline of the keystones of the dispute resolution procedures and recent developments in each jurisdiction. The book also includes a separate chapter regarding the relevant legal consequences of Brexit.

The Dispute Resolution Review Finland

The entire twelfth edition is available here.

The Dispute Resolution Review. Twelfth Edition. Reproduced with permission from Law Business Research Ltd. This article was first published in February 2020

Jussi Koivu and Liina Kokko appointed as Specialist Counsels

30.01.2020

Attorneys-at-Law Jussi Koivu and Liina Kokko have been appointed as Specialist Counsels at Merilampi as of 1 February 2020. Jussi works in our employment team and Liina specialises in dispute resolution.

Jussi Koivu (LL.M., Attorney-at-Law, Trained at the Bench) advises both domestic and international clients on various legal matters associated with employment law, such as contract drafting, cooperation negotiations, industrial disputes and questions related to corporate governance and data protection during employment relationships. Prior to joining Merilampi, Jussi worked in the HR-department of a large corporation gaining experience in cross-border transactions and employment law in an international environment.

Liina Kokko (LL.M., Attorney-at-Law, Trained at the Bench) specialises in dispute resolution. She has extensive experience in various court proceedings both in general courts and in arbitration tribunals. Her areas of expertise include tort law and insurance related disputes in which she has acted as a counsel for broad range of companies and public corporations. She also regularly represents clients in white-collar criminal proceedings.

“Liina and Jussi are both top-quality experts respected by both their clients and colleagues. They are magnificent co-workers with whom it is a pleasure to work on assignments. The values of Merilampi can be seen in their work and attitude – they always work with uncompromising quality and passion. As Specialist Counsels, Liina and Jussi have a lot to offer to our clients as well as to Merilampi as a work community”, says Partner Heidi Hiltunen.

Chambers Litigation 2019 Guide’s chapter on Finland published

19.12.2019

The Chambers Litigation 2019 Guide has been published. Jussi Ikonen, Antti Karanko, Liina Kokko and Teemu Taxell from our Dispute Resolution team contributed to the guide by writing the chapter on Finland.

Litigation 2019 covers every step of the litigation process, including funding, initiating lawsuits, pre-action conduct, injunctive relief, damages, appeal, costs and ADR. The guide provides clients with expert legal commentary in key jurisdictions around the world. Written with clients in mind the guide enables the business client to identify and compare current legal issues across jurisdictions.

The Finnish chapter is available on the Chambers and Partners website. See the entire guide here.

Season’s Greetings!

19.12.2019

We would like to thank all of our clients and business partners for this past year. We wish you all a happy holiday season and a joyful new year in 2020!

This holiday season we support Save the Children Finland’s Christmas appeal. Save the Children Finland is a national organisation founded in 1922, which fights for children’s rights in order to immediately and permanently improve children’s lives in Finland and around the world.

Read more: Save the Children

BLOGI: Asiantuntijaorganisaatiokin tarvitsee johtamista – Onko kyse vain kasvun ja kannattavuuden maksimoinnista vai jostain muustakin?

07.11.2019

Read the blog in Finnish here.

Read the keynote speech held by Heidi Merikalla-Teir at the Women’s Board Award event on 29 October 2019 here.

BLOG: Noora’s first months at Merilampi

21.08.2019

I started at Merilampi as an Associate in the beginning of June and would like to share my experiences so far.

Starting a new job is of course always a bit daunting. However, coming to Merilampi was easy. This was partly because my first day was the first day for the entire Merilampi staff at our new premises. Therefore, it was a new beginning for everyone. Furthermore, our new CEO, Heidi Merikalla-Teir started on the same day.

I had a very warm welcome and even though I am an Associate, I have not had to stay in the background. I get to interact with clients and to be involved in the handling of the office’s high-profile cases. Merilampi’s IP practice is now evolving and growing faster than ever, and I have also been able to take an active role in the development of the practice together with Henrik af Ursin, the head of our IP team. I feel privileged to get to present my own ideas about the development, and, in that way, I also get to influence my own work.   

The variety of my tasks from IP specialist work to taking care of the marketing and commercialisation of our services makes my job very interesting. Another thing that brings nice variation to my work is the fact that many of our clients are international, so I also get to utilise my language skills at work.

One thing above all at Merilampi, however, is the team spirit and the great atmosphere. The warm atmosphere is partly due to our very own canteen, Annela. Spending the lunch hour with my work mates allows me to really get to know everyone. Also, since I started, we have already had a variety of joint activities from having breakfast with the entire staff to going out for a jog together. Because of the new premises, the ambience at Merilampi is still somewhat festive, and we’ll celebrate several housewarming parties throughout the autumn.

I wish everyone a happy start to their autumn!

Noora Arkia

Heidi Merikalla-Teir appointed as Merilampi’s Managing Partner

11.03.2019

Heidi Merikalla-Teir (LL.M., Trained at the Bench, MBA) has been appointed as the new Managing Partner of Merilampi as of 1 June 2019. She is currently the Director of Dispute Resolution Services at the Finland Chamber of Commerce, and a member of the Finland Chamber of Commerce’s executive team. She is also the Secretary General of the Arbitration Institute of the Finland Chamber of Commerce (FAI).

Previously, Heidi worked for several years as an attorney and a Specialist Partner at one of the largest Finnish law firms. At Merilampi, Heidi joins Partners Jussi Ikonen and Teemu Taxell at our Dispute Resolution team.

Heidi has extensive and diverse experience in domestic and international commercial arbitration, litigation and mediation. In addition to acting as counsel, she serves as arbitrator and mediator. She is a CEDR (Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution) Accredited Mediator.

Jussi Ikonen, our Managing Partner since 2015, takes on the position as Chairman of the Board, and Merilampi’s current Chairman, Jani Ylä-Autio, will continue his work as Member of the Board and Partner of the Transactions and Finance team.

“I am grateful for the opportunity to join Merilampi and to work together with colleagues who I highly respect. In times of increasingly changing business environment, law firms will not remain unaffected. At the same time, this is an excellent opportunity to develop organisations and to find solutions that best serve clients’ needs. I strongly believe that value creating solutions are found in collaboration with personnel, clients and other stakeholders. In this work, also the organisation’s corporate culture plays a key role”, says Heidi Merikalla-Teir. “I am accepting the Managing Partner appointment with very high motivation”.

“We are very happy and proud to have Heidi on board. Heidi’s diverse background and experience in expert and management positions give her an excellent basis, together with all our people, to guide Merilampi to the next level. At the same time, I am glad to complement our dispute resolution services with such a talented colleague. Heidi is highly respected professional in the fields of commercial arbitration and mediation, and she shares our values and mission in providing ever more holistic and client-oriented conflict management services,” says Jussi Ikonen.

“It has been impressive to follow the development of the Arbitration Institute under Heidi’s leadership. It is a great opportunity for Merilampi to get Heidi’s knowledge and skills for the benefit of our clients and the firm. I am eager to see Heidi and Jussi’s cooperation in Merilampi’s management and the continuation of Jussi’s extremely admirable work,” comments Jani Ylä-Autio.

Further information:

Heidi Merikalla-Teir, tel. +358 40 750 6106
Jussi Ikonen, tel. +358 40 097 8281, jussi.ikonen@merilampi.com
Jani Ylä-Autio, tel. +358 40 769 8260, jani.yla-autio@merilampi.com