Team

 Valerijus Ostrovskis, Managing Partner

Valerijus Ostrovskis is the managing partner and head of the sanctions and export control practice of Acquis EU Law & Policy. He has extensive experience advising clients – leading multinational companies and foreign governments – on UN sanctions, EU sanctions and export control rules, as well as various other aspects of EU trade law and policy. He has advised European and international companies from a wide range of sectors on compliance with EU sanctions against Russia, Iran, Syria, Sudan, Libya, Somali and other jurisdictions, and assisted clients in designing and implementing compliance sanctions and export control compliance programmes. Valerijus is recognised by clients and peers for his in-depth knowledge of sanctions and export control rules and his practical, clear, and business-oriented advice regarding the application of these rules to specific transactions and activities in a wide range of sectors.

Valerijus also regularly represents clients in cases involving complex  legal questions of EU law before the Court of Justice of the European Union and the European Commission. He also advises and represents clients from a wide range of sectors, including technology, transport, tobacco, banking and finance and manufacturing, chemicals and fertilizers – in EU legislative and policy-making processes. He has designed designs and contributed to new models of corporate and foreign government representation in Brussels, including the setting up and management of various business councils and industry associations and federations, amongst other things. 

Valerijus holds an LL.M degree in Law and Economics from the University of Rotterdam and the University of Bologna, and a Masters of Law degree from the Vilnius University.

He is a qualified lawyer and member of the Lithuanian Bar Association and the of Brussels Bar (E-list).

He is fluent in English, Russian, Lithuanian, Spanish, Italian and French.

 

Yuri Shumilov, Partner

Yuri previously spent 15 years of his career with a major ‘magic circle’ international law firm in Moscow and London. He also served as General Counsel for a major Russian investment group. His areas of expertise include international M&A, cross-border financings, and sanctions. He is an experienced litigator in the field of sanctions, and regularly advises clients on matters relating to compliance.

He holds an LL.M from University College London and a Ph.D. in law from the Russian Peoples’ Friendship University.

He is a Russian advocate, a solicitor of England & Wales, a member of the Irish Bar and an associated member of the Brussels Bar.

He is fluent in Russian and English.

 

William Julié, Partner

William is a Franco-British lawyer, specialized in international litigation.

He has developed a strong expertise in cross-border criminal matters, in particular extradition procedures and removal of INTERPOL notices, alongside an extended knowledge in financial crimes, asset recovery as well as human rights and compliance. 

He has acted for his clients before numerous local, European and international courts and institutions, such as the European Court of Human Rights, the Court of Justice of the European Union, as well as United Nations Committees and Working Groups.

During the past few years, William also specialized in sanctions work, whether within the United Nations or European Union frameworks or at the domestic level as part of autonomous sanctions regimes. His expertise covers all areas where sanctions may potentially impact a matter, such as: 

• Evaluating how sanctions regimes may impact economic operations and advising on potential risk mitigation measures;
• Supporting with license applications to competent authorities; 
• Assisting with sanctions due diligence;
• Advising in view of potential litigation to get delisted. 

In the past year, William has represented several clients before the Tribunal of the Court of Justice of the European Union to obtain the delisting of both natural persons and legal entities. 

William holds Master’s Degree in criminal law and criminal justice policy from the University Paris Panthéon-Sorbonne.

He is an attorney at the Paris and Brussels bars.

He is fluent in French and English.

 

Michael De Boeck, Partner 

Michael specializes in EU trade law and international arbitration. He is a part-time lecturer (univ. docent) in EU law at The Hague University of Applied Sciences and partner at Acquis.  He has experience advising clients in commercial disputes in the distribution sector and in arbitrations. He has recently advised clients in CEPANI and ICC arbitrations, and in an international investment arbitration in the EMEA region. Before joining Acquis, he was a partner at a premier Belgian independent law firm, doctor-assistant in the law faculty of the College of Europe in Bruges and Research Fellow at the Max Plank Institute in Luxembourg.

He holds a dual PhD from Ghent and Luxembourg University (2020), a Master of Laws from Ghent University (2013 - magna cum laude) and an LLM of Vanderbilt University (2014 - Dean's List honors).

Michael is a dual qualified lawyer at the Bar of Antwerp and New York.

He is fluent in Dutch, French and English.

 

 

Bogdan Evtimov, Partner

Bogdan is a first-class EU lawyer and litigator, having been a partner and director in top-10 global law firms and legal service providers. He is a recognised trade and antitrust/competition lawyer. He has particular experience in the energy sector with energy policy and energy regulation.

Highly experienced across various industries and cross-border trade regulation and policy, sanctions and export controls, abuse of dominance and merger control proceedings, EU Courts litigation, WTO matters, international treaties and new rules on foreign subsidies and foreign investments, Bogdan has been the backbone of successful legal teams in Brussels since 2001. Lately he has been involved in cross-Atlantic and cross-Channel work.

Bogdan is admitted to the bar in Sofia, Bulgaria and Brussels.

He is fluent in English, French, Russian and Bulgarian.

 

Andrea Mogni, Senior Advisor

Dr. Andrea Mogni brings more than three decades of experience of working in the European Commission in different roles covering a wide range of topics including trade, economic relations, international relations, development and third country funding.

He worked as a Senior Policy Coordinator and Senior Financial Expert at the European External Action Services (EEAS), where he was focusing on programming and financing instruments with the EU's neighboring countries and countries in transition. Earlier he covered EU relations with the OECD, UN, IFIs and regional economic organizations and banks. He has also served in the EU Delegation and the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

He is a Senior Expert at the Global Governance Institute. He is a Member of Triffin International Foundation and on the Advisory Board of PCDI. He holds a Degree in Law from the University of Genoa and a Degree in Economics from the University of Rome.

 

 

Evangelia Anevlavi, Senior Associate

Evangelia is an international lawyer with experience in EU Trade, customs and sanctions.

Prior to joining ACQUIS, she worked for major law firms in Brussels (Sidley Austin, Jones Day and VVGB Avocats), specializing in WTO law. She was integral to the WTO-Legal Affairs Division in Geneva along with other important industry associations.

Her career has been focused on numerous anti-dumping, anti-subsidy, safeguards and anti-circumvention investigations before the European Commission and OLAF, including important cases before the Court of Justice of the European Union. She has also been involved in various landmark WTO cases, including DS441 Australia – Tobacco Plain Packaging, DS316 EC and Certain Member States – Large Civil Aircraft (Article 21.5 – EU) and (Article 22.6 – US), DS522 Canada – Commercial Aircraft and DS602 China — AD/CVD on Wine (Australia).

She has advised governments and companies on complex issues of WTO compatibility with EU initiatives, free trade agreements, Brexit, and market access and customs issues.

She holds an LL.B. from the University of Athens and LL.M. in International Economic Law and Policy (IELPO LL.M.) from the University of Barcelona.

She is Member of the Athens and Brussels (EU-list) Bar Associations.

Her mother tongue in Greek. She is fluent in English and has intermediary level in French. 

 

 

Mark is a qualified lawyer, public policy advisor and business consultant with experience in advising multinational corporations and foreign governments on EU law, policy, and public affairs. He is an unconventional thinker who loves to tackle novel challenges, typically utilizing a cross-disciplinary approach to expand his existing knowledge and problem-solving skillset.

Most recently, Mark has been working on the development and implementation of public affairs, policy campaigns, and other initiatives focusing on international trade regulations and restrictions. Prior to this, he was advising clients on various EU decision-making processes and the implementation of EU legislation at the national level.

Mark has a multidisciplinary academic background in law (J.D.), bolstered by credentials in technology management and innovation (MSc) and communication and media sciences (B.A.).

He is fluent in English and has intermediary level in French.

 

Agata Stasevskaja, Counsel

Specialized in litigation. She has significant experience in representing clients’ interests in Courts of all instances and State authorities in Lithuania. Her legal experience covers different areas of law, such as commercial law, employment law, insolvency law, administrative law, and even criminal law, which allows her to easily navigate different situations and to consult clients on complex issues. She focuses on the end result for the client.

She has consulted with international companies, advising on both day-to-day matters and large transactions.

Agata holds a Masters of Law degree from Mykolas Romeris University (Lithuania), and a Master's degree of Innovation and Technology Management from ISM University of Management and Economics (International).

She is a member of the Lithuanian Bar Association

She speaks Lithuanian, English, Russian, and Polish.

 

 

Sabrina Napolitano, Legal Advisor

Sabrina is a Legal Consultant at Acquis. She conducts research and provides legal advice on EU law, including sanctions.

She is also a research and teaching assistant in European law at the Catholic University of Louvain-la-Neuve (UCL-CeDIE). Her research, within the framework of her Ph.D., is based in the analysis of the mechanisms of conditionality of the European Union and the EU’s constitutional nature. 

Sabrina has acquired her expertise in European law by conducing several internships in law firms focusing on EU civil servants’ law and EU public law. She also has experience in international structures like the International Federation of Journalists and the Italian Trade Agency. More recently she interned at the CJEU. Since her early career, she has been working on key cases focusing on the EU’s sanction policy and European arrest warrants.

She holds an LL.M in European Law from the Brussel’s Institute of European Studies (IEE-ULB).

She is fluent in French, Italian and English.

 

Sara Tzouvani, Legal and Policy Assistant

Sara Tzouvani is a professional legal and policy assistant with valuable experience in the areas of International and European Trade Law, Foreign Policy and International Relations.

Prior to joining ACQUIS, Sara interned at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Greece in General and International Economic Relations, where she played a pivotal role in conducting research, analyzing evolving developments, and drafting reports on diplomatic and foreign policy concerns. 

Sara has achieved notable success as both a member and coach in the John H. Jackson Moot Court Competition on WTO Law. She conducted research on a variety of legal subjects and WTO Agreements, including Subsidies and Countervailing Measures, Trade in Goods, Trade in Services, Trade Remedies, as well as Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights and Government Procurement.

Sara holds an LL.B from the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens and WTO training certifications granted by the Academy of International and Economic Law and Policy (AIELPO).

She is soon to be admitted to the Athens Bar Association.

She is fluent in Greek, Albanian, English and has a beginner level in French.

 

 

Gabrielle Gueniffey, Policy Advisor

Gabrielle is a dedicated policy associate with a solid background in EU policy and the EU institutional landscape.

She has been working with the EU’s Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) while supporting a multinational company with policy monitoring and evaluation. In addition, she has also been leading an advocacy project in the field of justice and home affairs. Most recently, she has been investigating EU tobacco policy amidst the fluid legislative framework of international tobacco regulations.

She holds a Masters in European Studies from the Brussel’s Institute of European Studies (IEE-ULB).

She is fluent in French, English and Spanish.

 

Burak Soyogul, Compliance Officer

Burak has built an extensive experience in financial services over the last 25 years.

He worked in Asset Management, ICSD and Retail Banking. From 2015 onwards he focused on regulatory and compliance and participated in various projects as a consultant specializing in KYC, CDD, Pre & Post Transaction Monitoring and Sanctions. He also gave trainings at FEBELFIN on back-office activities in Financial Markets and Securities Handling.

Burak holds a M.A degree in International Relations and Political Sciences, received from the University of Amsterdam.

He is a Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist (CAMS).

He speaks English, French, Dutch and Turkish.

 

Pashtrik Jusufi, Office and Finance Manager

With over 6 years of experience, Pashtrik has worked for different companies and NGOs. He deals with various fields such as Admin, HR and Finance. Through various work experiences, he has developed skills in payroll, office management, budget forecast, closing of books, and annual accounts. At Acquis, he is overviewing Operations and Finances.

Pashtrik holds a bachelor in Marketing and a Master in Business Administration, with a specialization in Finance. 

He is fluent in French, English, Albanian and has intermediary level in Dutch.