On April 1, 2019, the Dominas Levin law firm in Lithuania will merge with the new Walless firm in the country, with both operating going forward under the Walless brand.
The seven-person Dominas Levin team is led by Partners Gediminas Dominas and Vaidotas Puklevicius. The firm joined the pan-Baltic Levin alliance in the second half of 2018 as reported by CEE Legal Matters on September 21, 2018, after spending the previous two years as part of the pan-Baltic Derling alliance.
Walless was created at the very end of 2018 by a large team, including eight partners, splitting off from Ellex Valiunas as reported by CEE Legal Matters on December 13, 2018. According to a Walless press release, in joining forces with Dominas Levin, "Walless will significantly strengthen its dispute resolution group, which will be developed by Gediminas Dominas and his team. Gediminas Dominas is one of the most highly regarded international arbitration experts in Lithuania. Walles’ dispute resolution practice was recently joined by Associate Partner Dr. Simona Drukteiniene, who has 18 years of experience in dispute settlement and court representation. The team will also be joined by Mindaugas Cerniauskas, who has over ten years track record in construction and real estate-related litigation."
"We share Walless' values and high ethical standards," said Gediminas Dominas," whose firm was a member of the pan-Baltic Levin alliance with Glikman Alvin Levin in Estonia and Kronbergs Cukste Levin in Latvia. "We have ambitious goals and are looking forward to start their implementation – we want to join the creation of new standards in Lithuanian legal field, where most emphasis would be put on such values as transparency, personal attention to clients and the quality of services." Speaking of his former Levin colleagues, he said: “No doubt our experience with Levin alliance was very enriching and positive. Those people are true professionals, real masters in their field. We will continue to serve our joint clients.”
According to Walless, "Vaidotas Puklevicius is joining Walless as a partner in the Competition and Regulatory team and will be responsible for the development of legal practice areas encompassing general commercial and renewable energy law. Puklevicius has many years of experience in [advising] the largest Lithuanian and foreign companies in commercial law, energy law, as well as corporate law – including the first listing on the First North (alternative stock market) in Lithuania and development and successful exit of several renewables investments."
“Walless is a different law firm," Puklevicius said. "It is known for its modern approach to law practice and its openness with clients. I am glad to be able to join their mission to change the way law is currently practiced in the market."
“When we founded our firm in the beginning of the year, our goal was to create a full-service business law practice specialized in all major areas important to clients,” said Walless Managing Partner Dovile Burgiene. “With Gediminas Dominas, Vaidotas Puklevicius, and their team joining, we became stronger in two areas that are of utmost importance to our clients. Walless now has an experienced and large team focused on handling complex business disputes, and we will offer a broad spectrum of services related to commercial contracts and regulation. Our growth is focused on what our clients need, and we will continue to analyze their needs and offer services in all areas where business needs high quality legal advice.”
The merger with the Dominas Levin will bring the number of lawyers at Walless to 35, including ten partners.
