DLA Piper Georgia is proud to announce that Avto Svanidze has been promoted to Partner in the Corporate Group of DLA Piper International LLP. Avto has been with the firm since 2005, the year DLA Piper opened its office in Georgia. He has earned a strong reputation for meticulous and careful work in corporate, real estate and finance matters. Avto’s clients include US OPIC,TBC Bank, CBD Development, and the Millennium Challenge Corporation.

Prior to joining DLA Piper, Avto worked as a lawyer for the International Finance Corporation (“IFC”) on its Georgia business development project.  He is the author of significant revisions to the Georgian Law of Entrepreneurs.

A graduate of Cambridge University (LLM), Avto recently passed the English law qualification test and will be admitted as a solicitor in England and Wales this year.

“Avto has been a key player and a good manager since the day he started with us more than 8 years ago.  I am proud that he has achieved this promotion that he so richly deserved,” said Office Managing Partner Ted Jonas

In addition, the firm is pleased to announce two other promotions among the Georgia team.

Nino Suknidze, formerly a Senior Associate , has been promoted to Legal Director in the firm’s Finance and Projects group. Nino has led all of  the firm’s work for issuers in international debt and equity capital market listings since 2008. She leads major representations for the firm on due diligence, financial transactions, regulatory and tax matters and significant disputes in the Georgian courts.

“Nino is a favourite of many clients because of her loyalty to their cause, her incredible hard work and her responsiveness to their needs. She has a bright future with DLA Piper,” said Jonas.

Lastly the firm is pleased to announce that Erekle Glurjidze, formerly an associate, has been promoted to Senior Associate in the firm’s Litigation and Regulatory practice. “Erekle has made important contributions to our litigation practice for the past several years” said Litigation & Regulatory Group partner Otar Kipshidze. “He has been especially valuable in providing support to clients and foreign lawyers in international arbitration and foreign court matters,” said Kipshidze.

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DLA Piper Georgia L.P. is a Georgian limited partnership and a part of DLA Piper, a global law firm.  The firm is rated first tier in Georgia by Chambers, the global law firm rating agency, for General Business Law,  Capital Markets and Dispute (litigation and arbitration) work. The firm is also top-rated by IFLR 1000, the leading rating agency for law firms in the financial sector, and by EMEA Legal 500, a leading general index of law firms.

Contact: Mariam Kochlavashvili, Marketing Manager

O: +995 32 2509 300; M: +995 577 28 10 10

E-mail: mariam.kochlavashvili@dlapiper.com