Professional notice
Turkey
ELIG Gürkaynak Attorneys-at-Law is still the first name on most people’s lips when it comes to competition advice in Turkey. The team is led by Gönenç Gürkaynak and consists of 45 specialists who devote more than 90% of their time to competition law matters, including three other partners, two counsel, and – uniquely in Turkey – a full-time in-house competition economist. Gürkaynak has nearly 20 years of competition work under his belt, working at the Brussels, New York and Istanbul offices of White & Case before joining ELIG.
With a healthy roster of international clients, ELIG unsurprisingly is involved in some big global mergers. The team advised Anheuser-Busch InBev in the joint venture of its Russian and Ukrainian businesses with the largest beer producer in Turkey, Anadolu Efes. In the aero-engine industry, ELIG acted for both Rolls-Royce and Kale concerning a full-function joint venture, and advised United Technologies in its purchase of aviation manufacturer Rockwell Collins.
The firm also advised JPMorgan Chase, Citibank and Sumitomo Mitsui during an investigation by Turkey’s Competition Authority evaluating whether 12 financial institutions violated Turkish law through the exchange of information regarding loan conditions and other competitively sensitive information. The enforcer fined a few of the banks but did not impose any administrative fines on the three companies represented by ELIG.
ELIG Gürkaynak Attorneys-at-Law is an eminent, independent Turkish law firm based in Istanbul. The firm was founded in 2005.
ELIG Gürkaynak is committed to providing its clients with high-quality legal services. We combine a solid knowledge of Turkish law with a business-minded approach to develop legal solutions that meet the ever-changing needs of our clients in their international and domestic operations.
The firm builds and maintains close working relationships with a number of international law firms and collaborates with them to serve mutual clients on a range of transactions.
All members of the ELIG Gürkaynak team are fluent in English and speak a variety of other languages. Many ELIG Gürkaynak team members have obtained their graduate degrees in law schools in the US, the UK, Switzerland, France and Turkey. In addition to membership of the Istanbul Bar, Mr Gönenç Gürkaynak, a founding partner of ELIG Gürkaynak, is also qualified in New York, and is further qualified as a solicitor of the Law Society of England and Wales (currently as a non-practising member).
ELIG Gürkaynak’s key practice areas are corporate law; mergers and acquisitions; competition; anti-corruption; white-collar irregularities and compliance; EC law; internet law; technology, media and telecommunications; data protection and privacy; banking and finance; litigation and arbitration; energy, oil and gas; administrative law; real estate; anti-dumping; pharma and healthcare regulatory; employment; and intellectual property.
ELIG Gürkaynak delivers the top competition law practice in Turkey, with 45 competition law specialists (out of a total of 90 lawyers at the firm). In addition to unparalleled experience in merger control issues, ELIG Gürkaynak has vast experience in defending companies before the Turkish Competition Board in all phases of antitrust investigations, abuse of dominant position cases, leniency handlings, and before courts on issues of private enforcement of competition law, along with appeals of the administrative decisions of the Turkish Competition Authority.
During the past year, ELIG Gürkaynak has been involved in over 85 merger clearances by the Turkish Competition Authority, more than 35 defence project investigations, and about 15 appeals before the administrative courts. ELIG Gürkaynak also provided more than 75 antitrust education seminars to employees of its clients.
ELIG Gürkaynak has a significant practice in Turkey focusing on internal investigations and white-collar criminal matters. Among other things, the practice advises clients in connection with Turkish corporate compliance issues under the relevant OECD Convention, FCPA, the UK Bribery Act and Turkish anti-corruption laws. This includes all matters relating to data privacy, employment law, anti-corruption policies and other related aspects of the Turkish legal regime.
ELIG Gürkaynak represents local and multinational conglomerates in M&A projects as well. The M&A team have vast experience and capability in handling multiple and significant M&A transactions, reorganisations, joint ventures and spin-offs. The firm’s corporate team has a solid practice in providing commercial and corporate law services to corporations, advising foreign clients during their entry to the Turkish market, and daily operations thereafter.
Unlike many local firms in Turkey, ELIG Gürkaynak has a recognised and significant practice in media, internet and new media, and telecommunications law. The practice mainly covers domain name disputes; website agreements; film distribution agreements; internet copyright and trademarks; internet-related litigation; regulatory counselling; notice and takedown or judiciary decision enforcement assistance; and localisation of telecom agreements and licences to be signed with carriers.
ELIG Gürkaynak also has a solid track record and knowledge of litigation before Turkish civil and administrative courts. ELIG Gürkaynak is well equipped to handle all types of civil legal disputes before the Turkish courts.
Number of lawyers: 90
Key contact:
Gönenç Gürkaynak, founding partner
Tel: +90 212 327 1724
[email protected]
For further information, please visit www.elig.com
Firm contact details:
Çitlenbik Sokak No:12
Yildiz Mahallesi
Besiktas 34349
Istanbul/Turkey
Tel: +90 212 327 1724
Fax: +90 212 327 1725