Welcome to our year in review for 2023. It’s been quite a meaningful chapter in our Sorainen story. As we reflect on the past year, we are proud to share the great strides we’ve made in the areas that define our identity and purpose. From championing sustainability to fortifying our defense initiatives, achieving significant awards, and celebrating the heart of our success – our people – this review encapsulates the essence of who we are.
Sustainability
Over the last year we’ve made great progress when it comes to sustainability at Sorainen. Our firm was recognised in the second edition of The Legal 500’s EMEA Green Guide for our accomplishments. We are the only law firm in our region to earn recognition for our work in the field of ESG in all the Baltic countries.
Locally, our Tallinn office was certified as a European Green Office. The certificate is valid for three years and is a major development in recognising our commitment and efforts in the field of environmental sustainability. We are now pleased to announce that 65% of our office area in the Baltics is powered by renewable energy. Additionally, 90% of office space is BREEAM (Outstanding), LEED (Gold) or European Green Office certified.
Sorainen Lithuania also achieved a huge milestone by joining the United Nations Global Compact initiative. The initiative is a voluntary leadership platform for the development, implementation and disclosure of responsible business practices. This makes us the first law firm not only in Lithuania, but in the Baltic region to join the UN Global Compact.
Security
In 2023 Sorainen and our team have remained highly committed to defence and security in the Baltic region and beyond. Our Defence sector group, established in 2022, continued to grow operations. As a firm, we’ve continued to show our support for Ukraine. This includes our efforts towards donating vehicles through the “Tryzub” Charity and Support Fund.
In 2023 Sorainen Estonia received the “Supporter of Defenders of the State” award. The award is given for contributions to the security of the country, and is granted by the Estonian Ministry of Defence. The purpose of the award is to highlight the employers that not only support national security by exempting reserve soldiers from their work duties, but also by consciously supporting them. In Lithuania, Sorainen also became a member of the Lithuanian Defence And Security Industries Association.
Individually, Sorainen partner Janis Taukacs was awarded the Latvian Order of the Three Stars. The award is the highest civilian order awarded for meritorious service to Latvia. This time, the award was presented to organisers of civic initiatives. To people who have selflessly provided assistance to Ukraine, its soldiers and civilians, as well as to Ukrainian war refugees in Latvia.
Sorainen team members are also active volunteers in the Estonian Defense Forces, Latvian National Guard, and Lithuanian Riflemen’s Union.
People
Looking back at 2023, our Sorainen team has grown and accomplished so much. We welcomed 59 new team members, with each of our Baltic offices now having reached the milestone of 100 employees. In addition, 90 team members were promoted and 21 team members celebrated a graduation.
Overall, 32 people celebrated five years at Sorainen, 19 celebrated ten years, eight celebrated 15 years, and one person celebrated 25 years at our firm. 84 law students participated in the 11th season of our annual Sorainen Student Academy.
Milestones
According to the 2023 rankings of four major international legal directories (Legal 500, Chambers, IFLR and ITR), Sorainen stands out as the strongest law firm on a pan-Baltic level. Our firm received the award for Baltic-wide Law Firm of the Year at the Chambers and Partners Europe Awards 2023. According to the peer and client feedback-based rankings, Sorainen is the first-choice law firm for both corporate clients and high net worth individuals.
Sorainen placed in the European top 30 in the Innovative Lawyers Index published by the Financial Times.
According to Mergermarket, the aggregate value of deals handled by the firm in 2023 exceeded EUR 330 million – the most of any law firm in the Baltics. Significantly, our team advised five out of the top 10 deals in the Baltics by disclosed value.
We’re looking forward to many more milestones with our team and clients in 2024!
