On 22 March 2024, the Dutch Supreme Court confirmed the judgment of 28 June 2022 of the Court of Appeal in The Hague, through which the Court of Appeal had reinstated the enforcement attachment on a number of Russian vodka trademarks and related copy rights in the Benelux. The attachment was levied by the former majority shareholders of Yukos Oil in order to enforce their USD 50 billion+ arbitral awards against the Russian Federation. The seized vodka trademarks include the iconic Stolichnaya and Moskovskaya brands, which were managed by the Russian federal treasury enterprise FKP Sojuzplodoimport. The Russian Federation and FKP Sojuzplodoimport had appealed the decision of the Court of Appeal, but the Dutch Supreme Court has now rejected their appeal in its entirety. This judgment confirms that the Russian vodka trademarks and related copy rights are subject to recovery by the former majority shareholders of Yukos Oil.
Loyens & Loeff represented the former majority shareholders of Yukos Oil and were assisted by Gaillard Banifatemi Shelbaya Disputes in Paris. For the cassation proceedings, they worked in close cooperation with supreme court litigators of NautaDutilh in Amsterdam.