Dear Colleagues,

We are pleased to announce that the fourth CIS Local Counsel Forum will take place in Kiev, Ukraine on 24-26 June 2009 at the exquisite Opera Hotel. The Forum will be hosted by RULG-Ukrainian Legal Group. Registration is now open at http://www.rulg.com/cisforum/registration.asp

We are heartened by the fact that, despite the economic crisis which has affected the CIS region as much as the rest of the world, we have received numerous inquiries from the Forum Delegates insisting that the fourth Forum be held this year. Our Delegates believe that we have to withstand the crisis as a community, and need each other now even more than in good times - the CIS Forum has always been a place where numerous referrals were exchanged and new projects generated. The encouragement from many of you convinced us that we need to make our best effort, and this effort will be rewarded for everybody with new contacts, ideas, projects and alliances, just as at previous Forums.

The inaugural CIS Local Counsel Forum was held in Kiev on 28-30 June 2006, hosted by RULG-Ukrainian Legal Group, and was the first ever wide-scale meeting of the international legal community with the best Local Counsel law firms from the CIS economic region (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan). Since then, the CIS Forum has evolved into an informal network of managing and senior partners of CIS and international law firms, meeting annually in different venues chosen by the Delegates. The second Forum was successfully held in Baku on 20-22 June 2007, hosted by the prominent Azeri law firm Fina LLP. The third Forum was hosted by the leading Russian law firm of Egorov Puginsky Afanasiev & Partners on 25-27 June 2008 in St. Petersburg and was the largest and most spectacular Forum so far.

The Forum meetings bring together leading business lawyers from the CIS economic region and from around the world, with an approximately equal split between representatives of the international legal community and of the CIS legal community. The Delegates share the Mission of the Forum - "Bringing together the CIS and international legal communities with the aim of creating joint business opportunities and long-term cooperation". This Mission reflects the 21st century reality, in which global investors view the CIS countries as a broad and dynamic economic region with intertwined business connections and comparable legal systems. The motto of the Forum is "Know Your Local Counsel - Recognize an Opportunity".

The Forum's Web site http://www.rulg.com/cisforum provides you with detailed information about the Forum, its Mission and Concept, a valuable database of the best CIS Local Counsel Firms (CIS Local Counsel Questionnaires), media coverage and comments from the Delegates, as well as comprehensive information about every Forum, including the Programs, Lists of Delegates and Guests, Bios and Presentations of Moderators and Panelists and wonderful pictures, which reflect the open and exciting spirit of the Forum.

Considering the challenging economic times, we chose Kiev as the venue for the fourth Forum because it is the easiest and most cost-effective location for most of the Delegates: it has excellent airline connections, most of the CIS and international Delegates do not need a visa to come to Ukraine and many of the Delegates can combine the trip with other business tasks. Finally, Kiev is not only a business capital, but also a major historic and cultural center: the Delegates and their Guests will enjoy this splendid city of Slavic and Byzantine heritage mixed with a modern Mediterranean atmosphere.

The draft Program of the fourth Forum is already posted on the Web site http://www.rulg.com/cisforum/forum_program.asp, and other information will be posted as preparations progress. This year's program, in addition to traditional regional updates and substantive panels, is devoted to one big idea: "Legal Services & Business" - how we, as practicing lawyers, can make a positive impact on our clients' businesses, what business needs from us, and what we can do to make ourselves more useful and productive for our clients. Another new idea is short "Open Microphone" sessions between the panels, during which Delegates can provide brief updates on the most important developments in their practice. The Delegates will be able to sign up for "Open Microphone" sessions one week before the fourth Forum on a "first-come, first-serve" basis.

As always, in addition to a busy Forum Program, the Delegates will be offered delightful social events on 24-26 June 2009, as well as an optional City Tour on 27 June 2009. There will also be a separate cultural Guest Program offered on 25-26 June 2009. As always, registered Guests will be included in all social events of the Forum.

As with all previous Forums, we will have to carry out registration promptly to secure all the sites and special rates we were able to obtain for the Forum Delegates and Guests. Space will be limited, and we will close registration promptly upon reaching capacity. Therefore, we encourage you to register and to reserve your hotel room in Kiev, as well as to make your travel arrangements, as early as possible. We will process registrations on a "first-come, first-serve" basis, and due to capacity limitations we can register no more than three Delegates from any one law firm.

All registration information is available at http://www.rulg.com/cisforum/index2.asp. Other information will be posted as preparations progress.

We look forward to seeing you in Kiev!

Co-Chairs of the CIS Local Counsel Forum:

Irina Paliashvili
RULG-Ukrainian Legal Group, P.A.

John Whittaker
Clyde & Co LLP

Dimitry Afanasiev
Chairman of Egorov Puginsky Afanasiev & Partners