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Portrait ofMaria Orlyk

Maria Orlyk

Managing Partner

Contact
CMS Reich-Rohrwig Hainz TOV
42-44 Shovkovychna St.,
01024 Kyiv
Ukraine
Languages Ukrainian, Russian, English
Corporate / M&A

Maria Orlyk is Managing Partner of CMS Reich-Rohrwig Hainz in Kyiv and a reputed partner specialising in corporate/M&A. She has been with CMS in Ukraine since it first commenced operations in the country. She heads one of the most talented corporate and M&A teams on the national legal market. As a partner specialised in corporate and M&A, Maria Orlyk handles the most challenging cases, always offering business-oriented, timely and comprehensive legal solutions.

Maria Orlyk has cemented her reputation as a leading legal expert in a landmark project in Ukraine aimed at establishing a reliable gas transmission system operator. This project will help create a transparent gas market in Ukraine and provide uninterrupted gas supply to Europe. Maria Orlyk and her team are advising the World Bank, the Energy Community Secretariat as well as Main Gas Pipelines of Ukraine (the future transmission system operator) on various aspects of the unbundling of the Ukrainian gas transmission system, including complex corporate restructurings and transfers. They also participate in high-level negotiations involving representatives of the gas industry and the Government of Ukraine.

Maria Orlyk holds a Master’s degree in International Law from the Institute of International Relations of Kyiv National Taras Shevchenko University, as well as an LL.M. degree from the Wake Forest University School of Law (USA).

Her areas of specialisation include corporate law, mergers and acquisitions, dispute resolution, competition, and labour law.

Before joining CMS, Maria Orlyk worked in notable Ukrainian and international law firms and interned with Powell Goldstein Frazer & Murphy LLP (currently Bryan Cave) in Washington, D.C. In 2005, Maria Orlyk was a scholarship recipient of the Edmund S. Muskie Graduate Fellowship Program funded by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs of the US Department of State.

She represents clients hailing from a range of sectors including mining, pharmaceuticals and financial services. Clients emphasise that “she is very good at communicating”. Clients approached by Chambers Europe say that Maria Orlyk is a “very talented lawyer and a good negotiator with a co-operative approach”.

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Maria Orlyk regularly advises on corporate governance and regulatory matters as well as handling M&A transactions.

Chambers Global, 2023

Memberships & Roles

  • International Association of Defense Counsel
  • European Business Association
  • American Chamber of Commerce
  • Ukrainian Bar Association
  • Chair of the Committee on Corporate Law & Stock Markets of the Ukrainian Bar Association
Membership in professional associations and publications:
  • Deputy head of the Committee on Corporate Law & Stock Markets of the Ukrainian Bar Association; as such engaged in reviewing and assessing as well as providing commentaries to proposed draft laws, issuing statements on behalf of the Committee on problematic issues of Ukrainian legislation, and providing recommendations regarding legislative reforms.
  • Member of the working group charged with drafting a code of corporate governance under the auspices of the National Securities and Stock Market Commission of Ukraine.
  • Member of two working groups of the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade of Ukraine charged with working out measures aimed at improving the investment climate in Ukraine.
  • Member of the Ukrainian Bar since 2007.
  • Member of the Ukrainian Bar Association since 2007.
  • Member of the International Association of Defense Counsel (the first and only member from Ukraine) since 2015.
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Awards & Rankings

  • Maria Orlyk is continuously ranked by Chambers Europe (2014-2023) and Chambers Global (2014-2023). In 2018, Chambers Europe appraised Maria Orlyk for her work in transactions with an impact on other jurisdictions in CEE, particularly recognising her work involving German-speaking countries.
  • She was listed as the Leading Individual in Commercial, Corporate and M&A by Legal 500 EMEA in 2023. Maria Orlyk is also listed in the 2023 edition of Who’s Who Legal: M&A and Governance. Furthermore, she features among “Clients’ Choice. Top 100 Best Lawyers – 2018” published by Yurydychna Gazeta, one of the most popular legal newspapers in Ukraine.
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Publications

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Lectures list

  • Regular lecturer at the M&A Law School of the Ukrainian Bar Association.
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Education

  • 2008 – Ukrainian School of Political Studies (USPS) and Summer University for Democracy organised by the Council of Europe, Strasbourg, France
  • 2006 – Wake Forest University School of Law, USA, LL.M. in American Law
  • 2004 – Kyiv National Taras Shevchenko University / Institute of International Relations, Private International Law Department (postgraduate research programme)
  • 2001 – Kyiv National Taras Shevchenko University / Institute of International Relations, Master of International Law, English Interpreter/Translator
  • Specialisation: Private International Law, graduation with honours (magna cum laude)
  • 2000 – Kyiv National Taras Shevchenko University / Institute of International Relations, Bachelor of International Relations and Foreign Affairs, graduation with honours (magna cum laude)
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Dispute Resolution

Maria Orlyk is Managing Partner of CMS Reich-Rohrwig Hainz in Kyiv and a reputed partner active in the field of dispute resolution. She joined the firm in 2006, when it first commenced operations in Ukraine. She manages a strong dispute resolution team whose high-quality services always meet the requirements of the demanding international business environment. Within her dispute resolution practice, Maria Orlyk focuses on international arbitration, international and domestic litigation, prevention of illegal marketing and import of counterfeit products and recovery of debt. She advises clients on dispute resolution matters across various business sectors, including the oil and gas, automotive, chemical, fashion and other industries.

She represents clients hailing from a range of sectors including mining, pharmaceuticals and financial services. Clients emphasise that “she is very good at communicating”. Clients approached by Chambers Europe say that Maria Orlyk is a “very talented lawyer and a good negotiator with a co-operative approach”.

more less

Maria Orlyk regularly advises on corporate governance and regulatory matters as well as handling M&A transactions.

Chambers Global, 2023

Memberships & Roles

  • International Association of Defense Counsel
  • European Business Association
  • American Chamber of Commerce
  • Ukrainian Bar Association
  • Chair of the Committee on Corporate Law & Stock Markets of the Ukrainian Bar Association
Membership in professional associations and publications:
  • Deputy head of the Committee on Corporate Law & Stock Markets of the Ukrainian Bar Association; as such engaged in reviewing and assessing as well as providing commentaries to proposed draft laws, issuing statements on behalf of the Committee on problematic issues of Ukrainian legislation, and providing recommendations regarding legislative reforms.
  • Member of the working group charged with drafting a code of corporate governance under the auspices of the National Securities and Stock Market Commission of Ukraine.
  • Member of two working groups of the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade of Ukraine charged with working out measures aimed at improving the investment climate in Ukraine.
  • Member of the Ukrainian Bar since 2007.
  • Member of the Ukrainian Bar Association since 2007.
  • Member of the International Association of Defense Counsel (the first and only member from Ukraine) since 2015.
more less

Awards & Rankings

  • Maria Orlyk is continuously ranked by Chambers Europe (2014-2023) and Chambers Global (2014-2023). In 2018, Chambers Europe appraised Maria Orlyk for her work in transactions with an impact on other jurisdictions in CEE, particularly recognising her work involving German-speaking countries.
  • She was listed as the Leading Individual in Commercial, Corporate and M&A by Legal 500 EMEA in 2023. Maria Orlyk is also listed in the 2023 edition of Who’s Who Legal: M&A and Governance. Furthermore, she features among “Clients’ Choice. Top 100 Best Lawyers – 2018” published by Yurydychna Gazeta, one of the most popular legal newspapers in Ukraine.
more less

Publications

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Lectures list

Regular lecturer at the M&A Law School of the Ukrainian Bar Association.

more less

Education

  • 2008 – Ukrainian School of Political Studies (USPS) and Summer University for Democracy organised by the Council of Europe, Strasbourg, France
  • 2006 – Wake Forest University School of Law, USA, LL.M. in American Law
  • 2004 – Kyiv National Taras Shevchenko University / Institute of International Relations, Private International Law Department (postgraduate research programme)
  • 2001 – Kyiv National Taras Shevchenko University / Institute of International Relations, Master of International Law, English Interpreter/Translator
  • Specialisation: Private International Law, graduation with honours (magna cum laude)
  • 2000 – Kyiv National Taras Shevchenko University / Institute of International Relations, Bachelor of International Relations and Foreign Affairs, graduation with honours (magna cum laude)
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