OREANDA-NEWS. December 19, 2012. SORAINEN received the Baltic Legal Advisor of the Year 2012 award from The Financial Times & Mergermarket at the European M&A Awards in London, which aim to recognise the leading law firms and financial advisors in the mergers and acquisitions (M&A) field in Europe. It is the second time that SORAINEN has been honoured with this prestigious international acknowledgement.

SORAINEN received the award for its contribution to the most complex cross-border deals in the Baltic States including the Fortum strategic sale of Fortum Energiaratkaisut and Fortum Termest for EUR 200 million (the largest transaction in the Baltics in the last year), Sanoma’s sale of its kiosk, book and press distribution operations in the three Baltic States for a combined value of around EUR 140 million (the second largest Baltic transaction in the period), and Unilever’s acquisition of Ingman Ice Cream in the Baltics and Belarus. The other noteworthy deals included the pan-Baltic cross-border mergers of the Pohjola Group and Heidelberg, and Chevron’s strategic investment through acquisition of the Lithuanian hydrocarbons exploration company.

“Despite the slight slowdown of the Baltic M&A market, innovative and interesting transactions have kept us busy in the year 2012. I am very pleased that our clients have been content with the value provided by our hard-working team, and we are happy that this has also been noticed and recognised internationally" – says Toomas Prangli, Regional Head of the SORAINEN M&A and Private Equity Team.

This is the sixth time that The Financial Times and Mergermarket have organised the annual European M&A Awards, however it is only the third time that winners have been picked from the Baltic region.

The winners are chosen through a unique three stage selection process which employs both empirical data and independent expert opinion to form a reasoned and substantiated selection. The judging panel, which includes senior representatives from The Financial Times, Mergermarket, major private equity funds and international law firms, evaluates the strategic nature, complexity and innovation of cross-border deals in 2011-2012.

The Financial Times is a premier global publication with an unrivalled editorial reputation in global business and politics. Mergermarket, a part of the Financial Times Group, provides M&A transaction information and intelligence.