The TGS firm in Estonia — made up of the team that split off from Tark Grunte Sutkiene shortly before that firm announced its tie-up last month with Varul in Estonia — has changed its name.
According to the firm, "we are pleased to announce that our team continues operating under a new business name: DERLING. From May 25, we are welcoming our guests in the new and modern office at Nordea House (13th floor), Liivalaia 45, Tallinn.”
The news of Derling’s launch continues the fall-out of Tark Grunte Sutkiene’s announcement in mid-April that it would be merging with Varul’s Estonia office — reported by CEE Legal Matters on April 14, 2016, which resulted in a whirlwind of new players, spin-offs, and alliances in the Baltics. First came TGS’s somewhat confusing announcement that it was splitting off from and competing with Tark Grunte Sutkiene as TGS. Then came the announcement that the remainder of Tark Grunte Sutkiene’s pre-Varul office would be operating independently as “Tark”. Shortly thereafter, Varul’s Lithuanian and Latvian offices announced that they had joined up with Primus and BDO Legal, respectively. Derling’s announcement appears to bring this process to an apparently close.
A brief consideration of the fall-out of these changes was included in the recent The Buzz article for Estonia, based on a conversation with Varul Managing Partner Martin Tamme (published on May 23, 2016).
Hannes Vallikivi, the Managing Partner of Derling, explained his firm’s decision to rebrand: “I can say on behalf of our highly capable and motivated team that we are extremely excited about starting operations under the new name and would like to continue finding the best innovative solutions for the challenges faced by our clients. I am sure that establishing a new law firm was the right decision. It has contributed to increasing the efficiency of our team and modernising the firm, allowing us to offer even more efficient and personalized services. Our name means 'favourite' in Old English and was inspired by a lawyer named Magnus Derling who practiced in Tallinn in the 17th century. Our attorneys have been the favourite providers of legal services to many of our local and international clients, and we are confident we will keep holding this position in the future!”
