The Russian legal market is set to see a surge of work in the coming months following news of the proposed sell-off of $29bn (£18.6bn) of state assets.

The Russian Government set out its plans last week as a means of reducing the country's budget deficit over the next three years, with minority stakes in around 10 state-owned companies to be put up for sale.

Goltsblat BLP head of corporate and M&A Anton Sitnikov said: "The size of these privatisations is unprecedented in Russian history, with the exception of the first wave of privatisations in the early 1990s. The rationale is that post-crisis the Russian state is looking to sell minority stakes of state-run firms to potential investors and is targeting foreign investors as well as Russian investors."

The Russian Government first embarked on a wave of privatisations in the 1990s, but faced criticism for the resulting creation of 'oligarchs' – well-connected businessmen who monopolised the market.

White & Case Moscow corporate head Eric Michailov said: "It makes no sense for these companies to be 100% state-owned and shows a movement towards the free market that the Government has been talking about. If it all goes through it should spark a tremendous amount of legal activity."

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