The Legal 500 EMEA 2025 edition has ranked all the researched Castrén & Snellman’s services in Tier 1 and 2.
26.3.2025
Castrén & Snellman top-ranked in the Legal 500 EMEA 2025: ‘Top expertise, straightforward approach to essential issues, no legal jargon.’
Tags
Banking and finance, Commercial, corporate and M&A, Dispute resolution, Employment, EU and competition, Intellectual property and TMT. Our Tax, Capital Markets, Real Estate and Construction and Maritime & Transport services were placed in Tier 2.
A total of 38 of our experts were recognised for the exceptional work they do in their own fields. The Legal 500 ranks law firms and lawyers throughout the world and is one of the most prestigious publications in our line of business.
The rankings are largely based on interviews with clients. Here are some quotes from our clients:
Dispute resolution, Tier 1
The practice is extremely client-focused, and they deliver an exceptional approach to solving difficult project issues. They offer clear advice which clients can readily understand and direct their course of actions with confidence.
Employment, Tier 1
The team has a wide practice and covers almost all aspects of employment relationships. We have worked with the team for years and never encountered a situation in which the team has not been able to help us. Skilled, responsive and creative are words that come to my mind when I think of Castrén’s employment team.
Banking and finance, Tier 1
The C&S team has the relevant capabilities when it comes to financing agreements. The team consists of people with different types of knowledge in varying industries. In my opinion they have the best team in town.
EU & Competition, Tier 1
Top expertise, straightforward approach to essential issues, no legal jargon. Cooperation and communication is uncomplicated. Atmosphere is friendly, with a good sense of humour.
Tax, Tier 2
The team is very responsive and equipped with versatile experience. Especially the tax litigation work provided by the team has been consistently excellent.
TMT, Tier 1
Eija Warma-Lehtinen and Kim Parviainen are both excellent in what they are doing, and you can feel the experience right away. They can understand the client’s business and the special questions related to it, including questions outside of legal matters. They work as a team with the client, and as a client, you can always be confident that the matter will be handled with excellent experience and on time.
Intellectual property, Tier 1
It is very easy to work with the Castrén team. They respond very quickly and offer the best expertise in relation to all the questions we might have.
Real Estate and Cosntruction, Tier 2
C&S’s real estate practice itself provides legal services with exceptional quality. The practice is the best choice for anyone requiring legal advice on complex real estate transactions or development projects with difficult substance law questions. They can do it.
Capital Markets, Tier 2
They have a no-nonsense approach which is based on extensive experience dealing with their counterpart on an almost weekly basis.
Maritime and Transport
Rickard Langenskiöld and Jerker Pitkänen both display tremendous experience and problem-solving skills in complex shipping and maritime law issues.
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Latest references
Nscale – Data centre project
Castrén & Snellman advised Nscale, a European AI infrastructure company, in connection with its planned data centre project in Harjavalta, Finland. The facility will be located in the Sievari industrial area. Castrén & Snellman’s advisory role encompassed the negotiation and execution of a site securing and development agreement (SSDA) with Fortum, as well as the preliminary land sale process for the Sievari site with the Town of Harjavalta. Under the SSDA, Fortum supports the advancement of Nscale’s project development, including grid connection design and permitting.
Case published 15.4.2026
Taaleri – Acquisition of a majority stake in Nordic Science Investments
We are acting as legal adviser to Taaleri Plc on its acquisition of a 51 per cent ownership stake in Nordic Science Investments Oy (NSI), marking Taaleri’s expansion into deeptech-driven venture capital. Through the transaction, Taaleri broadens its private equity offering into early-stage venture capital funds as well as the commercialisation and scaling of research-driven innovations. NSI is a Finnish venture capital fund manager operating across the Nordic and Baltic regions, focusing on early-stage investments in research- and science-based technologies. Its portfolio companies develop, among other things, health technologies, life sciences, advanced materials and AI-driven solutions. In addition to providing growth capital, NSI supports spin-out companies with strategic guidance, access to networks and assistance in building teams during the early phases of business development. NSI’s first fund, the EUR 45 million NSI Nordic Science I Ky, was established in 2024 and has to date invested in 22 early-stage companies in Finland, Sweden and the Baltic countries. Taaleri is a specialist in investments, private asset management and non-life insurance, with a strong position in renewable energy, bioindustry and housing investments as well as credit risk insurance. Taaleri has EUR 2.7 billion of assets under management in its private equity funds, co-investments and single-asset vehicles, employs approximately 130 people and is listed on Nasdaq Helsinki. The founders of NSI will continue in their operational roles following the transaction. The completion of the transaction is subject to approval by the FIN-FSA.
Case published 13.4.2026
Finnish Centre for Pensions – Information design workshop
We delivered two information design workshops for the legal department of the Finnish Centre for Pensions, with participants from both legal and other professional backgrounds. In the sessions, we applied the principles of legal design thinking to the Finnish Centre for Pensions’ field of operation and background materials, also utilising AI as a design tool. The participants found the tailored training highly useful and commended the trainers for their in-depth familiarisation with the Centre’s opinion drafting process and operating environment. As a result of the workshops, our experts proposed a new structural and linguistic model for the legal department of the Finnish Centre for Pensions for drafting opinions and guidelines. The proposal was well received as clear and applicable to the participants’ everyday work. In addition, we presented tailored AI use cases to support experts, allowing for a more efficient AI-assisted way of working. Our experts who delivered the workshops combined their legal expertise with their leading experience in legal design. The participants appreciated this versatile expertise, which enabled a knowledgeable, creative and applied approach to legal writing. ‘C&S created a well-structured training tailored to our needs, providing clear direction for our organisation and concrete takeaways for our experts in their day-to-day work,’ says Mari Kuunvalo, Head Of the Legal Department at the Finnish Centre for Pensions.
Case published 10.4.2026
Aktia Bank – EUR 80 million AT1 bond
We advised Aktia Bank Plc on the issuance of an EUR 80 million Additional Tier 1 (AT1) bond. The bond pays a fixed interest rate of 6.75 per cent semi-annually. The bond is perpetual, and Aktia has the right to redeem or repurchase it in accordance with the terms of the bond, subject to certain conditions. The bond was issued on 1 April 2026. In addition, we assisted Aktia in listing the bond on the Nasdaq Helsinki Ltd stock exchange. For the listing, we prepared Finland’s first EU Follow-on prospectus for a bond. The EU Follow-on prospectus was introduced on 5 March 2026 with an update to the Prospectus Regulation (EU) No. 2017/1129. The EU Follow-on prospectus is a new type of prospectus that can be used, among others, by issuers whose securities have been admitted to trading on a regulated market continuously for at least the 18 months preceding the offer to the public or the admission to trading on a regulated market of the new securities. A follow-on prospectus is simpler than a so-called traditional prospectus, and it is intended to avoid repeating information that the issuer has already disclosed. Nordea Bank Abp acts as the sole structuring advisor for the issue of the Notes. Nordea Bank Abp, Danske Bank A/S and ABN Amro Bank N.V. act as the lead managers for the issue of the Notes.
Case published 7.4.2026