December 17, 2025 · 5 min read
Legal support for business in Ukraine today is far more than working with contracts or formal compliance with the law. Martial law, mobilization, a shifting regulatory landscape and new risks are pushing companies to look not simply for a lawyer but for a reliable partner — one who can think strategically, act ethically and stand by the business through difficult times. This time we spoke with Olha Petrukhina — Partner at UHY Prostir Ukraine, Head of the Legal Practice and an attorney with nearly two decades of legal experience — about the key trends in the legal landscape, the challenges businesses face most often, professional principles and the human side of the legal profession.
Tell us your UHY Prostir story. How did your journey with the company begin, and which career moments proved to be turning points?
I joined the company in 2007 as an office manager, combining the job with my studies in international law, where I was completing a master’s degree. Thanks to my legal knowledge and English, I gradually got involved in drafting contracts and advising clients, and within a year I had moved to the consulting department as a lawyer.
In 2010, following a reorganization, the legal department was spun off into a standalone company, and I became its director.
In 2017 I was admitted to the bar and founded the Law Office of Olha Petrukhina, which allowed me to assist clients as an attorney.
What key lessons have you taken from your career path at the company?
First and foremost: take the initiative, don’t be afraid of the new and keep improving professionally.
What challenges did you face early on, and how did you overcome them?
The main challenge was new, complex tasks I had never dealt with before. Persistence and a desire to learn helped me work through them.
Which legal risks do businesses underestimate most often?
Businesses often underestimate the risks embedded in contracts. Even agreements that look simple at first glance can lead to serious financial losses later, which is why a legal review of every contract is critical.
Which trends in the legal environment have the greatest impact on business in Ukraine right now?
Without question, the defining factors remain martial law and mobilization. They touch almost every side of a company’s operations.
How have client requests changed over the years, and which questions are the most pressing today?
Right now we often see questions around military registration and mobilization, and around the reservation of employees (mobilization deferrals). Sadly, a separate category of requests has emerged as well: property destroyed or damaged by shelling.
Which legal questions cause the most difficulty for international NGOs and non-residents?
Mostly registration and re-registration, hiring foreign employees, and tax matters — questions that stay relevant whatever the circumstances.
Would you say legal support works proactively — ahead of the risks?
Yes. In effect, every client request we resolve helps prevent trouble later. Reviewing and drafting commercial contracts with precise wording lets us minimize tax risks in advance — VAT above all.
In your view, what most sets UHY Prostir’s legal support apart from other options on the market?
Above all, the ability to talk to the client openly and honestly, hear their real needs and take the business’s perspective into account. Our long experience in legal support, including for non-residents and international NGOs, plays an important part too.
Have there been situations that demanded difficult ethical decisions? How do you usually approach such cases?
A potential conflict of interest between clients can indeed arise within the same matter. In those situations we always act with complete transparency: we tell the clients immediately and decide the next steps together with them, weighing everything carefully.
Which skills do you consider critical for a lawyer in outsourcing?
Initiative, resilience under stress, good time management and no fear of the new or the unfamiliar.
Do you have a set of professional principles you follow in your work? What does it include?
For me they are competence and the constant sharpening of professional knowledge, loyalty to the client, confidentiality and impartiality.
What helps you avoid burnout in a profession so often tied to stress and high responsibility?
Shifting focus from time to time and being able to step outside the professional context. For me that means books far away from law, and travel.
What keeps you motivated after nearly two decades with the company?
Above all, the partners — we always work as one team — and the company itself, whose values, shaped and nurtured over the years, fully match my own. The chance to keep developing professionally is another big motivator.
What priorities do you see for the legal team in the coming years?
Our key priority is to go on providing reliable legal support to businesses that keep working and growing even in hard, unstable times.
Interviewed by Kateryna Bohdan
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