Finance Monthly Global Awards 2016 Edition

15 FINANCE MONTHLY Finance Monthly Global Awards 2016 TAX LAW FIRM OF THE YEAR Winner: Firm Profile AFSCHRIFT Law Firm specializes in domestic and international tax law and law relating to white collar crime. AFSCHRIFT Law Firm has been established in Brussels since 1994. Taking into account the internationalization of the business and our clients’ needs, AFSCHRIFT Law Firm has expanded over the years and reinforced its presence and activity in Antwerp, Geneva, Fribourg, Luxembourg, Madrid, Hong Kong and Tel Aviv. Afschrift’s lawyers use local or foreign law provisions in order to set up advantageous structures for tax purposes. The firm advises all taxpayers, natural or legal persons, on organizing their personal, real property or professional patrimony to the best standard. As a specialist, it helps its clients in performing transactions, for instance by setting up international financial packages that minimise tax costs while remaining legally compliant. The firm gives preventive and rigorous advice in relation to the decisions and behavior clients plan to adopt, so as to avoid the application of fiscal and criminal laws. The firm advises a significant number of major Belgian and foreign companies and banks in reorganizations, tax planning and tax litigation. Furthermore, AFSCHRIFT Law Firm defends taxpayers in all disputes concerning tax matters. The firm also defends assertively and effectively taxpayers undergoing criminal prosecution in tax and all other financial cases, notably to assure respect for their fundamental rights. Practising tax law requires a constant, and almost exclusive practice of the tax law, a high level of confidentially and a personalized service. So the firm has a “boutique” status as it dedicates its entire activity to the sphere of Tax Law and Financial Criminal Law. This allows the firm to gather specialist lawyers, which consequently grants it large independence. Moreover, the firm purposely decided not to create distinct departments for consultancy and litigation, in order to allow each lawyer to practice simultaneously in the two spheres of activities. AFSCHRIFT has often appeared as a “pioneer” in respect to the developed argumentation in the dynamic field of tax law. The firm acts with open-mind and creativity. Actually, knowledge of the law alone is very often not enough when facing the complex problems that our clients bring to us; thinking beyond conventions and finding lateral and indirect solutions is often the only way to achieve our clients’ targets: finding solutions is the essence of our profession. Therefore, while trying to achieve in-depth knowledge and operate with permanently controlled quality, AFSCHRIFT tries every day to improve its way of thinking... to innovate. The Firm has been honoured many times on the national and international stage. For example, the firm has appeared several times in the WORLD FINANCE 100 list established by the famous UK World Finance Magazine. The firm was also designated “Tax Law Firm of the Year” at the “Belgian Legal Awards” for his work and his achievements and is the only Belgian law firm to have obtained this prestigious award three times (in 2006, 2012 and 2013). BELGIUM Contact Details Thierry Afschrift Managing Partner, AFSCHRIFT Tel: +32 (0)2 646 46 36 Fax: +32 (0)2 644 38 00 Email: avocats@afschrift.com Web: www.afschrift.com