Interview with: Thomas Lamnidis, Managing Partner

What do you see as the main points that differentiate Lamnidis Law from your competitors?

One of the primary distinctions of Lamnidis Law lies in its extensive global l exposure spanning over 30 years. This well-established international presence enables the firm to maintain a versatile practice across multiple jurisdictions. Specializing in energy and transport projects, Lamnidis Law seamlessly integrates diverse legal fields, including commercial, civil, banking, and real estate law. This interconnected approach enhances the firm’s ability to provide comprehensive legal solutions that effectively address the complexities of these sectors.

The firm’s reputation for professionalism has been organically forged over time through extensive, collaborations with international organizations (EU), governments and governmental bodies, multinational corporations, and international financial institutions.

Moreover, the firm possesses a unique capability to anticipate and comprehend legislative reforms prior to their implementation. This proficiency stems from substantial experience in ensuring compliance with EU legislation through conformity assessments for both Greece and other countries in its practice. Moreover, by proactively locating market insufficiencies and the incentives of public and regulatory bodies, Lamnidis Law, provides its clients with significant foresight and preparedness in a dynamic legal landscape, offering them a competitive and comparative advantage.

Lastly, Lamnidis Law internal management systems exemplify its ability to operate effectively across long distances, a capability honed over three decades. This operational excellence, established long before the global shift to remote work due to COVID-19, is further validated by its ISO certification. This strategic foresight ensures consistent, high-quality legal services worldwide, setting Lamnidis Law apart from its competitors in fundamental ways.

 

Which practices do you see growing in the next 12 months? What are the drivers behind that?

In the coming 12 months, Lamnidis Law anticipates significant growth in three practice areas, driven by both market trends and global events.

Firstly, the Energy practice is set for expansion, driven by the shift towards cleaner energy sources and recent geopolitical developments. This sector faces a unique set of challenges in bridging the gap between legislative frameworks and the practical necessities of implementation. Emerging areas like hydrogen, offshore wind parks, energy storage systems, Power Purchase Agreements (PPA’s), floating and agro PVs, carbon capture storage, biogas and biomass, are expected to significantly amplify investment demand. These sectors are intertwined with complex regulatory challenges requiring nuanced legal expertise, particularly in light of their integration into the current energy mix.  Lamnidis Law’s comprehensive legislative and practical knowledge of innovative energy projects effectively bridges these gaps, providing clients with cutting-edge, sustainable solutions.

Secondly, the Technology practice is expected to see robust growth, driven by rapid technological innovation, coupled with an increasingly complex regulatory landscape. Key challenges include the European Union’s AI Act and the Council’s of Europe AI treaty, both setting global standards for Artificial Intelligence (AI). This pioneering legislation will require comprehensive legal strategies to ensure compliance and effective risk management for an increasing number of businesses employing AI technologies. The omnipresence of AI is transforming all industries, from healthcare and finance to manufacturing and legal services, making it integral to operations and decision-making processes. As AI’s adaptive learning and problem-solving capabilities revolutionize these sectors, the potential risks and liabilities also multiply. Therefore, applying these AI provisions, alongside necessary domestic reforms, will be crucial. As AI adoption accelerates across industries, the demand for specialized legal services to navigate compliance and manage risks will drive significant growth for the firm.

Additionally, legislative developments, such as regulations around digital privacy, electronic communications, and cross-border data flows, are shaping the technology sector. Lamnidis Law excels at navigating these intricate areas, offering thorough guidance on how new laws impact existing practices and advising on the implementation of cutting-edge technological solutions.

Lastly, the firm’s Real Estate practice is expected to thrive due to the economic resurgence in Greece. With the conclusion of the financial crisis and the stabilization post-COVID, Greece is becoming a prime destination for foreign direct investments (FDI) in real estate, hospitality & leisure. The Ellinikon project, one of Europe’s largest urban regeneration initiatives, exemplifies the increased interest in Greece’s real estate opportunities. Financial institutions increasingly view Greece as a strategic location for development, leading to a booming real estate sector. Lamnidis Lawis fully positioned to facilitate these developments, offering expert advice and support to investors navigating this dynamic market.

 

What’s the main change you’ve made in the firm that will benefit clients?

Lamnidis Law has implemented a holistic enhancement of its operational and service standards, significantly benefiting its clients.

Central to these improvements is the adoption of the ISO certification, ensuring adherence to the highest international standards of quality and efficiency. This rigorous standardization optimizes internal processes and enhances the consistency and reliability of the firm’s services.

The firm has further reinforced its commitment to client security and trust by securing comprehensive professional insurance, providing an added layer of protection and certainty throughout legal engagements.

Additionally, Lamnidis Law has invested in the continuous professional development and lifelong education of its legal team. The firm’s lawyers regularly participate in specialized training, seminars, and have access to extensive legal knowledge banks. This commitment to deeper specialization and continuous learning ensures the team remains at the forefront of legal developments and best practices. Consequently, clients benefit from expert legal advice that is both current and informed by a profound understanding of their specific legal landscapes.

 

Is technology changing the way you interact with your clients, and the services you can provide them?

Technology is fundamentally transforming the way Lamnidis Law interacts with its clients and delivers services ..enhancing both efficiency and client experience.

To ensure secure and efficient communication, the firm utilizes platforms like Microsoft Teams and Slack, enabling instantaneous messaging, file sharing, secure video conferences and collaborative sessions with clients globally. This ensures clients have constant and immediate access to legal support.

In data analytics, Lamnidis Law leverages tools like Tableau and IBM Watson to analyze legal trends and predict outcomes. Tableau helps visualize compliance rates and other legal metrics, aiding the firm’s clients in making well-informed business decisions, while IBM Watson processes vast amounts of legal data to identify patterns and predict outcomes, informing more strategic legal advice and decision making.

Lamnidis Law also employes AItools such as Kira Systems and LawGeex for automated contract review and facilitated due diligence process. These AI solutions streamline complex, time-consuming tasks by quickly scanning, extracting, and analyzing information from documents. This not only speeds up the review process but also enhances accuracy, reducing the risk of human error. This approach is also more cost-effective for clients, as it reduces the time and resources required for thorough legal reviews.

By integrating these specific technologies, Lamnidis Law not only optimizes operational processes but also significantly enriches the client experience, ensuring that Lamnidis Law provides high-quality, efficient, and innovative legal solutions.

 

Can you give us a practical example of how you have helped a client to add value to their business?

A prime example of how Lamnidis Law adds significant value to its clients’ businesses is its involvement in the World Bank project to establish a subsea interconnection cable for electricity and data between the Caucasus and Europe.

As legal advisors, the firm played a critical role in identifying and addressing all legal aspects of the investment and operation of the subsea cable. Throughout the financial planning phase of the project, Lamnidis Law applied a combined legal and financial engineering approach. This comprehensive strategy enabled it to significantly influence the project’s direction by revising the initial plans based on its expertise.

As a result of the firm’s guidance, the decision-making processes of the four countries involved were aligned with Lamnidis Law’s proposed changes, leading to the formation of multilateral interstate agreements. These agreements were modeled on its extensive experience in structuring similar frameworks for oil, gas, and transport interstate corridors. Drawingon this long-standing experience and applying it to a novel context facilitated smoother project execution and enhanced the project’s strategic outcomes.

Ultimately, this intervention safeguarded the clients’ interests and maximized the value of their investment, by decreasing all non-calculated risks. This showcases the firm’s ability to deliver tailored solutions that significantly impact the clients’ operational success and strategic objectives.

 

Are clients looking for stability and strategic direction from their law firms – where do you see the firm in three years’ time?

All clients are looking for stability and strategic direction from law firms, so unescapably the answer is positive.

In the energy sector, Lamnidis Law will enhance its legal services to support the integration of digital technologies in energy production and management, addressing both traditional and renewable sources. This includes navigating complex regulatory environments and facilitating the transition to smarter energy systems. The firm will assist with new energy tools, such as smart meters for monitoring energy consumption and predictive maintenance software for renewable energy infrastructure. Additionally, Lamnidis Law will also develop its own AI – driven platform, designed to demystify Greek and EU energy regulations, providing comprehensive regulatory insights and practical guidance in order to facilitate strategic planning and sustainable energy development in Greece.

In the realm of real estate, the focus will include advising on digital transactions and the implementation of smart property technologies, which are pivotal in the privatization and optimization of state-owned assets. The firm’s banking practice will evolve to address the legal challenges posed by fintech innovations, such as digital currencies and blockchain technologies, crucial for modernizing financial services. Additionally, the firm aims utilize smart contracts in conjunction with developers to enhance transaction security and prevent defaults.

Furthermore, the firm’s expertise in corporate law will be increasingly focus on ensuring compliance with digital standards and cybersecurity, as businesses expand their digital footprints.  In the field of privatizations, Lamnidis Law plans to enhance its legal services by leveraging advanced digital solutions and legal expertise to streamline the privatization process, forecast market trends and assess potential risks. The firm is also committed to enhancing its litigation and arbitration practice through investment in advanced technologies and legal expertise that purport to deliver innovative, effective and time saving solutions. Moreover, Lamnidis Law will promote the ESG agenda by creating an AI system capable of assessing the ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) compliance of companies. This system will analyze company activities against established ESG criteria. The project will be structured in two phases: the initial phase will integrate ESG regulations and the European Green Deal context, while the second phase will expand the model to consider sector specificity and jurisdictional variations.

Lamnidis Law’s strategic enhancements across energy, real estate, banking, and corporate law demonstrate its commitment to advanced technologies and digital solutions. The firm’s vision extends beyond digital transformation, focusing on a holistic approach to legal service delivery rooted in commercial awareness and responsiveness to clients’ evolving needs and the broader legal landscape.