Yesterday, Sorainen was recognised twice at the ITR Europe Tax Awards 2026, receiving the “Baltic States Transfer Pricing Firm of the Year” and “Impact Case of the Year” awards for its work representing Nordcurrent Group. Indrė Ščeponienė, partner at Sorainen Lithuania and head of Sorainen’s regional Tax practice, received the awards on behalf of Sorainen.

The awards highlight two sides of our Tax practice: the strength of our regional transfer pricing work and our ability to support clients during complex disputes that can influence tax practice beyond a single jurisdiction.

Recognition for our Baltic transfer pricing practice

The “Baltic States Transfer Pricing Firm of the Year” award reflects the work of our integrated Tax team across Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. This is the second year in a row that Sorainen has received this title. In its research, ITR evaluates the level of complexity and innovation of the work, as well as the solutions provided to clients and their impact on the market.

In addition, the following recent examples illustrate the regional reach and wider expertise of our Tax practice:

  • Across the Baltics, we advised ERGO Insurance on preparing its finance systems for the implementation of Pillar Two rules in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, including effective tax rate modelling and reporting requirements.
  • In Latvia, we helped Digmatix obtain a tax ruling that changed the Latvian tax authority’s previous approach to the thin-cap exemption for financing provided by an Estonian alternative investment fund.
  • In Estonia, we advised MarkIT on developing an intercompany and transfer pricing framework covering its operations in more than 40 jurisdictions, including benchmarking, target margins, royalties and year-end adjustments.
  • In Lithuania, we advised Energix Group on the acquisition of a Lithuanian company developing a 144-MW wind park and a solar park of up to 330 MW, including tax due diligence and transaction structuring.

Nordcurrent judgment recognised for its impact

Sorainen received the “Impact Case of the Year” award for representing Nordcurrent Group in case C-228/24 before the Court of Justice of the European Union. ITR’s impact awards recognise influential cases and deals, evaluated as to their level of innovation, complexity and effect on the client and the wider market.

The dispute raised fundamental questions about how EU anti-abuse rules should be applied to cross-border group structures. The CJEU clarified that, when applying EU anti-abuse rules, tax authorities cannot assess whether a cross-border corporate structure is genuine based only on the circumstances at the time dividends are paid. They must consider the structure’s wider commercial background and development. Importantly, the existence of a tax advantage cannot be assumed merely because a dividend exemption applies, but must be assessed in light of the overall tax consequences of the structure across different jurisdictions.

The judgment provides clearer guidance for multinational groups and tax authorities applying EU anti-abuse rules. Consequently, the Lithuanian Tax Disputes Commission has annulled the EUR 1 million tax assessment, bringing the dispute to a final and favourable conclusion for Nordcurrent Group.

Indrė Ščeponienė, who was in charge of the matter, comments:

“The judgment established an important precedent for the application of EU anti-abuse rules. One of its key findings is that tax authorities cannot assume the existence of a tax advantage merely because a tax exemption applies. They must assess both the commercial rationale of a structure and its overall tax consequences in a broader context. This brings much-needed clarity for businesses and tax authorities across Europe. For Nordcurrent Group, it also brought a dispute lasting more than three years to a successful close and overturned EUR 1 million in unjustly assessed taxes. The award also recognises the persistence and careful work of everyone who supported the client throughout the tax inspection, dispute and CJEU proceedings.”

The team working on the case also included counsel Gerda Skirbutienė, associates Miglė Mainionytė and  Luka Tamulionytė.

About the ITR Awards

The ITR Awards recognise achievements in tax law, transfer pricing and accountancy. The judging process considers the size, innovation, complexity and impact of the matters handled, including whether the work addressed novel or untested questions or set a precedent.

One regional Tax team

Sorainen’s Tax team works as a single regional practice across Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. The team comprises 32 tax professionals, including nine partners, making it the largest Tax team among the leading Baltic law firms.

The team’s practice covers corporate and international taxation, transfer pricing, VAT and customs, tax disputes, transactional tax, tax due diligence, advance pricing agreements and private client matters. The team also provides transfer pricing documentation and benchmarking services. Team members specialise in different areas of tax and in specific industries. This allows matters involving several jurisdictions or areas of tax to be handled by one coordinated team with the relevant technical and sector knowledge.

Contact our experts if you have a tax-related matter:

  • Indrė Ščeponienė, Head of Sorainen’s regional Tax practice, Lithuania: indre.sceponiene@sorainen.com
  • Dr Kaido Künnapas, Head of Sorainen’s Tax practice in Estonia: kaido.kunnapas@sorainen.com
  • Jānis Taukačs, Co-head of Sorainen’s Tax practice in Latvia:
    janis.taukacs@sorainen.com
  • Aija Lasmane, Co-head of Sorainen’s Tax practice in Latvia:
    aija.lasmane@sorainen.com