Sorainen’s revenue in Estonia grew by 19 percent and profits by 11 percent in 2024

The Sorainen office in Tallinn continues to be one of the biggest employers in the legal market in Estonia, as revealed by the annual reports published on the Company Registration Portal of the Estonian e-business register. In 2024, the firm paid nearly EUR 5 million in social, income and value added tax. The sales revenue grew by 18.8% compared to 2023, reaching EUR 17,897,762. The average number of employees in the firm, founded in 1995, reached 90 employees in 2024.

“Last year was one of achievements and growth. While the Estonian economy stagnated in 2022–2023, and our financial performance also fell short of our ambitions, during this time we focused even more on building strong client relationships and improving the quality of our legal services,” says Kaupo Lepasepp, country managing partner of Sorainen Estonia. “In 2024, the return of economic growth was driven by the successful sales efforts of Estonian entrepreneurs in foreign markets and by an improvement in the sense of security felt by foreign investors. In 2024, the effort made in the previous couple of years paid off generously. As spring brought an economic revival, we continued to be truly dedicated to our clients, created value for them, and increased the revenue of the Estonian office by 19% and its profits by 11%.”

Together with our clients, Lepasepp promises to make Sorainen’s 30th year in operation the most successful one yet for the Baltics, Estonia and the firm itself. “We expect continued growth from both the Estonian economy and Sorainen in 2025, although the overall uncertainty created by the United States’ tariffs is causing some unwelcome fluctuations. Nevertheless, we see multiple sectors in Estonia – such as energy, defence, life sciences and healthcare, and technology – where challenges and opportunities require substantial investments. These investments will drive economic activity in turn.”

Our achievements from the year 2024

• In the 2024 Kantar Prospera survey of clients of top tier Baltic law firms, Sorainen ranks first in the “Best legal competence” category, as it has done for the past three years. Sorainen Estonia is placed as the number one law firm in Estonia based on the average of overall rankings.
• The Estonian Ministry of Defence recognised our contribution to the security of our country with a gold-level award. The purpose of the award is to highlight employers who boost our national security by not only exempting reservists from their work duties but also consciously supporting them.
• Kaupo Lepasepp, country managing partner of Sorainen Estonia, was also awarded the class III medal of merits by the Central Management of the Estonian Defence League.
• The Republic of Estonia recognised our partner Carri Ginter with the Order of Merit of the White Star. “I believe that this recognition is for the entire Faculty of Law at the University of Tartu, where I have worked for 20 years and dealt extensively with European Union law. I also believe that this recognition is for speaking about these topics in a way that the broader public understands as well,” commented Carri.
• Our firm remains among the most attractive employers in the legal sector. Law students chose Sorainen as one of the most attractive private sector employers in the legal field in a survey conducted by the Instar employer branding agency.
• Sorainen Student Academy completed its 12th season in the spring of 2024. To ensure the continuous development and support of young talent, we welcomed another 25 students in the autumn. After the lecture series ends in spring, students will be able to apply for summer internships at Sorainen. At the end of summer, we offer job opportunities to the most outstanding interns.
• Our services align with ESG (environmental, social and governance) principles and standards. This is affirmed by the gold-level quality label awarded to Sorainen’s Estonian office by the Responsible Business Forum, in recognition of our efforts to promote responsible entrepreneurship in Estonia.
• AiVar – Sorainen’s artificial intelligence, is now in use. Sorainen has taken an important step in the development of this technology by creating its own AI tool, AiVar. Since its launch in the summer of 2024, AiVar has helped to save time, increase work efficiency and ensure highquality results. The tool supports both lawyers and business services professionals by enabling them to structure and analyse information and by making it easier to find the information they need from in-house databases.
• As our goal is to become the clear market leader in our region through technological innovation, in 2024 we developed Sorainen’s structured technology strategy for 2024–2028, which covers the entire company.
• Sorainen is already among Europe’s most innovative law firms. In The Financial Times Innovative Lawyers Europe 2024 Awards, Sorainen was ranked No. 28 in the list of the top 30 firms significantly impacting the transformation of their client’s operations, continuing to be the sole representative from the Baltics or Nordics.
• As a firm, Sorainen was also nominated by the Financial Times Innovative Lawyers Europe 2024 for the “Most Innovative Law Firm in Europe (HQ Outside the UK)” award and our counsel Lise-Lotte Lääne was shortlisted for the prestigious “Innovative Lawyers in Deals and Financing” award.

Some of our notable transactions and cases from 2024

• We advised Sunly, a renewable energy producer, on raising EUR 60 million from existing shareholders and on raising EUR 300 million from Scandinavian and French investors.
• We advised the largest energy company in Estonia, state-owned Eesti Energia, on raising EUR 400 million by issuing green hybrid bonds. This became the first green hybrid bond issued in the Baltics to be offered internationally and listed on the London Stock Exchange.
• We advised the Estonian startup company Miros on raising EUR 6 million. The investment round was led by the venture capital arm of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), EBRD Venture Capital and Tera Ventures.
• We advised Inter IKEA Group on its acquisition of the IKEA retail business in the Baltics.
• We advised the Norwegian non-life insurance company Gjensidige Forsikring on selling its business in the Baltics to Ergo International. The deal value was EUR 80 million.
• We advised Straumann Group, a global leader in tooth replacement and orthodontic solutions, on acquiring Med Grupė, a distributor of dental products in the Baltic States.
• We conducted a special audit, commissioned by the Ministry of Finance, of Eesti Energia and its subsidiaries.
• We advised the Ministry of Finance on the development of a domestic bond programme. The demand for such bonds from small investors in Estonia has been estimated at between a few dozen and a few hundred million euros.
• Acting as Estonian counsel through the international law firm Clifford Chance, we advised Barclays, Citigroup and Nordea – the joint managers for a EUR-1-billion, ten-year government bond issue by the Republic of Estonia.
• We represented a client in a dispute with the European Commission before the General Court of the European Union. The potential contract value was EUR 8.2 million.
• We advised Rail Baltic Estonia on preparing the base documents for a significant tender related to an alliance procurement consultancy contract.
• We are advising R-S OSA Service (RSO) in developing and constructing a demo plant to pilot the technology of converting waste from oil shale ash into valuable resources.

Read more about our activities and results from the Sorainen Estonia annual report!

Sworn auditor’s report