Olexander Martinenko is the Managing Partner at AMV Law Offices. He has nearly four decades of experience advising multinational and local companies, municipal entities, institutions, and organizations on their business activities in Ukraine.
Olexander is a highly respected and widely recommended expert in dispute resolution, competition, corporate, and commercial law across a range of sectors. His extensive experience includes representing clients before Ukrainian courts – including the Supreme Court of Ukraine – as well as in international commercial and investment arbitration proceedings, both within and outside the country.
In addition to acting as counsel, Olexander has served as an arbitrator in several international commercial arbitration cases. He is frequently engaged as an expert on Ukrainian law in international arbitration and foreign litigation, regularly providing expert witness reports, legal opinions, and affidavits.
Languages
English, Ukrainian, Russian, French
Education
- 1995 – 1996: Kyiv Institute of Industrial Property, Kyiv, Intellectual Property Law
- 1993 – 1994: Harvard Law School, Massachusetts, USA, LL.M.
- 1987 – 1991: Koretsky Institute of State and Law of National Academy of Science of Ukraine, LL.D.
- 1978 – 1983: Kyiv Taras Shevchenko University, Ukraine, Diploma of Specialist in Law (magna cum laude)
Recognition
- Hall of Fame in Dispute Resolution (The Legal 500)
- Highly recommended for Arbitration (Lexology Index)
- Band 3 in Dispute Resolution: International (Chambers and Partners)
- Recommended for Competition, Energy, Projects & Procurement (Lexology Index)
Selected experience
- representing three defense companies in arbitration proceedings arising out of military procurement contracts, conducted under ICAC, ICC, and LCIA rules.
- acted as the lead counsel to the CABINET OF MINISTERS OF UKRAINE in a USD 3 billion investment dispute with a foreign investor over the alleged confiscation of its foreign investments in Ukraine based on the re-privatisation of a Ukrainian company claims (court case won for Ukraine in a foreign jurisdiction)
- acted as the lead counsel to UKRENERGO NPC in relation to an international investment arbitration against the Russian Federation over the illegal takeover of its assets in Crimea after the annexation of the peninsula. The arbitral tribunal has been constituted under the UNCITRAL Arbitration Rules
- acted as a Ukrainian law expert for RAGA in the international commercial arbitration proceedings under the LCIA Rules in a circa USD 800 million commercial dispute with SCM over the past privatisation and the subsequent indirect sale of Ukrtelecom, the Ukrainian telecoms behemoth (arbitration case won for the client)
Legal alerts
New Procedure for the Export of Weapons and Defence Technologies
Background On 1 July 2026, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, by Resolution No. 875, approved a dedicated Procedure for the International Transfer of Military and Dual-Use Goods for the period of martial law. This marks a shift away from what was effectively a closed model of defence-product exports towards a controlled, permit-based model. The key […]
Publications
Ukraine Chapter of Legal 500: Litigation Comparative Guide
Litigation before the commercial courts is the principal forum for business-to-business disputes. Where the parties prefer a private forum, they may agree to arbitration, which takes two forms in Ukraine: (i) domestic arbitration; and (ii) international commercial arbitration. Both are subject to the exceptions in Article 22 of the Commercial Procedure Code (the CPC), under which corporate, IP-registration, […]
Publications
Ukrainian Chapter of the Law Over Borders Commercial Litigation Guide by The Global Legal Post
Our Managing partner Olexander Martinenko, Counsel Danylo Volkovetskyi, Managing associate Mariana Antonovych and Associate Arina Kolesnyk has contributed to the Ukrainian Chapter of the first Law Over Borders Commercial Litigation Guide by The Global Legal Post. This chapter highlights that despite ongoing challenges, Ukrainian commercial litigation remains modern, functional, and highly accessible. Through electronic filing, […]
Legal alerts
Changes to the Ukrainian International Commercial Arbitration Law
Background On 28 April 2026, the Ukrainian Parliament has modified the International Commercial Arbitration Law of Ukraine (the Law) by introducing the following three key changes: On 19 May 2026, the Law was signed by the President of Ukraine. 1. Expanded Scope of the “International Dispute” Now, a dispute qualifies as “international” not only when […]
AMV has been featured in the Legal 500 2026 for Dispute Resolution in Ukraine
It has been seven months since we launched our practice, and we are pleased to share that AMV Law Offices of Martinenko, Volkovetskyi & Partners has been featured in the Legal 500 2026 rankings as a “Firm to Watch” in Dispute Resolution. Being recognised by such a prestigious directory so early in our journey, and […]
Olexander Martinenko and Mariana Antonovych attended FIRE Starters: Global Summit in Dublin
We are happy to share that our Managing Partner, Olexander Martinenko, and Managing Associate, Mariana Antonovych attended the FIRE Starters: Global Summit in Dublin, hosted by ThoughtLeaders4 FIRE on 25–27 February. The summit brought together leading asset recovery and fraud specialists to discuss recent market updates and share cross-border expertise. Olexander was an invited speaker […]
Publications
Trading Arms in Ukraine: A Buzz Interview with Olexander Martinenko
Ukraine’s legal and business environment continues to be shaped above all by the war, but several recent developments in defense procurement, exports, enforcement, investment regulation, reconstruction, and civil justice reform are also drawing close attention from the market, according to AMV Law Offices Partner Olexander Martinenko. “The war remains the defining issue for the country’s […]
AMV is recognized in Chambers Global 2026
We are pleased to announce that our team has been recognized in the recently released Chambers Global 2026 guide. This milestone is particularly meaningful as it represents one of our first major rankings as an independent dispute resolution boutique. We are proud of the individual recognition of our team in the Dispute Resolution: International category: […]
Olexander Martinenko speaks at the Sovereign & States Disputes and Enforcement Summit in London
We are pleased to share that our Managing Partner, Olexander Martinenko, was a speaker at the recent ThoughtLeaders4 | Sovereign & States Disputes and Enforcement Summit in London, in February 2026. Participating in a panel focused on the FSU region, Olexander contributed to a discussion on the shifting landscape of disputes involving sovereigns and State-Owned […]
Publications
From Public Courts to Private Panels: Ukraine’s ADR Transformation
As Ukraine grapples with geopolitical upheaval and economic uncertainty, private dispute-resolution mechanisms have emerged as vital alternatives to an overburdened court system. Olexander Martinenko and Danylo Volkovetskyi explore recent legislative reforms, market fragmentation, wartime influences on institutional uptake, and the shifting preferences of businesses and state enterprises toward arbitration and mediation. CEELM: How would you characterize […]