Paula Airas
Partner-elect, Helsinki
Corporate Investigations & Compliance, Dispute Resolution
Contact
Paula Airas specializes in contentious corporate, insolvency, and regulatory matters, commercial dispute resolution as well as sanctions and trade compliance. Paula’s practice includes civil and criminal and administrative litigation, arbitration and alternative dispute resolution (e.g. mediation), including strategic advice for dispute avoidance. She is also a trusted advisor on EU sanctions and related export control and other questions, including sanctions compliance and investigations, and assisting Western companies in exiting Russia.
Due to her background in working with transactions, Paula has special emphasis on complex corporate, M&A and other transactional disputes, as well as shareholder agreements and shareholder disputes. Paula is also particularly experienced in complex insolvency matters with international aspects and supports clients both in insolvency related disputes and by providing strategic insolvency law advice.
Paula also works with investigations and white-collar crime related matters. Paula has e.g. represented large Nordic companies and public entities in some of the biggest white collar crime cases on the market, as well as worked with international matters such as red notices. Further, Paula actively works with matters relating to industrial projects, where she has also gained valuable in-house experience from her secondment. In addition, Paula has litigated and arbitrated disputes relating to international trade, product liability, construction, business leases, international transport, and agency & distribution matters, etc.
Apart from representing clients before courts and arbitral tribunals, and acting as arbitrator, Paula advises clients on strategic and compliance matters. She also regularly advises on various contractual matters and supports clients in drafting and negotiating their commercial agreements.
Recognitions
Paula is a core member of Roschier’s dispute resolution team, which has been top-ranked by leading international independent legal directories, including Chambers Europe, The Legal 500, the GAR 100 and Lexology Index (formerly Who’s Who Legal). She is also recognized as a future leader in commercial litigation by Lexology Index.
Paula is the exclusive winner of the 2025 Client Choice Commercial Litigation Award for Finland and the exclusive winner of the 2024 and 2022 Client Choice Litigation awards for Finland.
This is what clients say about Paula:
“She drives matters forward, finds new avenues of approach and takes responsibility beyond what is initially requested”
– Client Choice Commercial Litigation Award for Finland 2025
“Paula brings to the table a combination of strong legal expertise and a business-oriented approach. This combination is something that all lawyers firmly state they provide but in Paula’s case it is not only words, but also a very strong acumen that unavoidably brings advantages to her clients”
– Client Choice Commercial Litigation Award for Finland 2025
“Paula is an exceptional, highly professional lawyer with an impressive commercial and business understanding as well as on-point communication and negotiation skills”
– Client Choice Commercial Litigation Award for Finland 2025
“She has a truly amazing ability to manage challenging and complex matters and is an invaluable resource to us”
– Client Choice Commercial Litigation Award for Finland 2025
“Paula was an invaluable resource to me and the company in a large and high-profile project over the last year.”
– The Client Choice Litigation Award for Finland 2024
“Paula was incredibly responsive and worked hand in hand with the company team to quickly understand the nuances of our issues and to achieve our goals.”
– The Client Choice Litigation Award for Finland 2024
“Paula’s subject matter knowledge along with her connections and ability in front of government regulators, and strong network to find outside experts when needed was the key to our success.”
– The Client Choice Litigation Award for Finland 2024
“Paula has a deep understanding of the various areas and parties of the case, the client’s business and business in general as well as the corporate agreements and regulations applicable on the case.”
– The Client Choice Litigation Award for Finland 2024
“Paula has a great attitude, excellent communication and negotiation skills, great project management skills, and is easy to work with.”
– The Client Choice Litigation Award for Finland 2024
“Paula Airas stands out.”
– The Legal 500 2023, Dispute Resolution
“Paula Airas is highly professional and always reliable when we need her most.”
– The Client Choice Litigation Award for Finland 2022
“Paula is always very well prepared and gives good constructive feedback.”
– The Client Choice Litigation Award for Finland 2022
“Paula always covers both pros and cons, and has always been flexible to meet our needs.”
– The Client Choice Litigation Award for Finland 2022
“If you need sensible and practical advice, then Paula is always available to provide it.”
– The Client Choice Litigation Award for Finland 2022
Work highlights
Paula has advised and/or represented e.g.:
- The Province of Quebec in the acquisition of the Helsinki Shipyard;
- The Bain Capital led consortium in the share price dispute following the EUR 2.1 billion public cash tender offer for all shares in Ahlstrom-Munksjö;
- Several large Nordic listed companies in their Russia business and exit related questions.
- Various domestic and international companies (both industrial and PE) acting as counsel in various shareholder agreement disputes, and their post M&A disputes relating to e.g. purchase price calculation, preparation of closing accounts, earn-out rights, warranty matters, call-/put-options, walk-away rights, etc.;
- Large foreign conglomerates in several complex insolvency related disputes, with multinational links.
- Clients in matters relating to insolvency proceedings, impacts of threatening or actual insolvency (e.g. advised the restructuring and later bankruptcy administration of Top-Toy in various insolvency related matters relating to the Finnish branch of the Danish company);
- Clients in internal investigations, authority investigations, and before Finnish courts in matters involving company law, board liability and white-collar crime;
- In arbitration proceedings and acting as counsel and arbitrator under a variety of arbitration rules such as FAI, SCC and ICC, as well as in ad hoc proceedings. Acting as counsel and representing clients in ancillary court proceedings;
- Clients in interim relief proceedings before the national courts, including asset seizure and injunctions as well as their cross-border enforcement, etc.;
- Foreign and domestic clients in questions relating to EU sanctions regime in e.g. trade compliance and exit processes.
Career
Roschier (2008-), Partner-elect (2025)
Fennovoima Oy, Visiting Lawyer (1-3/2019)
Law clerk, trained at the Bench (2012)
Memberships
Member of the Finnish Bar Association
Member of the Finnish Arbitration Association
Member of the Swedish Arbitration Association (SAA)
Member of the Finnish Insolvency Law Association
Member of INSOL International
Member of Lex Mundi Litigation, Arbitration, and Dispute Resolution Practice Group
Member of the International Sanctions and Export Control Society (Finnish society)
Education
SCC/SAA Diploma Course for International Arbitrators (2024)
FAI Finnish Arbitration Academy (2015)
University of Lapland, LL.M. (2008)
Languages
English, Finnish, French, Swedish
Client ChoiceHighly professional and always reliable when needed the most; very well prepared and provides sensible and practical advice.