OF-COUNSEL

Bogdan Evtimov

Of-Counsel

bogdan.evtimov@deminimislaw.com
Brussels: +32 486 92 35 84

Bogdan Evtimov is external Of-Counsel at De Minimis Law, based in Brussels. His practice focuses on EU international trade law, economic and financial sanctions, export controls, customs disciplines, and litigation before the EU Courts. Bogdan's technical capability is independently recognised by Chambers and Partners, which ranks him in Band 1 for International Trade: Export Controls & Economic Sanctions (Europe-wide) and Band 4 for International Trade/WTO.

With over two decades of legal experience spanning Brussels and London, he advises multinational corporations, financial institutions, sovereign entities, and private individuals. He handles complex regulatory mandates at the intersection of EU economic security policy, international trade, and dispute resolution. His substantive expertise encompasses the licencing of dual-use technologies, customs and rules of origin, trade remedies, and WTO market access strategies.

In the field of EU restrictive measures, Bogdan advises on the interpretation, implementation, and enforcement risks of corporate compliance programmes, particularly concerning regimes targeting Russia and Belarus. His work involves asset-freeze proceedings, ownership and control analyses, anti-circumvention measures, transactional risk assessments, and complex cross-border compliance mandates that engage overlapping EU, UK, and US legal frameworks.

Bogdan routinely represents clients before the General Court and the Court of Justice of the European Union. His procedural experience encompasses direct annulment actions, appellate litigation, and preliminary references from national courts. Concurrently, he maintains a robust administrative practice, representing clients before the European Commission and national competent authorities in anti-dumping and anti-subsidy investigations, safeguard proceedings, and broader economic security enforcement actions.

Bogdan is admitted to the Brussels and Sofia Bars and is fluent in English, French, Russian, and Bulgarian. He is an active member of the European Trade Law Association and a founding member of the Bulgarian Association for European Law. He regularly publishes and lectures on sanctions, export controls, trade remedies, and systemic developments in European trade policy.

scope of expertise

Practice
Areas

Sanctions

Bogdan advises governments, financial institutions and multinational corporations on the design, implementation, and circumvention risks of EU, US, and multilateral sanctions regimes. His practice encompasses compliance programmes, asset-freeze proceedings, embargo litigation, and the representation of listed entities before the EU Courts.

Export controls & dual goods

Bogdan counsels technology, energy, and transport sector clients on complex export control requirements, with a rigorous focus on the EU Dual-Use Regulation and its interaction with international sanctions architectures. He assists operators in handling licencing procedures, conducting due diligence, and managing the legal risks associated with extraterritorial non-EU export controls.

EU trade defence

Bogdan advises EU and third-country producers, importers and sovereign governments in anti-dumping, anti-subsidy and safeguard investigations conducted by the European Commission and reviewed by the EU Courts. His practice spans the full lifecycle of trade defence proceedings, from the initiation stage through to judicial review.

WTO law

Bogdan advises on the compatibility of domestic trade measures with WTO obligations and represents clients in WTO dispute settlement proceedings. His practice covers trade remedy disciplines, market access, and the interface between WTO rules and EU secondary legislation.

EU competition law

Bogdan advises clients on abuse of dominance, merger control, and antitrust matters, with particular attention to the intersection of competition law and trade policy. He possesses specific expertise in demonstrating the impact of anti-competitive behaviour on injury assessments within trade defence investigations.

recent experience

Representative matters

Sanctions and export controls

- Engaged with EU Member States’ permanent representations in Brussels to challenge legislative initiatives attempting to impose prohibitive tariffs on agribusiness imports through sanctions policy frameworks.

- Advised a joint-venture project between a public university and a leading defence contractor on international export controls policy and compliance strategies.

- Secured triple annulment of sanctions regulations in favour of a client, a corporate group and a football club.

EU trade defence

Advised and represented industrial producers in over 15 major EU anti-dumping, anti-subsidy, and safeguard investigations, including proceedings concerning stainless steel products, ammonium nitrate, silicon metals, and biodiesel.

EU Courts (trade defence)

Acted as lead counsel before the General Court and CJEU in numerous landmark trade remedy cases, including Rusal Armenal (T-512/09; C-21/14 P), successfully arguing an incidental plea of illegality concerning the effects of WTO agreements in the EU legal order.

EU Courts (sanctions)

Acted as lead counsel in direct actions before the General Court challenging EU restrictive measures, successfully securing the annulment of sanctions.