ITR presented awards for 206 unique categories at a much-anticipated EMEA Awards ceremony in London last night, September 18, with Deloitte scooping several top accolades.
The event, hosted by ITR editor Tom Baker and reporter Sam Sholli, also saw eight in-house awards dished out as hundreds gathered at the Leonardo Royal Hotel Tower Bridge in London.
ITR’s EMEA Tax Awards have taken place on annual basis since 2005.
This year’s 20th annual awards saw 280 firms and 72 individuals shortlisted. In total, there were 909 entries for this year’s awards.
The event aims to recognise the most impressive tax, transfer pricing (TP), tax disputes, and indirect tax teams and practitioners across 33 jurisdictions throughout the EMEA and APAC regions.
It also highlights achievements in tax technology, innovation, policy, compliance and reporting, as well as diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Five in a row
Deloitte was the big winner of the evening, picking up more than 25 awards.
These included the coveted Tax Advisory Firm of the Year, as well as Transfer Pricing Advisory Firm of the Year, Diversity Equity & Inclusion Firm of the Year and Pro Bono Firm of the Year.
Other firms that won big on the night included EY and DLA Piper.
EY’s global international tax and transaction services controversy leader Joel Cooper hailed his firm’s UK Transfer Pricing Firm of the Year victory.
“Winning this award five years in a row is a huge achievement and a testament to the thought leadership and hard work of our TP team, and the support we get from our clients and EY colleagues in the UK and around the world,” Cooper said.
“With TP regulations increasing in number and complexity, the team have helped EY clients navigate, plan, and comply with these requirements. I am incredibly proud of our exceptional team.”
Vishal Sharma, managing director and United Arab Emirates tax practice leader at Alvarez & Marsal Tax, said it was a great honour for the firm to have been chosen as 2024’s Best Newcomer.
Sharma added: “We launched the offering in 2023 with a view to providing organisations in the region with a first-rate and multi-disciplinary service, free from audit conflicts.
“We have succeeded in attracting some of the best talent the local and global markets have to offer, and I’m very much looking forward to our continued growth for years to come.
“Thank you to the judging panel, ITR, and of course to our clients for their continued support."
Four individual awards were picked up by practitioners from DLA Piper in a memorable night for the firm.
These were Indirect Tax Attorney of the Year Richard Woolich, Indirect Tax Law Firm Rising Star Clara Boyd, Tax Litigation & Disputes Law Firm Rising Star Lauren Redhead and Transfer Pricing Law Firm Rising Star Stephanie Pearson.
Global accounting firm Andersen received the Portugal Tax Disputes Advisory Firm of the Year award, and the firm’s partners Gonçalo Cid and Tiago Cid said it was “an honour” to win.
They added: “This means recognition from our clients of the support we provide them in their disputes with the tax authorities, not only in reaction to tax audits, but, even more importantly, in submitting innovative and out-of-the box litigation approaches.
“We believe that this recognition is due to our culture of adding value and creating opportunities to our clients. Our goal is to extend this recognition in other areas in the future.”
Paying tribute
Helen Buchanan, head of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer’s global tax disputes practice, told ITR of the firm’s delight at being named UK Tax Litigation & Disputes Firm of the Year for the second year in a row.
“This is representative of our UK tax team’s quality, strength in depth and breadth of practice,” she said.
Baker McKenzie partners Mark Delaney and David Jamieson also expressed joy at having won the UK Indirect Tax Firm of the Year 2024 award.
“This award is a testament to our team's ability to offer integrated tax and legal advice addressing growing indirect tax complexities.
“We are thrilled our clients and peers recognise us as trusted advisers on a broad range of indirect tax issues, both contentious and non-contentious, and including dealing with issues arising at the intersection of VAT, customs and TP elements of international business arrangements,” they said.
Meanwhile, tax law partner Jan Neugebauer responded to his firm Arendt & Medernach winning Luxembourg Tax Firm of the Year by paying homage to colleagues.
“Our offerings span across all areas of tax law, from corporate and personal tax and VAT to TP, tax compliance and tax litigation.
“Over the past 35 years, we have prioritised providing tailored, end-to-end tax solutions, with a particular emphasis on asset management, to meet the evolving challenges faced by our clients in an increasingly complex regulatory landscape.
“This award is a testament to the dedication and expertise of our highly skilled team.”
Neugebauer added: “We would also like to take this opportunity to express our sincere gratitude to our clients for their continued trust and support as we navigate the complexities of the international tax environment together.”
Another award on the evening was for Indirect Tax Advisory Rising Star, which was this year given to Gaurav Chugani of Andersen.
Anurag Chaturvedi, managing partner at Andersen UAE, collected the award on behalf of Chugani.
See the research methodology here and shortlists here.
The full list of winners can be found here.
Photos from last night's awards ceremony can be found here.
You can read more about the ITR Awards here.
