Our Professors

Brian Bellerose is an attorney and adjunct professor of law. He graduated from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law and the University of Chicago and studied education at Columbia University. Brian has taught US business law, international business law, and legal language and writing at several universities such as Concordia University of Chicago, Suffolk University Law School and Bentley University. He also has several years of experience teaching English to foreign language speakers. Brian's legal career has specialized in international business, investments and financial services. He has over 25 years of experience advising multi-national companies and start-ups. He was the General Counsel and Managing Director of Renaissance Capital and MDM Group in Moscow Russia, the General Counsel of Oriflame Cosmetics, a publicly-traded company headquartered in Brussels Belgium. He was also the General Counsel of two groups of investment funds—Kazimir Funds, which specialized in investing in the former Soviet Union and BeiKai Capital, a group of private equity funds in China. Brian lives in New York City.

Donald Cannon graduated from the University of Washington, Seattle. He began his professional life working first as translator for business concerns involved in commerce with the USSR, soon acting as negotiator and commercial representative as East-West trade increased. During this time, he also participated enthusiastically in citizen diplomacy and the Sister Cities Program. After the dissolution of the USSR, Donald embraced the economic changes taking place in Russia and, following the then-popular trend, he helped create several joint ventures. In the 1990s, he also established and managed a new business venture in Russia and was responsible for all of its operations, including complex technical issues. Donald ardently supports cultural diversity and has always advocated for pinpointing and interpreting societal differences and their underlying realities; he believes this to be as important as interpreting words and ideas. Operating on this conviction, he has supplied in-depth Russian company profiles to Western investors, mediated in contract negotiations and edited English-language website for Russian businesses. Wherever Donald has been throughout his career, he has always taught English, also using the principle that experiencing cultural differences is the root of language acquisition. To grasp English fully, we need to perceive its culture from the inside out. Traditional instruction in Russia, however, typically explains English and its culture from the outside in. Donald’s approach is to restore the inside-out flow and to give students a sudden “Aha!” experience uniting both language and culture.

Sergey Danilov obtained his Juris Doctor degree from Antonin Scalia Law School at George Mason University (Arlington, Virginia). A native of St.Petersburg, Russia, he spent over 30 years in various parts of the world, including the United States, Europe, and Central America, and speaks several languages. Currently he lives in France where he consults international clientele on various aspects of commercial and corporate law. At Pericles he teaches Language of Сontracts, Contract Drafting, Business Organizations, Transactional Lawyering and International Asset Recovery.

Edward Donovan graduated with a B.S. degree in Chemistry from Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colorado and then received his J.D. from Southwestern University and in 1989, he began practicing with the Intellectual Property firm of Sheldon & Mak, before eventually forming his own firm with others. Mr. Donovan has spent many hours in U.S. Federal Courts litigating intellectual property claims for clients and representing their interests before the USPTO. Mr. Donovan has also represented various clients in general business affairs and U.S. Customs law, particularly in the international fashion and accessories industry. Mr. Donovan also teaches skiing and is a strong outdoor enthusiast. Mr. Donovan is teaching Intellectual Property Law, Entertainment Law at Pericles. He is a member of the Colorado Bar.

Richard DuVal received a Bachelor of Science degree from California Polytechnic State University, worked as a systems engineer and software developer for the IBM Corporation and other computer technology companies, then went on to obtain his Juris Doctor from California Western School of Law. After gaining considerable trial experience as a criminal defense lawyer, he transitioned to civil litigation and represented a wide variety of individual and corporate clients in state and federal courts in both California and Hawaii. Mr. DuVal has litigated a full range of subjects, including personal injury and property damage cases; product liability; professional liability; construction defect claims; copyright infringement; unfair competition; fraud and negligent misrepresentation; breach of fiduciary duty; breach of contract; partnership disputes; and property, title, and boundary disputes. He has also served as a court-appointed arbitrator, as well as an arbitrator on the Commercial Panel of the American Arbitration Association. At Pericles Mr. DuVal teaches Professional Responsibility, Tort Law, and Property Law.

Paul Richard Engelke is an advocate practicing at the Pretoria Bar in South Africa. He graduated from the University of Port Elizabeth in 1991 with a B-Juris and immediately started working as a Public Prosecutor. In 1995 the Department of Justice relocated him to Pretoria. While in Pretoria he enrolled at the University of Pretoria where he graduated with a LLB. He completed the Law School for attorneys in 2001 and practiced as an attorney for a year. In 2002 he was admitted as an Advocate to the High Court of SA. In 2003 he worked for the Special Investigation Unit of the National Prosecution Authority where he spent 12 years specializing in the investigation and prosecution of Fraud, Corruption and Serious Commercial Crimes. He also headed up the Anti-Money Laundering unit of the SIU, it was during his time at the SIU that he was invited and attended a Forensic Investigation Course at the Russian Federal Detectives Collage, in Moscow. From 2015 he shared his time between his advocate duties and giving lectures to students in Criminal law and Forensic Investigations in Pretoria. Mr Engelke also completed the CELTA course and teaches English as a foreign language.

Moritz Näf is a partner of the Swiss law firm BodmerFischer AG (www.bodmerfischer.ch). His fields of expertise include contract and corporate law as well as commercial dispute resolution. Moritz’s clients are predominantly Swiss and foreign corporations and entrepreneurs as well as wealthy individuals. In particular, he has been advising Russian businesses and private clients in matters related to Swiss law or the structuring of their assets for succession planning or asset protection purposes for many years. Moritz acquired his law degree at the University of Basel, Switzerland, in 1999 and holds an LL.M. in European Law from the University of Lund, Sweden (2002). He was admitted to the Swiss bar in 2001 and is entitled to represent clients before all Swiss courts and administrative bodies. Before joining BodmerFischer AG in 2014, he worked as a lawyer for Swiss firms Bar & Karrer AG and Umbricht in Zurich as well as the leading Swiss Bank UBS AG. Moritz is a native German speaker and is fluent in English, French, Swedish and Norwegian. In addition, he has a solid command of Russian. In his free time, he enjoys alpine skiing, travelling, photography as well as spending time with his children.

Marc Polonsky is a retired partner, of counsel with the international law firm White & Case. His practice focused on investment in the former Soviet Union, particularly in the natural resources and infrastructure sectors. Based principally in London, he also spent eleven years (1998 to 2008; 2017 to 2018) living and working in Moscow. In addition to teaching English law and legal professional ethics, he manages a philanthropic foundation that supports cultural heritage and humanities education and research. He has a B.A. in Modern Languages (Russian and French) from the University of Oxford and is a solicitor qualified in England and Wales.

Yuriy Brisov is a distinguished partner at D&A Partners and a notable alumnus of Pericles, where he graduated with honors. He also completed the Master of Jurisprudence Program with Widener University, specializing in Corporate Law and Compliance, graduating with honors. With a specialization in digital and transactional law, Yuriy has extensive experience as a lawyer for international blockchain projects, including ICOBOX (2016–2017), Expobank (2020), Hermitage (2021), Midas Investment (2022), IOGINALITY (2023), and Entangle (2024). Since beginning his legal practice in 2003, he has become a leading expert in digital law, blockchain, and securities law, including U.S. securities law. Yuriy is a recognized authority in his field, having been awarded Digital Lawyer of the Year in 2020 by RUNET and receiving a Commendation from the Association of Lawyers in 2019. He was honored with the PRO Charity Prize for Russia's first-ever charity NFT drop in 2021. His work has also been acknowledged by "Law-300," where he is recommended as a lawyer in the field of Digital Economy for 2024. Yuriy is also the editor and co-author of the textbook "Law and Economics of Blockchain." He imparts his knowledge by teaching digital law, the law of blockchain, intellectual property, and information technology, equipping students with the skills needed to navigate these complex and evolving areas.

Ekaterina Smirnova is a partner at D&A Partners, renowned for her expertise in competition law and digital market strategies. She holds an MA in EU Competition Law with distinction from King's College London, where she completed her thesis on “Market Power and Criteria of Dominance in Digital Markets.” Ekaterina studied at several Ivy League and prestigious institutions, including the MIT Sloan School of Management, where she focused on Digital Business Strategy, and the Wharton Institute of Executive Education at the University of Pennsylvania, where she specialized in Business in the Metaverse Economy. She has also completed advanced courses in European Union Competition Law at Cambridge University and the Academy of European Law (ERA). Ekaterina is a respected member of the Association of Antimonopoly Experts and has participated in meetings of the Competition Committee of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). Practicing since 2006 and being admitted to the bar in 2009, she brings a wealth of experience and insight to her work. Recognized for her expertise, Ekaterina was named "Lawyer of the Year" in Government Relations Practice by The Best Lawyers in 2020. Her accomplishments are acknowledged in "Law-300" as a recommended lawyer in the field of Digital Economy for 2024. She has also been recognized in the areas of Competition/Antitrust Law (2019, 2021), Government Relations Practice (2021), and Litigation (2019–2021). She was awarded the PRO Charity Prize for Russia's first-ever charity NFT drop in 2024. In addition to her professional achievements, Ekaterina teaches courses on competition law, digital platforms, and business in the Web3 era, providing students with a comprehensive understanding of these critical and rapidly evolving fields.