Russia will have two types of legal entities, public and non-public companies, after the recent amendments to the Civil Code come into force, Justice Minister Alexander Konovalov told reporters. 

The existing forms of corporate ownership – OOO, ZAO, and ODO – will be replaced by PLC and LLC. President Dmitry Medvedev has submitted to the parliament a series of draft amendments to the Civil Code that concern the underlying civil law principles.

“In Russia, 85% of legal entities are registered as limited companies, or OOO. The authors of the Civil Code proposed dividing all companies into public and non-public ones,” Konovalov said. The existing companies will not have to reregister or reconfirm their ownership of property, including land, he added.