About Me

I am a partner in our Helsinki office, where I am head of our Nordic and Finnish Employment practice groups as well as our Finnish Employee Incentives & Benefits group. I advise our local and international clients on complex employment issues.

Focusing on all aspects of employment relations, I advise clients on a broad range of employment and HR matters on a daily basis including transactions, contractual issues, the negotiation and termination of contracts, collective and trade union matters, co-operation procedures, restructuring and discrimination.

In addition to employment law, I specialise in outsourcing, trade secret issues and privacy and data protection. I have experience in complex litigation matters.

You'll find me recognised and reviewed as a leading employment lawyer by international directories including Legal 500, Chambers and Partners, The Best Lawyers and PLC Which Lawyer. I was recognised as 'The Lawyer of the Year 2014 – Labour and Employment Law' and 'The Lawyer of the Year 2016 – Outsourcing' by the Best Lawyers.

I am a frequent conference speaker on a wide range of employment law issues and am co-author of the book 'Solutions for working life challenges' (J-Impact, 2012).

Our team is regularly working on a broad range of cross-border projects and we have an excellent network with our colleagues located all over the world at our Bird & Bird offices. We have longstanding experience in taking an innovative and strategic approach to our work. Our team is often thanked for being an everyday strategic partner for our clients.
Education

Studied

  • Master of Laws, University of Helsinki (2002)

Admissions

  • Attorney-at-law, the Finnish Bar Association (2006)
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Testimonials

'Maisa Nikkola is very client-oriented and possesses good commercial awareness of her client's business needs. She tackles the most sophisticated matters with ease and provides strategic, down-to-earth advice.'

Chambers Europe 2024 - Employment

'My full recommendation for Maisa Nikkola – she has an excellent ability to find a solution to complex disputes and thorough understanding of the complexities of employment law.'

Legal 500 EMEA - Employment

'Maisa has a strong understanding of our industry and the global enterprise landscape.'

Chambers Europe 2023 - Employment

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Transition period for post-employment non-competition restrictions ends on 31 December 2022

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Changes to employees’ non-competition restrictions from 1 January 2022

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