Garrigues

Executive Chairman & Managing Partner: Fernando Vives
Senior Partner: Javier Ybañez
Number of partners worldwide: 326
Number of lawyers worldwide: 1375

Firm Overview:
Garrigues is a full-service, independent law firm. Based in Spain (18 offices), and in 12 countries (four of them in Latin America) it excels in virtually every area of practice. Its integrated approach allows the firm to provide clients with a full perspective combining transactional, regulatory and tax implications in every assignment. In 2013 Garrigues launched an ambitious strategy in Latin America to establish its own network of local law offices. The firm takes the view that having its own presence on the ground and practicing local law, is the only way to evolve in the region and preserve its culture, quality levels and other institutional elements. Since then, the firm opened its offices in Bogotá, Lima, Mexico City and Santiago.

Main Areas of Practice:

Corporate & M&A:
■ The corporate and M&A department comprises professionals who provide specialised and comprehensive advice on all of the corporate and M&A practice areas. The firm applies in Latin America the experience it has obtained from its leading role in the evolution of Spanish and Portuguese corporate and commercial law over recent decades where it has been involved in the most important, most complex and largest transactions in the Iberian market
■ Multidisciplinary focus and advice on M&A deals, bringing added value to its clients
■ The firm advises on acquisition processes of all types of companies, planning and implementation of mergers and spin-offs, private equity, joint venture agreements and strategic alliances, tender offers or public to private processes

Capital Markets, Banking & Finance:
■ In banking and finance, Garrigues advises on general finance, project finance, acquisition finance, asset finance and distressed debt trading, as well as on capital market transactions (IPOs, flotations, debt issues, hybrid securities, securitisations)
■ On the regulatory side, the firm has a strong expertise in the design of banking products and on the regulation of financial institutions (banks and investment services companies)Regulated Sectors:
■ Garrigues has a strong expertise on regulated sectors and has participated in many deals on the energy, IT and telecommunication and media sectorsTax:
■ The firm is particularly active in LatAm investments of different multinationals, especially within recent years as a response of the current economic development of this area. The size of its department allows the firm’s professionals to be truly specialised in practice areas (tax litigation, transfer pricing, M&A transactions, international taxation, indirect taxes, corporate income taxes, etc.) and industries with a client-oriented focus, taking an independent approach rather than offering supplementary support service

Litigation & Arbitration:
■ Garrigues highly regarded for its in-depth industry knowledge, the quality and efficiency of its services and for its ethical commitment, but what it is important to underline is that the firm seeks pragmatic solutions to disputes based on the knowledge of its clients’ business
■ The litigation and arbitration covers two areas of practice in Latin America: (i) civil and commercial litigation and domestic arbitration (institutional and ad hoc) (ii) international arbitration (institutional and ad hoc)Public Law & Infrastructure:
■ Garrigues knowledge in the last decades on the development of Spanish and Portuguese infrastructures is fully applicable to the needs of many Latin American countries. The use of PPP structures and project finance is key for the development of infrastructures in Latin American

Restructuring & Insolvency:
■ Garrigues is highly skilled and has a long-standing tradition in designing and implementing optimal strategies to ensure that business restructuring processes, either operational or financial or a combination of both, achieve their goals; the practice ranges from out of Court refinancing agree ments to the most complex in Court insolvency proceedings with employment and labour law measures. Garrigues also delivers comprehensive advice to lenders and other stakeholdersEmployment:
■ Advice on the full spectrum of companies’ employment issues, such as collective negotiations, restructurings arising from financial entities in distress, reduction of work force and cease of activities due to poor economic and market conditions, advising in the introduction of new businesses including the transfer of employees and major litigations in extremely complex environments with a huge economic impact