Guyer & Regules

Co-Chairs: Nicolás Piaggio and Nicolás Juan
Number of partners worldwide: 18
Number of lawyers worldwide: 95

Firm Overview:
Guyer & Regules is considered Uruguay’s blue-chip firm and the first choice for international and domestic complex legal, accounting and tax work. Such reputation is grounded on the largest group of the most experienced partners in the country, who lead a solid team of internationally trained professionals with experts in every field of business law, and promote a culture of innovation within the firm. Guyer & Regules is proud to have been consistently recognised as “Uruguayan Law Firm of the Year” for nine years and the first and only Uruguayan firm recognised as “Latin America Law firm of the Year” by Chambers and Partners.

Performing with excellence, expertise, value, responsiveness, creativity and consistency, is not enough. At Guyer & Regules we strive to grow our capacity to develop strong and mutually rewarding personal working relationships with the people who work at the institutions we serve. We help them serve their institutions – our clients – better. And those special personal working relationships are what enable us to leverage all those other qualities they expect from a top firm. The Guyer way of serving also implies embracing diversity, cultivating inclusion and promoting environmental stewardship. We have a strong vocation for service rooted in our DNA and this is reflected in our long history providing pro bono with the level of excellence that defines Guyer & Regules. As a result of this, in 2023 we were recognised as Pro Bono Firm of the Year by Latin Lawyer.

Main Areas of Practice:

Banking & Finance:
Guyer & Regules’ leadership is undisputed advising 66% of the private banks active in Uruguay and two out of three large private pension fund managers. It has also been the only Uruguayan firm in the past 30 years in Uruguayan sovereign debt deals.

Corporate, M&A:
As Chambers and Partners states, Guyer & Regules “continues to set the pace in the corporate sphere”, having participated in 76% of the most important M&A operations in Uruguay in 2022 and representing 70% of the main exporting companies in Uruguay.

Tax & Accounting:
It is by far the most senior team on the market, formed by lawyers and CPAs, which allows for greater depth and breadth on tax matters. As Chambers & Partners states, “Guyer lawyers are sensible, commercial, switched-on and thorough in their approach” “The firm is always excellent in providing the services from a technical and practical perspective. They are very practical tax advisers.”

Real Estate:
By far the largest and most experienced team in the country, recognized by Chambers Latin America as a “market-leading department with a deep bench of seasoned professionals offering long-standing expertise in this practice area”. This practice has a very strong presence in REITs, housing, tourism and residential developments, industrial sites, agribusiness and forestry investments.

Litigation & Arbitration:
Guyer & Regules has a dedicated, strong and successful litigation team with a “solid reputation” as Chambers Latin America states. It specializes in complex civil and commercial litigation and arbitration, domestic and international. Guyer & Regules’ litigation and arbitration professionals have broad experience dealing with all types of disputes, ranging from banking litigation, corporate disputes, breaches of contract actions, to domestic and international arbitration disputes.

Labour:
The team excels for its services both in advisory and litigious labour matters. “The lawyers have deep technical knowledge, are committed to the client and stay up to date regarding changes in the law” as Chambers Latin America reviews. Its lawyers have represented all of the Uruguayan financial entities in the salary collective bargaining agreement negotiations with the banking union and the government, as well as the Chamber of Insurance Companies.

Projects & Energy:
The projects and energy team is the largest of its kind in Uruguay and the market leader. The firm’s compact, top-notch team is a solid pick for even the most complex of deals. Guyer & Regules is “highly sought after to advise on the full range of energy and natural resources matters”, as Chambers & Partners states, with an impressive market share of infrastructure, renewable and oil and gas transactions. The firm’s excellent and reputable team has advised clients spanning the entire industry, from the developers behind Uruguay’s first solar and wind projects to the major oil and gas companies. In the infrastructure field, the firm’s professionals have assisted sponsors and also financial entities in several projects.

International Work:
Internationally renowned Lex Mundi, World Services Group, World Law Group, Interlex, Club de Abogados and Interlaw, selected the firm as their sole Uruguayan member, thus ensuring immediate access to the best lawyers worldwide and enabling the firm to reach and provide global services.

Clients:
Guyer & Regules’ clientele includes many market leaders in every sector of the economy. Some representative clients are: ADT, Avon, Bank of America, Banco Itaú, BBVA, Banque Heritage, Baxter International, Boskalis International, BG, Cargill, Chevron Texaco, Citibank, DEG, Deutsche Bank, EDC, Emirates, FMO, Gol, Hilton, HSBC, IDB, Jazz Air, Johnson & Johnson, JP Morgan Chase, L’Oreal, Louis Dreyfus, Louis Vuitton, Metropolitan Life, Minerva, Morgan Stanley, Nissan, Petrobras, Philip Morris, Renault, Roche, Royal & Sun Alliance, Sabre, Scotiabank, Stora Enso, Techint, Telefónica, Telesat Canada, Total, Tullow, Unilever, Volvo.