Tomasello y Weitz

Tomasello & Weitz is one of the most important Law Firms in Chile mainly dedicated to international trade, maritime transport and, in general, corporate consultancy.

Tomasello & Weitz Law Firm provides their expert services to their clients not only in the maritime field, but also in commercial, contract, corporate, labour, real estate, litigation and arbitration matters.

Tomasello & Weitz is made up of lawyers both in the Metropolitan Region offices as well as in Valparaíso Region and a full support team. It has also created an important national web of correspondent lawyers enabled to provide advisory services and representation in the most important cities and ports in the country.

In the maritime and international trade fields, Tomasello & Weitz provides consultancy to foreign companies related to navigation and maritime commerce, whether they are referred by a P&I Club or they are direct clients. Domestically, the Firm gives consultancy to several shipping companies, forwarding agents, warehouses, ports, insurers, ship agents and stevedore agencies all throughout the country.

Tomasello & Weitz has also extensive experience in corporate consulting and processing of judicial and administrative cases, whether before the Ordinary Judicial Courts, Arbitration Courts and/or Administrative Authorities, and is likewise engaged with important Chilean and foreign companies representing them in civil and commercial, labour and local police lawsuits, especially in retail-related matters.

Tomasello & Weitz is a firm that, in addition to its significant experience in the maritime area, advises its clients on commercial, contractual, corporate, labor, real estate, litigation and arbitration matters.

Maritime and International Trade Area

The Area of Maritime and International Trade includes consultancy services in all matters concerning maritime transport, such as bill of lading and charter party; multimodal freight transport; and passage contract.

Additionally, the Firm has a long history and extensive experience in providing consultancy services to its clients regarding matters such as purchase/sale of vessels and naval artefacts, towage, average, collisions, marine pollution, salvage, maritime insurances and, in general, regarding the other branches of law in connection to Maritime Law.

Also, Tomasello & Weitz represents important shipping companies and port companies, such as maritime terminals, vessel agents and stevedoring agents, in all of its areas of competence, particularly those related to the maritime area, including labour consultancy specialised in special contracts such as those of on board personnel and port employees.

In addition, the Firm provides consultancy services and assistance throughout the entire export and import process of goods and services, especially in regards to the international sale of goods, international payment methods, e-commerce, national and international transport, matters on customs, documentation and linked banks, and, in general, in regards to any commercial, mercantile and banking documentation matters inherent to the international trade.

The Firm has also gained experience in the Port Area, particularly in preparing and drafting of shipment contracts, port operations contracts, analysis and resolution of issues regarding laycan, laytime, immediate dispatch and demurrage and the relation of all of these clauses with the international purchase and sale of goods, charter parties and shipment contract. Likewise, it has the expertise to assist in tasks such as prepare, draft and revise port service manuals and in problems arising from the close relationship between the indicated contracts.

Litigation and Arbitration

The Firm’s Lawsuit and Arbitration Area has a team of specialised and trained lawyers that provides comprehensive consultancy on dispute resolution in maritime, civil, commercial, labour and consumer protection conflicts, as well as in all of our Study areas of competence, whether in proceedings before Ordinary, Special and/or Arbitrary Courts, wherein we handle the interests of national and international companies that develop activities in the public and private sector.

This area is aimed at legally representing the interests of our clients with a high ethical and professional standard in addition to a thorough knowledge of legal matters and the markets to which it provides consultancy. Likewise, our Team is composed of several lawyers, who, along with the active legal practice, develop or have developed academic activities at important Universities in the country, allowing them to keep up-to-date.

The Firm has vast experience in Highly-Complex Disputes, mainly in maritime and marine pollution matters wherein, from its beginning, has been a pioneer in providing consultancy and legal representation in a number of class action lawsuits that also involves handling maritime administrative proceedings.

Additionally, for the past 14 years, the Firm has handled an important portfolio of civil, commercial, labour and local police court disputes, legally representing the interests of an important retail company before many Courts in the country.

Likewise, the Firm has a renown trajectory of handling arbitrary proceedings, both before Ad-Hoc arbitrators and before the Arbitration and Mediation Centre of the Santiago Chamber Commerce.

An important and established network of correspondent lawyers throughout the country allows us to render the best legal services.

Insurance and Reinsurance

The Firm’s Area of Insurance and Reinsurance provides consultancy services in matters relating to (marine and non-marine) Insurance and Reinsurance.

The Firm, renowned in this area, has gained experience throughout the years in consultancy services to foreign reinsurers, as well as to national and foreign reinsurance brokers, and specialised and timely legal advisory in the structuring of insurance and reinsurance products, its regulatory aspects and in the industry’s conflict and disputes resolution.

Ever since the Firm was created, it has used its experience by offering consultancy services to insured parties, insurers, Protection and Indemnity (P&I) Clubs and reinsurers in disputes and lawsuits mainly linked to the maritime and international trade area.