Eduardo Peñacoba

Practice Areas

Eduardo is the Country Head in Spain as well as heading up the Employment practice of Simmons & Simmons in Spain, advising on both contentious and non-contentious employment issues. He specialises in advising on cross-border transactions, including issues raised in mergers, acquisitions, divestitures and integrations, as well as major international projects, such as restructurings and outsourcing. This includes collective employment issues such as collective bargaining, works council elections, the structure and organisation of European works councils and negotiations linked to reductions in the work force and collective transfers.

Eduardo advises a wide range of clients from start-up companies to multinational corporations across all of the firm’s core sectors (Financial Institutions, Asset Management and Investment Funds, TMT and with special focus in, Life Sciences and the pharmaceutical industry).

Eduardo provides expert employment advice to domestic and international clients in all sectors. He advises on all matters within the Employment Law arena, including negotiations, judicial proceedings at every level of the Spanish courts, executive appointments and exits, employee benefits, pension and remuneration schemes, collective bargaining and company agreements, corporate restructuring processes, among others. He offers innovative solutions to the multiple labour situations his clients face when conducting business. His involvement has been key to major companies on the Iberian Peninsula and he has participated in some of the most strategic, complex and high-profile cases involving large company restructurings and employment court proceedings.

He is a leading practitioner included in the most renowned legal directories. Particularly, he offers experience in the labour aspects of corporate restructuring and M&A, with notable expertise in the life sciences sector. He also advises on contentious claims relating to dismissals. Clients highlight that Eduardo is "very pragmatic in providing solutions, with great negotiation skills" (Chambers 2018). Clients also appreciate that he "understands the needs of the client´s business and gives the best solution possible" and that "he adapts very easily to different situations" (Chambers Europe 2017). Specialising in acting for financial institutions, "Simmons & Simmons is particularly active in multi-jurisdictional matters across the sector. Specialist in cross-border employment matters Eduardo Peñacoba leads a team” (Legal 500 2018).

Eduardo Peñacoba is a recurrent lecturer in leading business schools, and usually participates as a lecturer and teacher in different courses and conferences about Employment Law.

Eduardo joined Simmons & Simmons as a partner in 2013. Previously, he was a partner at a leading international law firm practicing in its Barcelona, Chicago and Palo Alto (San Francisco) offices, during his stay in the US he focused on cross-border and multi-jurisdictional advice. Eduardo is a member of the Madrid Bar Association.