A.L.F.A. Associated Legal & Fiscal Advisors

Number of partners: 2
Number of lawyers: 5
Languages: English, French, Italian, Dutch

Firm Overview:
A.L.F.A MONACO has been advising for 20 years on a broad spectrum of corporate/commercial tax matters including cross-border activities, compliance, AML, project financing, M&A, employment, debt financing, restructuring, licensing, data protection and insurance. The firm has also developed a banking and financial activities niche. It represents local banks and financial services firms on all aspects of their activities, and international banks on their PWIM activities, and their financing of real estate and commercial transactions including regulatory issues, loan agreements, pledges and other collateral.

The team is composed of key local players with in depth insight into the workings of the unique administrative environment and of internationally qualified lawyers who have previously practiced in major global law firms. It regularly advises a wide range of foreign entities on the Monegasque aspects of their affairs and has a track record for delivering seamless expeditious services as local correspondent to major international law firms.

A.L.F.A MONACO’s clientele is primarily first-class multinational investment firms, family offices, financial data providers, credit institutions, payment and electronic money institutions, local and foreign entities in the luxury, food, hospitality, manufacturing, art, real estate and maritime industries as well as high net worth individuals and major insurance companies.

Main Areas of Practice:
Banking & Financial Activities
Commercial & Contracts
Company Law & Legal Secretarial Services
Insurance
Data Protection
Employment
Tax Law

Banking & Finance:
■ Advising on the financing of the acquisition of a foreign company for over 250,000,000 €
■ Assistance in respect of the financing of local entities including the drafting of financial documentation and the production of legal opinion on the capacity to enter into cross border financial agreement
■ Representation of several incorporated brokerage and investment advice services providers under Law n°1.338 on financial activities
■ Production of legal opinions for credit institutions on the validity and enforceability under Monegasque law of netting provisions contained in the 1992 ISDA Multicurrency-Cross Border Agreement, in the 2002 ISDA Master Agreement, including with a specific type of Monaco counterparty and in FOA/FIA Agreements
■ Production of legal opinions for credit institutions on the validity and enforceability of agreements under Monegasque law: 1994 AFB Master Agreement, 2001 and 2007 FBF Master Agreements, ISDA 1992 Local Currency-Single Jurisdiction Master Agreement

Corporate/M&A:
■ Advising on indirect takeover of one of Monaco’s leading companies in the maritime sector
■ Representation of foreign investors acquiring shares of Monaco companies in the context of international acquisitions in all legal and tax respect of the transaction (due diligence, structuration, transfer of ownership, closing and any ensuing collective dismissal plan and change of management
■ Assistance and advice in respect of the incorporation of local entities
■ Agreements on client referrals, sale and purchase, purchase options, joint ventures, share pledges, portfolio management, intra-group loans, escrow and settlement agreements
■ Local correspondent to magic circle law firms on multi-million dollar multi-jurisdictional transactions

Insurance:
■ Assistance to numerous international insurance companies on the European restructuring of their insurance activities and the consequences for their Monaco activities, particularly post-Brexit change of SE registered office
■ Assistance with authorisations for local branch offices

Data Protection:
■ Assistance with data protection issues in particular the impact of the GDPR Monaco and mandatory filings with the local regulatory body (CCIN)
■ Author of the Monaco chapter on Data Protection Laws of the World published by Sweet & Maxwell Thompson Reuters

Employment:
■ Drafting template employment agreements and collective negotiation for a leading luxury French fashion brand of its collective remuneration package and negotiation of a settlement agreement further to a dismissal process