Cuatrecasas

Firm Details

Chairman: Rafael Fontana

Managing Partner: Jorge Badía

Number of partners: 244

Number of lawyers: 1,200

Languages: Spanish, English, Arabic, Chinese, Dutch, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese, Russian

Firm Overview

Cuatrecasas is a well-established international law firm in Spain, Portugal and Latin America. Through a highly specialized legal teams with extensive knowledge and experience, the firm advises on all areas of business law, offering a sectoral approach and focus on all types of business. It helps clients with the most demanding matters wherever they are based.

In 2020, the firm was honored with the "Law Firm of the Year: Iberia" Award by The Lawyer; and with the “Spanish M&A Legal Advisor of the Year” by Mergermarket, a specialist in M&A intelligence.

Main Areas of Practice

• Banking & Finance
• Capital Markets
• Competition and EU Law
• Corporate and M&A
• Corporate Governance & Compliance
• Energy and Infrastructure
• Litigation and Arbitration
• Employment
• Intellectual Property and Data Protection
• Life Sciences and Healthcare
• Private Client & Wealth Management
• Private Equity and Venture Capital
• Public law
• Real Estate and Town Planning
• Restructuring and Insolvency
• Sports and Entertainment
• Tax
• Technologies & Digital Media
• White Collar Crime & Investigations

Clients and experience

Cuatrecasas has a solid track-record working with leading companies, advising them on their day-to-day activity and on major transactions and well-known litigation proceedings. Last year, the firm advised on the Vinci €4.9 billion acquisition of Cobra; Platinum €3.5 billion acquisition of Urbaser; Naturgy €2.7 billion sale of Compañía General de Electricidad; Bain Capital €1.7 billion acquisition of ITP Aero; and Kensington US$ 1.5 billion first merger SPAC in Spain (Wallbox). The firm also successfully represented in the international arbitration related to the project to build Line 2 of the Lima Metro.

Responsible business

Cuatrecasas incorporates environmental, social and governance (“ESG”) criteria in the service provision and internal management. The firm includes integrity and transparency in its main values. Its Pro Bono Program contributes to rule of law and to access to justice.

Cuatrecasas promotes flexible working, efficiency and a work-family balance. Also, through training, pilot programs and policies, the firm has approved measures aimed at removing obstacles to the promotion of female talent and leadership.

Knowledge and innovation

With over 40 scholars, lawyers and specialists, Cuatrecasas is committed to digital transformation and encourage collective knowledge to provide distinctive, high-value advice. The firm foments an innovation culture applied to the legal activity, which combines training, procedures and technological resources, to ensure greater efficiency.

It uses artificial intelligence apps and file-sharing platforms with clients and promote remote access and open workspaces. Cuatrecasas was the first European firm to create a business startup accelerator and set up an investment vehicle specialized in legaltech startups.

Global capabilities

Spain and Portugal

Cuatrecasas is a leading law firm in Spain and Portugal. A 950-strong team of lawyers in 13 cities in Spain and over 100 in the two major cities in Portugal advise large multinationals, financial institutions and international funds present on the Iberian Peninsula on an ongoing basis and have extensive experience in all types of investment transactions.

Latin America:

The firm presence in the region is structured and coordinated from the Bogotá, Mexico City, Lima and Santiago de Chile offices, where we have over 125 professionals. Thanks to over 20 years of experience in Latin America, it can also provide the coverage needed for all interregional or cross-border transactions, as well as for matters that require efficient coordination among various jurisdictions.

Asia:

The firm advises on investments in China and other countries in the region through our offices in Shanghai and Beijing, and through its China Desk, which consists of Iberian and Chinese lawyers from different offices who assist Chinese clients investing abroad.

London, Brussels and New York:

Through a team of lawyers in London, Cuatrecasas advises multinationals, financial institutions, investors and a wide range of funds on their transactions in Spain, Portugal and Latin America. The firm is also based in Brussels, where it advises on matters regarding the European Union.

The New York office acts as a bridge to Latin America and maintains a close relationship with local teams. This ensures global coverage in North America and Latin America, enabling Cuatrecasas to play a key role in advising international investors in the region.

European network:

In continental Europe, Cuatrecasas built a strong non-exclusive network with leading law firms in their domestic markets (Chiomenti in Italy, Gide in France and Gleiss Lutz in Germany) that enables it to provide clients with a fully integrated service in complex cross-border transactions, international projects and litigation.

Africa

Cuatrecasas has three local teams in Africa: Casablanca (Morocco), Luanda (Angola) and Maputo (Mozambique). In Morocco, it collaborates with the French law firm Gide and, in Angola and Mozambique, it collaborates with leading local law firms. Cuatrecasas has accumulated experience over the many years being active in Africa, particularly in the Portuguese-speaking countries and the countries of North Africa.