Anna Karina Jiménez

Practice Areas

Labour & Employment

Immigration

Personal

Anna Karina is a Senior Partner based in Costa Rica who focuses on employment and labor, and immigration issues. She is also the Dentons Regional Representative for Latin America and the Caribbean, for employment and labor, and immigration matters.

Clients value Anna's ability to provide them useful and cost-saving preventive advice. Driven to provide optimal client service and support in any situation that may arise, she proactively anticipates possible contingencies according to the nature of their business.

A recognized leader within the Firm, Anna also leads and supervises the immigration team, where she advises executives and expatriates on related matters. Her practice also delves into commercial issues, corporate law and intellectual property.

Experience

She regularly handles a range of complex labor and employment legal issues on behalf of international, regional, and local clients in many sectors. Her experience includes:

● Negotiating and drafting employment contracts, internal work regulations, internal policies and employee handbooks

● Advising on employee rights and benefits and legal issues related to contract termination, mergers and acquisitions, hiring, compensation and layoffs

● Conducting internal compliance audits in labor matters

● Providing preventive consultations on employee benefits programs, structuring of bonus and extraordinary compensation programs, and payroll taxes

● Reviewing collective employment contracts and the general aspects of labor unions and employee cooperative (asociaciones solidaristas) laws

● Representing employers in labor litigation and employer administrative processes filed by the Social Security Administration, the National Insurance Institute, and the Ministry of Labor, as well as employee terminations at the Alternative Dispute Resolution Center of the Ministry of Labor

Work Highlights

● International technology company: Providing basic day-to-day labour law advice to ensure the company’s smooth running and good working environment. Also advising on recruiting, disciplinary measures, and different employee programs.

● One of Central America’s largest beachfront development: Advising on dismissal processes and complex litigations.

● One of the largest chemical and fertilizer producers: Providing ongoing day-to-day labor law advice. Also providing legal support with the company´s immigration needs, such as temporary work permits or temporary residency applications, for company executives and their dependents.

● International provider of debt management and recovery solutions: Providing ongoing day-to-day labor advice, including regular assistance with labor litigation.

● Worldwide food company: Providing day-to-day labor law advice. Advised on collective labor litigation (unions).

● Multinational corporation of business consulting, IT, and outsourcing services: Providing ongoing legal advice to the company regarding everyday labor law, payroll, and human resource-related queries.

● Renewable energy development: Participating in the due diligence process of an acquisition. Reviewed the employee contracts and identified the non-compliance issues for our client to consider when negotiating with the seller. Also assisted in confirming compliance with the immigration matters applicable to foreign employees working for the company; reviewed internal policies and advised the client on statutory labor regulations.

● World leaders in the manufacture of solutions for domestic and professional use: Advising on the termination procedure of a key high level employee who had worked at the company for fifteen years and recommended the best approach to avoid the executive from filing a complaint at the Social Security Administration (CCSS).

● International container shipping and ocean freight provider: Advising on how to close down a company division and how to terminate employees belonging to protected groups.

● Global healthcare company: Advising on day-to-day labor law and human resource-related queries/concerns; coordinating regional (Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Panama and the Caribbean) queries and legal opinions; and providing periodical training to company staff. Provide preventive advice to help reduce time and costs spent on litigation, as well as assisting with litigation matters once they arise.

● Global life sciences company: Advising the company regarding day-to-day labor law and human resource-related queries/concerns. Provided precautionary advice to help this client avoid cost and time spent on litigation, as well as assisting with litigation needs. Provide ongoing trainings on labor issues.

● Multinational pharmaceutical and life sciences company: Representing the client in conciliation proceedings before the Social Security and Ministry of Labor. Go-to counsel when disputes arise between our client and former or current employee with grievances. We also advise them regarding day-to-day labor law and human resource- related queries and concerns.

● Industrial company: Advising on the total termination of their personnel due to disposal of assets. Negotiated 136 mutual agreements and calculated exit packages according to employee seniority.

● Beverage company: Labor due diligence, revision of all labor contracts, employee benefits, disputes and litigation analysis, collective labor agreements, social security payroll, professional risk claims, severance plan, in kind salaries, company work regulations, trade unions, and evaluation of operational risks for the acquisition of a Panamanian Dairy and Beverages producer and marketer with over 50 years of local market leadership.

● American coffee company´s agronomy center: Advising on labor law matters arising from the company’s due diligence before acquiring its first global coffee plantation. Specific advice included recommendations related to staff being transferred to a new employer, existing employment agreements, housing policies, internal policies, and on the treatment of current benefits granted to certain employees. We supported the client in communications with local staff. After Closing, advised the client on day-to-day labor law queries. These included specific negotiations at the Ministry of Labor with some employees who were leaving the company and advice on the process of depositing severance payments to the spouse of an employee who had passed away at work. Consequently, constant preventive advice has enabled the client to avoid costly and lengthy litigation.

● Multinational banking and financial services corporation: Advising on the closing of its Costa Rican operations. From the outset this included, through a town hall meeting, the process of communicating the closing to all its employees. Subsequently, advised the client on both general and specific labor terminations regarding employees with special protection (e.g. pregnant and nursing employees, and employees on sick leave); Advised on the approach that the client should follow both with the company employee association (“asociación solidarista”) and with the Ministry of Labor inspectors who, on occasions, visited the site; Supported the company and the Ministry of Labor in outplacement and job fair efforts to ensure a smooth transition of all employees to new jobs or entrepreneurship ventures

Expert in these Jurisdictions

Central America

Professional Memberships

Anna is the former chair of the Human Talent Committee of the Costa Rican-American Chamber of Commerce (AMCHAM) and a former AMCHAM representative at the Private Sector Companies Federation (UCCAEP). She has acted as counsel for the Parliament of Costa Rica, where she participated in negotiating and drafting Costa Rican legislation on matters of international trade, banking and finance law, and promoting competition. She has also worked as advisor for the Parliament on the Economic Affairs Committee, Legal Affairs. Committee, and International Trade Committee.

Languages Spoken

Spanish

English

French

Education