Ernesto Álvarez

Practice Areas

Competition & Antitrust

Career

Ernesto became part of the SAI family in 2013 and serves as a Senior Associate in the antitrust team. His focus on competition law has led him to advise clients across various regulated sectors, notably including oil & gas, electricity, digital platforms, finance and railways.

Some highlights of his work include:

- Facilitating significant mergers such as the Walt Disney Company's acquisition of Twenty-First Century Fox, which earned an unconditional clearance from COFECE. With Ernesto's guidance, a structural remedy was negotiated with the IFT without an up-front buyer.

- Advising Tenaris on its vertical integration through the strategic acquisition of MATTR's worldwide pipeline coating business.

- Assisting in America Movil's acquisition of MVS’s spectrum in the 2.5 GHz band, a move that strategically positioned Telcel in the 5G service landscape in Mexico.

Ernesto has been a trusted consultant in numerous cartel investigations, with areas spanning from Mexican government bonds to petrol and consumer goods.

His commitment to the field has resulted in notable milestones. He played a role in obtaining Mexico's initial “leniency-plus” benefit from the competition authority and spearheaded an amparo trial leading to the important recognition of Attorney-Client Privilege in antitrust matters by the Mexican Courts. Reflecting his accomplishments by clients and peers, he was shortlisted by Legal 500 as a Rising Star of the Year in 2024.

Having achieved an LLM in Competition Law with Distinction from King’s College London and a B.A. in law from Centro de Investigación y Docencia Económicas (“CIDE”), Ernesto brings both academic rigor and practical wisdom to his work. Before SAI, he was involved in a Human Rights Clinic, advocating cases at the Mexican Supreme Court.

His insights can also be found in various reports and articles for platforms like the International Law Office, Getting the Deal Through, and Abogado Corporativo.