Corporate/M&A: Mid-Market
Italy
2 years ranked
LAWYER PROFILE
Francesco Portolano
Global 2026
Ranked in 1 practice area
About
Provided by Portolano Cavallo
Practice Areas
Mergers & Acquisitions; Private Equity; Tech Transactions
Career
Francesco’s thirty year experience includes advising on M&A, private equity, and joint ventures. The majority of his work is for foreign (mostly US) strategic buyers acquiring Italian companies, mostly in the digital, media and technology sectors, including devising and negotiating complex corporate structures to tackle issues such as foreign control restrictions, regulatory approvals and constraints, cross-media ownership, etc.
In the 2012 Financial Times Law 50 report Francesco was ranked among the “top 10 legal innovators in Europe”. According to the report Francesco “leads ‘a team of lawyers who refuse to be limited to inside-the-box thinking’ [and] tackled each challenge with deep insight and a tireless fascination for innovative approaches, with the sort of dynamic legal skill set one rarely sees in Italian media counsel”.
He is Academic Fellow (professore a contratto) of “M&A in the Digital Media” with the LLM in Law of Internet Technology at Bocconi Law School in Milan. He was a member of the Technical Staff of the Ministry of Communications in 2006/2007, focusing on corporate issues in the TMT sector.
Chambers Review
Provided by Chambers
Chambers Global Guide
Corporate/M&A: Mid-Market - Italy
Band 4
Individual Editorial
Francesco Portolano is an adept lawyer who often assists clients with regulatory matters and sales. His practice also includes acquisitions and establishment of joint ventures.
Strengths
Provided by Chambers
Francesco Portolano makes his clients feel at ease from the first meeting and conveying the sense that with him, they can truly achieve the desired result.
Corporate/M&A: Mid-MarketChambers Global GuideHis solid and comprehensive training, combined with remarkable clarity of presentation, allows him to address even the most complex issues with clarity, without losing sight of the client's needs.
Corporate/M&A: Mid-MarketChambers Global Guide
Ranked Individuals at Portolano Cavallo (6)
Italy
Francesco Portolano
Corporate/M&A: Mid-Market
View profile 
Luca Gambini
Corporate/M&A: Mid-Market
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Gianpaolo Scandone
Corporate/M&A: Mid-Market
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Ginevra Sforza
Corporate/M&A: Mid-Market
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Martina Lucenti
Litigation: Highly Regarded
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Micael Montinari
Litigation: Highly Regarded
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