Walkers’ Global Latin America Group provides unmatched expertise and a commitment to excellence that our clients doing business in Latin America have come to rely on. We deliver highly commercial and innovative legal solutions across various practice areas providing a seamless service to clients. The Group covers all of Walkers’ key practices, including Finance & Corporate, Funds, Private Equity, Trusts, Insolvency & Corporate Recovery and Litigation. Clients also receive the additional support of Walkers’ state of the art company management services group, including our innovative Client Portal.
As the ‘International Financial Centre’ law firm of choice, Walkers has long standing relationships with corporations, major financial institutions and onshore law firms either based in, or doing business in, Latin America. Within the firm, we have over 15 professionals that speak Portuguese and/or Spanish, providing significant benefit to clients.
Walkers has advised on a number of high profile transactions in the region, notably the Petrobras Finance Co. US$10 billion (in aggregate) bond issuances effected through a Cayman Islands incorporated financing subsidiary. These debt issuances represent the largest ever corporate bond offerings by a South American company in the international markets.
We have also acted on corporate bond issuances from names such as Votorantim Participações S.A., Globo Comunicacao e Participações S.A. and Fibria Celulose S.A.
The firm has also advised a number of Latin American banks this year in respect of private placement note issuances under DPR programmes and acts for a series of top tier Latin American hedge and private equity fund managers.
Additionally, in 2004 Walkers Partner, Paul Farrell liaised with the Brazilian regulator (CVM), Brazilian lawyers and the Irish Central Bank to facilitate each regulator’s understanding of the other’s regulatory regime, leading to the launch of the first Brazilian promoted Irish fund. Since then Paul has represented Brazilian asset managers and banks establishing Irish funds including Banco do Brasil on the launch of its US$10 billion Irish qualifying investor fund in 2010.
The Group is chaired by Global Chairman, Grant Stein, who possesses a wealth of Latin American experience, supported by a number of senior practice group leaders, partners and specialist regional attorneys.