Iberian Lawyer

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Lisbon Annual Report 2011: Opportunity and strategy

Portugal’s law firms are experiencing challenging times. The downturn is forcing many to adjust their strategy, to align to a changed economy and client demand. But it is prompting new opportunities, notably derived from the Government’s privatisation and legislative reform programmes.

Restructuring and Insolvency Report 2011: Unlocking business finance

Locked bank vaults and a lack of access to working capital is the biggest threat facing Iberian businesses, say Spanish and Portuguese restructuring and insolvency lawyers. Liquidity, or the lack of it in the real economy is a growing concern and driving many otherwise viable companies towards insolvency proceedings.

Energy & Renewables Report 2011: Recharging the energy sector

Many of Spain and Portugal’s largest businesses operate in the energy sector but even they have not gone untouched by the financial downturn. Variable demand, reduced revenues and regulatory uncertainty are prompting energy players to change strategies, say lawyers in Spain. In Portugal, the drivers of change are more acute: the Government’s ongoing privatisation programme. Read more...

M&A and Corporate Report 2011: Unfreezing Iberia’s deal markets

A look at the Iberian deal tables over recent years indicates a dramatic drop-off in M&A activity across Spain and Portugal. The value of completed deals is down to less than a quarter of what it was in 2007, while the volume of deals is around a half on the same period. But the figures tell only part of the story of what is happening in the transactional markets, say lawyers across Iberia.

Madrid Report 2011: Unlocking the practice puzzle

The Madrid legal market is a barometer of the Spanish economy. If the country does well so do the capital’s law firms. Spain may be in many senses federal but the Capital remains the focus of much of the country’s corporate, finance and commercial activity. The city’s law firms are therefore acutely aware of the prevailing economic challenges and looking to adjust their operations accordingly.

Osborne Clarke hires Madrid team

Tuesday, 21 February 2012 12:37

Osborne Clarke in Spain has announced that it is to establish a Madrid practice through the addition of 20 lawyers.

It has recruited five partners and 15 associates from national firm Lener. The partners are David Sequera, Ángel García, Daniel Riopérez, Luis Castro and Rafael Montejo – the latter will be Managing Partner of the Madrid office and was previously Head of Corporate and Commercial and Head of International at Lener.

Osborne Clarke has operated in Spain since 1996 when it added Barcelona firm Dagá Sauret to its Osborne Clarke Alliance. The Spanish firm remains a stand alone entity but which has only however maintained a nominal presence in the Spanish capital for marketing purposes.

Originally established in Bristol in the UK, the last decade has seen Osborne Clarke expand its international network dramatically. In the UK it numbers around 450 lawyers, including 120 partners, but has added Alliance and best friend firms in Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Spain. In addition, the firm maintains an office in Palo Alto in California.

The latest hires reflect the growing ambition of Barcelona-based practices to expand into the Spanish capital, reflecting both a desire to diversify away from the regional Catalan economy and to capitalise on the rise of Madrid as the country’s corporate and legal headquarters. The latest additions bring the number of lawyers at Osborne Clark in Spain to 50, including 11 Partners.

The moves leave Lener with a team of five Partners in Madrid but where it is now looking to promote or recruit an additional three Partners, says the firm.

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