WWL are proud to highlight six outstanding firms for their impressive roster of market leading practitioners.
Uría Menéndez
Uría Menéndez demonstrates its prowess as a market-leading full-service firm, entering a total of 90 listings in 25 different practice area chapters. The firm offers expansive global coverage for clients, with 12 offices spread across Europe and the Americas.
The firm excels in corporate law matters, achieving an impressive 13 listings in our M&A and corporate governance chapters. Six practitioners are recognised in our corporate tax chapter for their significant experience handling contentious and non-contentious matters for an array of domestic and international clients.
The firm’s full-service offering is further demonstrated by its plethora of nominations in our life sciences and environment chapters, along with its exceptional competition practice which sees eight individuals highlighted for their expertise in the field.
Standout names include Global Elite Thought Leader Juan Ignacio González Ruiz, who is renowned for his market-leading energy practice. Carlos de Miguel is distinguished by his encyclopaedic understanding of environmental law, and Pedro Ferreira Malaquias is esteemed for his in-depth knowledge of banking regulations and securities law. Tania Luisa Faria and Patricia Vidal are go-to competition lawyers, while Filipe Romão and Guillermo Canalejo are key figures in the corporate tax space. Duarte Garin is commended for his first-rate expertise in real estate restructuring matters and Christian Hoedl earns plaudits for his M&A and private equity focus.
Cuatrecasas
With footholds across the Iberian and Latin American markets, Cuatrecasas stands out as a go-to full-service firm with a strong global outreach. The firm achieves a grand total of 71 listings across 23 practice area chapters in this year’s research.
Cuatrecasas establishes itself as a first-tier firm for tax planning and wealth structuring matters, with an impressive 18 listings in our corporate tax and private client chapters.
The firm’s exceptional disputes teams are also highlighted in our research this year, with six practitioners recognised in our arbitration and litigation chapters.
Another area in which the firm excels is labour, employment and benefits with a total of 12 listings across our two corresponding chapters. These individuals are noted for their expertise across the full range of contentious and non-contentious matters.
Key individuals include Global Elite Thought Leaders Antonio Barba and Sonia Velasco, who come highly esteemed for their expertise in international tax law. Fedra Valencia is revered for her exceptional work on corporate restructuring and insolvency matters, while Alfonso Iglesia maintains a strong reputation in the construction field. Juan Bonilla is a renowned employment law specialist and Paulo de Sá e Cunha is highlighted as a top-choice for white-collar disputes.
Garrigues
Garrigues is a full-service international powerhouse with offices across Iberia, along with footholds throughout Europe, Asia, North Africa and the Americas. The breadth of the firm’s expertise is illustrated by its 44 nominations across 19 practice area chapters in this year’s research.
The firm excels in the labour, employment and benefits space, with an impressive ten listings in our corresponding chapters. These individuals stand out for their excellence in an array of matters including contract negotiations, corporate restructurings and renumeration issues.
Corporate finance is a core strength of the firm, with a total of 13 listings spanning our M&A, corporate governance and corporate tax chapters.
The firm is home to several exceptional lawyers including José Ramón Morales, who is noted for his expertise in IT law. Fernando Castro Silva is revered for his work on contentious and non-contentious corporate tax issues, while Adrián Thery Martí earns acclaim as a top-tier restructuring and insolvency specialist. Joâo Paulo Miranda de Sousa is highlighted for his IP know-how and Rafael Giménez-Arnau is widely regarded as a go-to employment lawyer. Susana Cabrera Zaragoza maintains a fine reputation for her competition practice which covers merger clearance issues, cartel investigations and abuse of dominance cases.
Morais Leitão
Top-tier business law firm Morais Leitão enjoys a strong position in the Iberian market. This is reflected in our research this year with the firm earning 38 listings across 17 practice area chapters, demonstrating its full-service offering.
The firm performs exceptionally well in our capital markets chapter with a total of six individuals recognised for their outstanding work advising domestic and multinational clients on IPOs, structured finance deals and debt issuances.
Corporate law is an area of real strength for the firm, with six listings across our M&A and corporate governance chapters as well as a further six in our project finance and corporate tax chapters.
The firm’s top-notch energy practice sees four individuals highlighted for their market-leading work on the full spectrum of contentious and non-contentious sector-related matters.
Key players at the firm include corporate tax specialists Francisco de Sousa da Câmara and António Lobo Xavier, who excel at advising clients on tax controversy matters and international tax structuring issues. Tiago Geraldo is noted as a go-to business crime lawyer while Carlos Osório de Castro stands out for his expertise in high-value cross-border M&A transactions and private equity deals.
Full-service law firm VdA is highlighted as a leading light in the Iberian market, achieving an impressive 37 listings across 14 practice area chapters in this inaugural edition.
The firm’s top-tier capital markets practice is recognised in our research, with four individuals singled out for their market-leading work on debt and equity deals and structured finance matters.
VdA demonstrates the strength of its corporate offering with a further four listings in our M&A and corporate governance chapters as well as six listings across our banking and project finance chapters.
Seven lawyers from the firm are recognised in our data chapter for their broad expertise spanning data privacy and protection, cybersecurity, IT, e-commerce and content platforms.
Standout names include Magda Cocco and Margarida Couto, who come highly sought-after by clients in the TMT sector for their expertise in data law. Jorge Bleck is widely regarded as a leading name in the M&A space while Paulo Olavo Cunha is highlighted for his exceptional work on corporate governance matters. João Medeiros is revered for his extensive experience representing corporates in white-collar disputes and Pedro Cassiano Santos is revered for his detailed understanding of complex banking regulations.
Gómez-Acebo & Pombo
Gómez-Acebo & Pombo asserts its top-tier reputation in this inaugural edition with an impressive 35 listings across 21 practice areas. The firm’s nine offices attest to its Iberian and international expertise; with six offices across Spain and Portugal along with footholds in New York, Brussels and London.
The firm’s first-rate corporate offering shines through with an impressive six listings across our M&A and corporate governance chapters, as well as a further three nominations in our corporate tax chapter.
Gómez Acebo & Pombo’s authoritative IP practice is showcased by a total of seven listings across our patents and trademarks chapters. These individuals excel at advising big-name clients on IP disputes, portfolio management issues and transactional matters.
The firm is home to several top-notch lawyers, including Almudena Arpón de Mendívil y Aldama, who is revered for her profound knowledge of data and IT law. Richard Silberstein and Fernando de las Cuevas are seasoned corporate lawyers who come highly recommended for their expertise in cross-border M&A transactions and corporate governance matters. Eduardo Castillo and Jesús Muñoz-Delgado y Mérida are go-to lawyers for patent law issues while Sofía Martínez-Almeida Alejos-Pita is considered an authority on trademark disputes.