Iberian Lawyer’s Forty under 40 Awards recognise the achievements of the new generation of leading lawyers shaping the future of the legal profession. 

Held every year, Iberian Lawyer’s Forty under 40 Awards, honor lawyers across Spain and Portugal under the age of 40. The winners include only lawyers working in private practice. This year, the awards ceremony is being held on 26th September in Espacio Harley (C/Alcalá,182) Madrid – the Ceremony will be followed by a Gala Reception

NEW from 2019 – the Forty under 40 Awards will be per category rewarding 20 individual and 20 team awards per category.

The Jury members will be a group of over 60 General Counsel and Head of Legal. The names are announced here.

Arbitration – Firm
The A&O dispute resolution team is one of the leading practices in Spain and it is very strong in international arbitration. Clients underline team members’ understanding of clients’ expectations and their very proactive approach.

Arbitration – Lawyer
Mercedes Romero – Pérez-Llorca
Co-leader of arbitration team, she specializes in international and domestic arbitration and she is involved in many complex judicial cross-border cases. “She is very collaborative and has the capacity to get into complex matters in a short timeframe

Banking & Finance – Firm
Clifford Chance
Clifford Chance banking & finance team is superbly positioned within both the Spanish and international landscape as a hugely respected borrower-side and lender-side banking practice. They are always involved in the most important and substantial finance project of the year. 

Banking & Finance – Lawyer
Colomina Fernando – Latham & Watkins
Recently appointed partner of the Madrid office, he chairs the Banking & Finance department for Spain: one of the most prominent legal teams of the Spanish finance industry. In 2018 Fernando assisted major domestic and international financial institutions as well as corporations on a number of market-leading financial transactions.

Capital Markets – Firm
Uría Menéndez
Uría Menéndez has extensive experience in Spanish and Portuguese capital markets, and their team of lawyers is capable of undertaking complex transactions with a practical, market-oriented approach.
They are always involved in the most significant transactions in the Iberian market.

Capital Markets – Lawyer
Vera Ferreira Lima – Linklaters Portugal
Vera is a Managing Associate with an extensive experience in the full range of capital markets products. Clients appreciate her pragmatic approach and insightful analysis.

Energy – Firm
CMS Rui Pena & Arnaut
CMS has been a strong presence in the energy sector in Portugal, since its first steps. The team is highly experienced and capable of leading on high-value matters in the energy sector, from transactional and finance deals to regulatory issues.

Energy – Lawyer
Catarina Brito Ferreira – Morais Leitao
In 2018 she has provided legal advice to the most important sector’s companies not only in the context of M&A transactions, but also in public tender bids and energy law regulation.  Praised for her and the sector’s evolution.

EU& Competition – Firm
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer’s team offers unrivalled expertise in international, EU and national competition law matters. Clients recognize them for being a top reference in the field offering a strong understanding of the businesses and viable alternative strategies.

EU& Competition – Lawyer
Joaquin Hervada – Dla Piper
Joaquin Hervada focuses on EC and competition Law. He has a growing reputation in the market and has been pointed out as up-and-coming professional. In the last 12 months he provided advice to the most important telecommunications and energy companies showing “strong client orientation”.

Fintech – Firm
CMS Albiñana & Suárez de Lezo
The team offers a combination of experience, thoroughness and innovation. A perfect mix which enables them to stay one step ahead of market developments and build lasting relationships with clients.

Fintech – Lawyer
Adrián Calvo – Bird & Bird
Adrián Calvo has over 10 years’ experience advising on European and Spanish legal and regulatory issues related to payments and Fintech. In 2018 he provided advice to some of the most relevant banks and companies operating in the finance sector.

Infrastructure and construction – Firm
Vieira de Almeida
With an extensive domestic and international experience in the infrastructure and mobility sectors, Infrastructure and construction team provides in-depth strategic legal expertise throughout the entire project life-cycle, notably supporting clients with project acquisition and operational legal structuring.

Infrastructure and construction – Lawyer
Zara Jamal – Abreu Advogados
Zara Jamal is a highly experienced and highly respected partner at Abreu Advogados and Abreu Advogados’ associate firm in Mozambique. In the 2018 the team led by Jamal was involved in establishment and development of important infrastrctures in Mozambique.

Insolvency & Restructuring – Firm
Garrigues
Garrigues restructuring and insolvency team represents both debtor companies and creditors in insolvency proceedings, including high-profile matters in which creditors challenge liquidation plans. They are praised for their expertise in the field and the excellent quality of their work.

Insolvency & Restructuring – Laywer
Claudio Aguiló Casanova – Andersen Tax & Legal
Professional with a strong reputation specialized in providing advice to companies in distress. He has participated in large-scale bankruptcy proceedings in Catalonia, winning praise from clients for being “very skilled”.

Insurance – Firm
Vieira de Almeida
Insurance team has a vast experience in insurance regulatory and supervision related matters, having worked closely with some of the main market players in these areas. Their extensive experience is reflected in a top-tier team, with a breadth and depth of expertise on complex matters involving the insurance industry.

Insurance – Lawyer

Virginia Martinez – Hogan Lovells
Virginia Martinez is a talented senior associate that leads the insurance and reinsurance regulatory firm area.  In the last 12 months the team led by Virginia was involved in relevant claims against insurers.

IP TMT – Firm
ECIJA
A pre-eminent, highly specialized TMT department showing aptitude across a plethora of mandate and acting on both contentious and non-contentious matters. The team is always “focused and business-oriented”.

IP TMT – Lawyer
Joaquín Muñoz – Ontier
Joaquín Muñoz is a well regarded by IP/IT lawyer focused on IT&Entertainment related matters. In 2018 he advised the most important companis of technology and telecommunication sector and was involved in audiovisual Rights International tenders for important sports events.

Labour – Firm
Sagardoy Abogados
They are an outstanding employment team with strong expertise in company restructuring actions and collective negotiations with trade unions. “They are an absolutely first-class team”.

Labour – Lawyer
Enrique Ceca – Ceca Magán Abogados
He leads the firm’s employment practice and he represents several national and international companies in different business. He is widely respected in the market and he is considered a very talented professional.

Life Science Pharma – Firm
Uría Menéndez
A top Life Science Pharma team who is renowned for its expertise in the pharmaceutical sector, particularly the redesigning of medicine and health product commercialisation policies and protecting his clients’ interests in matters related to medicine financing and prices.

Life Science Pharma – Lawyer
Marta González – Eversheds Sutherland Nicea
Marta is a leading lawyer in the Life Sciences Sector where she had a sky-rocket career. She put in place and currently leads the Eversheds Sutherland Pharma In-House Support Unit that provides support to the legal departments of pharmaceutical companies on pharma consultancy.

Litigation – Firm
Uría Menéndez
Top-tier firm with a leading dispute resolution practice. Very strong in commercial contentious mandates, advising a diverse group of distinguished clients.

Litigation – Lawyer
Javier Castresana – Allen & Overy
Mr. Castresana focuses his practice on financial litigation, especially on restructuring and insolvency litigation. In recent past, Javier was involved in a wide range of restructurings and insolvencies in Spain and abroad. “A brilliant advisor who shows an impressive dedication”.

M&A – Firm
Uría Menéndez
Uría Menéndez offers legal advice of the highest quality, extensive experience in finance and creative solutions. Team’s lawyers are renowned for their expertise in particularly complex transactions and have advised on many important deals in this sector.

M&A – Lawyer
Luis Collado Moreno – Garrigues
A well-regarded experienced lawyer with extensive expertise in Corporate Law. He has a broad experience in mergers and acquisitions. Clients says: “He is extremely reliable and knows the market well”.

Private Equity – Firm
Garrigues
The Garrigues team is one of the most active in the PE sector in Spain. In the last years they have worked for almost all the Spanish Private Equity firms consolidating their leading position in the market.

Private Equity – Lawyer
Luís Roquette Geraldes – Morais Leitão
He is well known for his venture capital expertise notably in tech and life sciences sector. Clients are pleased with his capacity to understand their business and support right decisions.

Public Law – Firm
Clifford Chance
Clifford Chance team is a strong presence in the market. They provide top-quality services in public sector disputes and are praised for their reliability and capacity to provide personalised and effective assistance.

Public Law – Lawyer
Sérgio Alves – PRA – Raposo, Sá Miranda & Associados 
He has a growing reputation in the market and has been pointed out as up-and-coming professional by many sources.  Clients praise him for his “constructive and solution-oriented approach”.

Real Estate – Firm
Clifford Chance
Real Estate team offers a wealth of experience and provides full-service real estate advice. With an impressive track record, the team handles top-end transactions across all areas of the real estate market.  Praised for their “reactivity and availability”.

Real Estate – Lawyer
Francisco Lino Dias – PLMJ
PLMJ’s real estate and construction team is by far the largest Portuguese team working exclusively on real estate and construction matters. A source comments: “They have an impressive roster of clients and are very strong, with deep experience in all real estate transactions”.

Startup – Firm
ECIJA
The firm is a pioneer in Spain in developing the corporate venture capital practice and has substantial experience on both sides of the venture landscape. The firm is highly respected for handling many successful seed capital and start-up transactions in the recent past.

Startup – Lawyer
Javier Bustillo Guzmán – Bustillo Abogados
He is one of the most experienced lawyers in the Iberian market. During the last twelve months, he has been busy advising all types of agents of the entrepreneurial ecosystem on rounds of seed capital, growth capital, exit strategy as well as financing rounds.

Tax – Firm
Deloitte Legal
The team is one of the largest in the market with the capacity to handle the full range of tax matters and the most complex local and cross-border mandates. A source says: ” They have a strong international tax expertise.”

Tax – Lawyer 
Elizabeth Malagelada – Fieldfisher Jausas
She recently joined the firm to Head the Madrid Tax practice at Fieldfisher Jausas.  During 2018, she has provided advice to some of the most relevant banks and insurance companies on their Brexit plans.

White Collar Crime – Firm
Ospina Abogados
A fully focussed corporate crime practice representing both individual and corporate clients from a variety of industries. A client comments: “the firm has excellent lawyers and offers top-tier skills”

White Collar Crime – Lawyer
Ana Rita Duarte Campos – Abreu Advogados
She is one of the most experienced lawyers of this sector in Portugal with great expertise on Economic Crime and Administrative Offences. In the last 12 months she has dealt with many high profile economic criminal cases.