DLA announces Mexican merger
DLA Piper has announced it will merge with Mexican firm Gallastegui y Lozano (GyL).
The new merged entity – which has 23 lawyers – will be called DLA Piper Gallastegui y Lozano.
As a result of the merger, DLA Piper will gain seven partners, but lose three others to Baker & McKenzie´s Mexico office.
The GyL partners joining DLA Piper are: Eduardo Gallastegui (business, telecommunications, pharmaceuticals and M&A); Gerardo Lozano (banking, finance, arbitration and maritime law); Maria Eugenia Rios (M&A, corporate, real estate and finance); Jorge Benejam (M&A, healthcare, corporate and banking); Gabriela Alaña (real estate and finance); Marcelo Palamo (energy, oil and gas); and Cecilia Azar (arbitration and alternative dispute resolution).
The three partners leaving DLA Piper for Baker & McKenzie are: Carlos Valencia (M&A); Miguel B. de Erice (infrastructure projects); and Tatana Escribano (M&A).
Juan Picón, managing director of Europe and the Middle East at DLA Piper and senior partner of the firm´s Madrid office, said that the merger would “bring forth new opportunities to broaden the variety of services we offer our clients in South America”.
He added: “This change of structure in Latin America is, for clear reasons, something to which the Madrid office feels especially close, and it will allow us to accompany our clients in a market that has great potential.”
DLA Piper opened its Mexico City office in 2012, following its expansion into Venezuela through DLA Interjuris Abogados in Caracas, and its cooperation agreement with Campos Mello Advogados in Brazil.
“We’re thrilled about our combination with this skilled team of lawyers,” said Manuel Rajunov, managing partner of DLA Piper’s Mexico City office. “They are a well-regarded and high-profile group that will provide important skill sets in an increasingly dynamic and important market.”
“DLA Piper’s strategic decision to enhance their service offering in Latin America, presented a very exciting proposition to us and will create strong and long-term value for our clients,” said Gallastegui. “As a consequence of the interesting business opportunities to arise due to the strategic structural reforms recently enacted in our country, we’re looking forward to working together and making this combination a unique model for the practice of law in Mexico.”
Commenting on the arrival of the three partners from DLA Piper, Andrés Ochoa-Bünsow, Baker & McKenzie´s Mexico managing partner, said: “The integration of this team into Baker & McKenzie is part of our growth and development strategy, which we have been steadily driving in recent years, and responds to our commitment to offering value-added services to clients through highly qualified and experienced professionals in the practices the market demands.”
