Egotistical lawyers can jeopardise the success of M&A deals – RLD

M&A lawyers must accept that the success of a deal depends on professionals from different sectors working well together and therefore they must not behave in an egotistical manner, says Rafael López-Diéguez Gamoneda, managing partner of RLD in Madrid.

 “The biggest challenges for law firms are how to deliver the human element with a high degree of professionalism, experience and the capacity for leadership.”  
López-Diéguez Gamoneda says that, as companies and family offices seek to expand their businesses, there is demand for tailor-made global services from M&A lawyers. “This, in addition to having an international structure and capacity, is where a law firm, regardless of its size, will make the difference compared to other firms,” he adds. However, López-Diéguez Gamoneda notes that while there are a lot of good M&A lawyers in the market, there are others with “big egos” that ultimately jeopardise the success of deals. “The M&A lawyer is in many cases a kind of ‘company confessor’, a person to whom you will have to tell absolutely everything about the company, in order for them to achieve the best results [for the company],” he says. “Sometimes, we see how these egos are the reason why deals do not succeed.” Consequently, López-Diéguez Gamoneda says the key to providing effective legal advice is not only understanding the complexity of the transaction, but also having the experience and the specialism to understand that the deal’s success depends on the input of many different professionals. He adds: “An M&A deal is made of several professionals who have to work together, and lawyers normally lead the process. However, this doesn’t mean other parties are worth less – they are all equally important and necessary in order to obtain the best results.”