Pérez-Llorca forms Iberia-Latam team in Mexico
Pérez-Llorca has established an Iberia-Latam team headquartered in Mexico City, as the firm responds to a growing volume of transactions and mandates spanning Iberia, Mexico and other Latin American markets. The initiative places Alfredo Lafita, a Corporate/M&A partner, in the newly created role of Senior Vice President Iberia-Latam, relocating from Madrid to the Mexican capital on a long-term basis.
Team structure and relocations
Alongside Lafita, Gonzalo Sánchez-Quiñones, recently named partner in Corporate/M&A after more than 11 years at the Madrid office, will also move to Mexico City. Six additional Spanish lawyers specializing in Insurance, Corporate/M&A, Real Estate and International Litigation and Arbitration will join the Iberia-Latam team to support coordination of multijurisdictional matters, adding to the more than 200 professionals the firm already has across Mexico City and Monterrey. The new unit is designed to strengthen advice on matters originating in Iberia and Europe destined for Mexico and Latin America, while also supporting Mexican corporate clients and family offices that work with Pérez-Llorca on operations in Iberia and other European markets.
The team will back the development of the Mexico practice led by Country Chair Jorge Mondragón, as well as the link between Iberia and Latin America that has become central to the firm following the internationalization process led by Iván Delgado from New York.
Strategic rationale and Project Scala
The move is part of Project Scala, through which Pérez-Llorca aims to capitalize on its internationalization process, consolidate an integrated Ibero-American legal platform, strengthen coordination in advising multijurisdictional clients, and encourage mobility of partners and lawyers along with international career development within the firm.
The initiative responds to the growing level of business integration between Mexico and Europe, reinforced in May 2026 with the signing of the Modernized Global Agreement between the European Union and Mexico and the Interim Trade Agreement, which establish a new framework to deepen trade and investment relations. Spain holds a notable position in these flows: according to the latest data from Mexico’s Secretariat of Economy, Spain was the second-largest source of foreign direct investment in Mexico during the first half of 2026, behind only the United States, with 4.954 billion dollars, representing 14.2% of the total received. In the opposite direction, ICEX ranks Mexico as the sixth-largest investor in Spain and the third from outside the European Union, trailing only the United States and the United Kingdom.
The business relationship between Mexico and Europe is going through a particularly relevant moment, with a well-established presence of European companies in Mexico and growing interest from Mexican groups in Spain and other European markets, Lafita said. The Iberia-Latam team strengthens the firm’s capabilities on both sides of the Atlantic, responds to the growing volume of work between the two regions, and connects the firm’s teams and knowledge more directly to accompany clients from the place where they make and execute their investment decisions, he added.
Governance and leadership
Pedro Pérez-Llorca, Managing Partner of the firm, will return to Madrid at the end of 2026 as scheduled, after completing a one-year period based in Mexico City. He will remain closely linked to the Mexican practice from Madrid, with temporary stays in Mexico. My year in Mexico allowed me to learn firsthand about the possibilities of the Mexican market, the challenges and plans of our clients, and the potential of our local talent, Pérez-Llorca said, adding that he is proud of the team in Mexico and what they are achieving.
Beyond Lafita‘s appointment as Senior Vice President Iberia-Latam, the firm’s governance structure remains unchanged, continuing to be organized around the International Partnership Board, with Pedro Pérez-Llorca as Managing Partner, Julio Lujambio as Executive Partner and Iván Delgado as International Executive Partner, together with the Country Chairs for each jurisdiction: Jorge Mondragón in Mexico, Mauricio Piñeros in Colombia and Luis Miranda in Peru.
