Chambers Latin America – Latin America’s Leading, Lawyer for Business
2013
Ranking
Banking & Finance: Brazil
Velloza & Girotto Advogados Associados
THE FIRM This firm prides itself on providing a tailored service to financial institutions. The team handles a considerable amount of funds work and sources say the firm comes into its own when combining tax and finance work. The firm has recently been advising Rabobank as lead arranger of a syndicate providing finance facilities to sugar, ethanol and energy clients.
THE FIRM “Quick feedback, high levels of client attention, personalised advice and practical solutions.”
KEY INDIVIDUALS
Partner Cesar Amendolara is described as a “business-oriented lawyer with a strong working relationship with the financial authorities.”
Tax: Brazil
Velloza & Girotto Advogados Associados
THE FIRM This corporate firm focuses on finance and tax and is at its best when combining the two. Clients praise the team’s expertise in direct tax and litigation, and especially in structuring transactions. The firm advises numerous financials in regards to structured products and investment funds, including Deutsche Bank, Citibank and Santander.
Sources say: “Up-to-date, quick and efficient lawyers, very knowledgeable about the matters in hand.”
KEY INDIVIDUALS
Rubens José Novakoski Fernandes Velloza comes highly recommended for sophisticated tax work in the finance sector: “He’s one of few in the market who truly understand financial products, derivatives and structures.”
Andrea Nogueira Neves is singled out for her knowledge of direct taxation and private pension law.
Fernanda Junqueira Calazans is a direct tax expert who is “attentive, available and really knows what she’s doing.”
Profile
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Managing Partners: Rubens José Novakoski Fernandes Velloza and Luiz Eduardo de Castilho Girotto
• Senior Partners: 12
• Number of partners: 12
• Number of other lawyers: 57
THE FIRM: Velloza & Girotto is a dynamic and committed law firm engaged in sophisticated national and international practice. Since 1993 the firm provides legal advisory services to the business community in a variety of law practice areas. The diverse client base includes financial institutions, vehicle manufacturers, chemical, pharmaceutical and oil industries, foodstuff retailers and wholesalers, insurance carriers, credit card operators, hotels, construction companies and corporations focused on infrastructure and technology. With head offices in São Paulo, Velloza & Girotto also has branches in Rio de Janeiro and Brasília. Regional correspondents elsewhere ensure client coverage nationwide. Reinforcing the credibility of the firm’s name, Velloza & Girotto is rated among the leading law firms in Brazil by the main world rankings, such as Chambers and Partners, Corporate INTL Magazine Legal Award, Latin Lawyer, Análise Advocacia and others.
MAIN AREAS OF PRACTICE:
Tax: One of the most admired firms in the tax area, Velloza & Girotto has a proven and thorough capability in tax advisory and tax litigation. The firm specialises in consulting services designed to achieve tax efficiency, usually through corporate reorganisation transactions, being frequently sought to participate in sophisticated cross-border tax planning. The firm also deals with tax-related lawsuits and appeals at all levels of administrative and judicial jurisdiction, partaking in important leading cases in Brazilian case law. Additionally, Velloza & Girotto is engaged in analysing international treaties, opinions and arrangements that involve the payment of commissions, interests, dividends, royalties and other sums to companies domiciled abroad or foreign capital companies established in Brazil, in order to avoid double taxation. Integration between the firm and foreign counsels in reconciling different tax systems is one of the firm’s many recognised strengths.
Banking & Finance/Capital Markets: With reliance on nearly two decades of experience defending the interests of companies that operate in the financial sector, Velloza & Girotto assists national and international bank and other financial institutions in structuring and implementing their operations in Brazil, in addition to the creation and regulation of investment funds of all categories. The firm’s banking practice is highly acknowledged for dealing with bonds, financial products, syndicated loans, national and foreign securities issues, derivative transactions, structured finance, equity, fixed-income financial transactions, among others. The firm is also particularly active in advisory to the investment fund industry.
Corporate Law/Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A): The firm has a strong experience in M&A transactions, representing Brazilian and foreign buyers and sellers from a variety of sectors of the economy in domestic and overseas M&A transactions. The firm also advises its clients on the structuring of corporate acquisitions, transformations, mergers, amalgamations, spin-offs and reorganisations of companies in general, and the creation of joint ventures and other arrangements.
Succession / Wealth Planning: Velloza & Girotto has a dedicated team for family wealth succession planning, working in the pursuit of the optimal solution in Brazil or abroad for the protection and continuity of wealth in the client’s family. In this area, the firm advises the clients in connection with pacts, wills, family agreements and governance policies and also assists the incorporation of family holding companies.
INTERNATIONAL WORK: The firm advises the major US, Latin American, European and Asian financial institutions, insurance companies and credit card companies that operate in Brazil, as well as prominent multinational conglomerates in a variety of sectors such as wholesale, automotive, construction, energy, hotel operation and real estate.
LANGUAGES: English, Portuguese and Spanish.
