This news was published by Law.com
ECIJA expects record billing for the region in 2020 after expanding with new offices and hires.
Spanish law firms that have expanded in Latin America over the past year are seeing strong revenue growth in the region despite the pandemic and say the continued spread of COVID-19 has not dented their plans for further expansion in the region.
In fact, two of the firms—ECIJA and Cuatrecasas—say Latin America is key to their international ambitions, which stretch from the Iberian Peninsula to China.
At ECIJA, which derives nearly 34% of its total revenue from Latin America, managing partner Alejandro Touriño predicts that billing in the region could double in 2020. Last year, ECIJA reported global income of €58.7 million ($70.1 million), a 32% increase over 2018.
“Despite the complexity of the year, with all the circumstances around COVID-19, 2020 will also be a year of growth for ECIJA,” Touriño told Law.com International.
This year, ECIJA absorbed Mexican firm Chacón & Rodríguez and entered Brazil and Ecuador. In addition, the Madrid-based firm known for its expertise in technology added partners in Brazil, Costa Rica and El Salvador, and integrated a firm in Guatemala.
The firm now has 62 partners and more than 300 legal professionals in 12 countries in Latin America, including the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico. ECIJA hopes to land in three additional countries—Argentina, Colombia and Peru— in the coming months, Touriño said.
“ECIJA’s expansion plan involves incorporating already formed teams,” explained Touriño. “Our policy is one of absolute economic and managerial independence. We do not send a country manager to each territory controlled from Spain.”
