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Duane Morris Enters Latin America With Mexico City Alliance
By Gina Passarella
June 21, 2011
The Legal Intelligencer
When Duane Morris partner Eduardo Ramos-Gómez finished helping his firm ink the final version of a joint venture agreement withSingapore-based Selvam to form Duane Morris & Selvam Jan. 1, he urged the firm to turn its attention on international growth to Mexico — and specifically a 15-lawyer Mexico City firm, Miranda & Estavillo.
The selection wasn't arbitrary. After all, before joining Duane Morris, Ramos-Gómez was Mexico's ambassador to Singapore. From 1980 to 1984, he was an associate at Miranda & Estavillo, a firm he introduced to Duane Morris when he joined in 2004. After a few years of a relationship Duane Morris Chairman John Soroko described as one of friendship, resources and referrals, the two firms have now decided to make it more official, formalizing a cooperative relationship or alliance.
"We had in New York this unique asset," Soroko said of Ramos-Gómez. "If you don't leverage the connections of the partners in your firm, you're missing the boat, I think."
The two firms spoke for a few months earlier this year and met in Philadelphia in May to finalize some details. The affiliation became effective May 19. As many firms eye Brazil, Duane Morris becomes the first Pennsylvania-based firm to enter Latin America in any significant way. While the firm already does work in Brazil from its U.S. offices and could eventually end up there, Soroko said there are no immediate plans for a Brazilian office.
The Mexico City deal isn't as formal as the one signed in Singapore, but could lead to something more down the line, Soroko said. It is similar in strategy, however, in that Duane Morris has marked this decade as one for international growth but wants to achieve that goal initially by avoiding the cost of wholesale acquisitions.
These types of alliances and joint ventures are more scalable and cost-effective, Soroko said, but they still allow the firm to expand its services and brand in a "smart and effective" way.
Unlike Singapore, where there is a joint practice, the Mexico City alliance will include sharing fees on common clients, of which Soroko said there are several; publishing information about the other firm on each firm's website; and having partners of the two firms join together for firm meetings and events, he said.
Miranda & Estavillo is a full-service firm whose practice areas range from corporate and real estate to intellectual property and pharmaceutical work. Soroko said that, like Duane Morris, Miranda & Estavillo focuses on generic drug companies as opposed to brand companies. The two firms share investment firms and other commercial entities as clients, Soroko said. Miranda & Estavillo is led by its three partners, Fernando Estavillo, Alejandro Staines and Cristina Sánchez-Urtiz.
Duane Morris has been doing work in Mexico for several years through the less formal relationship and has three Mexican attorneys, including Ramos-Gómez, in its U.S. offices who are both licensed in Mexico and admitted as foreign attorneys in the United States. The Mexican expansion is part of a larger focus Duane Morris has had on Latin America, particularly Brazil.
Unlike many firms that focus that work out of their Miami offices, Duane Morris has a contingent of attorneys in New York who have been representing Brazilian companies in their U.S. commercial activities and helping U.S. clients with their business efforts in Brazil. The firm's Latin America Business Group handles transactional banking, project financing, joint ventures, litigation, insurance, immigration, construction and antitrust work, to name a few areas.
Soroko said the foray into Mexico puts "somewhat of an exclamation mark" on a practice the firm has been pursuing well but quietly.
The deal "reflects our view that Latin America, with its economies that are enjoying growth rates higher than our own, are going to be very significant areas of investment and growth opportunities for U.S. companies," Soroko said.
Aside from New York, and now Mexico City, Duane Morris has a focus on Latin America out of its Washington, D.C., office.
The firm houses as a tenant in its Washington offices think tank and foundation Global Center for Development and Democracy. The organization's executive director, Barry Featherman, is special counsel to Duane Morris. The GCDD is composed of a couple dozen former heads of state and government from around the world with a particular emphasis on developing Latin America.
When Duane Morris entered the joint venture in Singapore, the firm said it could be a back-door way of entering China and other Asian markets. That may end up holding true in Latin America as well when it comes to Brazil. Soroko said he doubts the Mexico alliance would be Duane Morris' last effort in Latin America. But he said the firm is currently doing well in Brazil through a "wide web of referral arrangements" that have built up over time.
While the firm is open to opportunities to have a presence on the ground in Brazil, there are no plans for that yet, he said. That would seem logical in five to 10 years, Soroko said, adding that the same could go for expanding around Singapore.
China is an obvious choice for expansion in Asia, he said, but added that other possibilities include Sri Lanka, Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia. Duane Morris currently handles transactions in those countries for clients out of the Singapore office. He said Sri Lanka is also a gateway to work in India.
The international element of the practice of law is "undeniable" for Am Law 100 firms, Soroko said.
This article originally appeared in The Legal Intelligencer and is republished here with permission from law.com.
