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Representative Clients
Our client base includes private corporations, financial institutions, entrepreneurs, multinational corporations (including Fortune 500 companies) as well as individuals and families. Our clients include Agora Publishing Group, Barceló Hotels, Bisazza North America, Caja Madrid, Caixanova, Caja de
Ahorros del Mediterraneo, Celebrity Cruises, Cooper Tire & Rubber Company, Credit Suisse, Del Monte, ED&F Man Sugar, Ferragamo Latin America, G4S plc (Wackenhut), Grupo San Jose, Harris Corporation, Hershey Foods, HBO Latin America, Marriott International, Ricoh Latin America, Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines, Samsung Electronics, SunTrust Bank and Sony Latin America.
Below are some examples of transactions our lawyers have handled which demonstrate our experience
- Represented several Spanish financial institutions, including Caja Madrid, Caixanova, Caja de Mediterraneos and Banco Popular Español with the
establishment of their offices in the United States and the regulatory approval processes related thereto. We continue to represent many of these same
Spanish financial institutions on an ongoing basis as their U.S. outside general counsel.
- Represented Caja Madrid in a sophisticated and unique US$111,000,000 project finance matter involving the assignment of certain rights under a
construction contract with the State of Florida. The project was modeled after the "Modelo Aleman" (German Finance Method) commonly used in
Europe. The project was the first of its type in the State of Florida.
- Represented Banco de Credito e Inversiones (Chile) as the borrower of a US$300,000,000 credit facility, from a syndication of 13 banks led by
Grupo BBVA.
- Represented Caja Madrid in the purchase of 83% of the stock of the parent company of City National Bank of Florida, the second oldest bank in Miami,
for a purchase price of US$927,000,000. The deal valued City National Bank of Florida at US$1.1 billion. As Caja Madrid's counsel, we conducted a due
diligence review of City National Bank and its affiliates and counseled Caja Madrid on several regulatory and transactional issues. We negotiated the
transaction documents on behalf of Caja Madrid and we are in the process of preparing the regulatory applications required to consummate the
transaction.
- Represented UK-based G4S plc, the world's largest security company, on the acquisition of Segel, S.A., the largest private security company in
Chile with 6000 employees.
- Represented G4S on the acquisition of Colsecurity S.A., the largest alarm and monitoring security company in Colombia. As G4S's counsel, we oversaw
the due diligence review of the target as conducted by local counsel and we negotiated the transaction documents on behalf of G4S.
- Represent EPC Group, the largest master distributor of Lavazza Espresso Point coffee machines and coffee in the United States, in the establishment of
its corporate structure and operations.
- Represented the shareholders of Beach Bank, a Miami-based financial institution, in the sale of all of the assets of the bank to Sun American Bancorp, a
publicly traded bank holding company, for approximately US$20,000,000.
- Represented a group of Latin America investors in the acquisition of a marina and related operations in Key Largo, Florida. The Firm handled the due
diligence investigation, negotiation of the purchase and financing documents and the closing aspects of the transaction.
- Represented Grupo San Jose in the acquisition of a construction company in the Dominican Republic and in other acquisition matters in the United
States.
- Represented Italian Mosaic Tile Manufacturer, Bisazza North America, in the structuring and documentation of its Preferred Dealer Network throughout
the United States, parts of Latin America and the Caribbean.
- Represent Spanish financial institutions in lending transactions in the tourism sector, particularly financing of hotel projects in Mexico.
- Represented the U.S.-based company in the sale and joint venture of a 2700-acre residential beachfront development located on the Pacific Coast of
Nicaragua. We worked closely with Nicaragua counsel to establish HOA and development rights and negotiated with the U.S. based developer on the
management and financing of the project.
- We continually represent G4S on an ongoing basis and serve as outside regional counsel for the Latin America and Caribbean Region, advising on a variety
of transactions and issues that arise from the management of subsidiaries in 22 countries.
- Our lawyers sit on the Board of Directors of a number of banks and clients; advising on strategic issues and the legal implications of potential courses of action.
Representative Litigation and Arbitration Matters
- Represented leading international hotel chain in an international arbitration before the ICC involving a dispute with the hotel’s owner over the hotel’s management agreement. The arbitral tribunal rendered a multi-million dollar award in favor of our client which was subsequently recognized and confirmed by various courts (after several appeals) and collected.
- Obtained an arbitral award in excess of U.S. $4 million in favor of our client in an international arbitration conducted under the rules of IACAC in Miami, Florida. The arbitral award was subsequently recognized and confirmed in the United States and in El Salvador (this was the first case in which the Supreme Court of El Salvador fully recognized an international arbitration award). With the assistance of local counsel, the arbitral award was enforced in El Salvador by, among other things, the appointment of a receiver to take over the respondent’s business which eventually led to the payment of the award.
- Represented leading international hotel chain in several major ICC arbitrations held in Mexico City and applying Mexican law arising from commercial disputes with a local franchisee operating hotels in several Mexican cities.
- Represented the Miami Agency of the Spanish financial institution, Banco Bilbao Vizcaya, in connection with various competing claims brought by and against the former President of Ecuador, Leon Febres-Cordero. All claims were successfully mediated and settled after two days of jury trial in a U.S. court.
- Successfully defended Spanish financial institution, Caixanova, in connection with various claims brought against it by two former employees alleging wrongful termination, discrimination and other causes of action.
- Represented a Mexican citizen against an Illinois corporation which obtained an injunction prohibiting our client from selling U.S. $56 million worth of stock in a Mexican entity, Operadora Villa Del Sol, S.A., which owns and operates luxury hotels in Mexico. We successfully dissolved the injunction, dismissed the U.S. lawsuit and required that all disputes between the parties be arbitrated abroad under the rules of the ICC. The ICC arbitration was subsequently favorably settled for the client.
- Supervised and managed as lead international litigation counsel over 60 separate litigation claims filed in Argentina against our U.S. based multinational client in connection with various employment, distributor and agency relationships.
- Represented MasterCard International in connection with various claims brought in U.S. federal court alleging breach of contract, fraud, trademark infringement and other causes of action. At trial, judgment was entered in favor of MasterCard, and in a post-trial proceeding, we were able to recover all of Mastercard’s attorneys’ fees and costs in the action.
- Represented major hotel company in connection with claims brought by its former General Manager in St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands alleging tortious interference, breach of contract, fraud, defamation and slander.
- Acted as lead counsel for a U.S. manufacturer and service provider in a $45 million contract dispute arbitrated in Santiago, Chile under Chilean law and the arbitration rules of the Santiago Chamber of Commerce.
- Represented the largest textile manufacturer in Colombia in a series of civil claims filed in Florida and successfully tried to a jury with the application of Florida and Colombian law, obtaining a verdict in favor of our client in excess of U.S. $5 million.
- Acted as lead counsel for Colombian financial institution in multi-million dollar litigation in Florida and Colombia, including Colombian bankruptcy proceeding, arising from intricate debtor-creditor relationship.
- Acted as lead international litigation counsel for multinational publicly traded company in a high-profile, multi-million dollar, complex, commercial dispute pending before courts in Spain, Delaware, British Virgin Islands, Florida and Puerto Rico.
- Acted as lead litigation counsel for various individuals and financial institutions in multi-jurisdictional legal proceedings stemming from the Venezuelan banking crisis of 1994-1995.
- Represent the Beach Bank Liquidating Trust in two related arbitrations stemming from the 2007 purchase of Beach Bank by Sun American Bank.
- Represent Cooper Tire & Rubber Company in a commercial dispute with one of its former suppliers from Belarus.
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