Brazil – Carnival time

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Brazil’s economic growth and status in the global economy has helped create one of the most sophisticated legal communities among the emerging markets

The legality of foreign law firms having local associated practices may grab some of the headlines, but Brazil’s relentless economic expansion and the growth of international deals in the market has been getting the top billing. The boom has not only attracted a slew of foreign firms but also driven the development of an increasingly sophisticated domestic legal market.

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Brazil – A different beat

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The Brazilian Bar is taking a stand against foreign firms that work alongside local associated practices. Few in the market are now prepared to bang the drum for local alliances

Hostility within the Brazilian legal market, especially São Paulo, could hardly be more intense. The Brazilian Bar Association, Ordem dos Advogados do Brasil (OAB), recently reiterated its opposition to local lawyers forming alliances with the local offices of foreign law firms. It puts Linklaters, Mayer Brown, DLA Piper, Uría Menéndez and their local associated practices – Lefosse Advogados, Tauil & Chequer, Campos Mello Advogados and Dias Carneiro Advogados respectively – very much in the firing line.

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Shaking it up

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As more global law firms establish offices in Brazil, some have tied-up with local firms while others remain unattached. Legal Business finds out who has the right mix

The big news in the Brazilian legal market has been the surge in the number of international players joining the party. UK and US firms, including Squire, Sanders & Dempsey, DLA Piper, Simpson Thacher & Bartlett and Mayer Brown, have all set up shop in São Paulo in the past two years (see box, ‘International office launches in Brazil’). The new arrivals join those who have been resident for some time, including Allen & Overy, Linklaters, White & Case and Clifford Chance. The number of Global 100 firms in São Paulo, Brazil’s key commercial and financial centre, has grown from six to 12 since 2007.

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