Portugal > Insolvency and restructuring > Law firm and leading lawyer rankings

‘There is no one else on the same level’ as Nuno Ferreira Lousa, who heads the practice at Linklaters, ‘one of the best firms’, which acted for Caixa Geral de Depósitos as major creditor in the insolvency of Artlant. Other clients include ECS, Oitante, and Novo Banco. Of counsel Gonçalo Veiga de Macedo is another name to note.

Morais Leitão, Galvão Teles, Soares da Silva & Associados is representing former director and shareholder of BES and the Espírito Santo Group, José Manuel Espírito Santo Silva, in a case filed by the liquidation committee handling the BES insolvency, alleging acts of ruinous management by thirteen of the bank’s former directors, leading to its insolvency. Disputes expert Rui Patrício leads the case; Filipe Lowndes Marques and António Pinto Leite head the practice.

PLMJ gives ‘clear and concise guidance, showing good judgment and political awareness’ including in large, cross-border cases, such as its ongoing representation of Rio Forte in its insolvency. Filipa Cotta is ‘reachable at any time and always provides straightforward and pragmatic advice’. Nuno Líbano Monteiro is ‘a leader who knows how to manage his team’ and his ‘excellent network gives him the capacity to reach targets faster’. Managing associate Catarina Guedes de Carvalho is ‘very meticulous’. Pedro Caetano Nunes is also recommended.

VDA has had roles in some of the country’s most prominent insolvencies and restructurings, including cross-border matters, handling in- and out-of-court procedures. Frederico Gonçalves Pereira and Paulo Olavo Cunha co-head the team; senior adviser Teresa Pitôrra is recommended. Joana Domingues left in January 2018 for a role in-house at PNCB - Plataforma de Negociação Integrada de Créditos Bancários.

Cuatrecasas' team works out of Porto and Lisbon. In Porto, José De Freitas assisted Banco Internacional de Moçambique and Banco Comercial Português in claiming respective credits in the context of the special revitalisation process of Sociedade de Construções Soares da Costa. In Lisbon, Frederico Bettencourt Ferreira made partner, Miguel Esperança Pina and Rita Gouveia left to join CMS in November 2018, and Miguel Almada joined from Morais Leitão, Galvão Teles, Soares da Silva & Associados in December 2018.

SLCM | Serra Lopes, Cortes Martins & Associados is noted for its ‘flexibility’ and ‘involving the client in an open and transparent way’. It focuses on the insolvency and restructuring of banks and other financial institutions; recent clients including BCP - Banco Comercial Português, Novo Banco, and Seguradoras Unidas (formerly Tranquilidade). The team is headed by Luis Miguel Cortes Martins and Maria Raquel Moreira.

Uría Menéndez – Proença Carvalho attracted high-profile matters, acting on both the debtor and creditor side, for clients in the construction, banking and private equity sectors. The team is noted for its ‘out-of-the-box recovery strategies’ and includes David Sequeira Dinis, a ‘very intelligent lawyer with enormous knowledge and ability to work’, and Nuno Salazar Casanova, who is singled out for his ‘availability, knowledge and negotiation skills’.

Abreu Advogados combines ‘high professionalism with understanding of personal matters’ and is especially active in the real estate funds sector. It is assisting 321 Crédito in a revitalisation process of a port development company under a merger of several companies as a form of consolidation and debt restructuring. Parvalorem also counts among the team's clients. Practice head Francisco Patrício and associates Renata Silva Alves and Gonçalo Delicado ‘try to look at the business as a whole’ and ‘always search for the most appropriate solution’.

CMS’ Nuno Pena is assisting Caixa Económica Montepio Geral as majority creditor in the recovery of Espírito Santo Hotéis, which is owned by Rio Forte. The ‘well-connected’ Joaquim Shearman de Macedo is a ‘solid lawyer with good commercial judgement and creative thinking’. He is representing Chamartín Group in negotiations with banks as part of its recovery and insolvency restructuring. Miguel Esperança Pina and Rita Gouveia joined from Cuatrecasas in November 2018.

Manuel Magalhães handles the financing, and João Saúde the disputes side of matters at Sérvulo & Associados, which continues to assist BES, Banif, and BPP with aspects of their insolvency and restructuring procedures. Mafalda Ferreira Santos joined from Cuatrecasas in September 2018.

SRS Advogados assists clients such as GP2 Motorsport, ECS Capital and Sumol + Compal Marcas with Special Revitalisation Processes (PERs - Processo Especial de Revitalização), as well as with credit recoveries. José Carlos Soares Machado and Alexandra Valente co-head the practice.

APTS - Alves Pereira & Teixeira de Sousa, S.P., R.L. acted for several bondholders in a claim in the context of the judicial liquidation of BES, and it assisted a hygiene and home care company with the restructuring of one of its Portuguese operations. João Marques de Almeida is the key contact.

‘Reliable’ and ‘consistent’, Caiado Guerreiro assisted a Bertelsmann Group company with its insolvency proceedings. It also handles credit recovery matters. Sandra Ferreira Dias is the name to note.

Raposo Bernardo provides ‘good value for money’. It advises Caixa Geral de Depósitos on debt restructuring of its corporate clients. ‘Assertive, smart and responsible’, Ana Cláudia Rangel leads the team.

Andrade de Matos - Advogados is noted for its contentious and non-contentious work, including for international clients. António Andrade De Matos and Jorge Bastos Leitão are the names to note.

Garrigues Portugal advised Caesar Park Hotel Portugal (CPHP) and Magic Real Estate on the refinancing of the group’s indebtedness; CPHP owns the Penha Longa Resort, which is operated by the Marriott Group. Diogo Leónidas Rocha led the matter; João Duarte de Sousa is the other name to note.

Macedo Vitorino & Associados represents several holders of bonds issued by BES in disputes against the Bank of Portugal before the administrative court, and is filing claims in BES' liquidation proceedings. João de Macedo Vitorino and António de Macedo Vitorino head the team.

PRA-Raposo, Sá Miranda & Associados, Sociedade de Advogados RL's team provides ‘great support’. It acted for several companies in the construction sector, including Construtora do Tâmega. Susana Santos Valente heads the practice.