Legal 500 hosted the Legal 500 Brazil Awards 2026 on 24 February in S\u00e3o Paulo, bringing together some of the country’s most prominent legal professionals for an evening dedicated to recognising standout achievement across one of Latin America’s most competitive legal markets.<\/p>\n
The ceremony drew senior partners from leading domestic and international law firms, alongside general counsel and senior in-house lawyers from major corporates, and influential figures from across Brazil’s broader legal community. The awards serve as a credible and impartial benchmark of excellence across both private practice and in-house legal functions, with this year’s winners selected in recognition of exceptional performance, with particular weight given to technical excellence, market leadership, innovation and strategic growth.<\/p>\n
Highlights of the ceremony included:<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Pinheiro Neto Advogados<\/strong> awarded Brazil Firm of the Year<\/strong>, in recognition of benchmark-setting excellence across virtually all major practice areas and its leadership on transformative transactions across key sectors.<\/p>\n \u00b7 Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton<\/strong> presented with International Firm of the Year,<\/strong> recognised for leading Brazil\u2019s most complex debt restructurings, capital markets transactions, M&A mandates, compliance investigations and ESG-linked financings with outstanding multidisciplinary expertise.<\/p>\n \u00b7 PepsiCo<\/strong> awarded In-House Team of the Year<\/strong>.<\/p>\n \u00b7 Carlos Mello of TozziniFreire Advogados<\/strong> honoured as Lawyer of the Year<\/strong> for commanding Brazil\u2019s transactional market following a high-profile move and further strengthening the firm\u2019s corporate practice.<\/p>\n \u00b7 Rodrigo Junqueira of Lefosse Advogado<\/strong>s named Managing Partner of the Year<\/strong>, recognised for expanding the firm by 50% over three years, driving sustained revenue growth and reinforcing strategic practice areas.<\/p>\n \u00b7 Beatriz Barrionuevo of Mondel\u0113z<\/strong> International named In-House Lawyer of the Year.<\/strong><\/p>\n \u00b7 Ana Carolina Katlauskas Calil<\/strong> of Cescon Barrieu<\/strong> celebrated as Next Generation Partner of the Year<\/strong> for leading sophisticated regulatory and transactional work across the energy sector, spanning generation, distribution, transmission and energy transition matters.<\/p>\n \u00b7 Mariana Conrado of Trench Rossi Watanabe<\/strong> awarded Rising Star Associate of the Year<\/strong> for exceptional work on complex bankruptcy and judicial reorganisation proceedings, as well as distressed asset acquisitions.<\/p>\n \u00b7 Juliana Iglesias Vasquez of Nubank<\/strong> recognised as In-House Rising Star of the Year.<\/strong><\/p>\n \u00b7 Mombak<\/strong> received In-House Sustainability Team of the Year<\/strong>.<\/p>\n \u00b7 Demarest Advogados<\/strong> recognised as DE&I Law Firm of the Year<\/strong> for its exceptional commitment to diversity and inclusion, increasing female leadership representation to 53% and significantly expanding pro bono engagement.<\/p>\n \u00b7 Grupo Soma<\/strong> awarded In-House Diversity Team of the Year<\/strong>.<\/p>\n \u00b7 TozziniFreire Advogados<\/strong> awarded Marketing Team of the Year<\/strong> for successfully linking communications strategy to tangible business results through high-impact campaigns and strategic initiatives.<\/p>\n \u00b7 Deal of the Year<\/strong> awarded for the transformative R$14.8 billion follow-on offering and privatisation of Sabesp \u2014 advised by Cescon Barrieu, Clifford Chance, Lefosse Advogados, Lobo de Rizzo Advogados, Mattos Filho, Pinheiro Guimar\u00e3es, White & Case LLP and Pinheiro Neto Advogados \u2014 marking one of the most significant transactions in the region in recent years.<\/p>\n Legal 500 extends its congratulations to all shortlisted firms, teams and individuals, and to each of this year’s winners. We thank all attendees for joining us in S\u00e3o Paulo and look forward to continuing to recognise excellence across the Brazilian legal market in the years ahead.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Legal 500 hosted the Legal 500 Brazil Awards 2026 on 24 February in S\u00e3o Paulo, bringing together some of the country’s most prominent legal professionals for an evening dedicated to recognising standout achievement across one of Latin America’s most competitive legal markets. The ceremony drew senior partners from leading domestic and international law firms, alongside … <\/p>\n