Antonia Stolper > Shearman & Sterling LLP > New York, United States > Lawyer Profile

Shearman & Sterling LLP has a tremendous history in Latin America capital markets transactions, though its senior echelon has been depleted in recent years with the retirement of Stuart Fleischmann in January 2022 and the departure of key partner Grissel Mercado and counsel Maria Larsen in 2023. Former department head Antonia Stolper remains an active member of the department as of counsel, with New York’s Manuel Orillac and Sao Paulo-based Roberta Cherman now leading the Latin America capital markets group. This has allowed the firm to continue to land big engagements such as advising the Brazilian state-owned BNDES Participações as selling shareholder in the $6.9bn offering of shares issued by Centrais Elétricas Brasileiras (Eletrobras). The practice has also continued to impress in ESG and sustainability-linked offerings, such as Globo Comunicação e Participações’ offering of $400m sustainability-linked notes. Sao Paulo counsel Jonathan Lewis is another key member of the team. Since the conclusion of research, the team has been notably strengthened with the August 2023 hire of former Linklaters LLP counsel, Alejandro Gordano, as a partner; having led much of the work at his former firm, Gordano is particulary experienced in ESG-segment capital markets mandates.