Mrs Vivian Liberman > BLP > San Jose, Costa Rica > Lawyer Profile

BLP
BLP BUILDING, VÍA LINDORA BUSINESS CENTER
SANTA ANA
SAN JOSÉ
Costa Rica

Work Department

Banking & Finance, Business Law

Position

Partner

Career

Vivian is a Partner of the BLP office in San José, Costa Rica. She specializes in the practice areas of Business Law and Banking & Finance, the latter of which she is a co-director. In addition, she is the coordinator of the firm’s Sustainability strategy.

During her 17 years of experience, she has advised multinational companies in their day-to-day operations, as well as in mergers and acquisitions. Her Business Law practice also includes the guidance of startup operations in the region.

In Banking & Finance, she excels with extensive knowledge in credit counseling and financing, representing multilateral financial institutions in investments and projects in Central America.

Clients highlight her professionalism, experience, and mastery of ​​Banking & Finance law. Vivian has also been recognized as an extraordinary lawyer by prestigious publications such as The Legal 500, Chambers & Partners, Latin Lawyer, Who’s Who Legal and IFLR 1000. The trajectory of her outstanding career has resulted in her inclusion on Latin Lawyer’s list of “Inspiring Women in Law,” which celebrates the most inspiring profiles of lawyers in Latin America.

Vivian plays a major role in progressive institutions. She is a director of the BLP Foundation as well as a director of the firm’s Gender Equity Commission; member of the Board of Directors of “Asociación Amigos del Aprendizaje” (ADA) ; member of the Steering Committee of Women in the Professión, Vance Center, New York; Founder and member of the board of directors of the Costa Rican chapter of Women in the Profession; member of the Board of Directors of the Business Association for Development (AED); member of the Lawyer´s Council for Civil and Economic Rights, Vance Center, New York; Director of the Pro Bono Committee, Costa Rican Bar Association, 2011-2014; Founding member of the Costa Rican Harvard – MIT club; President and founding member of Inspiring Girls, Costa Rican chapter; Fellow of the XIV Class of the Central America Leadership Initiative, member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network, The Aspen Institute. She actively participates in national and international forums on gender equity and the role of women in the legal profession.

Vivian leads the firm’s sustainability strategy, which is executed by Sustainability by BLP, an initiative responsible for articulating efforts aimed at contributing to human and social development in the communities in which BLP operates. Some of these efforts have resulted in Blue Flag Ecological awards for 6 years and the Carbon Neutral Country Brand seal for the last 5 consecutive years, granted by the Costa Rican government.  In 2015, these distinctions enabled BLP to become the first law firm in Central America to be doubly awarded for its environmental management.

Vivian worked as an international associate at the New York firm of Greenberg Traurig before becoming BLP’s first female partner in 2008.

Languages

Spanish, English

Memberships

  • New York State Bar Association: Member of the International Section
  • Women in the Profession (WIP): Member of the Steering Committee,Vance Center
  • Women in the Profession (WIP): Costa Rica Chapter Coordinator,
  • National Social Responsibility Council: Member of the Board of Directors
  • Association for Development (AED): Comptroller of the Board of Directors
  • Friends of Learning Association: Member of the Board of Directors
  • Lawyers Council for Civil and Economic Rights in the Americas, Vance Center, New York: Member
  • Costa Rica Bar Association: Director of the ProBono Committee (2011-2014)
  • Costa Rica Bar Association: Member of the ProBono Commission

Education

  • M. Harvard University, United States, 2001.
  • Fellow of the XIV class of the Leadership Initiative of Central America, Aspen Global Leadership Network, The Aspen Institute.
  • Law degree summa cum laude, University of Costa Rica, 1999

Lawyer Rankings

Costa Rica > Banking and finance

(Leading individuals)

Vivian LibermanBLP

Employing the full bench strength of offices in San José, Puntarenas and Guanacaste, in addition to branches across Latin America and Europe, BLP remains a market leader, advising multinational and national commercial banks, investment banks, private equity sponsors and international funding organisations involved in high-value, multi-jurisdictional transactions. The firm’s full service extends to the securing and servicing of loans, credit restructuring, bankruptcy, regulatory compliance and complex litigation. The team is led by Vivian Liberman, an expert in capital markets, and Andrés López, who specialises in fintech and blockchain. Other key figures include Julio Castellanos, who advised on a recent social bond issuance of Inter-American Investment Corporation (IDB Invest) for a total of up to $75m, along with Pablo Umaña, who manages financing for major infrastructure projects in the energy, hospitality, transportation, agribusiness and manufacturing sectors. Luis Hernández brings expertise to advising on finance for real estate developments. The team was bolstered with the hire of Rodrigo Cubero as senior counsel in July 2022; he served as president of Costa Rica’s Central Bank between 2018 and 2022, and his previous experience includes over a decade spent in senior positions at the IMF.

Central America > Corporate and finance

BLP has continued to expand its presence in Central America, launching its fourth Costa Rica office, which focuses on real estate transactions, in Marina Flamingo in January 2023, as well as providing environmental and immigration advisory services through two innovative companies: Zone and Moval. The firm houses comprehensive corporate and finance practices in the region, with standout expertise in infrastructure and energy-related transactions, and is widely recognised for its representation of Fortune 500 companies. Its strength in international transactions is reinforced by its representative office in Madrid, where David Gutiérrez is the key name. Gutiérrez, an expert in M&A and infrastructure financing, also heads the corporate practice in Costa Rica (where the firm has additional branches in San José, Marina Los Sueños and Las Catalinas), while Vivian Liberman and Andrés López lead the banking team. In Guatemala, the firm strengthened its practice with the hire of former Arias senior partner Jorge Luis Arenales, who has a wealth of experience in corporate and finance transactions, in June 2023; he joins the well-regarded duo of Luis Ruiz, who is also a skilled IP lawyer, and María Inés Arenales. Zygmunt Brett, an authority in financing, capital markets and M&A matters, is the name to note in El Salvador, and Ernesto Rizo, an expert in the mining and agribusiness spheres, leads the corporate and finance team in Nicaragua. In Honduras – where the firm has branches in Tegucigalpa and San Pedro Sula – José Miguel Álvarez and energy specialist Karla Aguilar are the key contacts.