Mr Diego Herrera > Galindo, Arias & López > Panama, Panama > Lawyer Profile

Galindo, Arias & López‘ banking practice attracts strong praise from clients for its ‘extensive experience in cross-border transactions‘, although it is also highly active in assisting with local loans. Advising both leading banks and large corporate borrowers, the team stands out for its expertise in transactions in highly regulated industries, including telecoms, energy and finance. The firm also shines in aviation finance, where Cristina Lewis is highlighted for her ‘great knowledge‘; the department’s clients in this field include Panamanian flag carrier Copa Airlines. Practice head Roberto De Araujo López is commended for his experience in advising domestic banks, particularly on financial regulatory matters. Diego Herrera and Jose Luis Sosa are also key names in the practice, with an emphasis on international transactions with Panamanian aspects. The capable pool of junior lawyers includes consultant Daniel Sessa and associate Claudia Juárez, who focus on the aviation sector, and associate Andrés Sanjur, who is noted for his project finance experience.

Hailed by clients as ‘truly a tremendous team, with extraordinary availability and outstanding response times‘, the four-partner corporate group at Galindo, Arias & López remains the first port of call for complex M&A transactions in highly regulated sectors (with a particular emphasis on telecoms-related deals), thanks to firm-wide expertise in the regulatory space. The firm also has a strong reputation for handling cross-border matters involving multiple jurisdictions across Latin America, as well as the US. In addition to high-profile M&A, the team is frequently active in corporate restructurings and joint ventures. ‘Standout partner‘ Diego Herrera, who is sought after for his advice to both local and multinational clients on corporate matters in the financial, industrial and telecoms sectors, leads the team with Ramón Ricardo Arias, an expert in M&A deals in the fields of finance, aviation, electricity and telecoms. The M&A-focused Jose Luis Sosa and Beatriz Cabal, who has notable strength in regulatory matters, are also key members of the sizeable team. The talented pool of associates includes the ‘excellent‘ Andrés Sanjur and Raúl Morales, as well as consultant Daniel Sessa, who specialises in aviation and commercial law.

The projects and energy practice at Galindo, Arias & López stands out for the depth and breadth of its offering, with strengths encompassing project finance, public procurement and government contracts, real estate and regulatory matters. The financing of large-scale energy and infrastructure projects (including the development of major healthcare facilities) is a core source of mandates, but the team is also highlighted for its experience in energy-related disputes, where clients emphasise its ‘extensive knowledge of the laws that govern the Panamanian electricity market‘, and regulatory issues in the renewables space. Salomón Behar, a high-profile name for public tenders and project development in the energy sector, leads the practice alongside project finance expert Cristina Lewis. Diego Herrera and litigation partners Diego de la Guardia and Selva Quintero (both specialists in the energy and public utilities sectors) also lend senior expertise to the team.

Galindo, Arias & López fields a diverse real estate practice, capable of handling the full range of regulatory, corporate and project finance matters in this space, acting for an impressive roster of major real estate developers. The team’s broad expertise spans office, retail, hotel, luxury residential and restoration projects, where the team advises on procurement, permitting and financing; it also handles traditional real estate transactions and assists clients with condo regulation. Advising on real estate investment trusts (SIIs) is also among the practice’s core strengths. Of counsel Salomón Behar, the chair of the firm’s project finance department, heads the sizeable team, which also includes litigation leader Diego de la Guardia (who has experience in project finance and government contracting), Ramón Ricardo Arias, Diego Herrera and Jose Luis Sosa (who focuses on M&A and project finance transactions).