Consortium Legal > The Legal 500 Rankings

Honduras > Banking and finance Tier 1

Highlighted for its 'commitment and professionalism', the banking team at Consortium Legal is experienced in a wide range of financial matters, including corporate and consumer financing, M&A transactions in the financial services sector, securities issuances, electronic banking, and regulatory and compliance issues. The regional firm is also well placed to advise local and foreign banks on cross-border financial transactions in Central America, recently advising Cerberus Business Finance on financing Lowell Acquisition's purchase of a series of companies in Honduras, El Salvador and Nicaragua. Managing partner José Ramón Paz Padilla, Gustavo Leon-Gómez, whose broad practice covers project finance and regulatory matters, and banking, capital markets and insurance specialist José Ramón Paz Morales jointly lead the sizeable team, which also includes the experienced José Rafael Rivera.

Honduras > Corporate and M&A Tier 1

Consortium Legal regularly handles regional M&A transactions for national and international clients, where it works closely with the firm's offices in other Central American jurisdictions. In addition, the team advises on commercial agreements, including franchise, distribution and agency agreements, and incorporations. The firm also places an emphasis on corporate social responsibility: it is a member of the Central American Integration Network for Corporate Social Responsibility (Integrarse), a regional alliance promoting sustainability, and offers pro bono support to non-governmental organisations operating in the region. José Rafael Rivera is highly experienced in M&A in Honduras and Central America; he leads the team alongside José Ramón Paz Morales, who advises on capital markets matters, cross-border M&A and group reorganisations (as well as leading the firm's participation in the Vance Centre's Familias Unidas initiative, working pro bono with US immigration lawyers to assist Central American migrants). José Ramón Paz Padilla is also noted for his corporate finance expertise.

Honduras > Dispute resolution Tier 1

Able to 'combine their knowledge to resolve cases', the lawyers in Consortium Legal's sizeable team are skilled in a variety of areas of dispute resolution. Practice head Ulises Mejía is noted for his strength in national and international arbitration proceedings (including regularly acting as an arbitrator), while Gustavo Leon-Gómez is skilled in litigation and commercial arbitration, in particular, and Daniela Villafranca in civil and administrative disputes. The team acts for major domestic and international clients, including household names in the automotive, food and beverages, and transportation sectors. The firm's Central American offices are also part of the Familias Unidas initiative launched by the Cyrus R. Vance Centre for International Justice, which represents separated migrant families in the US.

Honduras > Tax Tier 1

The experienced Armando Manzanares leads the team at Consortium Legal, which stands out for its strength in tax litigation, regularly challenging tax adjustments made by the SAR following audits. The team also advises on the tax aspects of corporate and commercial transactions, tax planning and transfer pricing matters, where it acts for a range of national and international companies. Other key members of the practice include Patricia Solórzano, who has significant expertise in tax matters in the oil and gas sectors in particular, and associate Jorge Romero, who is experienced in tax adjustments and advising companies with regional operations on ongoing tax issues.

Honduras > Intellectual property Tier 3

The 'organised, focused and accomplished' team at Consortium Legal handles the management of IP portfolios in Honduras and Central America, particularly for clients from the pharmaceutical, construction and cosmetics sectors, and regularly works alongside the regional firm's other offices. Its client base is predominantly made up of multilatinas, although the team also provides pro bono advice to local entrepreneurs on the IP issues related to setting up a business. Senior associate Sandra Amaya leads the practice and has broad experience in trade mark, patent and copyright matters.

Central America > Corporate and finance

The largest firm in Central America, Consortium Legal has offices in Guatemala, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua, and frequently advises on complex, region-wide corporate and financial transactions, including M&A, corporate restructurings and bond issuances, acting for an impressive roster of regional and international banks and financial institutions and multinational companies. It also has expertise in project finance, particularly in the energy and mining sectors, foreign investment and fintech. Among the key contacts in the Costa Rican office are Mario Quesada-Bianchini, an expert in cross-border finance; and Randall Barquero, who leads the fintech practice, along with the experienced Juan Manuel Godoy and M&A expert Rolando Laclé Zuñiga. In Guatemala, Alfredo Rodríguez and Rafael Alvarado Riedel are the standouts for corporate work, while firm president Álvaro Castellanos specialises in banking and finance matters. Rodrigo Taboada and Olga Barreto, an expert in financial and corporate restructurings, are the key contacts in Nicaragua, while the experienced trio of Gustavo León-Gómez, José Ramón Paz Padilla and José Rafael Rivera are names to note in Honduras. In El Salvador, Óscar Samour leads the banking and finance practice, as well as heading the corporate team alongside Diego Martín and Maria Alejandra Tulipano.