Consortium Legal > Tegucigalpa, Honduras > Firm Profile
Consortium Legal Offices

PRIMERA CALLE # 304 - TORRE CONSORTIUM I
COLONIA LA ESTANCIA
FINAL DEL BULEVAR MORAZÁN, TEGUCIGALPA
Honduras
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.
Practice head(s):
José Ramón Paz Padilla; Gustavo León-Gómez; José Ramón Paz Morales
Testimonials
‘One of the assets of Consortium is that it has a multi-disciplinary team, which gives it a competitive advantage compared to other firms.’
‘The standout feature of the firm is that they follow up on matters and seek out the opinions of colleagues when necessary.’
‘In our experience, the lawyers at Consortium demonstrate, first and foremost, commitment and professionalism. In addition, they have a clear perspective of the strategy in every case, technical knowledge, and the ability to manage difficult counter-parties and high-pressure situations, focusing first of all on mitigating risks, planning for contingencies and the orderly planning and execution of the matter.’
‘The following lawyers stand out for their professionalism and sense of ethics, technical knowledge, team work and collaboration with the client, and ability to achieve successful outcomes and work well under pressure – Gustavo León Gómez, José Rafael Rivera and José Ramón Paz Morales.’
Key clients
Banco de Honduras
Cerberus
Credit Suisse
Confianza
CABEI
Work highlights
- Acting as Honduran counsel to Credit Suisse Securities (USA), Itau BBA USA Securities, Safra Securities and XP Investments US as the agents of the initial primary and secondary public offering of $155m of Brazilian depository receipts by Aura Minerals on the B3.
- Acting as Honduran counsel to Credit Suisse, Cayman Islands Branch on a $15m TBMA/ISMA global master repurchase agreement with Financiera Comercial Hondureña (Bank Ficohsa).
- Advised Cerberus Business Finance on granting a syndicated loan of $90m to Lowell Acquisition to finance the acquisition of a series of New Holland companies in Central America.
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.
Practice head(s):
José Rafael Rivera; José Ramón Paz Morales
Key clients
Financiera Credi Q
Banco de Honduras
Confianza SA-FGR
BCIE
Nestlé
ASSA Seguros
BATCA
Cerberus Business Finance
Work highlights
- Assisting United Airlines with carrying out a corporate and financing due diligence.
- Advised Cerberus Business Finance on a syndicated loan to Lowell Acquisition to finance the acquisition of a series of companies of New Holland in Central America.
- Advised Confianza SA-FGR on the administration of mutual guarantee funds financed by the Government of Honduras to support micro, small and medium-sized businesses during the Covid-19 pandemic.
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.
Practice head(s):
Ulises Mejía
Testimonials
‘They are very organised and know their subjects very well.’
‘What stands out about this firm is that the lawyers have their own specialities and experience in different areas, and combine this knowledge to resolve cases. Daniela Villafranca, Ulises Mejía and Gustavo León-Gómez are very good.’
Key clients
Volvo do Brasil Veículos
Volvo Construction Equipment
Work highlights
- Defending Volvo do Brasil Veículos and Volvo Construction Equipment against a claim for over $25m filed by a former distributor in Honduras over the termination of the distribution contract.
- Acting for Nestlé Hondureña in a $3m claim relating to alleged non-compliance with a transportation contract.
- Defending APL Honduras against a claim for damages filed against it by Pescadería Brayan in a dispute over a bill of lading.
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.
Practice head(s):
Armando Manzanares
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.
Practice head(s):
Sandra Amaya
Testimonials
‘The handling of our matters has been exceptional. The lawyers are organised, focused and accomplished, with a great deal of experience in this area of law. We have received practical and accurate advice in every one of our cases.’
‘The team stands out for its personalised client service, willingness to consider new strategies and options, and focus on the task at hand.’
Key clients
Arabela
Laboratorios Quimico Farmaceuticos Lancasco
CMI IP Holding
Todomovil
Televisa
Grupo Farmagua
Work highlights
- Advises Arabela on the protection and maintenance of its large portfolio of trade marks and health records.
- Advised Groupo Farmagua on the renewal of the Meykos trade mark following its merger with Meykos and Commercial Mexgua.
- Acted for Televisa in an infringement case relating to the registered trade mark De Pelicula.
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.
Consortium Legal > Firm Profile
We are the largest law firm in Central America with more than 200 attorneys and seven strategically located in the five countries of the region and a multigenerational team that knows your needs. We provide regional coordination from a single point of contact for all your transactions.
Consortium is a full-service firm that has focused in the care of all types of companies that wants to do business in the region. We have specialist departments led by our partners in different areas of practice. Recognised as Central America Law Firm of the Year by the most valuable international legal directories, we are your strategic legal advisers.
Banking and finance: Having 15 years of regional experience, with both leading local and international banks, our clients’ excellent references prove we are undeniable leaders in banking and finance. Our long history of financial transactions has resulted in a deep practical knowledge of the regulatory landscape, making us the firm of choice for premium advice in the financial industry. Advising investment projects, our multi-disciplinary team flexibly covers all phases of your projects across a spectrum of legal areas (labor, corporate, criminal, and tax). Our M&A, corporate, and regulatory teams advise our clients together, saving them weeks in the negotiation of M&A transactions by addressing the legal issues concurrently.
Corporate law: We advise on the most important and complex corporate transactions in the region, covering all your legal needs with one of the largest teams of over 40 corporate lawyers. Our corporate specialists can quickly develop optimal structures for your investment projects, with flexibility, efficiency and transparency to meet your needs in the region. We combine our reach, with team members having previous in-house industry experience, allowing us to practically overcome your business challenges.
Intellectual property: Our regional IP team is led by women with more than 15 years of experience in the field and that today leverages technology to offer the best standard of service in Central America. We show our clients how to add value to their intellectual property assets, managing an innovative advisory, both in the identification of protectable intangible assets (know-how, technology, domains, trade dress), as well as in the structuring of franchises and licenses of the same. We avoid costly and time-consuming disputes over priority rights, through a strong and timely protection of your intangible assets.
Tax law: We specialize in local and international tax advice, and we have defended significant cases that have even established judicial criteria and precedents. We have unique experts specializing in tax matters (customs, municipal, litigation, auditing, and accounting) distinguishing us in Central America to provide comprehensive advice in client legal defense cases. We have generated major client savings through tax efficiencies, and through a high success rate in tax litigation, our advice is always within the legal framework, guaranteeing client legal security before the state.
Labor: The Labor law team in all our offices has more than 15 years of experience and preparation in the development of processes and products aimed at preventive and proactive advice on labor legal matters. We provide labor advice to many industries with differing compliance requirements yet always with an eye toward growing the company and making it more competitive.
Firmwide managing contact: Valeria Di Palma (vdipalma@consortiumlegal.com)
Number of partners worldwide: 54
Number of other lawyers worldwide: +200
Website: www.consortiumlegal.com
Main Contacts
Department | Name | Telephone | |
---|---|---|---|
Corporate | Gustavo León-Gómez | gleongomez@consortiumlegal.com | |
Corporate | José Rafael Rivera | jrivera@consortiumlegal.com | |
General Manager | Joanna Paz | joannapaz@consortiumlegal.com |
Lawyer Profiles
Photo | Name | Position | Profile |
---|---|---|---|
![]() | Mr Gustavo León-Gómez | Partner | View Profile |
![]() | Mr Armando Manzanares | Partner | View Profile |
![]() | Mr Ulises Mejía | Partner | View Profile |
![]() | Mr José Ramón Paz Padilla | Partner | View Profile |
![]() | Mr José Rafael Rivera | Partner | View Profile |
Staff Figures
Partners : 10 Associates : 16 Total Staff : 57- Banking and finance
- Corporate and M&A
- Dispute resolution
- Tax
Top Tier Firm Rankings
- Intellectual property
Firm Rankings
- Central America > Corporate and finance