Firm Profile > CMS Woodhouse Lorente Ludlow > Mexico City, Mexico
CMS Woodhouse Lorente Ludlow Offices
PASEO DE LA REFORMA 115, 15TH FLOOR
COL. LOMAS DE CHAPULTEPEC
CP 11000, MEXICO
Mexico
CMS Woodhouse Lorente Ludlow > The Legal 500 Rankings
Energy and natural resources Tier 1
CMS Woodhouse Lorente Ludlow has experience in upper- mid- and downstream oil-and-gas segments, from exploration and production, through trading and supply, to storage and distribution. However, it is in the electricity sector where the practice truly stands out, handling the full range of industry matters including generation, transmission, the wholesale and retail markets, and renewables (including solar and other green energy types). Integrally involved in the implementation of the new wholesale electricity market and the restructuring of the Federal Electricity Commission (CFE) during the previous presidential sexenio, it has adapted well to the current administration's re-definition of the energy landscape, with clients praising its ‘extensive knowledge of the market and regulation’ and for ‘understanding the customer's needs’. The team is led by the ‘always available’, ‘first-class’ practitioner, Derek Woodhouse, whose focus is private sector participation in traditionally 'public-sector' projects; he advises across a broad range of transactional, project-related and regulatory issues. Younger partner and practice co-head alongside Woodhouse, Luis Fernández Lagunas is a power and energy regulatory specialist with particular knowledge of the wholesale market. Key associate-level support comes from seniors José Antonio Téllez, who focuses on regulatory consultation, transactional structuring and negotiation, and project finance related to the electricity industry; and Gabriel Salinas Ruiz, whose practice centres on international and domestic transactions related to the structuring and development of energy and infrastructure projects.
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Other key lawyers:
Testimonials
‘Extensive knowledge of the Mexican electricity sector. Luis Fernández and José A Tellez – great availability and motivation to defend the client’s interest.’
‘They have a deep knowledge of the energy sector that is not easily replicable in other offices and very good public relations with the Government at all levels. Its accessibility and the combination of technical / legal capabilities are superior to other law firms.’
‘A broad, multidisciplinary team with extensive knowledge of the energy sector and rapid responses to meet our needs.‘
‘They have a team of lawyers who are experts in all areas that involve the energy sector. One of the great advantages of this firm is that we can see practically any subject with them. One topic in which they stand out in an outstanding way is in understanding the customer’s needs, as they have extraordinary knowledge of practically all topics and are capable of solving the problems or doubts that arise day by day.’
‘For our part we have always had the full support of Derek Woodhouse as well as Jose Antonio Tellez and Gabriel Salinas.’
‘It is one of the few firms in the country that really has a proven and demonstrable specialization in the electricity sector, with extensive knowledge of the market and regulation. They provide fast and efficient attention to customer needs.’
‘Undoubtedly the plus over other law firms is its specialization in the electricity sector, while many other law firms are focused on oil and hydrocarbons. Its best quality is the extensive knowledge of the country’s electricity regulations.’
‘Extensive experience in the electrical sector and a team that is always professional and dedicated to its clients. Derek is a first class professional, always available to attend to his clients’ requirements and very dedicated. Gabriel Salinas and Jose Antonio Tellez are also excellent professionals.’
Key clients
Brookfield Global Renewable Energy Advisor
Balam Fund
Vitol
EDF Renewables
CKD IM and CDPQ
Zuma Energía
Mitsui
Rassini
WRB
Saavi
Macquiarie
Thermion
Hartree
Ente Nazionale Idrocarburi (ENI)
Aldesa
Projects and infrastructure Tier 1
CMS Woodhouse Lorente Ludlow is undoubtedly one of the markets heavyweights when it comes to projects and infrastructure, housing solid credentials in the power, oil and gas, mining and infrastructure sectors. The impressive six-strong practice provides 'excellent service' to a broad mix of public and private sector clients, and is led by founding partner Enrique Lorente Ludlow, a 20-year veteran of projects matters from inception and design, through structuring finance, construction and operation; and Marcia Santomé Sánchez who is closely focused on private participation in formerly public sector projects, including via PPPs, and who was made partner in July 2019. Specialised senior Giancarlo Schievenini, who works on all aspects and stages of infrastructure project development, including financing, leads a strong associate group. The team is currently advising the Mexican Federal Government on the legal structuring (design, structuring and implementation) of its flagship 'Tren Maya' project, worth an estimated of $8bn as well as the associated public procurement procedures. Both real estate partner Cesar Lechuga Perezanta and energy specialist Derek Woodhouse also participate in the practice.
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Key clients
Federal Government of Mexico – via different secretaries and public entities, including the Ministry of Public Safety, Ministry of Communications and Transport, Banco Nacional de Obras y Servicios S.N.C., Fondo Nacional de Infraestructura, Fondo Nacional de Fomento al Turismo)
Government of Mexico City
Grupo INDI
Impulsora de Desarrollo Integral (IDINSA)
MOTA Engil Mexico
Enrgyland
Grupo Mier
Life sciences Tier 2
CMS Woodhouse Lorente Ludlow fields a seven-strong life sciences practice, probably best known for negotiations with and representation before health-related government agencies. Practice head Mauricio Gómez (who handles life sciences regulatory matters, pharmaceutical products, biotech, medical devices, food, beverages and consumer products), can also draw on former experience in different posts at regulator COFEPRIS. Further partner level input comes from corporate practitioner Cesar Lechuga Perezanta and PPP-specialist Marcia Santomé, who was raised to the partnership in mid-2019). The team has experience advising on new businesses and products, regulatory strategies and compliance audits, good manufacturing practices and certifications, premarket approval of products and services, health licenses and advice on approval of labelling and marketing of regulated products and services, from biotech, biologics and medical.Practice head(s):
Key clients
Celanese
Essity Higiene y Salud
Janssen Cilag México
Johnson & Johnson Companies Mexico
Inmolecule UK
Corporate and M&A Tier 3
The strengthening of CMS' international network, not least in South America, has further boosted CMS Woodhouse Lorente Ludlow participation in major transactional activity particularly in the tech, media and communications, and energy, infrastructure and projects areas which are particular strengths of the office. The growing practice group is co-led by seasoned founding partner Enrique Lorente Ludlow and transactional specialist César Lechuga. Luis Fernández Lagunas handles M&A in the energy sector, as does senior associate Gabriel Salinas Ruiz; and fellow senior Giancarlo Schievenini, who has a broader corporate practice, is also noted. Recent mandates include providing holistic advisory -including corporate, IP, healthcare and life sciences, contracts and regulatory- to Biomitech, a Mexican start-up that has originated a new greenhouse gases remediation device. The team was further boosted by the January 2020-hires of Raúl Zepeda (corporate and capital markets) from Banco Inbursa, as partner; and senior associate Héctor González Martínez from Ontier México. Since publication, Schievenini has been raised to the partnership, effective as of January 2021.
Practice head(s):
Key clients
Freudenberg Chemical Specialties
Brookfield Global Renewable Energy Advisor
Boehringer Ingelheim Promeco
Colgate-Palmolive
Alpla
Immediate Media
Shearwater Group / Charles Taylor InsureTech
IQVIA
Pilosio
Deka Immobilien Investment
Idinsa
CDPQ
Hikvision Mexico
Leadec Holding
Biomitech
Brookfield Global Renewable Energy Advisor
HP
WRB Serra Partners Fund
Real estate Tier 3
The practice at CMS Woodhouse Lorente Ludlow has over 20 years' experience advising on all aspects of the structuring and financing of real estate developments in industrial, residential, hospitality, office and mixed-use projects. Moreover, the five-strong team is renowned among clients for its ‘extensive knowledge of the real estate aspects related to energy projects’. Enrique Lorente Ludlow, who represents landowners, developers and investment funds on complex lease arrangements, as well as on the sale and purchase of commercial, industrial, residential and corporate properties, co-leads the practice with César Lechuga, who has ‘outstanding reactivity and proactivity’, and specializes in transactional real estate with a primary focus on the industrial, logistics, commercial, office space and retail sectors, as well as large plots of land for wind and solar projects.
Practice head(s):
Testimonials
‘Extensive knowledge of the real estate aspects related to energy projects. César Lechuga: outstanding reactivity and proactivity’
‘Quality work, efficiency and clarity of response’
‘Well coordinated’
Key clients
Opera Desarrolladora
Deka Inmobilien
Union Real Estate Investment
Cinépolis
Solar Century
CKD Infrastructura México
Canadian Pension Fund CDPQ
EDF Renewables México
Lukoil
Myra-SHS
Metka Egn
GVM Real Estate
Fondo Nacional de Fomento al Turismo (Fonatur)
Banking and finance Tier 4
The banking and finance department at CMS Woodhouse Lorente Ludlow has experienced substantial growth thanks to the January 2020 hire of Raúl Zepeda (formerly managing partner at ONTIER México), who boosts the practice particularly regarding financial regulatory issues. Considered by some clients as ‘true business partners’, the team, which specializes in public-private partnerships, advises lenders and borrowers, including federal and local governments, private developers, national and international banks and other financial institutions, on obtaining all types of loans necessary to implement projects, especially in the infrastructure segment. Other noted members of the practice include partner César Lechuga, who focuses on real estate financing.
Practice head(s):
Testimonials
‘The best team we’ve seen and worked with’
‘They are true business partners, with direct and daily contact in order to establish achievable milestones’
‘We have the fortune not only to have excellent legal advisors, but to also call them our friends; such is the case with Enrique Llorente, César Lechuga, Marcia Santome, Giancarlo Schievenni, María José Estrada and Ernesto Castañeda. Each and every one of them is empathetic, they know how to listen, they accept criticism, they have a sense of commitment, are enthusiastic and accept responsibilities.‘
CMS Woodhouse Lorente Ludlow > Firm Profile
CMS Woodhouse Lorente Ludlow (CMS-WLL) is part of CMS, an integrated, multi-jurisdictional organisation of law firms that offers full-service legal and tax advice, with more than 70 offices in over 40 countries across the world and more than 4,800 lawyers. CMS has a strong presence in Latin America, with offices in Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru. We are one of the few law firms present in all Pacific Alliance countries.
CMS-WLL has a team of specialists with extensive experience in energy, projects/infrastructure, real estate, project finance, corporate law, administrative law, life sciences, technology, media and communications
and climate change. The firm is primarily known for its participation in large scale and innovative projects, whether advising government agencies on the design and implementation of new legal and regulatory frameworks;
advising sponsors and other developers on the promotion, participation and development of pathfinder projects, or advising lenders and other investors
on the financing and long-term compliance of projects.
Types of work undertaken: Our projects/infrastructure practice is a market leader in Mexico. Its lawyers specialize in all aspects required for an exemplary infrastructure practice, from the design and preparation of constitutional, legislative and regulatory reforms to the financing and execution of infrastructure projects, including their structuring and allocation, as well as dispute resolution. Having actively participated in the promotion and improvement of public-private partnership (PPP) programs for the development of public infrastructure and services,
Our lawyers are among the most experienced and knowledgeable in Mexico regarding PPP projects. They have advised the Mexican Federal Government and local governments throughout Mexico on amending the existing legal framework and issuing new regulations to incorporate various forms of PPP, including the PPS, and have also advised on the implementation of pathfinder PPP projects such as the Federal Prisons Program and various local prisons, roads and hospitals.
Our real estate practice has over 20 years of experience collaborating with developers, institutional investors and lenders to guarantee the completion of real estate projects, including commercial real estate and financing. Projects include industrial, residential, tourism, office buildings, transportation hubs and mixed-use buildings.
Our attorneys are in direct and constant contact with corporate and administrative law matters, and have broad experience advising on the incorporation of companies with foreign investment, international businesses, international trade, structuring and negotiation of commercial agreements, transformation and dissolution of commercial entities, corporate finance programs, trusts, incorporation of special purpose entities and representation of foreign companies in Mexico.
Main Contacts
Department | Name | Telephone | |
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Energy and administrative | Derek Woodhouse | derek.woodhouse@cms-wll.com | |
Projects/Infrastructure, corporate and real estate | Enrique Lorente Ludlow | enrique.lorente@cms-wll.com | |
Banking and Finance | Raúl Zepeda | raul.zepeda@cms-wll.com | |
Energy | Luis Fernández | luis.fernandez@cms-wll.com | |
Projects/Infrastructure | Marcia Santomé | marcia.santome@cms-wll.com | |
Real estate and Project Finance | César Lechuga | cesar.lechuga@cms-wll.com | |
Healthcare & Life Science | Mauricio Gómez Guerrero | mauricio.guerrero@cms-wll.com | |
Real estate | María José Estrada | maria.estrada@cms-wll.com | |
Energy | José Antonio Téllez | antonio.tellez@cms-wll.com | |
Banking and Finance, Antitrust, Fintech | Héctor González | hector.gonzalez@cms-wll.com | |
Regulatory | Karime Vázquez | karime.vazquez@cms-wll.com | |
Litigation | Manuel Ferrara | manuel.ferrara@cms-wll.com | |
Real Estate | Raúl Archundia | raul.archundia@cms-wll.com | |
Projects/Infrastructure | José Luis Meza | jose.meza@cms-wll.com | |
Litigation | Daniel Bucio | daniel.bucio@cms-wll.com | |
Banking and Finance, Real Estate | Rodrigo Velázquez | rodrigo.velazquez@cms-wll.com | |
Energy and Antitrust | Ana Sofía Taracena | sofia.taracena@cms-wll.com | |
Environmental law and climate change | Gabriela Merla | gabriela.merla@cms-wll.com | |
Corporate and M&A | Giancarlo Schievenini | giancarlo.schievenini@cms-wll.com | |
Corporate | Sofía Reyes | sofia.reyes@cms-wll.com | |
Projects/Infrastructure | Alejandro Mata | alejandro.mata@cms-wll.com | |
TMT, Fintech and Corporate | Adam Beach | adam.beach@cms-wll.com | |
Real estate, Energy and corporate | Alberto Lezama | alberto.lezama@cms-wll.com | |
Corporate and Projects/Infrastructure | Eduardo Revilla | eduardo.revilla@cms-wll.com | |
Projects/Infrastructure | Ernesto Castañeda | ernesto.castaneda@cms-wll.com | |
Corporate, Antitrust, Energy Projects/Infrastructure | Gabriel Salinas | gabriel.salinas@cms-wll.com | |
Corporate and M&A | Jimena de la Vega | jimena.vega@cms-wll.com | |
Real estate | Luis Mora | luis.moran@cms-wll.com |
Lawyer Profiles
Photo | Name | Position | Profile |
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Mr Raúl Archundia Pavón | Associate | View Profile |
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Mr Adam Beach | Associate | View Profile |
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Mr Daniel Bucio Cruz | Associate | View Profile |
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Mr Ernesto Castañeda | Associate | View Profile |
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Ms Jimena De La Vega | Associate | View Profile |
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Patricia Ixchel Duarte Villegas | Associate | View Profile |
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Ms María José Estrada Suárez | Associate | View Profile |
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Mr Manuel Ferrara Ibarra | Associate | View Profile |
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Mr Mauricio Gómez Guerrero | Partner | View Profile |
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Mr Héctor González Martínez | Senior Associate | View Profile |
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Luis Fernández Lagunas | Partner | View Profile |
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Mr Cesar Lechuga Perezanta | Partner | View Profile |
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Mr Alberto Lezama Gutiérrez | Associate | View Profile |
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Mr Enrique Lorente Ludlow | Partner | View Profile |
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Mr Alejandro Mata Sastré | Associate | View Profile |
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Mr José Luis Meza Zaragoza | Associate | View Profile |
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Mr Luis Mora y Medrano | Associate | View Profile |
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Mr Eduardo Revilla Quirós | Associate | View Profile |
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Ms Sofía Reyes Pérez Broc | Associate | View Profile |
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José Antonio Ruiz Porte Petit | Senior Associate | View Profile |
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Mr Gabriel Salinas Ruiz | Associate | View Profile |
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Ms Marcia Santomé Sánchez | Partner | View Profile |
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Mr Giancarlo Schievenini | Partner | View Profile |
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Mr José Antonio Téllez Martínez | Senior Associate | View Profile |
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Ms Ana Sofía Taracena Ortíz | Associate | View Profile |
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Mr Derek Woodhouse | Partner | View Profile |
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Mr Raúl Zepeda | Partner | View Profile |