Team size: 20

How do you approach managing legal issues during periods of instability or crisis, and how does your legal strategy align with your broader business strategy to ensure organisational resilience?

As a first step in both areas, it is essential to establish a procedure that helps generate revenue for companies, seeking to eliminate bureaucracy through corporate compliance.

Likewise, teamwork between both areas is important, without neglecting autonomy. On the other hand, it is essential to train both areas by understanding the position and needs of each area, implementing a preventive, flexible approach aligned with the company’s commercial strategy that helps it meet its goals. However, for this, it is essential that the commercial area understands the formal and legal requirements for closing any type of business or transaction, avoiding focusing on unsuccessful negotiations.

On the other hand, if the company’s business is routine, it is necessary to have formal contracts that comply with certain legal requirements. However, the legal department must provide support in decision-making by integrating itself into planning, strategy, evaluating investment risks and/or any type of transaction, and negotiations in order to avoid legal contingencies.

From the outset, the legal department, at all times, must maintain a preventive approach and a bridge to adaptation, aligned with the business strategy, anticipating regulatory risks, ensuring contractual flexibility, and clarifying that all work must be carried out as a team and under a work plan guided by a legal manager and/or director.

What are the major cases or transactions you have been involved in recently?

I clarify that I have signed a confidentiality agreement with the company I work for, however, I will give a brief summary without going into too much detail:

I recently participated in a tender for the acquisition of high-end equipment from a renowned Bolivian company valued at USD $8 m. subject to evaluation of all legal implications.

Likewise, after legal and financial evaluation, ordinary and nominal shares of a financial institution were acquired.

The purchase of 1031 properties were carried out through bank financing. I also participate in large-scale transactions, since, as a holding company, the business scope varies, ranging from service-providing companies to industrial companies.

What role does the legal department play in promoting and ensuring corporate social responsibility in your organisation?

Corporate social responsibility plays a very important role, given that one of the most outstanding companies in my organisation is the construction and real estate sector. Therefore, the legal area always has a preventive approach to compliance with regulations with the aim of gaining social legitimacy, credibility, and ensuring long-term sustainability based on the following.

Firstly, the construction of quality, decent, and accessible housing for the public, with green areas aligned with the environment, implementing quality materials in construction.During the construction phase, the legal department always ensures compliance with environmental regulations, ensuring that the construction is sustainable and eco-efficient, implementing solar energy, and, very importantly, applying protocols for the safe handling and disposal of debris and hazardous materials. Also, gardens, green roofs and landscaping with native tree species are incorporated into the buildings.

On the other hand, it is essential to comply with Bolivian labor laws by providing workers with social security, job stability, wages, and decent treatment.

It is also key to create training programs in smart, safe construction and occupational risk prevention and to promote the participation of women according to their abilities, as well as promote employment opportunities for young people.

Furthermore, it is important to implement anti-corruption policies through bidding and contracting processes and to provide clear information to customers, consistent with corporate compliance, transparent contracts, and no abusive clauses based on applicable consumer law regulations in all areas.

Given all the above, as a legal department, it is important to apply corporate social responsibility in all cases to employees, independent contractors, suppliers, clients, etc., in order to position the business group as a benchmark in sustainable housing, responsible and nationally and internationally recognised projects, generating economic value, clarifying that all this is aimed at all companies that are part of the business group.