About

Carla R. de Passos is a legal executive with over two decades of experience. In the last eight years as a general counsel, Carla has built a reputation as a trusted business advisor to C-suite leaders and boards, bringing a combination of legal insight, strategic thinking, and global fluency to her role.

Currently serving as General Counsel, Corporate Secretary, and DEI Council Member at Candid Care Co., Carla has played an integral role in shaping the company’s growth strategy and creating a highly effective legal department. Since joining in 2020, she has led several rounds of equity and debt financings, culminating with a Series D $150 million investment by a strategic investor led by Goldman Sachs. Carla has also led Candid through challenging legal situations, including a full recapitalization and major patent litigation from a competitor, in which Candid ultimately prevailed. As a trusted business partner to Candid’s CEO and CFO, Carla was instrumental in setting the legal strategy for the Company’s business pivot from DTC to B2B, the sale of its DTC business and the creation of strategic partnerships.

Prior to Candid, Carla was General Counsel at Advanced Potash Technologies Ltd., where she directed legal operations across the U.S., Brazil, and the Cayman Islands and was responsible for the creation of the company’s first internal legal function.

Prior to becoming General Counsel, Carla spent 15 years practicing corporate law at top U.S. law firms in New York. She was a senior attorney at Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP, where she led major cross-border deals and capital market transactions, including Petrobras’s landmark $70 billion global equity offering. As Counsel at Shearman & Sterling LLP (currently A&O Sherman), she co-managed the São Paulo office and led a wide range of corporate finance transactions, including the SEC registered initial public offering of a major Brazilian airline.

Fluent in English, Portuguese, and Spanish, Carla holds a Master of Laws (LL.M.) from the University of Chicago, and an LL.B. from the University of São Paulo. She is admitted to practice in both New York and Brazil.

Carla is also a committed advocate for diversity, equity, and inclusion. At Candid, she is an elected member of the DEI Council, championing initiatives that promote a more inclusive workplace culture. She is also an active member of the New York Chapter of TechGC, an independent, invitation-only peer community of general counsel of high growth tech companies.