This firm is consistently praised for the experience of its professionals and its ability to provide high-quality services in almost all areas of law. Located within the corporate department, the banking and finance group is highly recommended by both peers and clients. Recent highlights include advising EDP – Energias de Portugal on the EUR1.6 billion revolving credit agreement which the lenders made available to EDP and EDP Finance.
Lawyers also assisted Norscut with the negotiation of the financial rebalance agreement of the SCUT Interior Norte Concession.
Sources Say: “This team has in-depth knowledge of the subject and plenty of resources; it is efficient and provides timely responses. In addition, the firm is able to advise on the most varied matters.
It is not surprising that this private equity practice is a strong one, given the firm's premier reputation and pool of excellent lawyers.
Clients point to the fact that the lawyers “manage to understand our business and are always completely committed to the project.”
The group acts for both companies and funds, with recent mandates including representing a group of financial investors, including ES Concessões and ES Capital, in the EUR451 million joint acquisition (with Group A. Silva & Silva) of Cintra Aparcamientos; the team also advised Orey on the restructuring of its corporate group through the incorporation of a Luxembourg private equity fund.
This firm is rated by both peers and clients as “one of the best teams for project finance in Portugal,” and has played a role in many of the most important projects in the country.
The team acted for a syndicate of banks on the EUR1 billion refinancing of a debt contracted by Pebble for the construction and operation of a wind farm portfolio.
In another energy mandate it assisted a consortium of banks from the BES and Banif groups on the financing of the construction, installation and operation of a photovoltaic power station in Alentejo.
Clients develop strong relationships with the lawyers, who “have the crucial resources and experience for dealing with problems, and finding simple solutions.” One source added: “It is good having these lawyers across the table, as they make a real effort to reach agreement.”
This firm is consistently praised for the experience of its professionals and its ability to provide high-quality services in almost all areas of law. Located within the corporate department, the banking and finance group is highly recommended by both peers and clients. Recent highlights include advising EDP – Energias de Portugal on the EUR1.6 billion revolving credit agreement which the lenders made available to EDP and EDP Finance. Lawyers also assisted Norscut in the negotiation of the financial rebalance agreement of the SCUT Interior Norte Concession.
Sources Say: “This team has in-depth knowledge of the subject and plenty of resources; it is efficient and provides timely responses. In addition, the firm is able to advise on the most varied matters.”
Morais Leitão, Galvão Teles, Soares da Silva & Associados has one of the oldest and ‘most reliable’ finance practices in the country, and has developed a projects practice that straddles a range of industry sectors.
Filipe Lowndes Marques recently advised a consortium of banks including BES and BCP on the €154m financing of the construction and operation of a photovoltaic solar cell manufacturing plant.
The ‘responsive and experienced’ Luís Branco recently advised a consortium of domestic banks on financing the Douro motorway subconcession.
Benefiting from an ‘exceptional depth of experience’, Morais Leitão, Galvão Teles, Soares da Silva & Associados has been able to ride the wave of project finance deals, while continuing to act on a spread of acquisition finance activities.
Practice head Luís Branco is ‘smart, strategic and efficient’, and has recently acted for several major lenders including Banco Espírito Santo, which he advised on its €33m medium-term commercial facilities for Explorer’s acquisition of the Probos group.
In terms of inbound work, the team acted for a syndicate of European banks on acquisition financing and refinancing facilities for Capio Laboratories.
‘The very reliable’ Filipe Lowndes Marques led on this deal.
Morais Leitão Galvão Teles Soares da Silva & Associados' banking practice is led by Luís Branco and remains in tier one after another strong year.
"We choose the firm for three reasons," says a client. "First, they are pragmatic, second they seek solutions and the third thing is that they have very well balanced behaviour in the negotiation process and they implement a good environment, so there are never any difficult situations. It's very easy to have complicated relations between banks and lawyers but they are very careful not to do this."
The same client goes on to praise Luís Branco and Filipe Lowndes Marques for their "very wide knowledge of the legal framework in Portugal".
Competitors too heap praise upon the firm. "They have good lawyers and, also, special links with very important companies like Energias de Portugal that are often in the market - [so they] have access to new transactions very easily," says one rival.
Corroborating this assertion, Luísa Soares da Silva led the team advising Energias de Portugal (EDP) and EDP Finance on a €1.6 billion revolving credit agreement in March 2009. And in December 2008 Luís Branco advised a consortium of banks, which included Banco Espírito Santo, on the restructuring of €148 million of Sporting Clube de Portugal's debt.
Morais Leitão Galvão Teles Soares da Silva & Associados is a contender for best project finance firm in Portugal according to clients, who praise the firm's length of experience, practical approach and flexibility.
The projects team, which acts predominantly on the lenders' side, is led by banking and finance expert Luís Branco and includes Filipe Lowndes Marques. Both practitioners command respect from peers who, almost without exception, approve of the firm's top-tier ranking.
"I agree with Morais Leitão's tier one position," says one rival of the firm. "They have one partner, Luís Branco, he's a great guy - a very creative and client-friendly lawyer, and a guy to be trusted with finding a solution. He is a great guy to work with. Also, the firm has a great team and another lawyer, Filipe Marques, who has been developing for some time. We see them across the table most of the time and on good projects too."
Illustrating the firm's prevalence, Luís Branco led on a deal advising a consortium of banks, including Banco Espírito Santo, Caixa Geral de Depósitos and Fortis Bank, in the €753 million financing for the sub-concession for the whole process - from conception to maintenance - entailed in the motorway stretches and associated roads project in Douro. And in March 2009 Filipe Lowndes Marques advised a consortium of banks from the Banco Espírito Santo and Caixa Geral de Depósitos groups on the construction and operation of an electrical transformer factory in the US state of Georgia. The €80 million deal was predominantly structured under Portuguese law.