Today FERRERE announced the opening its third office in Ecuador. Located in Guayaquil, Ecuador’s largest city, the office is an addition to the ones the firm already has in Quito and Manta. FERRERE sees this new step, making it the only firm in Ecuador with a presence in the country’s three main cities, as instrumental to the goal of consolidating its leadership in the Ecuadorian market.
Guayaquil is known as Ecuador’s “economic capital.” Approximately 70% of the country’s exports and nearly 83% of imports go through the city.
Corporate, Litigation and Arbitration, Labor Law, Government Procurement, Regulatory and Taxes are the areas on which the Guayaquil office will be focusing as it opens, but it will be fully integrated with the other two Ecuadorian offices, and in fact with the entire regional platform, allowing it to provide full service from the get-go.
The Guayaquil office will be headed up by the attorneys Ernesto Weisson and Ricardo Menéndez Ycaza. As FERRERE managing partner in Ecuador, Javier Robalino will be closely involved and present in the new office’s activities.
This announcement, a few days following launching of the firm’s third Bolivian office in the city of Cochabamba, is part of the firm’s process of rapid consolidation in the four jurisdictions in which it operates: Bolivia, Ecuador, Paraguay and Uruguay.
“The launch in Guayaquil is a strategic landmark in the solid development we have achieved since the firm’s opening in Ecuador,” assured Javier Robalino. “It is a natural, long-planned step in the market, where from day one we have had important clients who were demanding more geographic proximity. The possibilities for a firm with FERRERE’s professional profile to continue growing and providing services in the city are very significant,” he added.
FERRERE’s managing partner, Andrés Cerisola, said: “FERRERE is committed to its 2012 strategic plan that challenges us to become the leading firm in all of the jurisdictions where we have a presence by the end of 2017. It was inconceivable to set that goal without having a substantial presence in Guayaquil.”
He went on to say: “An interesting aspect of this process is that we see a unique opportunity to at the same time have a leading presence in Guayaquil and Quito, since, as the regional firm we are, we are immunized against the traditional rivalry between the two cities. We are aware that they are two very different markets, but, with eleven offices in four countries, a legal market’s peculiarities are not the kind of problem that keeps us at bay. Moreover, our total integration model will rapidly make available to our Guayaquil clients not only the experience of the specialized practice groups of our full Ecuadorian firm, but also the over 200 attorneys who are members of FERRERE at regional level.”
About FERRERE:
FERRERE is the only multi-jurisdictional South American law firm. It has +200 attorneys in Bolivia, Ecuador, Paraguay and Uruguay, and stands out for its US-style structure, methodologies and policies. The firm has developed international standards and homogeneous service across all its offices, guaranteed by integrated, vertical practice groups and procedures, and a firm-wide training program.
FERRERE is a rarity in the jurisdictions in which it operates. It is a fully merit-based organization that does not allow relatives of partners to join the firm. It has an early mandatory retirement policy and great emphasis has been placed on promoting diversity, with women making up 30% of the partnership.