BROCHURE 2022
ABOUT THE FIRM
Noboa, Peña & Torres is a leading Ecuadorian law firm, with more than 20 years of experience. We provide sophisticated legal advice and add value to our clients by delivering high quality legal products and services, with a clear and commercially focused point of view based on a solid understanding of your business.
LOCATION
With offices in Quito and Guayaquil, Noboa, Peña & Torres delivers first class nationwide services to our clients. Our firm structure, with partners and a multidisciplinary team of lawyers based at our offices in both cities allow us to provide consistent and coordinated services, bringing together the right team and the necessary local market knowledge that help our clients achieve their goal. Our firm is capable to offer international integrated services, due to our condition of partners of the Iberoamerican Legal Network, with presence in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Spain, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, and Venezuela.
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CORE VALUES
Our success is rooted in our core values. These values form the foundational principles that define what we stand for as a law firm and as individuals.
INTEGRITY
CLIENT FOCUS
INTELLECTUAL RIGOR
COLLABORATION 2
Our services and relationships are strictly guided by ethics. This is non-negotiable.
We are committed to delivering inventive, real value solutions that are significant to our clients. We are creative and determined to navigate our clients through today's complex business environment.
Our innovative approaches create original solutions to our clients' most complex deals and disputes. We look for approaches that might not be obvious to find original solutions.
We understand your needs and work with you, becoming a strategic partner to your company all along the way. We find the best solution for each case.
OUR ACCREDITATIONS
ABOUT OUR CLIENTS
We have worked, for over twenty years, with local and multinational corporations across several industries. Our clients value our innovative approach and solutions as well as the high degree of personalized attention. Our goal is earning your trust and build our relationship.
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AREAS OF PRACTICE
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CORPORATE AND M&A
LABOR & SOCIAL SECURITY
ENERGY & NATURAL RESOURCES
PUBLIC PROCUREMENT
DISPUTE RESOLUTION
TAX AND FOREIGN TRADE
PROJECT FINANCE, BANKING & CAPITAL MARKETS
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY & DATA PROTECTION
AREAS OF PRACTICE
CORPORATE LAW AND M&A We have in-depth knowledge and experience in sophisticated transactions, involving both national and international matters, and providing our clients with innovative solutions to bring the most intricate transactions to completion. We know that, in business affairs, legal advice is as important as a well-defined strategy, thus, our services include comprehensive legal approaches that meet the challenges of today’s complex deals. In this sense, our team has vast experience in assisting our clients in structuring, negotiating, and documenting the full array of project and financing agreements tailored to each of their needs and the practices of our jurisdiction. Additionally, we have in-depth expertise in corporate governance.
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AREAS OF PRACTICE
LABOR AND SOCIAL SECURITY The practice area is well-recognized for its deep understanding of the industrial sectors in which its clients operate. We combine our legal knowledge with a business-oriented approach that guarantee game changing and winning strategies. The firm regularly manage clients’ day-to-day matters giving creative and innovative advice on wide range of matters related to employment regulations and compliance, social security, and safety issues, including employee training workshops on policy handbooks in order to prevent future conflicts and/or accidents, payroll and immigration issues. We are committed to sustain long term relationships with clients.
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AREAS OF PRACTICE
ENERGY AND NATURAL RESOURCES
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Our practice includes advice on everything related to regulatory matters and transactions in the areas of energy production, especially in the Oil & Gas, mining, electricity and renewable energy sectors. Our energy clients turn to us for our knowledge of the commercial complexities of the industry and experience at every stage of the value chain. We help our clients to achieve efficient and innovative solutions to their legal, regulatory, and structural challenges. Our sustained commitment to client service is reflected in our long-standing relationships as advisors to our clients. We have also developed substantive experience in negotiating contracts with government counterparties. Our industry sector expertise includes advising foreign and national investor from the bidding process/negotiation process to advising in all matters regarding the operations and development of projects. Our team is invited to participate directly in regular top management meeting because our clients value our capacity to identify and mitigate risks in all areas or operations.
AREAS OF PRACTICE
PUBLIC PROCUREMENT We participate in all aspects regarding the relationship of private parties and public entities, for local and national levels. Our team is able to advise our clients on all stages of public procurement of works and consulting services. Our firm advises on all kind of processes of delegation to the private sector and concession processes, including areas considered strategic sectors for the State (energy in all its forms, infrastructure, telecommunications, transportation, radio spectrum, and water, among others). We offer our services to current and future concession owners, representatives, private contractors, construction companies, financing parties, multilateral organizations, investment banks, and consultants, as related to public, private and mixed-sector projects.
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AREAS OF PRACTICE
DISPUTE RESOLUTION Our litigation department is characterized by its focus on judicial strategies based on a thorough study and understanding of the core business of our clients, in addition to efforts to provide the best customer experience through personalized and direct attention from the head of the department. We have in-depth knowledge and experience in conducting highly complex litigation, mainly in civil and commercial litigation on tort law before any judicial or administrative jurisdiction. Our team develops innovative ways to solve problems and tackle complex issues. Clients also value that we are able to provide services in Quito and Guayaquil, with specialized lawyers in each city, and with the same standards of service. This allows us to provide a unique service in cases that involve any of these two cities courts. Nevertheless, we also provide our services to solve disputes located at other locations of the country.
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AREAS OF PRACTICE
TAX AND FOREIGN TRADE The tax area is composed by an interdisciplinary team of lawyers and accountants that allows us to offer integral services for the highly complex matters raised by our clients. The versatility of the team has permitted us to help our clients in the design of their new ventures and investments with efficient tax structures, as well as we support our clients in the design and execution of efficient domestic and international transactions thought under highly sophisticated tax strategy. We are a leading law firm in Ecuador in tax dispute resolution. We are highly renowned by clients and peers in this field due to our high success record in court and our long-lasting experience in the subject. Additionally, we are known for our expertise in national and international tax planning, in advising and planning in the processes of mergers, acquisitions and corporate restructuring, we have solid knowledge in transfer pricing matters.
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AREAS OF PRACTICE
PROJECT FINANCE, BANKING & CAPITAL MARKETS
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The team of the banking, finance and capital markets department has extensive experience advising banks and financial institutions, investments banks, consumer credits companies, brokers, and investors, both national and international. Additionally, we have broad recognition in the project finance field. We have participated in some of the most complex and renowned project finance transactions in Ecuador. We have close relationships and alliances with law firms abroad, allow us to offer our clients an efficient consulting on compliance with the rules of the origin markets.
AREAS OF PRACTICE
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY & DATA PROTECTION
Our firm has a team of experts in intellectual property and data protection to offer our clients specialized services in all kinds of matters in these areas. Our lawyers have broad experience in matters related with copyright, trademark, patents, etc.; having managed several campaigns and actions of piracy and counterfeiting. The specialization of our lawyers is complemented with technological tools and an international network of intellectual property agents that allow us to offer our clients a complete service.
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OUR TEAM
Our firm is integrated by a team of highly specialized lawyers, with deep knowledge and ties to the industry sectors in which our clients operate. In every area of practice, we combine the knowledge and experience of lawyer with several years of practice and dynamism of young, talented, and devoted lawyers.
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PARTNERS
GONZALO NOBOA BAQUERIZO
PATRICIO PEÑA ROMERO
DIRECTORS
MARCELO TORRES BEJARANO
For more information on our team, please scan the QR code bellow.
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MARGARITA VÉLEZ CASANOVA
FRANCISCO LARREA NARANJO
ANDRÉS CORTEZ CARRERA
PARTNERS
GONZALO NOBOA BAQUERIZO
He is the head of the Dispute Resolution practice area. He is well known for his more than 30 years of experience in the legal practice in Ecuador. Since the foundation of the Law Firm, he has been and remains to be the leader of the Dispute Resolution Area, which provides services in several fields including Corporate-Commercial Law, Constitutional Law, Administrative Law, Criminal Law, Arbitration and Mediation, Antitrust, among others. With regards to his academic path, Gonzalo has been the principal professor at different Ecuadorian Law Schools such as Universidad Católica Santiago de Guayaquil, Universidad Espiritu Santo, focusing his teaching on the fields of Torts and Contracts.
AREAS OF PRACTICE Resolution • Dispute and M&A • Corporate • Public Procurement
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+593 4 230-0814 gnoboab@legalecuador.com
PATRICIO PEÑA ROMERO
PARTNERS Patricio Peña has over 25 years of experience in the commercial field and is very well recognized in the Ecuadorian market. He has held important positions in both private and public sectors, related with commercial matters. He has been in charge of several public institutions, such as the Undersecretary of Revenues (equivalent to the IRS at this time), the Modernization of the State Secretary, and Judge of the Constitutional Guarantees Tribunal (equivalent to the Constitutional Court at this time). He was the former Executive Director and President of the Quito Stock Exchange and has been a member of several Boards of Directors. Mr. Peña is currently a member of the Board of Directors of the Chamber of Industries, and he acts as the chief of the legal commission. He is also a member of the Board of Directors of the Ecuadorian American Chamber of Commerce in Quito. Patricio is also the founding member and President of the Ecuadorian Institute of Corporate Governance.
AREAS OF PRACTICE Corporate and M&A • Tax and Foreign Trade • Project Finance, Banking & Capital Markets • Labor and Social Security •
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+593 2-297-0193 patopena@legalecuador.com
MARCELO TORRES BEJARANO
PARTNERS
Marcelo Torres has a strong practice in the Corporate and Commercial areas, with particular focus on Labour Law and M&A transactions. He is very knowledgeable of the local business environment as he actively participates on several board of directors of top companies, from both industry and commercial sectors. He is the President of the Arbitration and Mediation Centre of the Chamber of Commerce of Guayaquil.
AREAS OF PRACTICE Corporate and M&A • Labor Security • Dispute& Social Resolution • Project Finance, Banking & Capital Markets •
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+593 4 230-0814 mtorres@legalecuador.com
DIRECTORS
MARGARITA VÉLEZ CASANOVA
She is the Director of the Dispute Resolution practice area. She has advised and represented our clients in different judicial processes, including constitutional, administrative, civil, and arbitration matters. As part of her academic development, she has a Master's degree in Procedural Law from the Catholic University of Santiago de Guayaquil, and a Master's degree in Evidence Law from the University of Girona, Spain.
AREAS OF PRACTICE Resolution • Dispute and M&A • Corporate • Public Procurementnta
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+593 4-230-2113 mvelez@legalecuador.com
FRANCISCO LARREA NARANJO
DIRECTORS
Francisco Larrea Naranjo is Energy and Corporate expert. Francisco has advised clients in Ecuador’s largest tenders and new operations and provides day to day advice to clients with Energy operations in Ecuador. Francisco has also extensive knowledge of Regulatory and Corporate issues, which has allowed him to participate in several national and international transactions mainly in the areas of Oil & Gas, Electricity among others. His practice includes national and international litigation and arbitration in these fields.
AREAS OF PRACTICE and Natural Resources • Energy Procurement • Public Corporate and M&A • Project Finance, Banking & Capital Markets •
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+593 2-297-0193 fslarrea@legalecuador.com
ANDRÉS CORTEZ CARRERA
DIRECTORS
Andrés is specialized in tax law with more than 20 years of experience. His professional practice was carried out mainly in the Ecuadorian Tax Administration, performing various functions, including that of Tax Attorney, Head of the Procurement Area, Head of the Tax Procedure Department and National Legal Director. He was a defense attorney for the Tax Administration in the historically most important trials of said administration, obtaining positive results. In private practice at the Noboa, Peña & Torres, he works as Director of the Tax Department, in which he has achieved enormously important results both in the field of tax litigation, and in advising important national and foreign companies, having to highlight important victories in lawsuits against the Tax Administration in defense of the interests of our clients.
AREAS OF PRACTICE and Foreign Trade • Tax and M&A • Corporate • Project Finance, Banking & Capital Markets
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+593 2-297-0193 acortez@legalecuador.com
GUAYAQUIL
JUNIN 114 Y MALECÓN SIMÓN BOLIVAR, EDIFICIO TORRES DEL RIO, PISO 8
QUITO
AV. REPÚBLICA DE EL SALVADOR N36-230 Y AV. NACIONES UNIDAS, EDIFICIO CITIBANK, PISO 2
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