Interview with: Ricardo Falcão, Partner – Head of Corporate and Financial Law Department

Ricardo Falcão, Partner of the Firm, shares his views on what Ana Bruno & Associados brings to the table when dealing with Clients

 

1) What do you see as the main points that differentiate Ana Bruno & Associados from your competitors?

Ana Bruno & Associados’ Client base is mainly made up of foreigners looking to extend their business to Portugal or, ultimately, change their personal or professional life to Portugal. In this context, what we believe differentiates Ana Bruno & Associados from other law firms is that we understand that our work is not limited to providing legal services to Clients. Ana Bruno & Associados’ policy is to be proactive in finding solutions for its Clients, helping them to find the right partners in Portugal to achieve their goals, allowing them to create a network that ensures that their businesses thrive and prosper. Likewise, through our partnerships abroad, Ana Bruno & Associados also helps its Clients to expand their business worldwide, namely to Portuguese-speaking countries (particularly Angola and Mozambique) and the United Arab Emirates.

 

2) Which practices do you see growing in the next 12 months? What are the drivers behind that?

In the coming 12 months, Ana Bruno & Associados anticipates significant expansion in several key practice areas, namely Immigration, Financial, Corporate, and Tax Law.

The Immigration department is expected to keep on its growing trajectory, particularly driven by the increasing need for skilled labor, and cross-border mobility, particularly digital nomads. Thus, we anticipate a rise in inquiries regarding immigration services for individuals navigating visa procedures and citizenship applications, as well as for businesses seeking relocation strategies, particularly from regions affected by the war in Ukraine. Additionally, we foresee heightened interest in Collective Investment Undertakings and their Management Entities for the creation of viable investment products to attract capital into Portugal.

We anticipate a notable synergy between our Immigration Law practice and Financial Law. The growing interest in immigration programs, such as Golden Visa applications, is expected to catalyze investment activities, particularly in the technology sector. As investors explore opportunities in new markets and seek diversification, the incorporation of Collective Investment Undertakings, particularly Venture Capital Funds is poised to rise, presenting unique legal challenges and opportunities for our firm to provide tailored solutions, ensuring compliance, and managing risk.

Moreover, our Corporate Law practice is poised for expansion as businesses relocate to Portugal seeking investment and growth opportunities promoted by programs such as Start-up Vouchers and Start Up Visa. The need for adaptation to evolving regulatory landscape and drive to pursue strategic initiatives such as mergers, acquisitions, and restructuring demand our comprehensive legal counsel to facilitate their business objectives.

All these operations come with tax implications, which drive significant growth for our Tax Department. The continuous developments in tax legislation and the increasing complexity of international tax regimes make our individual and institutional Clients seek specialized tax advice to optimize their tax structures, enhance tax efficiency, and reduce risks.

Ana Bruno & Associados remains committed to staying at the forefront of these developments, providing customized legal solutions and strategic guidance to our Clients as they navigate through an increasingly complex legal landscape.

 

3) What’s the main change you’ve made in the firm that will benefit clients?

Ana Bruno & Associados is sensitive to the needs of Clients, particularly their need for reassurance that their matters are being dealt with in a timely and professional manner. Thus, to address this, our Firm has implemented personalized follow-up procedures for each Client, with monthly information on the status of their files, especially in cases involving courts or submissions to public authorities, such as immigration and nationality matters.

 

4) Is technology changing the way you interact with your clients, and the services you can provide them?

Technological advances create the need for Law Firms to reply to Clients at an increasingly quicker pace, without compromising the quality of services. Ana Bruno & Associados is aware of this demand and has focused on strengthening its internal IT programs with the aim of optimizing the search and collection of information and documents in order to reduce the time spent on ancillary tasks, allowing Lawyers to focus on legal work, reducing response times and making interaction with Clients more fluid and faster. Furthermore, Ana Bruno & Associados is studying the best way to integrate artificial intelligence into its daily activity without compromising the (irreplaceable) role of the Lawyers.

 

5) Can you give us a practical example of how you have helped a client to add value to their business?

A paradigmatic example of how Ana Bruno & Associados positions itself as a Law Firm is the case of a Client who engaged with us for an immigration matter with the view of obtaining Portuguese citizenship. In the context of assisting this Client with his personal matter, our Firm got to learn about his background and past professional experience and, as we are knowledgeable about the Portuguese market, we helped him create a working network that allowed him to establish his own business group in Portugal structured vertically, enabling him to attract foreign investment to be then deployed in acquiring/building/refurbishing hotels, which are managed and built by hotel operating companies and construction companies within his group, keeping the full operation “in-house”, streamlining procedures, decreasing costs and increasing efficiency.

 

6) Are clients looking for stability and strategic direction from their law firms – where do you see the firm in three years’ time?

Ana Bruno & Associados has grown significantly in recent years, having increased its team by almost 50% in the last 3 years, reflecting the growth in its Clients base, which makes us particularly proud and happy given that this trajectory started still during the global pandemic. Considering our differentiating approach, in which Ana Bruno & Associados positions itself as a “partner” for its Clients, we believe that we will continue to grow, hand in hand with our Clients, current and future, giving them the strategic guidance that they need to establish themselves and prosper in Portugal.