Even for a country that has grown accustomed to uncertainty, the last 12 months have been tumultuous for Argentina.
In October 2023 Javier Milei upended the political status quo when he triumphed in the county’s Presidential election and entered office with a mandate to push through a radical neoliberal programme of economic reform, vowing to bring an end to decades of economic dysfunction, triple-digit inflation, weak economic growth and mushrooming government debt.
Milei has been unwavering in his commitment to these policy goals and his administration has halved the number of government ministries and slashed public spending since taking office. In the first quarter of 2024 the country moved into a fiscal surplus for the first time in 16 years, turning around a deficit of 2 trillion pesos at the end of December 2023 to a surplus of 264.9 billion pesos by the end of April 2024.
Cutting state spending, as well as other measures, including devaluing the peso by 50 percent, and truncating state subsidies for fuel, have also helped to put a dent inflation, which slowed to less than 10 percent in the April 2024, the first time since October that month-on-month inflation didn’t run into the double digits.
The challenges facing the country, however, remain immense. Cutting state spending has put a dent in economic growth, with forecasts predicting a 3.2 per cent contraction in GDP for 2024, and although figures have improved, annual inflation is still running at more than 230 percent a year.
Milei has managed, however, to push a package of economic reforms through the Argentine Senate, and although the administration has had to scale back on plans originally laid out in a 2023 “omnibus bill”, the measures that have cleared the Senate represent a big legislative win for the Presidency, and include generous incentives for foreign investors, plans to privatise swathes of state-owned assets and reform to tax and foreign exchange regimes.
For Argentina’s legal community, the political and economic shake-up has brought hopes of higher growth and investment, but also concerns that the pace of change is simply too fast and too unpredictable. Against this dynamic and uncertain back drop, local and international clients have continued to rely of Argentina’s legal community to provide counsel and expertise on the dramatic changes to legislation and regulatory frameworks sweeping through the country.
Weak economic growth and stubbornly high inflation have meant that bankruptcy, restructuring, liability management and dispute resolution expertise have remained in high demand, while Argentina’s byzantine employment laws have kept labour departments busy as clients either wind-down Argentine operations or scale back workforces in a tough economic environment.
On the transactional side, work has predominantly flowed from the remarkably resilient natural resources sectors, with the country’s rich lithium resources in the provinces of Salta and Catamarca, and abundant oil and gas reserves in the Vaca Muerta, continuing to attract investment from local, regional and international players.
Consumer law, TMT, IP law have also been busy areas, as has the Argentine fintech sector, which despite economic headwinds has delivered consistent innovation and technology, particularly in the areas of blockchain and cryptocurrency.
Argentina’s experienced community of full-service law firms have consistently risen to the occasion, pragmatically helping clients to navigate legal complexity while maintaining and understanding of commercial and practical realities and objectives.
Marval O’Farrell Mairal remains perhaps the most active and best-known name in the Argentine legal landscape, combining the largest lawyer headcount with exceptional expertise and coverage across multiple practice areas. Bruchou & Funes de Rioja is another formidable player, with its blue ribband banking and labour practices particularly well-known; with Beccar Varela and Pérez Alati, Grondona, Benites & Arntsen among the other top-tier full-service players.
Allende & Brea is another well-established name, boasting solid corporate, banking and dispute resolution teams and an enviable mining practice. The firm, however, has taken a knock after its market-leading insurance team moved across to new entrant DAC Beachcroft Argentina in the most significant market shift of the last year. Bomchil, meanwhile, has gone from strength-to-strength as it beds in is 2020 acquisition of market-leading oil and gas boutique Alliani & Bruzzon, and 2022 purchase of specialist tax firm Teijeiro & Ballone, Abogados.
Other excellent firms with expertise spanning multiple practice areas include Mitrani Caballero & Ruiz Moreno Abogados, which continues to grow and diversify its client base, and oil and gas powerhouse Martínez de Hoz & Rueda, which has made steady progress in building out its reputation in other industry verticals. Tavarone, Rovelli, Salim & Miani, best known for its banking expertise, has had a strong year and is building momentum in multiple practice areas, including corporate, labour and oil and gas, while Tanoira Cassagne Abogados remains a respected player in banking and finance matters. Estudio Bunge, which has made its mark in maritime law and in real estate, is another firm on the march.
O'Farrell remains a go-to name for all electricity matters, and is also strong in the public law and tax spheres, with Salaverri, Burgio & Wetzler Malbran a presence in banking and corporate work. DLA Piper Argentina and Baker McKenzie are among the global franchises with formidable Argentine teams on the ground.
Despite macro-economic headwinds, the market has continued to sustain boutique players. Tax and corporate boutique Salaberren & Lopez Sanson (SyLS), for example, has emerged has a key name on fintech matters, with Rosso Alba & Rougès sought out for its tax and transfer pricing expertise. In the environmental space Estudio Gabriel Macchiavello and Venditti Hierro Quinteros are key name, while Naveira Truffat Martínez Abogados (NTMA) and Estudio Alegría, Buey Fernández, Fissore y Montemerlo are dominant players in bankruptcy and restructuring matters, particularly on the debtor-side.
Apart from the DAC Beachcroft Argentina insurance move, other key developments in the market have seen Marcos Moreno Hueyo exit the nascent mining practice at Tavarone, Rovelli, Salim & Miani to pursue a new venture, while outstanding real estate firm Zang, Bergel & Viñes Abogados boosted its IP law expertise with the September 2023 absorption of IP boutique Castrillo & Asociados and then acquired specialist technology and computing law firm Altmark & Brenna to put its proposition firmly on the TMT radar.
Notable personal moves included the departure of highly respected banking lawyer Roberto Silva from Marval O’Farrell Mairal and Mariano Del Olmo’s exit from the corporate desk at Brons & Salas. O'Farrell has boosted its corporate ranks with the hire of new partner Marcela Lorenzo Villalba while Tavarone, Rovelli, Salim & Miani has signalled its intent in the labour market with the high-profile recruitment of employment law stalwart Federico Basile.