Ritch, Mueller y Nicolau, S.C.

Ritch Mueller is a top tier multidisciplinary transactional firm committed to offering high value-added legal advice to national and international clients with respect to their operations in Mexico.

Since 1975, our firm has been actively involved in shaping how Mexican law is practiced within each of our main practice areas, including M&A, corporate finance (including capital markets and banking), financial regulation, real estate and energy and infrastructure. Our tax, environmental, social, corporate and regulatory practice groups complement our traditional practice areas while at the same time tending to our clients’ ongoing needs.

Our firm has played a significant role in the structuring, development and financing of private businesses and public sector projects in Mexico. Our work encompasses transactions within a broad array of sectors of the Mexican economy, including the financial, industrial, infrastructure, energy, retail and services sectors.

Our firm has a staff of more than 100 professionals deployed amongst our different practice areas. We seek to add value to our clients by means of an efficient and in-depth service combined with high levels of expertise and experience. We are Mexican law and tax trained professionals and most of our partners and senior associates have graduate degrees from the most reputable universities in the United States and Europe, as well as work experience in prestigious international firms.

Areas of practice
Arbitration and dispute resolution: The firm has developed a solid reputation in the field of institutional and ad-hoc mediation and arbitration. It has extensive experience in disputes related to infrastructure and energy project finance, as well as in other sectors such as real estate, financial, commercial, M&A, retail and corporate matters. Its lawyers are active members of the most prestigious national and international institutions and associations related to arbitration.

Aviation: The firm has significant experience and proven expertise in all aspects of aviation law. It represents clients in the development of Mexican airport infrastructure and in the pursuit of corporate strategies in this sector delivering advice for the financing of aircraft objects and space assets. It represents airport developers and operators, aircraft and helicopter manufacturers, engine companies, airlines, satellite launch companies and satellite operators, as well as aircraft lessors, export credit agencies and financial institutions. The firm has also represented clients in virtually all restructuring, insolvency and default situations involving Mexican airlines.

Banking and finance: The firm represents Mexican, international and multilateral banks, as well as other financial intermediaries in secured and unsecured, non-recourse (asset-backed), bilateral and syndicated lending transactions of different levels of complexity involving Mexican obligors or assets. Its steady presence in the market has allowed it to participate in all phases of the credit cycle, including origination in bull markets and restructuring in the context of regional or global crises. It has advised the majority of foreign financial institutions that have established subsidiaries in Mexico in their authorisation processes. The firm also advises international and domestic banks, as well as industry organisations such as ISDA and the Mexican Banking Association in their derivatives work in Mexico.

Capital markets: The firm constantly represents issuers, international and local broker dealers, investment banks in private and public offerings of debt and equity securities by Mexican issuers in the international markets. Its domestic expertise covers equity, debt and structured securities offerings, including asset-backed securities, CKDs, CERPIs, FIBRAS-E (MLPs), real estate FIBRAS (REITs) and bank capitalisation notes. It also specialises in the establishment and operation of investment funds, as well as in the registration of non-Mexican issuers in the Mexican market and has advised non-Mexican issuers in respect of the offering of non-Mexican securities in Mexico.

Compliance, anti-corruption and investigations: The firm advises Mexican and multinational clients with respect to sensitive and relevant issues, participating in the development of their compliance programs to assist in mitigating risks effectively, as well as in critical crisis response issues, including investigations and the representation of their clients before enforcement agencies and courts.

Competition and antitrust: The firm has extensive experience representing both Mexican and foreign clients in antitrust enforcement matters in Mexico, as well as handling merger notifications and antitrust proceedings of varying levels of complexity. It actively advises in the area of merger control and in cases of monopolistic practices and unlawful concentrations. The firm has extensive experience in all types of concentrations, advising both buyers, sellers and targets in a wide range of structures and transactions in all types of markets and sectors. It also specialises in conducting competition and antitrust audits and in the design and implementation of competition compliance programs.

Energy and infrastructure projects: The firm represents national and international lenders, investors, developers and contractors in connection with the financing, development and implementation of energy and infrastructure projects, including, among others, power (renewables and conventional), oil and gas (upstream, midstream and downstream), roads, water treatment, airports and ports. Its representation includes all stages of the projects, including project financing, bidding processes, project development, equity investment and divestiture, due diligence, regulatory matters, permitting, land and rights of way, offtake agreements, engineering, procurement, construction, operation, maintenance and other related agreements.

Environmental and social impact: The firm focuses on environmental, regulatory and sociocultural aspects of energy, industrial, infrastructure and real estate projects, representing national and international clients in administrative filings with federal, state, and municipal authorities, environmental impact, environmental due diligence, rule making, sociocultural impact assessment, prior consultation, wastes, national waters, emissions to the atmosphere, interpretation of environmental zoning and urban development zoning plans, federal maritime zone, climate change, management of filings to obtain authorisations, permits, and registrations for energy projects, pollution of water, soil, and air.

ESG: The firm advises national and multinational companies on how to bring effective responses to the complex and dynamic landscape of ESG standards and practices. We assist our clients in the structuring and implementation of ESG policies, due diligence, regulatory compliance-related matters, best practices for diversity and inclusion, corporate governance, human rights, climate change and culturally appropriate community impact. Furthermore, we represent our clients in the assessment and evaluation of their exposure, as well as in the reporting and transparency of their ESG goals, objectives and performance. It provides services through a multidisciplinary approach and helps clients identify and mitigate risks effectively. It also represents clients in matters of critical environmental, social and governance crisis response. The firm has relevant expertise in indigenous consultation, human rights, clean and efficient energy, decarbonization, GHG reductions, and other ESG-relevant matters.

Mergers and acquisitions: The firm advises buyers and sellers, including Mexican and international private equity funds and strategic corporate players, in mergers and acquisitions involving publicly traded and private companies in Mexico, as well as in the purchase and sale of cash-flow generating assets located in the country. The firm has structured and implemented transactions with varying degrees of complexity, including public takeover bids, corporate reorganisations and leveraged buyouts, with respect to companies engaged in a wide range of activities (financial services, insurance, telecommunications, pharmaceutical, retail, transportation and others), as well as different types of assets located throughout Mexico, such as hotels, power plants and other infrastructure assets.

Real estate: The firm represents Mexican and foreign developers, lenders and private equity investors in connection with real estate projects involving all asset classes. It’s actively involved in the formation of private and public real estate funds in Mexico. It has vast experience representing real estate investment trusts in their equity and debt investments in Mexico as well as in various tax and regulatory issues that arise in connection with such investments.

Restructurings and insolvency: The firm has been a leader in major corporate restructurings, having participated in some of the largest and most complex national and cross-border restructurings and insolvencies that have arisen in Mexico. It has successfully advised in restructuring proceedings both before the Mexican courts and out-of-court corporate refinancings processes in the areas of aviation, satellite communications, real estate development, energy, construction and concession of infrastructure projects, among others.

Tax: The firm has a multidisciplinary tax practice that provides targeted advice in transactions within all other practice areas. It’s active in projects seeking tax efficient solutions within the confines of regulatory compliance and in line with recent Mexican court precedents. The firm also participates in tax diligence in the context of mergers and acquisitions, transfer pricing analysis, and the review of tax implications of financial models, as well as in audit procedures and tax litigation.