Barros & Errázuriz

Founded in 1988, Barros & Errázuriz has positioned itself in the Chilean legal market as the youngest leading law firm, being the second largest firm in the country.

It offers legal advice in more than 30 practice areas, including mergers and acquisitions, banking and finance, capital markets, infrastructure, competition and antitrust, real estate, tax, environmental, telecommunications, natural resources, energy, and dispute resolution, among others.

A leader in each of the fields mentioned, according to prestigious international rankings, it offers a comprehensive and business-oriented approach, combining particular expertise in areas for which our corporate and individual clients require precise solutions in their domestic and cross-border ventures.

Barros & Errázuriz has experienced continuous growth since its foundation, and has a broad base of local and foreign clients.  It has offered relevant legal advice in all areas of clients' businesses, some of which has had great impact for the country in recent years.

The firm is part of Affinitas, a network based in Latin America, composed of a group of prominent firms and renowned leaders, in each of the countries where they operate: Barros & Errázuriz (Chile), Gómez Pinzón (Colombia), Mijares, Angoitía, Cortés & Fuentes SC (Mexico) and Miranda & Amado (Peru).

Main areas of practice
Antitrust: the firm has a distinguished record in advising on major cases before Chilean antitrust agencies. It has been retained in several regulated areas and transactions requiring merger control structure and agreements to ensure full compliance with the relevant legislation.

Banking and finance: the firm handles a broad range of issues, including secured and syndicated loans, transactions and guarantees, structured finance, project finance, leasing and tax-based finance.

Capital markets: the firm has been involved in ADR programs, bond offerings, IPOs of local companies and tender offers of publicly-traded companies. With high expertise in securities law, it has advised several traded companies, stockbrokers and a large portion of Chilean mutual and close-end investment funds.

Compliance: the firm provides advice related to the design, implementation and monitoring of policies and internal procedures in relation to corporate compliance with the legal and regulatory requirements applicable to commercial activities, and to corporate governance, risk management and anti-corruption practices.

Corporate: the firm has acted as counsel in areas including real estate and construction, stock brokerage and investment funds, pharmaceuticals, media enterprises (TV), private ports, hotels and tourism, agriculture and forestry, among others.

Energy and natural resources: with a strong practice, the firm acts as counsel to electricity generating companies, water, sewage and gas companies.

Environment and sustainable development: the firm advises on compliance with environmental regulations in the development of electrical, shipping, mining, forestry, real estate, chemical and concession projects.

Infrastructure: as a regular player in the largest infrastructure transactions in Chile, the firm has advised sponsors, public works concessionaires and lenders in connection with, inter-urban and urban highways, prisons, ports, airports, and energy and mining facilities.

Innovation and entrepreneurship: Barros & Errázuriz has committed to the development of the entrepreneurial ecosystem. The firm maintains close contact with different incubators, accelerators and investors from our country and industry, highlighting our work with StartUp-Chile, the leading accelerator in Latin America, with which we coordinate the delivery of advice and mentoring to the StartUp-Chile Entrepreneur Network.

Insurance: the firm offers continuing legal advice to international clients with participation in local insurance companies, as well as to foreign reinsurance entities operating in Chile.

Labour and employment: the firm possesses exceptional expertise in matters including collective bargaining, union affairs, litigation and due diligence processes for private and state-owned firms.

Dispute resolution and arbitration: the firm acts in a wide range of cases before civil courts and regulatory agencies. It specialises in commercial litigation, insolvency and corporate restructuring cases.  It also counsels several clients in local and international arbitrations.

Water rights: the firm gives advice in a wide variety of matters relating to water rights as a key asset of many industries.

M&A: as one of the firm’s core practice areas, the firm has been involved in many of the largest M&As in Chile, including private acquisitions in cross-border takeovers of listed companies, acquisitions of controlling and minority interests, divestitures and corporate restructuring programmes.

Real estate: the firm represents a variety of clients in all major real estate activities. It has been involved in several major real estate developments during the last decade in Chile.

Tax: the firm draws on rich experience in advising on tax planning and tax litigation. It also advises clients on incorporations, acquisitions, reorganizations and liquidations, with a strong practice in private stock and asset acquisitions, mergers, joint ventures, private equity funds and cross-border transactions.

Telecommunications and technology: the firm has advised clients including mobile services, IP telephony, 3G, long distance, internet services, rural telephony, satellite and broadcast television services. It is involved in relevant regulatory issues of telecommunication industry, before the Antitrust Commission and the Courts of Justice. Additionally, it has a deep experience in the negotiation closing of transactions in connection with new information technologies.

Public law: provides permanent legal advice to private parties and government agencies in a wide range of constitutional and administrative law matters, including regulatory issues.

Pro Bono
The firm has a commitment to provide pro bono legal services to people and institutions in need.

International work
The firm has extensive experience in cross-border transactions involving financing, corporate restructuring, M&A, foreign investments and international joint ventures. Over the past year it has handled some of the largest cross-border transactions in Chile, including toll road financing, international bidding process of utilities companies and liquidation of foreign investment funds.