About

With a reported revenue of $3.8bn for 2014, Gruma is the largest corn flour and tortillas manufacturer in the world and operates in more than 79 plants worldwide, mainly in Mexico, the US and Europe. The legal department is made up of seven lawyers and two paralegals, and is led by corporate legal vice president Guillermo Elizondo, who provides strategic advice on a wide range of legal matters, including, anti-trust, competition law, strategic alliances, international trade, real state, commercial transactions, intellectual property and international arbitrations. An example of the team’s utmost diligence includes the large-scale acquisition of software from a German corporation for the creation of a new technological platform for Gruma subsidiaries. The team has also been behind the power purchase agreement with a multinational corporation for operations in Mexico and a natural gas supply agreement with a large energy company for its operations in Mexico. This has led to the team contributing to the implementation of a number of initiatives including comprehensive anti-money laundering measures. Internally, the team has been responsible for creating the “legal-environmental data-room” of all Mexican subsidiaries of Gruma as a day-to-day tool for in-house lawyers and ‘an encyclopedia ready to use for due diligences and audits and the Implementation of the personal data department, legal data privacy compliance and “ARCO” rights’. The team boasts a wide range of talented lawyers. Elizondo says of this diversity: ‘I incorporated new young members adding fresh ideas and new technologies to our practice. The challenge was how to continue providing strong advice to our senior management with these new members of the team, incorporating them to the operations, and at the same time continue having the confidence of the senior management. Only good team work, effort and collaboration made us exceed this challenge’. Some individuals that stand out include corporate attorney Patricia Rojas, a recent graduate, who, Elizondo states has ‘added impulse to the day-to-day contract management life of the company with her fresh ideas. She also has the ability to give legal support for the internal supply chain management and provides legal advice on environmental issues’. Gustavo Lugo, legal contract manager, is another standout of the team who provides advice on unfair competition, false advertising, rights of publicity, data privacy and internet-related matters.