First, can you please give us an idea of the sort of work your team has done recently? 

The last two years have been very disruptive for JLL´s legal area, due to the various issues arising from Covid-19, the labour reform on outsourcing and JLL’s new lines of business that seek to meet needs arising from the local and global economic environment we live in.  

In the span of one year, we carried out several real estate investment projects in The US for the development and rental of more than 800 multifamily units, targeted to Mexican investors. These projects were structured internally within JLL’s legal team.  

Regarding our facility management business, Work Dynamics, in Mexico, during 2021, we executed 25 new services agreements to manage sites in Mexico with clients worldwide, leaders in their sectors. By the end of 2021, JLL Mexico managed 30 million square feet with a client annual spent budget of $125m.  

Throughout this, we have continued our day-to-day legal activities, which in general terms include the structuring of new real estate projects, the execution of more than 1000 annual agreements with clients and vendors, corporate governance matters, litigation and  labour matters. 

We have also addressed compliance and ethics affairs, including the implementation and follow-up of internal controls and policies related to anti-money laundering, The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, data privacy, labour, ethics and diversity. 

Which recent political, economic or regulatory changes have impacted the company and the team the most? 

The labour reform regarding subcontracting was a great challenge for JLL, since, in a very short period of time, we had to restructure the company to meet the new labour standards. To this end, corporate entities were modified, the hiring of employees in the group’s companies was consolidated, contracts with clients and suppliers were fine-tuned, and new processes and internal controls were implemented. All this ensured compliance with the new regulations while guaranteeing the provision of services to the highest standards. 

What do you think are the biggest risks facing your industry at the moment and how are you preparing your company and team to face these risks?  

In the past couple of years, the real estate industry has been affected mainly by Covid and its collateral economics effects both on a local and global scale. Because of this, the market´s real estate needs have changed in the last two years and keep on changing, as is the case of the decrease in office occupancy, contrasting with the great real estate growth in the industrial and logistics sectors, as well as the boom in secondary cities and tourist destinations in Mexico. Nevertheless, investors remain cautious in the incursion of new investments.  At JLL we have made our goal to understand the concerns, needs and requirements of our clients and as result we have ventured into new business lines and real estate investment projects, mainly in the tourist sector and abroad.