About

The in-house legal team of Parque Arauco Colombia is made up of four highly trained and talented lawyers, bringing legal guidance and commercial clarity to one of Colombia’s largest retailers. Legal director Tatiana Montealegre is in charge of directing the team and coordinating tasks related to the legal support required by the company for the operation of its shopping centres in Colombia, including producing the relevant legal documents that support each operation. Likewise, the team supports finance and real estate areas in the structuring of new investment alternatives for the company to develop or administrate new shopping centres. Cindy Ruiz, senior lawyer, assists Montealegre in areas of real estate development and new projects, whilst also supporting her in both coordinating the tasks that are assigned in the team and the team’s structuring. Ruiz also checks the legal documents that are needed for the operation of the business. Junior lawyers Edgar Gutierrez and Maria Paula Roa produce and revise legal documents for operational purposes that are requested by the various areas of the business. Being the main support to the commercial team, they draw up the contracts in relation to the tenants of Parque Arauco’s shopping malls. Legal assistant, Alicia Laurens provides support to all members of the legal team in the managing of documents and a legal archive. Recently, the team has supported the contractual structure of construction and commercialisation of the Parque la Colina shopping centre and supported the company’s development and commercialisation of the first premium outlet in Colombia. The team has also carried out the implementation of a new data protection project in the company and provided support to the company’s sustainability area in Colombia. Montealegre highlights that the team ‘always works in order to be completely reliable for the fulfilment of the objectives of each area, who acquires different commitments and obligations daily based on our documents, legal concepts and our work. That is why despite the volume of work we can handle, we will never choose easy roads, but those that are correct, under the principles of ethics, integrity and diligence’.