Focus on the role of the legal team in overcoming challenges 

The last two years have been different and challenging, personally and professionally. The pandemic has affected the country’s economy, with many businesses and companies closing or considerably reducing activities. All this at a very high human cost.

In this scenario, the legal team under my supervision had to achieve increased objectives in its operational plan while facing an unprecedented challenge, such as adapting to a new work modality, higher customer default rate, increased pressures from suppliers, and retaining and attracting new customers.

The political, social and economic crisis that the country and the world are going through has impacted investment decisions and growth for the companies and clients. Faced with this not very encouraging scenario, we had the firm determination and objective of renegotiating many contracts.

We obtained a 100% success rate, allowing us to get actual results for the company. In our contract negotiations, we managed to increase the term (longer days) for payment to suppliers, extensions of the time of supplies or services or renewal of contracts with clients, and reduction of rental income and delinquent portfolio. Likewise, we managed to negotiate legal aspects and sign agreements with recognised companies in the mining, industrial, fishing and transport sectors.

We expanded our network of service stations nationwide with efficient contracts designed by our team. In this context, our team’s notable success was to give definitive closure in the middle of 2022 to all the legal issues arising from an accident that occurred in April 2020 suffered by a tanker that transported fuel. This event involved fair negotiation with local communities, authorities and affected families.

We deployed all our efforts and resources to carry out containment, clean-up and remediation work with the highest industry standards. We actively participated in the negotiations and provided the legal advice required to avoid any sanction for the company, favourably concluding the investigations at the administrative, fiscal and judicial levels.

Additionally, we transformed digitally. We implemented digital signatures to sign contracts and other documents, which made it possible to streamline the documents considering that signers were doing remote work. We are currently managing the upgrade of our contract monitoring, control and archiving platform to allow commercial teams direct access through their phones, verify the status in real-time, and facilitate monitoring.

Our team’s success is summed up in teamwork, agility and precision. None of this would have been achieved without coordinated work with the business and support units of the company, nor if we had not redefined and simplified some internal processes related to our contracts; and especially without the dedication, involvement and always positive attitude of the team of lawyers in my charge. To them goes my sincere appreciation and thanks.