What are the most significant cases or transactions that your legal team has recently been involved in?

Corticeira Amorim is the largest cork products company in the world and the most international Portuguese company. It is the clear leader in the sector and contributes like no other company to the economy and innovation in the cork sector. The company has a presence on every continent of the world. Corticeira Amorim’s sales totaled €1.021m in 2022.

To achieve this figure, it was very important the acquisition of a 50% stake in the Italian SACI Group (€49m), an operation totally supported by our legal team.

Also important was the acquisition of the Herdade do Rio Frio with 5155 hectares, made in several stakes totaling and investment of €51.44m, an operation also supported by our legal team.

The company has a presence on every continent of the world through hundreds of agents, 18 industrial plants, 51 distribution companies and 12 joint ventures, and the role of its in-house legal team is absolutely critical to the success of the company.

This team, which is led by Pedro Jorge Magalhães, is relatively small but very self-sufficient and multifaceted. It handles complex and sophisticated work in the various areas of the law relevant to the work of Corticeira Amorim. The team is composed of first-class legal minds with in-depth technical knowledge and a huge capacity for work as well as an impressive strategic and perceptive vision of the business world. A clear understanding of the legal framework of the business where the company operates, together with a consistent expertise are fundamental to finding the optimal solution.

Pedro Jorge Magalhães also brings a comprehensive set of academic and professional qualifications, namely in the areas of environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) and compliance, which are a relevant added value in supporting the decision-making process of the management.

How important is choosing to work with external lawyers who align with your company’s values? Are you likely to reconsider what firms you work with based on this?

With a relatively small team, the alignment with the external lawyers that supports us in the several challenges that we face is absolutely crucial. We always are looking for top specialists with the capacity to work with us in all different legal areas and different jurisdictions that we are in contact.

As we live in a fast-paced world today, what skills will a corporate legal team need to succeed in the modern in-house industry?

To succeed in the modern in-house industry, a corporate legal team needs a deep knowledge and understanding of the legal framework; high technical competence and professionalism; great negotiating skills and a particular ability to achieve consensus solutions, placing the customer’s interest at the core of the analysis and resolution of each issue; vision and integrated analysis of themes, covering the various specialties of law.