About

Number of years practice: 32 Principal practice areas: Asset finance, aviation finance, derivatives and structured products, securitisation, structured finance Bar admissions: New York Languages spoken: English

Hogan Lovells’ finance partner Lewis Cohen has undertaken a number of ‘global firsts’, including the first Securities and Exchange Commission registered cross-border, asset-backed securities offerings, and the first covered-bond issued out of Latin America. Cohen’s work in Mexico is most notably associated with the FIBRA sector, which he helped pioneer through his frequent representation of Latin America’s largest real estate investment trust, FIBRA Uno, including acting as principal US counsel on its IPO. His broad experience of capital markets was critical, he suggests: ‘Until recently, many deals in Mexico relied on the international capital markets, and because the US has such a well-established real estate market it tended to dominate the way deals were done. For example, the way in which disclosures were prepared was clearly derived from US capital markets. I had a long history of working on structured finance matters in Mexico, along with a substantial expertise in securitisation: that really helped me approach the FIBRA space with an open mind-set.’ His career-long exposure to cross-border deals has, he says, helped him develop a more flexible and commercially-minded approach to legal structures: ‘Doing deals in China, India and Europe is extremely useful when advising Mexican entities. I have worked in a number of different countries and encountered many permutations on how non-US issuers approach rigorous US capital markets structures. That experience is very valuable in understanding how your role as a lawyer can add value to a deal rather than simply help a client cover compliance requirements.’ He has also been developing his practice to deal with legal issues arising from fintech and blockchain, which he sees as an area of fundamental importance for Latin American corporates that deal with US markets.