Private Practice Powerlist: US-Mexico 2019
Partner | Clifford Chance US LLP
Hugo Triaca
Partner | Clifford Chance US LLP
20
Capital Markets
New York, Argentina
English, Spanish
Hugo Triaca is a partner in the Americas capital markets practice. He specialises in equity offerings, high-yield and investment grade debt offerings, hybrid securities transactions, liability management transactions such as exchange offers and debt tender offers, acquisition financings and other corporate transactions. Triaca also advises foreign private issuers in connection with corporate governance, US securities laws and general corporate matters.
Notable cases for Triaca include: advising representing Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC, UBS Securities LLC and Banco BTG Pactual S.A. as initial purchasers in connection with the issuance by Docuformas of US$300m aggregate principal amount of its 10.250% Senior Notes due 2024 (“New Notes”); and representing the same clients in connection with a cash offer and consent solicitation from Docuformas directed to holders of Docuformas’ outstanding 9.250% Senior Notes due 2022 (the “2022 Notes”).
The capital markets practice at Clifford Chance differs from those of our US competitors and peers for several reasons.
We have practice area expertise across key sectors of growth in Mexico, including energy and infrastructure, renewables, industrials, oil and gas, transportation, mining and metals, water, financial services, fintech and consumer products.
Our lockstep practice fosters a sense of collaboration and inclusion on cross-border mandates. For example, the Madrid-US and China-US teams have worked together on many significant matters in Mexico which are enhanced by secondments.
We are one of the few firms with lawyers trained in both common law and civil law systems, and who are familiar with issues typically arising in transactions structured in civil law jurisdictions but under New York law-governed documentation.
As global investments into Mexico continue to rise, our worldwide network positions us to connect with investors around the world who are interested in doing business there. We have a credible track record working with some of the key investors in Mexico, particularly financial and institutional investors, including private equity and infrastructure funds, sovereign wealth funds and Asian investors. Our deep knowledge of the modus operandi of these investors, combined with our leading position in other strategic markets such as the US, the UK, Spain and Asia Pacific, enables us to apply the insights and know-how obtained in such markets to anticipate issues, and places us in a strategic position to advise clients who are doing deals in Mexico with these investors.
Some of the advantages of advising Mexico-based clients from an office in the US include not being tied to one local firm in Mexico, and therefore being able to decide who we want to work with based on sector and practice area expertise. We derive local market intelligence from multiple sources instead of relying on one local firm, thus providing us with multiple angles on a single matter.
With the changes in the government administration and the volatility in the international capital markets, we expect this upcoming year not to be as active as previous ones, but continue to monitor for opportunities across practice areas.
At Clifford Chance, we are already preparing for what the future of legal technology will bring to US-Mexico working practices. We are highly invested in technology training for lawyers, integrated platforms to optimize transactional practices, and applying AI technologies to high expense legal activities such as e-discovery and due diligence. We believe these burgeoning approaches will soon become commonplace, and the firm is already preparing for the next wave of technological innovation.
In the near term, online platforms for managing transactions from end-to-end, with all parties engaged, will be the new way of doing business. From managing the drafting and negotiation process, to digital signing and execution of contracts, a lot of administrative friction will be removed.
A bit further down the road, we will see data flowing more seamlessly and connected in a richer way. This is informed by the Mexican Fintech Law, which requires financial entities and FTIs to establish APIs to certain financial data systems. The law will also provide oversight for transactions involving cryptocurrency. This foundation for virtual assets and data connectivity will allow for the adoption of smart contracts on blockchain networks, with self-executing provisions to diminish the risk and overhead of dispute resolution. Advancements in translation intelligence are also improving rapidly. At some point technical legalese will be translated accurately and instantaneously, breaking down language barriers, and creating efficiencies within the cross-border transaction lifecycle.
My perception of in-house counsel’s priorities in terms of client service when working with US-based law firms is that they expect excellent legal advice that is performed efficiently. We have a range of resources and tools to ensure highly effective management of our matters, including a fully integrated team of experienced legal project managers (LPMs) who work with our lawyers as an integral part of the team throughout the execution of transactions. The team includes certified project managers with extensive experience in delivering operational and continuous improvement projects for law firms.
Some of the key areas of focus of the LPMs are:
Additionally, we are one of the few, if not the only, international firm in Mexico that conducts a review with our clients at the end of a matter to identify their overall satisfaction with our performance. This provides the client with a safe outlet to give candid feedback, raise any issues, comments on their perception of the deal team and final outcome. We endeavor to ensure that
our client’s expectations are met, and work to make any adjustments on future engagements so that our clients feel that they are receiving the best legal advice in the marketplace.
