Interview with: Paulo von Hafe, Partner, Ana Bruno & Associado

How as Ana Bruno & Associados fared through the troubled times of 2020/2021 ?

After the first times of uncertainty, we were pleased to find our team ready to go on working, despite the difficulties of confinement. I am proud to say that we helped several foreign clients who found themselves trapped in the confusion of those first weeks, go back home to their loved ones. When the dust started to settle, however, we understood that the dynamics of working together physically were not to be discarded, and moved the team back to the office as soon as it was safe and we could ensure a safe work environment. The excellent conditions of our offices were central and we were able to take advantage of our outdoors areas to welcome our clients in the sunny months of spring, summer and early autumn. Indeed, some of our clients seemed to be finding pretexts to come and meet us here at the office…

Surely, there were as retraction in the first semester of 2020, but our great foreign client base then provided a new focus of attention. Covid and the excellent response that Portugal collectively showed increased the interest of many to relocate and invest in our country, and we have been honour to support them.

Which practices do you see growing in the next 12 months? What are the drivers behind that ?

Ana Bruno & Associados is firmly grounded in the triangle it created covering tropical Portuguese speaking Angola and Mozambique, Dubai (linking to India and China) and the Cyrus Ross Network in Europe, of which the Firm has been a long-time member and of which I am honored to be a Board Member.

We believe that finally Portugal has caught the eye of the World and that we are still only in the beginning of what’s to come. More and more, those who first came after EU resident cards are finding the myriad investment opportunities that Portugal has to offer, by our geographical location, our natural riches, and our educated and proactive workers.

And, as incentives drawn from the aid by the European Union start to materialize and investment models for residence purposes shift, so we try to be in the forefront of new more structured solutions, that may provide our clients or prospective clients with different opportunities to invest and have appealing returns on their investments.

What’s the main change you’ve made in the firm that will benefit clients?

Evidence of our vitality through the last two years is our continued and sustained growth. Our team has expanded with two new junior lawyers and we have increased and intend to reinforce still our trainee pool, in view of future organic growth. We have been rethinking the workload distribution, releasing the more experienced lawyers to face-to-face contact with our Clients. Our personal relation with the Client, our effort to know and understand their wishes and needs, has always been the centerpiece of our identity as a law firm. Investment on the consolidation of our digital tools has been my main concern and I intend to continue pursuing it, to rationalize our processes, reduce fees for our clients and allow us to focus on high value chores.

Is technology changing the way you interact with your clients, and the services you can provide them?

We never forget that technology is a tool. It is a tool to release us from irrational work processes, repetitive low value added tasks, human error, and to elevate us to what humans do best: relate, communicate, care.

But as a tool that it is, it is highly valued. We continually incorporate tested technology and remain attentive at the constant threats that information technology poses to our data storage. Lawyer firms must keep much higher privacy and data security standards, which forces us to always be one step ahead of the growing risks.

You have mentioned the firm’s international presence: how does that presence weigh on the strategy of the office?

In Europe, Ana Bruno & Associados has been a very active party of Cyrus Ross (http://cyrusross.com). The network acts under the form of an European Economic Interest Group, and is composed of small to medium sized law firms in Spain, France, the UK, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Switzerland, Italy, Germany, Denmark , Austria, Chequia, Poland, Romenia, Hungary, Bulgaria and Finland. We meet often and try to maintain close proximity and to integrate as much as possible, without jeopardizing each firm’s identity.

Outside Europe, the firm is present in Dubai, our most active outpost, with a permanent Portuguese colleague who has been living in the Emirates for the most part of the last decade, who ensures multiple services locally, as well as acting as point-man for the foreign investors coming from the Middle East and India, looking to invest in Portugal.

In Angola and Mozambique, our many years working in permanence there have left us well acquainted with the territory, its peoples and opportunities. We maintain a minimal local staff, and currently provide a much more flexible service, both to locals looking for Portugal’s opportunities, and for foreigners looking for opportunities there.

We also keep tight relations with law firms in Brazil, Macao, Turkey and the US, in view of providing the best solutions for our clients.