Squire Patton Boggs appoints new Latin America practice head

Squire Patton Boggs has appointed Alejandro Peña-Prieto as head of the firm’s Latin America practice, and has formed a 20-person executive committee responsible for driving the practice’s strategic direction.

“Peña-Prieto’s appointment, along with the other changes to the Latin America practice, will drive forward the firm’s tradition of providing seamless, cutting-edge services to clients doing inbound and outbound business across the region,” the firm said in a statement.

“One of the key strengths of our firm is the breadth of our Latin America practice, and the deep connections and market knowledge we have across the region,” the firm’s chair and global CEO Mark J. Ruehlmann said.

“Alex is an energetic, highly respected leader who brings a team-first approach to this important role. With the designation of Alex as head of our world-class Latin America group, we are excited to take our practice to even greater heights,” he added.

In addition the firm’s multidisciplinary Latin America team brings decades of experience of servicing clients across Latin America. 

The team is made up of Paul A. O’Hop (energy and natural resources; Eduardo R. Guzmán (communications); Angela Mariana Freyre (financial services), and Alvaro J. Mestre (energy and natural resources), all of whom are based in Washington, DC. Paula A. Galhardo, (corporate), who is based in Houston, while Alfredo G. Anzola (energy and natural resources), is based in Houston and Miami. Awilda M. Alcántara-Bourdier (corporate), who is based in Santo Domingo, Michele L. Connell (corporate), who is based in Cleveland, and Marisa Fernández (tax strategy and benefits), who is based in Madrid. 

Also on the Latin America executive committee are Digna B. French (litigation), who is based in Miami, Pedro O. Gamundi (financial services, Santo Domingo); James L. Hsu (corporate, Los Angeles); Kevin S. Levey (energy and natural resources, Washington, DC); Raúl B. Mañón (international dispute resolution, Miami); Jose Martin (government investigations and white collar, Miami); Manuel Mingot (financial services, Madrid); Luis Reiter (public and infrastructure finance, Miami); Frank R. Samolis (international trade, Washington, DC); José María Viñals (international trade, Madrid), and Daniel E. Waltz (international trade, Washington, DC).

The Latin America practice also maintains three country desks, and whose respective chairs are Paula A. Galhardo (Brazil), Alvaro J. Mestre (Mexico), and Eduardo R. Guzmán (Caribbean/Central America).

“With the seasoned and bicultural leadership team that we have in place, we are able to draw on the strength of our global platform to help clients navigate through the region’s evolving landscape, as well as provide Latin American clients with top-quality legal services around the world,” Peña-Prieto said.

In addition to heading the firm’s Latin America practice, Peña-Prieto (pictured)  is the managing partner of the firm’s Santo Domingo office, and is recognised as a leading lawyer in Latin America. He counsels clients on corporate, mergers and acquisitions, energy, finance, taxation, government relations, contracts and regulatory issues.