Hughes Hubbard adds new co-chair to Latin America practice group
Hughes Hubbard & Reed announced that Ruben Diaz has rejoined the firm as partner in Miami. Diaz joins from Grupo Pellas, a Central American financial and commercial group, where he was general counsel.
Diaz started his legal career at Hughes Hubbard and was an associate in New York between 1983 and 1986. He later moved to Miami and joined legacy law firm Steel Hector & Davis (now Squire Patton Boggs) as partner. In 1997, Diaz moved to Ernst & Young and led its International Tax Latin American Business Center between 2000 and 2002, and later became the partner-in-charge of Ernst & Young’s Latin American legal practice . In 2004, he joined Grupo Pellas as General Counsel.
Grupo Pellas is a conglomerate of financial, industrial and commercial companies based in Central America. As the general counsel for the organization, Ruben Diaz also served as director of BAC Florida Bank, General Business Machines, Greytown Advisors, the American Nicaraguan Foundation, and other companies which are part of Grupo Pellas.
Diaz holds a Bachelor of Arts, graduating cum laude from Princeton University, and a J.D. from the University of Chicago Law School. He was born in Cuba, and has lived in the U.S. since the age of 10.
At Hughes Hubbard, Diaz will co-chair the firm’s Latin America practice. He has significant experience advising on cross-border investment, mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures and corporate finance, as well as international arbitration and dispute resolution.
“As someone who started his legal career at Hughes Hubbard, and has also been a client of the firm, I have seen the team’s dedication to clients and their relentless pursuit of excellence in legal practice,” said Diaz. “I am excited to return home to Hughes Hubbard, and I look forward to supporting the firm’s clients, particularly in Miami and Latin America.”
“We are thrilled to welcome Ruben to the team,” said Federico Goudie, co-chair of the Latin America practice group at the firm. “We have worked with him for many years as a client, and know him to be an extraordinary lawyer whose experience handling sophisticated legal matters related to and in Latin America will bring tremendous benefit to our clients and our group.”
Hughes Hubbard has recently bolstered its Latin America practice through a strategic cooperation agreement with Saud Advogados, a Brazilian law firm based in Rio de Janeiro. Hughes Hubbard does not have offices in the region and services its clients via its Latin American practice group which is spread throughout Miami, NY and Washington DC.
