Barcelona annual report
Law firms need to be more innovative
With businesses in Barcelona doing more legal work in-house, the onus is on law firms to become
more creative in the types of services they offer clients
Eugenia Jover
Local companies in Barcelona are
expanding their in-house legal teams,
a trend that is putting pressure on law
firms to offer more innovative legal
services, according to Eugenia Jover,
senior associate at Deloitte Abogados.
Jover adds that it is more common
for such companies to have in-house
lawyers who participate in the business’
everyday activities. “We perceive an
increase in internal legal advisory
services at local companies,” she
says. “They are increasing in size and
becoming more specialised with greater
involvement in day-to-day business.”
According to Jover, such
developments mean that the legal work
that is now outsourced by companies
tends to be that which involves a
greater level of complexity. “This
means that law firms have to adapt by
offering innovative solutions – not only
from a legal, but also from a business
perspective – and provide enough added
value to justify the client´s decision to
outsource.”
The increasingly global nature of
many Spanish companies means clients
more frequently need lawyers to advise
on “international structures”, according
to Jover. She adds: “Nowadays law firms
should be able to offer homogenous and
complete services while fulfilling their
usual standards.”
Jover says that, over the last year, there
has been a significant increase in the
number of foreign companies interested
in investing in Barcelona. “At the same
time, local companies have initiated
international expansion procedures in
search of new markets,” she adds.
What are currently the biggest
opportunities for law firms in Barcelona?
“In the current environment, the main
opportunities for law firms in Barcelona
consist of giving support to the client
throughout the whole corporative process
as well as offering legal advice beyond
the local level in a multidisciplinary way,”
says Jover. She adds that this requires a
“deep knowledge of the client´s sector as
well as the client’s business”.
Firms must get closer to clients
José Ignacio Parellada
With many clients expanding their in-house
legal teams to reduce expenditure on external
advisers, law firms need to strengthen their
relationships with clients in order to develop
a better understanding of their businesses,
according to José Ignacio Parellada, partner at
Ramón y Cajal Abogados in Barcelona.
He adds that this trend is coming at a
time when there is renewed business activity
across a range of sectors in Barcelona, with
M&A and foreign investment returning as
important factors in the economic growth of
law firms in the region.
Parellada says that in recent years, law
firms have been focusing on litigation,
insolvency and labour law as companies
restructured and laid-off staff, a scenario
which presented a big challenge to clients.
But law firms are once again focusing
on corporate, M&A, Spanish companies’
expansion abroad and foreign investment as
the economic conditions improve.
“This shift in the trend is making law
firms prioritise the medium and long-term
46 • IBERIAN LAWYER • March / April 2015
opportunities,” Parellada says. “The market
has stagnated for seven years and there
are still financing difficulties for Spanish
companies, which offer opportunities for
foreign investors.”
He identifies industrial, IT and real
estate as the sectors likely to see the
strongest growth in the coming months,
along with M&A. Parellada also expects
that there will be more high value
transactions in the near future.
In the face of these changes, Parellada
stresses the importance of law firms being
skilled at advising clients on launching or
expanding businesses outside Spain, as well
as advising foreign companies investing
in Catalonia. However, he adds that many
companies have strengthened their in-house
legal teams to cut costs. As a result, law firms
must adapt, and forge a closer relationship
with their clients to better understand their
needs and expectations. This needs to be
coupled with the necessary adjustments in
order to be more profitable and competitive.
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