Editorial
“
Choosing lawyers on price
will prove costly for Chinese
clients
The Latin
American
Lawyer
December 2018
The new NAFTA
Labour lawyers needed
Brazilian renewables
New dawn for law firms?
Colombia tech
M&A on the rise
Handle with care
The art of serving Chinese clients
www.iberianlawyer.com/latin-america
www.thelatinamericanlawyer.com
”
Chinese investment is now a major contributor to Latin
American economic growth, with the Far East nation now
the biggest trading partner of Brazil, Chile and Peru. This
presents significant opportunities for the region’s law firms,
but it can also create problems for lawyers. As we report in
our News Focus (page 14), lawyers advising on transactions
are advised to engage with Chinese investors’ lawyers rather
than communicating directly with Chinese executives as this
generally means the whole process runs more smoothly.
Chinese investors are also warned against choosing legal
advisers simply based on price. As one lawyer remarks, such
investors need the best local lawyers and not the cheapest
because “cheap turns out to be expensive”. Another potential
pitfall for Chinese clients, according to some lawyers in the
region, is that it is often the case that law firms find themselves
providing advice for free at the outset and, as a result, this
could mean firms are less inclined to work with Chinese clients
and instead be more interested in sourcing work from other
jurisdictions.
December 2018 • THE LATIN AMERICAN LAWYER •
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