Dentons, a leading global law firm, has announced its combination with Paz Horowitz Abogados, an elite Ecuadorian law firm located in Ecuador’s capital, Quito. With this combination, Dentons has become the first and only pan Latin American and Caribbean law firm with offices in 26 countries in the region. Globally, Dentons now has a presence in 198 locations across 78 countries.
Through its team of eight partners and more than 30 lawyers, Paz Horowitz Abogados provides legal services across key practice areas including intellectual property, anti-Corruption investigations and compliance, corporate and M&A, energy, dispute resolution, labor and employment, and aviation. The lawyers of the firm have been recognized by Chambers Latin America 2020, Latin Lawyer 250, Legal 500, and Leaders League 2021. The firm has a leading practice in investments, project development, corporate and financial services in Ecuador. In 2020, the firm managed and acted on transactions worth US $128 million of the total US $400 million investment agreements executed by foreign companies with the Ecuadorian government.
Elliott Portnoy, Global CEO of Dentons, said, “The combination with Paz Horowitz Abogados in Ecuador will allow us to better serve our clients across Latin America and the Caribbean and around the globe. Now, Dentons will have leading talent in 26 countries in the region, and 198 locations across 78 countries around the world.”
Joe Andrew, Global Chairman of Dentons, said, “In this New Dynamic Decade, our clients are navigating constant and accelerating change, and want to know they are working with a law firm with the confidence and the experience to help them navigate it. Dentons’ strategy to scale the firm through combinations with leading law firms such as Paz Horowitz Abogados is paying dividends, as Dentons continues to achieve more total rankings growth year-on-year than any key global competitor in Chambers Global.”
Jorge Paz Durini, Founding Partner of Paz Horowitz Abogados, said, “Paz Horowitz has differentiated itself by being a “one-stop” firm whose talent provides quality and comprehensive solutions. In recent years we have grown our Firm by virtue of the trust that our clients have placed in us and by combining with Dentons we will gain access to the most innovative technology solutions and be positioned to follow our clients into new geographies.”
In 2020, Dentons acted on 85% of all cross-border transactions around the world. This combination will make Dentons the only international law firm in Ecuador from launch and the only law firm owned and controlled by Latin Americans having a pan Latin American presence. The combination is expected to take effect in the next few months.