 | Emerging Markets: News and Recent Developments
June 2008 - There have been some exciting developments at Mayer Brown recently with particular significance for our emerging markets clients. We have also continued our track record of acting on some of the most innovative deals in the market. In this update, we highlight those developments and some of the more notable deals of the last 12 months. Read >>
| | | Global Trade Update: Proposed Rules Signal A More Expansive and Intensive Examination of Foreign Investments in the United States
8 May 2008 - On April 23, 2008, the US Department of the Treasury published its long-awaited proposed rules implementing the 2007 amendments to the US laws restricting foreign investments that may threaten US national security. Read >>
| |  | Mayer Brown Receives Two IFLR 2008 Americas Awards
9 April 2008 - Mayer Brown LLP, a leading international firm, is pleased to announce that the firm has received two 2008 Americas Awards from International Financial Law Review (IFLR) for Project Finance Deal of the Year and Project Finance Team of the Year. Read >>
| | | Mayer Brown involved in three Project Finance 2007 "Deals of the Year"
20 February 2008 - Three major projects for which attorneys of Mayer Brown's Infrastructure, Latin America and Projects Groups provided legal counsel are recognized as 2007 "Deals of the Year" for their innovation and ingenuity by Project Finance Magazine in its February issue. Read >>
| | | Mayer Brown Appoints Three New Partners in Latin American Practice - Gianluca Bacchiocchi, Ricardo Gonzalez and Luke Richbourg Promoted
14 December 2007 - Mayer Brown, a leading international law firm, has announced that Gianluca Bacchiocchi, Ricardo Gonzalez and Luke Richbourg have been promoted to the firm's partnership, effective January 1, 2008. Bacchiocchi, Gonzalez and Richbourg are members of the firm's Latin American practice group. Read >>
| | | Mayer Brown Office in Brazil Now Open - Stephen Hood is Partner-in-Charge
13 December 2007 - Mayer Brown, a leading international law firm, today announced the official opening of its new office in São Paulo, Brazil, following registration with the Brazilian Bar Association (OAB). Stephen Hood, a lawyer with extensive international experience, particularly in the Brazilian legal community, is the partner-in-charge of the office. Mayer Brown also announced that James Vickers, an experienced projects and infrastructure lawyer in the São Paulo office, will be promoted to partner on January 1. Read >>
| | | Private Equity Investment in Latin America
November 2007 - There has been an exponential growth in private equity investment in the United States over the last decade, and private equity investors - both private equity funds and hedge funds - attracted by the prospect of high returns, have started to increase their investment activity in Latin America, especially in Brazil and Mexico, the two largest and most mature markets in the region. Read >>
| | | Port Projects in Latin America: Risk Analysis and Mitigation
September 2007 - Recent years have witnessed growth in global infrastructure transactions. The port sector in Latin America provides robust opportunities for infrastructure investment and finance. This article written by Barry Machlin, Co-Chair of the Global Projects Group in Chicago, provides an overview of the range of issues to consider, including private capital, management of legal and regulatory risk as well as construction/completion and market risk, labor issues and concessions. Featured chapter in the Euromoney Yearbook Transportation Finance Review 2007/08. Read >>
| | | Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw listed among top 10 legal advisors in Latin America
1 August 2007 - Euromoney's Project Finance has published its annual "Top 10" rankings in the Latin American market. The results list the mandated arrangers, arrangers, financial advisors and legal advisors that are most active throughout the region. Read >>
| | | Tiffany Smith Joins Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw Global Trade Practice
16 April 2007 - Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw LLP is pleased to announce that Tiffany L. Smith has joined its Global Trade Practice in Washington, DC as Senior Policy Adviser. Ms. Smith comes to the firm with fifteen years of distinguished experience working for the Executive Branch and Congress. Read >>
| | | Latin American Practice Newsletter
April 2007 - Mayer Brown's Latin American Practice Group had another very strong year in 2006 and in the first quarter of 2007, participating in a number of the leading and largest transactions throughout Latin America and the Caribbean, a number of which are highlighted in this Newsletter. Read >>
| | | Mayer Brown Participates In International Pro Bono Conference in Peru
The draft Pro Bono Declaration for the Americas was introduced to the Peruvian legal community at an international conference in Lima, Peru, on January 31 and February 1, 2007. Mayer Brown Assistant Director of Pro Bono Activities Marcia Maack and associate Georgina Fabian participated in the conference along with a delegation of lawyers from Argentina, Chile, Columbia, and the United States. Read >>
| | | Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw Appointed to Act as Procurement Counsel to the Panama Canal Authority in Connection with the Panama Canal Expansion Program
12 March 2007 - International law firm Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw LLP has been appointed to act as procurement counsel to the Panama Canal Authority with respect to the construction and associated works contracts related to the planned Panama Canal Expansion Program. Read >>
| | | U.S. Equity Markets for Foreign Issuers: Public Offerings and Rule 144A Placements of American Depositary Receipts
March 2007 - The U.S. equity capital markets are the deepest and most liquid in the world, and as a result have been very attractive to foreign issuers for many years. The advent of globally integrated trading markets for equity securities has facilitated capital formation for foreign issuers, and underscored the value to foreign issuers of raising equity capital through registered offerings in the U.S. capital market. Read >>
| | | Emerging Markets Capabilities
6 November 2006 - Dramatic demographic and economic trends signal the emerging markets as attractive growth opportunities, whether in Latin America, Asia, the Commonwealth of Independent States, Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East or Africa. As a leading international law firm, Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw LLP recognized the importance of these markets many years ago. It is our experience, combined with expansive resources and local contacts, that enable our clients to be well-advised and well-prepared to participate in the emerging markets. Read >>
| | | Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw LLP Sponsors and Chairs Platts 10th Annual Mexican Energy Conference
28 October 2006 - Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw's Global Project Finance & Development Group sponsored the Platts 10th Annual Mexican Energy Conference, a two-day event bringing together leading participants in the Mexican energy sector, including government officials, company executives, investors and lenders. Barry Machlin, Partner and Co-Chair of the Global Project Finance & Development Group at Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw, chaired the Conference for the fifth consecutive year. Read >>
| | | Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw LLP Client, TV Azteca, Settles SEC Case
19 September 2006, Washington, D.C. - international law firm Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw LLP settled disputes brought on behalf of its client, TV Azteca, S.A. de C.V., by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. According to the settlement, TV Azteca, one of the two largest producers of Spanish language television programming in the world, will not be required to contribute monetarily. Read >>
| | | Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw LLP Adds Prestigious Team To Its Global Trade Practice
18 September 2006, Washington, D.C. - International law firm Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw LLP, which was recently recognized by prestigious Chamber's legal review for the growth of it's Global Trade Group, has added three experienced trade attorneys to its practice. Duane W. Layton, Sydney H. Mintzer and Jeffery C. Lowe have joined the firm's Global Trade Group in the Washington, D.C. office. All three come from Miller & Chevalier and bring more than 40 years combined experience in dealing with all aspects of trade policy, disputes and litigation. Read >>
| | | Client Alert: Congress takes major step toward imposing new restrictions on foreign acquisitions in the United States
June 2006 - This Client Alert discusses the most recent major step by Congress toward mandating additional restrictions on foreign acquisitions in the United States. This report is likely to be of interest to any of our clients, in the U.S. or abroad, that are contemplating changes in foreign ownership of U.S. businesses or acquisition of such businesses by foreign parties. Our Government and Global Trade Practice has substantial experience in guiding clients through the legal and political minefield that foreign acquisitions often must traverse. Read >>
| | | Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw LLP appointed to advise Mandated Lead Arrangers of project financing for Kupol gold and silver project
28 July 2005 - Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw LLP's European Finance Group, led by London Finance partner Ian Coles, has been appointed to advise HVB Group (HVB) and Soci‚t‚ G‚n‚rale (SG) as joint Mandated Lead Arrangers for the project financing of the Kupol gold and silver project. HVB will act as the facility and documentation agent and SG will be the technical agent. Read >>
| | | The U.S. High Yield Bond Market: Opportunities for Foreign Issuers
March 2005 - The purpose of this memorandum is to acquaint potential foreign issuers with the U.S. high yield bond market, by providing an overview of the procedures, conventions and legal issues that accompany U.S. high yield bonds, as well as the requirements under U.S. securities laws with which a company must comply in issuing U.S. high yield bonds. Read >>
| | | Senior Trade Litigator Marguerite E. Trossevin Joins Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw's Washington Office
1 March 2005, Washington, D.C. - Marguerite E. Trossevin, Deputy Chief Counsel for Import Administration in the U.S. Department of Commerce, has joined Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw LLP's Washington office as a Counsel in the firm's Government and Global Trade group. Ms. Trossevin has over 10 years of senior government experience in trade litigation and administrative proceedings, as well as extensive experience in trade negotiations. Read >>
| | | Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw LLP Represents BellSouth in $5.85 Billion Sale of Latin America Operations to Telefonica Moviles
8 March 2004 - Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw LLP is advising BellSouth Corp. [NYSE: BLS] in an agreement with Telefonica M¢viles, the wireless affiliate of Telefonica, S.A. [NYSE: TEM] to sell its interests in its 10 Latin American operations. Read >>
| |  | Mexico - Secured Lending Amendments
25 April 2003 - The Mexican Congress approved yesterday a Bill of amendments to a number of financial and commercial statutory provisions dealing with the creation of liens to secure contractual obligations. The amendments (the "Amendments") are intended to make the creation of security interests easier and to generally improve the position of secured creditors. The stated purpose of such measures is to incentivize the granting of credit backed by assets located within Mexican territory or otherwise subject to Mexican laws. The Amendments are expected to become effective sometime in May, 2003. Read >>
(Posted on securitization.net.) | | | Observations On Cross-Border Insolvencies and Their Resolution in the NAFTA Region: Where Are We Now?
1 April 2002 - With the adoption of the North American Free Trade Agreement ("NAFTA"), trade and investment among Canada, Mexico and the United States has grown dramatically. Since 1994, the total volume of trade between the three NAFTA parties has expanded from $297 billion to $676 billion in 2000, an increase of 128 percent. Read >>
(This article first appeared in 10 United States-Mexico Law Journal 61 (Spring 2002)) | | | Opportunities for Latin American Issuers in the United States: Public Offerings and Rule 144A Placements of American Depositary Receipts
May 2001 - Since 1990 a broad spectrum of Latin American companies, including Latin American
governments in connection with the privatization of government-owned companies, has successfully obtained equity financing in the United States through the issuance of American Depositary Receipts ("ADRs"). These companies have found that the U.S. capital markets offer access to significant new sources of equity capital and opportunities to broaden their shareholder base, open up new trading markets for their securities and enhance the overall valuation of their equity securities. Investor response in the United States to these offerings by Latin American companies has been overwhelmingly positive, despite regional and international developments that have caused volatility in the value of Latin American ADRs. Read >>
| | | The U.S. High Yield Bond Market: Opportunities for Latin American Companies
April 2000 - Since 1996, a number of Latin American companies have obtained unsecured debt financing
through the issuance of bonds in the U.S. domestic high yield bond market. These bonds have several
features that distinguish them from earlier bonds offered by Latin American companies to U.S.
institutional investors and which are more typical of high yield bonds offered by U.S. domestic
companies. These bonds are typically unsecured, fixed-rate obligations with maturities generally between
five and ten years, are rated below investment grade1 by at least one (and often two) of the U.S. rating
agencies, are accompanied by broadly restrictive financial and operating covenants, are often
accompanied by registration rights, and are sold to a specialized group of U.S. investors who invest in
high yield securities. While these bonds are often publicly offered, a significant percentage of these
bonds are also issued in the so-called "Rule 144A" or private placement market. Read >>
| | | Investimentos de Private Equity na Am‚rica Latina (em portuguese)
marco de 2000 -A turbulˆncia nos mercados financeiros mundiais decorrente da instabilidade
econ“mica na µsia e R£ssia a partir de agosto de 1998, seguida da
desvaloriza‡Æo do real no Brasil em meados de janeiro de 1999, tornou os
mercados internacionais de capital em grande medida inacess¡veis …s
empresas da Am‚rica Latina. Esses acontecimentos tiveram implica‡äes de
grande magnitude para a regiÆo, pois os mercados internacionais de capital
tornaram-se a fonte mais importante de financiamento externo para as
empresas latino-americanas. Apesar desses acontecimentos, as necessidades
de capital das empresas latino-americanas aumentaram, e permanece uma
enorme demanda de capital na regiÆo. Read >>
| | | La inversi¢n privada de capital en Latinoam‚rica (en espa¤ol)
febrero de 2000 - Una de las consecuencias de la turbulencia creada en el mundo de los mercados
financieros por la inestabilidad econ¢mica de Asia y Rusia a partir del
agosto de 1998, seguida por la devaluaci¢n del real de Brasil a mediados de
enero de 1999, ha sido que los mercados de capital internacionales se hayan
tornado en gran medida inaccesibles para las empresas de Latinoam‚rica.
Estos acontecimientos han tenido un fuerte impacto en la regi¢n, pues los
mercados de capital internacionales son la fuente m s importante de financiamiento
externo para las empresas latinoamericanas. A pesar de estos sucesos,
las necesidades de capital de las empresas latinoamericanas han aumentado
y existe actualmente una enorme demanda de capital en la regi¢n. Read >>
| | | Restructuring Argentine Capital Market Debt
December 1999 - The 1990s proved to be a pivotal period for the Argentine sovereign and corporate sectors, as the introduction of the convertibility plan crafted by President Menem and Finance Minister Cavallo, together with the low U.S. interest rate environment, changed the supply-demand capital equation. Following implementation of the plan, the sovereign and corporate sectors in Argentina were able to manage their affairs in a non-inflationary environment, and the investor community felt secure providing capital to finance the expected growth, while realizing better-than-expected returns. Read >>
| | | Private Equity Investment in Mexico
November 1999 - Turbulence in the world financial markets arising from economic instability
in Asia and Russia, starting in August 1998, followed by Brazil's devaluation
of the Real in mid-January, has rendered the international capital markets
largely inaccessible to companies in Mexico. These developments have had
significant implications, since the international capital markets have become
one of the most important sources of external financing for Mexican companies.
Despite these developments, the capital needs of Mexican companies
have increased and there remains an enormous demand for capital in the
country. Read >>
| | | Private Equity Investment in Latin America
November 1999 - Turbulence in the world financial markets arising from economic instability
in Asia and Russia, starting in August 1998, followed by Brazil's devaluation
of the Real in mid-January, has rendered the international capital markets
largely inaccessible to most companies in Latin America. These developments
have had significant implications for the region, since the international
capital markets have become the most important source of external financing
for Latin American companies. Despite these developments, the capital
needs of Latin American companies have increased and there remains an
enormous demand for capital in the region. Read >>
| | | Restructuring Brazilian Capital Market Debt
March 1999 - Since January 13, 1999, the Brazilian real has fallen significantly in value in relation to the
U.S. dollar and other major foreign currencies. On that date, the Brazilian Central Bank (the ACentral
Bank@) attempted a limited devaluation of the real by modestly elevating the band width in which
the real was allowed to trade. When this limited devaluation proved unsuccessful, the Central Bank
announced that it would no longer use its foreign currency reserves to protect the value of the real
(with the exception of limited interventions to restrain abrupt fluctuations in the exchange rate),
thereby allowing the real to float freely against other currencies. Consequently, in the weeks
following the initial devaluation, the real has lost more than 40% of its value against the U.S. dollar. Read >>
| | | Restructuring Strategies for Mexican Eurobond Debt
September 1997 - In the months following its devaluation, in December 1994, the New
Mexican Peso (the "peso") fell dramatically in value. The peso has remained
at depressed levels, in comparison to other key foreign currencies such as the
U.S. dollar, throughout 1996 and into 1997. As a result, Mexican companies
that incurred substantial amounts of debt denominated in foreign currencies
have experienced an enormous increase in their liabilities, giving rise to
liquidity and/or leverage problems. Read >>
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