Pellerano & Herrera — Dominican Republic

About

Pellerano & Herrera, the leading law firm in the Dominican Republic for over 30 years, was established in 1952. The firm is typically involved as counsel in all major transactions in the country, and its multidisciplinary team of lawyers is recognized as the most comprehensive and sophisticated in the market with experience in more practice areas than any other Dominican firm. Pellerano & Herrera is especially well recognized for its expertise in handling complex matters in the areas of mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, project and structured financings, bond issuances, antitrust and unfair competition, among others. ### Areas of practice Banking, finance, insurance and capital markets: Pellerano & Herrera is involved in virtually all complex finance deals in the country. The firm acts as legal counsel to lenders, underwriters and borrowers and provides assistance to its clients on regulatory and compliance issues, covering a wide range of credit facilities, including syndicated loans, secured and unsecured lending, project financing and acquisitions, issuance of securities in the local markets and international issuances under US 144 A Reg S. The firm acted as local counsel to underwriters in a $2.5bn sovereign bond offering, the largest bond offering to date by the Dominican state. Corporate and M&A: the firm counsels clients in all aspects of routine and complex corporate matters and assists major international companies in expanding their operations in the Dominican Republic. The firm assists clients in negotiating, implementing, contracting and terminating international commercial agreements and also represents key players in virtually every transaction related to M&A, including the country’s largest acquisition deal to date, assisting the buyer, global brewery AmBev, in the US$2bn+ acquisition of Cerveceria Nacional Dominicana. Digital and technology: Pellerano & Herrera is the only firm in the country with an established practice in this area. Among the firm’s clients are renowned companies such as: Expedia, Booking.com and Uber. The firm is also providing advice on fintech to major banks and financial institutions of the country regarding the relevant digital changes that will drastically affect this sector. Real estate, tourism and hospitality: the firm assists its clients on issues relating to transactional and M&A matters, litigation, environmental permits, property management and leasing, construction licenses, project finance and tax planning, among others. The firm assisted Carnival Cruise Lines in the development and construction of a $65m sea port in Puerto Plata and Grupo Poma in the development of the Real Intercontinental Hotel Santo Domingo, an investment of over US$80m. Energy, natural resources and environment: the firm is accredited by the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources for providing environmental services. Pellerano & Herrera provides assistance to the major energy and mining players in the country and advises clients on the process of privatization and development of the energy sector. The firm is also involved in the generation and distribution of electric and renewable energy projects, start-ups and expansion of operations. The firm assisted Barrick Gold Corporation in the financing of the largest mining project and largest foreign investment registered in Dominican history, including the implementation of a $1bn environmental remediation program. Dispute resolution: Pellerano & Herrera is involved in the country’s largest, most complex and groundbreaking litigation cases. The firm’s expertise includes arbitration and administrative, civil, commercial, labor, tax, IP, insurance and constitutional litigation, as well as cases involving multiple jurisdictions, including local enforcement of foreign judgments. The firm has litigated before all courts and government agencies and has established a number of important legal precedents under Dominican law. ### Languages - All main business languages ### Staffing Figures - 30 Other fee-earners - 65 Total staff

Office locations

Practice areas

Lawyers in this office

Carolina León

Carolina M. Leon joined the firm in 2006 and became a partner in 2019, leading the Energy and Telecommunications practice areas. She has more than 15 years of experience providing legal advice in the areas of foreign investment, corporate law, regulatory, contracts, free trade agreements, mergers and acquisitions, labor law, free zones, distribution and telecommunications, advising important foreign companies on Law 173 on Protection to the Importer Agents of Goods and Products. · Energy

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Isabel Andrickson

Isabel Andrickson joined Pellerano & Herrera in 1995 and became a Special counsel in 2018. She has over 25 years of experience in the law, and concentrates her practice on counseling industry leaders and startups in the areas of labor, employment, social security, free zones, sports law and film, entertainment and telecommunications law. In addition, she advises international companies interested in establishing a presence in the Dominican Republic.Isabel leads the Labor, Digital and Technology practice areas. · Labor & Employment

Jennifer Beauchamps Haché

Partner · Project Finance

Lucy Objío

Partner of litigation department leading the Sports practice area and concentrating her practice in civil litigation, commercial, labor, constitutional law, intellectual property, copyright, consumer law, insurance litigation, real estate, aviation and maritime law, as well as commercial arbitration. · Litigation

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Mariángela Pellerano

Partner of the international and foreign investment department, concentrating her practice in the areas of project finance, M&A, trusts, mining, energy and corporate and banking law. · Project Finance

Ramón Luciano

Ramón Luciano joined the firm in 1996 as manager of the firm’s Santiago office. In 2009, he transfered to the Santo Domingo office as senior counsel in the banking department. Currently he is a Senior Special Counsel and head of the Real Estate practice. He has more than 27 years of experience in the law, and advises clients on corporate, banking, contracts and real estate law. · Real Estate

Ricardo Pellerano

Managing partner and head of the financial services department of the firm. He concentrates his practice in the areas of corporate, banking, tourism, real estate and telecommunications. · Corporate / M&A

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Sheila Oviedo

Sheila Oviedo joined the firm in 2010. She has 11 years of experience practicing law and is a senior associate in the firm’s litigation team, providing assistance to the corporate Legal Consulting Department. She represents both national and international clients in connection with civil, commercial, constitutional, labor and social security matters as well as in connection with the implementation and termination of contracts, damages claims and general litigation. · Litigation

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Vitelio Mejía Ortiz

Vitelio Mejía Ortiz joined Pellerano & Herrera in 2014 and is a partner of the Dispute Resolution practice area leading the Aviation practice area . He has over 40 years of experience as a litigation attorney. He has practiced in both civil and corporate litigation as well as in administrative law. · Dispute Resolution

Yolemny Cruz

Yolemny Cruz joined Pellerano & Herrera in 2017 as a senior associate of our firm’s dispute resolution department. She has over 12 years of experience in legal practice, focusing on representing companies in the areas of criminal law, labour, social security, civil and commercial law. · Litigation