About this office:
Carey y Cía. is Chile's largest law firm. Since its foundation, Carey y Cía. has been committed to professional excellence. It is a core conviction of the firm that the practice of law is an honorable and enriching activity, which carries with it the responsibility of following the highest ethical standards.
Carey y Cía. is a full service law firm, a single partnership, widely perceived as one of the best managed law firms in Latin America. Our strength comes from our "one firm firm" approach and our partnership ethos. These are the principles of our ability to deliver excellent client service and create a working environment where talented people can succeed.
We are committed to helping our clients achieve their goals by providing commercially focused legal advice of the highest quality that will consistently exceed their expectations. They are our top priority.
We have an open, approachable style of collaboration and teamwork that couples effectiveness with cohesion and collegiality amongst our lawyers. We expect our people to be flexible, creative and to have the desire to embrace new experiences and challenges.
When recruiting new lawyers, we hire the brightest law graduates from the most prestigious law schools and train them to excel in broad practice areas, always drawing upon their individuality, diversity, energy and talent.
Although we always have the interests of our clients as our first priority, we understand the importance of making a positive impact on the community at large. The firm ranks amongst the leaders in Chile in pro bono and other public services activities. We are proud of our tradition of public service and of the quality of our pro bono legal work.
Our main practice areas are:
CORPORATE LAW, MERGERS & ACQUISITIONS (M&A) AND PRIVATE EQUITY
Our firm is market leader in structuring M&A and establishing tailor-made companies, investment funds or trusts to meet our clients' needs. We render services in different processes ranging from the sale or purchase of mid-size family-owned companies to complex mergers between listed companies, including tender offers. We advise in corporate governance issues, in the establishment of creative collaborative structures between companies, such as joint ventures and strategic alliances, and developing constructive business relations among different shareholders through bylaws provisions and agreements. The firm has also experience in private equity transactions.
CAPITAL MARKETS, DERIVATIVES AND SECURITIZATION
Attorneys in the capital markets practice group advice issuers and underwriters of shares, quotas, corporate bonds, securitization, notes and securities in general. We assist our clients along the process of registration of the securities with the regulatory body, including IPO processes, and their relation with the stock exchanges. We also render assistance in connection with disclosure obligations and other legal restrictions imposed on securities issuers. Finally, we have a high degree of specialization in derivative products.
BANKING, PROJECT FINANCING AND INSURANCE
The firm has a long tradition of representing leading Chilean and foreign lenders, investors and borrowers in transactions of every kind, including secured and unsecured syndicated loan facilities; equity and debt securities; public and private offerings and placements; securitizations; project financings; structured products; debt restructurings and derivative transactions. It has also advised governmental and private entities in banking and financial matters.
INTERNATIONAL CONTRACTS, LICENSING, FRANCHISING AND DISTRIBUTORSHIP
Carey y Cía. offers clients a wide range of services addressing issues that arise throughout the life of a franchise relationship, including civil and criminal litigation matters related to fraud, breaches of contracts or warranties, wrongful terminations, and unfair competition law. We have extensive experience representing and advising major international franchisors, manufacturers and distribution companies, including companies in the fast food, retail, technology and pharmaceutical areas.
AVIATION, MARITIME AND PORTS LAW
AVIATION LAW
Carey y Cía. has a wide experience in matters ranging from the simple registration and the de-registration of aircrafts, the obtention of type certificates for aircraft models not previously registered in Chile; purchase contracts, leases in its various forms (dry lease and wet lease), aircraft and engines financing contracts, restructuring and refinancing, including mortgages novation, judicial foreclosure and reposesion of aircrafts in general, to operational issues, such as aviation employment law, specific taxation to the aviation industry, amongst others.
MARITIME LAW
The firm provides specialized and integral advice on the construction, purchase, sale, charter, leasing and other financing and refinancing contracts of large ships. The firm's experience covers maritime operation contracts such as ship cabotage, maintenance and repair, general transport contracts and international sales of goods.
From the judicial perspective, Carey y Cía. covers the execution of guarantees, bankruptcy of shipping companies, seizures and other injunctions, disputes relating to insurance over sunk ships. Our clients include shipbuilders, shipping firms, fisheries, banks, financial institutions and insurance companies.
PORTS LAW
Carey y Cía. has participated in the drafting of contracts for the provision of port services and maritime concessions, in the construction, financing and privatization of ports and maritime terminals, representing construction companies, operators and contractors. The firm has participated as legal advisor to some of the most notable projects developed in the country, including a clinker handling terminal and related products port in Ventanas; the construction of two terminals for LNG discharge and storing in Ventanas and in Mejillones; a terminal for the loading and unloading of containers and one for the discharge of dry bulk cargo located in Mejillones.
LITIGATION, ARBITRATION, INSOLVENCY, BANKRUPTCY AND RESTRUCTURING
Carey y Cía. has earned a national reputation for excellence in complex high-stakes, high-profile business disputes, including civil, commercial, criminal, labor, construction, antitrust, tax and bankruptcy cases. Our practice also includes national and international arbitration cases under the auspices of the ICSID and the International Chamber of Commerce, as well as under the UNCITRAL rules. Drawing on Carey y Cía.'s strong corporate roots, the firm has played a key role in several of the largest and most complicated restructurings and recapitalizations cases in the Chilean history, developing creative solutions to confront difficult financial circumstances.
TAXATION LAW
The firm's Tax Group has positioned itself as the largest tax practice among law firms and the leading competitor of the tax departments of large auditing firms. Constantly involved in the structuring of major and complex national and international transactions, tax litigation, tax planning and tax due diligence processes.
ANTITRUST AND COMPETITION LAW
Carey y Cía. has a proven track record in securing clearance for complex M&A and joint ventures. The firm's antritrust practice encompasses all areas of antitrust law, including advisory on regulatory compliance and assessment of operations from a free competition point of view.
NATURAL RESOURCES, ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL LAW
Carey y Cía. advises clients in all natural resources areas and has been involved in all kinds of mining, water, conservation, industrial and forestry projects developed in the country, in their different stages, either as counsel to the project owners, sponsors or financiers.
The firm has worked on the implementation, financing and refinancing of some of the major energy projects in the country (including coal, hydropower, LNG and non-conventional renewable energy projects), advising both the public and private sectors. The firm provides a complete service ranging from regulatory matters to M&A, joint ventures, negotiation, project development and financing.
The firm also advises clients in all environmental areas, including regulatory compliance, due diligence, audits, assessment and counseling on environmental liability, litigation, and environmental financial products transactions.
TELECOMMUNICATIONS AND MEDIA
Carey y Cía. advises leading incumbents and technology providers and has a wide knowledge of the regulatory, financial and transactional aspects of this industry. Heavily involved in and exposed to competition and litigation issues of the telecom market. Also active in the media and IT fields.
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY, INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY, LEISURE, ENTERTAINMENT AND SPORTS LAW
Carey y Cía. understands that our clients' most important assets are often their intellectual property rights and technology. Therefore, in 1993 we created a practice group specialized in Intellectual Property and Information Technologies, specialized in Intellectual Property, Consumer Protection and Licensing.
In 2009, Carey y Cía.'s IP Practice merged with premier boutique law firm Estudio Harnecker. The new name for Carey's IP practice is HarneckerCarey, and the services that we provide are, amongst others, prosecution and litigation of trademarks, patents, utility models, designs, copyright and domain names, licensing, distributorship, agency and franchise agreements, infringements and unfair competition.
Carey y Cía. has also experience in entertainment, leisure and sports law.
LABOR LAW, SOCIAL SECURITY AND IMMIGRATION
Actively involved in collective bargaining processes in different industries. Vast experience in hiring processes, compensation packages (including stock related plans), terminations and massive lay-offs, labor auditing and legal compliance, subcontracting, labor due diligences, internal investigations, and social security and taxation of employees. Carey also provides immigration services, such as work contract, work permits and visas, temporary residence visas and apostille of documents.
ENGINEERING, CONSTRUCTION AND REAL ESTATE
The firm is market leader in this highly specialized area with a practice group devoted exclusively to advising major international and local clients doing construction and engineering projects in Chile, both as owners or contractors. Services range from early project inception to bidding stages, contract preparation and negotiation, handling of claims, dispute resolution including arbitration and litigation. Carey has ample experience in all kinds of contracting systems including EPC, EPCM and BOT. The firm has also substantial experience in advising clients in all kinds of real estate matters, including acquisitions and disposals, joint ventures, portfolio sales and securitization, real estate investment funds, tax efficiency structuring, financing, development and construction, leases, leasebacks, real estate management, and dispute resolution.
PHARMACEUTICAL LAW
For several years, Carey y Cía. has provided top level pharmaceutical counseling including patent prosecution, litigation, antitrust and regulatory matters. The firm currently represents major international laboratories and is actively involved in defending its clients in regulatory matters such as patent linkage, data exclusivity, unfair, competition and sanitary filings, among others. To achieve this purpose we have a team of experienced lawyers that work together with a group of technical consultants specialized in chemistry and pharmacy.
GOVERNMENT, ARMED FORCES AND REGULATED PROCUREMENT CONTRACTS
Carey y Cía. Ltda. represents multinational companies, contractors and manufacturers in the defense, security, technology, gaming and entertainment industries, utilities and transportation concessionaries and other regulated enterprises, in all their government procurement requirements in Chile.
CRIMINAL LAW
Since 2006, Carey y Cía. has a criminal law practice, specialized in economic and white-collar crimes, cyber crimes, intellectual property violations, infringements to the telecommunications law, the protection of sensitive company information and crimes against property in general, among others. The firm provides preventive advice to its clients in all the prosecutors' offices throughout the country, with extensive experience in oral litigation, acting either as plaintiffs or as defense attorneys.
PUBLIC LAW
Since 2005, Carey y Cía. has a Public Law Practice that provides legal services in constitutional and administrative matters. This is the firm's response to the increasing demand of our clients, especially of those who deal with the State and governmental agencies as service providers, partners or counterparties. We also offer legal services to state-owned companies and governmental agencies. Carey y Cía. provides, inter alia, comprehensive legal assistance for contracts entered into with governmental entities, concessions and other type of public bids; defense of constitutional rights, including economic rights; challenge of governmental agencies' acts; and specialized advice on municipal, electric and public utilities services.
REPRESENTATIVE CLIENTS
We provide legal advice and services to a wide range of Chilean and non-Chilean companies in all sectors of the economy. Our clients include private and state-owned companies, governments, international organizations and agencies and Fortune 500 corporations. A comprehensive list can be provided upon request.