Echecopar has been a member of Peru’s legal elite for decades. As part of Baker McKenzie, it can build on its excellent local reputation with the backing of a worldwide platform, several regional offices and resources that a global firm can offer. With its early adoption of this model and Baker McKenzie’s focus on pulling its Latin American offices closer together, not to mention the firm’s long-standing name in the region, Echecopar can offer potent selling points to clients in Peru and across the region.
Echecopar was already a highly respected firm before the tie-up with Baker McKenzie. Its banking and finance offering, one of its flagship practices, is among the best in Peru. High-quality practices in M&A, capital markets, natural resources and public law are also on offer. Disputes are another stronghold where the firm’s international arbitration profile is rising. Peru’s political turmoil in recent years has created an environment for more dispute work – something Echecopar intends to build upon.
As part of Baker McKenzie’s platform, Echecopar enjoys clear benefits that other local firms can only dream of. One of them is access to a global firm’s innovative IT infrastructure. Cloud storage has been the norm for years, for example, while software for the efficient administration of documents across the global firm is a recent addition. With a favourable budget for this type of innovation, Echecopar is constantly hunting for new ways to help its lawyers better serve clients. The firm has obtained ISO 27001 and 27002 certificates, meaning it meets international standards for information and cyber security.
To further consolidate Echecopar’s position in the Baker McKenzie platform, the Peruvian management is currently working on a strategy to increase the global mindset of the local office. One aspect of this is the role played by Echecopar partners in the broader management of Baker McKenzie. For example, banking partner Pablo Berckholtz sits on the global firm’s financial management committee, while M&A partner Liliana Espinosa is on the committee responsible for the appointment of the global firm’s leadership. The current managing partner of Echecopar, Juan Carlos de los Heros, sits on Baker McKenzie’s Latin American strategy committee. Echecopar’s commitment to the global firm means it can both develop its own operations within Peru and make a significant contribution to the wider Baker McKenzie network.
Client satisfaction is also high on the local management’s agenda. To this end, it launched a commercial committee a few years ago to look at how it can boost its client relationships. Increased client feedback meetings are one of several initiatives launched by the committee so far. As part of the firm’s client services development, the leadership has championed an industry-based approach thought to be more in tune with modern businesses’ specialist needs. This includes providing a multidisciplinary approach to resolving a client’s issues within a particular industry.
Echecopar understands the importance of having a happy and healthy workforce. The leadership is making efforts to ensure a horizontal structure and transparent communications at the firm. Following the pandemic, which prompted an increase in remote, isolated working, the firm implemented initiatives to support employees’ personal and psychological health. What’s more, the firm has implemented a programme for new mothers called Contigo mamá. Mentorship programmes for female lawyers and a four-month maternity leave policy have also been put in place. In fact, Echecopar is leading by example when it comes to gender equality in the Peruvian market. It stands out for having a partnership in which a third are women, while two out of five executive members are women too.
On the heels of several promotions to partner and counsel in 2021, Echecopar elevated a disputes lawyer to of counsel in 2022. It recently brought a former partner of a now-defunct environmental boutique to the firm in a principal associate role, alongside other senior associates strengthening the firm’s white-collar crime and arbitration groups too.
Management
Juan Carlos de los Heros oversees the Peruvian operations; he took over from Pablo Berckholtz as managing partner in 2021. Berckholtz remains chair of the firm’s Latin American capital markets group, while Peruvian corporate partner Liliana Espinosa is a member of the firm’s Latin American M&A and private equity committee. De los Heros sits on the firm’s executive committee, alongside Luis Alonso García, Teresa Tovar, Monica Picasso and Rafael Picasso.
Offices
Being part of Baker McKenzie gives Echecopar access to an extensive network of offices. Baker McKenzie’s regional network is unrivalled, with offices in Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Venezuela, and includes Brazilian alliance firm, Trench Rossi Watanabe. Several offices in the US and Europe are also integral to the Latin American practice. In Peru, Echecopar moved to new offices in Lima’s San Isidro business district in 2020.