The Brazilian Legal Profession: Perspectives from the Corporate Sector
This panel discussion will feature framing remarks from Prof. David Wilkins on the changing global legal profession and how that impacts how we in the U.S. legal market will need to operate. We will then hear from our distinguished panelists on the legal realities for In-House lawyers in the ever changing Brazilian political and economic situation and how they must adapt to continue to thrive and be successful given all of these changes, to be followed by a robust Q+A session.
About the Speakers:
Pedro Teixeira is the Vice-President Legal, Compliance & Sustainabilty of thyssenkrupp Companhia Siderurgica do Atlantico, Latin America’s largest steel mill complex. Owned by the German group thyssenkrupp and located in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, it has the capacity to produce 5 million tons of steel slabs per year. Before developing his career at thyssenkrupp, Mr. Teixeira worked in TUPY, one of the most important producers of cast iron parts in the world, and at the Vieira Rezende law firm, as a partner.
Gisela Dantas is a professional with 15 years of legal experience, half of which was in the legal department of the Federation of the Industries of the State of Rio de Janeiro (FIRJAN), in the following areas: intellectual property, arbitration, contracts, compliance, as well as litigation on civil and labor law. Ms. Dantas graduated with a law degree with a specialization in Intellectual Property from PUC-Rio and a Master’s Degree from Universidade Autônoma Lisboa in 2007. As a General Manager on the Legal Department of FIRJAN, she is in charge of a team with over 30 legal staff, who provides legal support to the FIRJAN´s operations and its associates. Gisela is also the Vice-President of CBMA – Brasilian Center of Mediation and Arbitration, a chamber, founded in 2002 by the entities: ACRJ – Commercial Association of Rio de Janeiro, FENASEG – National Federation of Private Insurance and Capitalization Companies and FIRJAN, which supports all procedures and a staff of highly competent and respectable Brazilians arbitrators and mediators.
Bruno Barata is lawyer, specializing in Public Law, and is a founding partner of Correa de Mello, Tolomei, Giglio, Damian e Barata Advogados. He is a graduate of the Leadership in Law Firms program from Harvard Law School and holds a Master’s Degree from Fundacao Getulio Vargas (FGV) Law School. Bruno is also a Council Member of the International Bar Association (IBA) and member of the Policy Committee of the Bar Issues Commission of the IBA. He is a Professor of Public Law and Chair of the International Relations Commission of the Brazilian Bar Association, Rio de Janeiro Chapter. Some of his articles were included as reference in the official bibliography of the Brazilian National Congress. Bruno Barata is also a past recipient of the IBA Outstanding Young Lawyer of the Year Award in 2009. In the same year, he received the Motion of Applause, award of the House of Representatives of the State of Rio de Janeiro and, in 2011, the Motion of Honour, from the Brazilian Bar Association. Bruno was a founding partner of the Brazilian Young Lawyers Association, and has developed several projects in order to assist young Brazilian lawyers. He is speaker in national and international conferences and also coordinates legal events and sessions around the globe.
