Full Service and Foreign Investment Law Firm in Montevideo, Uruguay

Law Firm Overview

At Fischer & Schickendantz, one of Uruguay’s leading law and foreign investment advice firms, our practice covers all of the main branches in the legal profession. In addition, we provide accounting and tax advice services, thanks to the composition and background of our members. This makes Fischer & Schickendantz unique, as a one-stop firm for a foreign client’s advice needs.

Our clients include a vast number of multinational companies and many of Uruguay’s main companies. For a list of clients, please visit our Representative Clients section. Internationally, Fischer & Schickendantz has alliances with renowned firms in the United States, the United Kingdom, Spain, France, Italy, Mexico, Argentina and Brazil, among other countries. Fischer & Schickendantz is a member of the Austria-based Center for International Legal Studies, and the Latin Counsel network.

Our partners regularly contribute to international publications on foreign investment, such as, for example, Impact, a London-based specialized magazine in emerging markets, and Doing Business, the World Bank Group’s annual report. Fischer & Schickendantz’s partners and members include attorneys with wide international experience, MBAs from leading U.S. schools, certified public accountants and notaries public.


Languages: Spanish; French; German; Portuguese; Italian; English.

Areas of Law

Additional Areas of Law: Debt-equity Swaps; Share Purchase Agreements; Due Diligence; Commercial Ventures; Breach of Contract; Unfair Business Practices; Relocation Law; Permanent Resident Status; Consumer Protection.

Areas of Law Description

Our practice includes:

- Corporate / Banking

Our corporate and banking unit is made up of attorneys, MBAs and tax accountants, with wide experience in banking, financing structures and mergers and acquisitions. Our practice spans the acquisition of local companies by multinationals, the setup of local companies to develop real-estate and infrastructure projects and the structuring of local trusts to channel investments and deliver financing. We advise in corporate governing matters, in the setup of multi-class stock corporations, and in strategic alliances and joint ventures among local or foreign-owned companies.

- Real Estate: Property Purchase

We have Uruguay’s leading real estate acquisition advisory team. Our bilingual real estate lawyers, known in Uruguay as escribanos, assist hundreds of foreign nationals every year in properly structuring a property purchase and ensuring they obtain a clean title. Our professionals will not only perform the due diligence on a property’s deed, but will also walk you through the ownership options and will help you understand Uruguay’s estate laws. We structure and advise in the acquisition of dwelling and commercial real estate throughout all of Uruguay, from condominium units in cities such as Montevideo, Punta del Este and Colonia, to undeveloped beachfront in Rocha and farmland in the north of the country.

- Real Estate Developments

Our Real Estate unit’s partners have experience in the development of major commercial ventures such as Uruguay’s main shopping malls, as well as in setting up investment structures to build condominium units in Uruguay’s main cities. Currently, Uruguay is undergoing an increasing growth in the development of closed communities with amenities. Fischer & Schickendantz is the advisor to such pioneering projects as Sugar Loaf Ocean Club and Villas, set on a hillside overlooking the sea in Piriapolis; Laguna Tranquila, one of the first projects of its kind in the eastern province of Rocha; and José Ignacio Polo Club, being developed jointly with Argentina’s investment firm AGM and renowned architect Carlos Ott.

- Commercial

Fischer & Schickendantz offers clients deep knowledge of commercial structures and contracts. We help set up franchise and distribution agreements. We advise multinationals on anti-trust regulations and help them adapt local operations to Uruguay’s consumer protection laws, in areas spanning from the auto industry to insurance. Our Commercial Law unit and Litigation partners work closely, to assure clients smooth and swift advice when facing breaches of contracts, wrongful terminations or unfair business practices.

- Litigation

Fischer & Schickendantz’s Litigation’s partners have a reputation for handling large, complex business disputes. Backed by a team of professionals with experience in different areas, and with the support of academic counsel experts when necessary, the firm handles litigation, both in Uruguay and off-shore in commercial, bankruptcy, civil, anti-trust and tax matters.

- Corporations / Off-Shore Corporations

Fischer & Schickendantz’s Corporations department undertakes the incorporation of local and foreign entities alike. Depending on the client’s needs, whether a corporation is needed to purchase an asset in Uruguay, develop a business activity in the country or hold assets offshore, our Corporations team will incorporate a customized vehicle or provide a readily-formed one. Our team includes tax accountants, who assist clients in the set-up of a company, its annual maintenance, its bookkeeping, and permanent tax advice.

- Tax

Fischer & Schickendantz’s Tax department is made up of attorneys and tax accountants, who provide permanent advice and follow up in business transactions, to ensure tax efficient solutions in every field. We assist clients in tax planning before and after setting up a business, and also help clients obtain tax breaks under the promotional schemes that Uruguayan law sets for labor-intensive or export-oriented ventures. Our firm also advise clients when and how to set up in tax-friendly enclaves such as Uruguay’s free tax zones, and to incorporate Uruguayan offshore vehicles, taking advantage of Uruguay as an offshore jurisdiction that does not tax foreign assets and income.

- Labor

Fischer & Schickendantz’s Labor department advises labor-intensive clients in many fields, from standard industrial concerns to construction companies with more complex structures in remote areas of the country. Our lawyers stay up to date with the new labor regulation that has been implemented in Uruguay in recent years, and assist clients in complying with labor and social security rules, subcontracting and outsourcing, determining payroll taxes and benefits, and performing labor due diligence in company acquisitions. Our partners have also engaged in international projects, advising on and overseeing multi-country employee contracting for multinationals such as Tetra-Pak and Honeywell.

- Administrative

Our Administrative Law partners and associate handle all government-related issues. These include the preparation of bids alongside our clients in international tenders, obtaining permits for real estate developments, and securing environmental licenses to conduct industrial activities. Jointly with our Commercial Law experts, our Administrative Law professionals undertake the task of negotiating and structuring contracts with different government entities, on behalf of clients engaging in long-term relationships with the government, such as concessions and BOT arrangements.

- Residency and Immigration

Fischer & Schickendantz is Uruguay’s leading immigration and relocation law firm, thanks to its international experience, its bilingual staff, and the fact that some of the firm’s main members have lived in the United States extensively –and thus understand a foreign national’s needs in detail. Fischer & Schickendantz’s partners are regularly invited to speak at relocation conferences worldwide, and collaborate with published articles in the field on a permanent basis. Our firm handles immigration procedures for foreign nationals, assisting them in obtaining permanent resident status, citizenship, and a second passport. We also assist clients with the opening of a bank account, tax advice, starting a local business and purchasing property.

Affiliations

Partners

	Dr. Jur. Juan Federico Fischer Lawyer Banking and Finance, Business and Industry, Immigration, Insolvency, Real Estate		Dr. Jur. Federico Formento Lawyer Banking Law, Corporate Law, Real Estate
	Dr. Jur. Horacio González Mullin Lawyer Commercial Law, Corporate Law, Litigation		Dr. Jur. Irene Kaszprzyk Lawyer Banking Law, Corporate Law, Immigration
	Dr. Jur. Carlos Enrique Schickendantz Lawyer Commercial Law, Litigation, Real Estate

Associates

	Dr. Jur. Ignacio Jimenez de Arechaga Lawyer Administrative Law, Labor, Tax		Dr. Jur. Cecilia Silvestri Lawyer Corporate Law, Offshore Services, Tax
	Dr. Juan Ignacio Troccoli Lawyer Administrative Law, Immigration, Labor		Dr. Jur. Felipe Vásquez Lawyer Banking Law, Corporate Law, Real Estate

More Information on Fischer & Schickendantz

Foreign Investment Law Firm in Uruguay
Montevideo, Uruguay Corporate Lawyers
Litigation Lawyers in Montevideo, Uruguay
Montevideo, Uruguay Commercial Law Firm
Off-Shore Corporation Law Firm in Uruguay
Montevideo, Uruguay Immigration Law Firm
Real Estate Lawyers in Montevideo, Uruguay
Fischer & Schickendantz News and Publications