墨西哥与近岸外包：2024 年的法律趋势 | 法律午餐字节 | 第 5 集

well hello everyone good morning good afternoon good evening depending on where you are at the moment this is episode five of the legal lunch bite presented by Harris Sliwoski and today I’m delighted to have Fernando Rivadeneyra join me on this live stream so Fernando welcome thank you thanks for inviting me to this Lunch Byte my pleasure and and our pleasure all of us here Fernando first tell us a little bit about yourself sure my name is Fernando and I’m a a lawyer a Mexican lawyer I have developed the past 36 years a law firm here in Mexico we have over 60 lawyers and we have offices in uh the Mexico city the city of Puebla and the City of Queretaro and I have dedicated my life mainly to clients that are coming to Mexico to do to do business in Mexico to sell their companies their plants etc mainly I have been working with us clients and clients from Europe and in Europe especially from Spain and Germany very very interesting and and I definitely want to talk a little bit more about about your firm but before before we do that your work focuses on working with with International companies that are operating in Mexico that’s at least part of of your focus so what is the environment like in Mexico at the moment especially looking at specifically looking at the at it from the point of view of foreign companies that might want to do business in Mexico what are things like there at the moment sure ah thank you Fred I I have to say that I have been tracking what’s going on in Mexico since NAFTA was was first signed 30 years ago and I have seen so many changes in Mexico that you would be surprised how we have developed in 30 years I have to say that Mexico has been integrated with the US and Canada in the North America region and that Mexico is not Mexico anymore of course it’s Mexico but it’s now North America and we are more fully integrated so what we see from here is that of course we still have some problems with you know the cartel some violence but what we but it’s not all Mexico is like that I have never seen or deal any of those problems that do exist in Mexico but what I have seen is especially some regions that have been growing around investment coming from the US from Canada from Europe and I have seen more and more and more clients coming down but not only that I have seen also a lot of individuals moving to Mexico and is staying in Mexico because they like to live here now recently probably the past five years we have seen more and more companies moving from Asia to Mexico especially and some other companies not moving but uh because they want to work around those companies that are moving from Asia to Mexico they also come to our place to work what I have have also seen Fred and this is important to say is how Mexico has been transforming the legal framework kind of like labor taxes etc in a different way I have seen also afraid that we still have some problems with corruption but not at the higher level we have been change seeing changes on that too interesting interesting thank you for for that overiew VI and I understand that elections are are coming soon in in Mexico what is the tell us a little bit about about that just for folks who maybe do not follow Mexican politics that closely uh what is the what is the choice that is going to be put in front of of Mexican voters yes first I have to say that in Mexico the presidents have six term and they cannot be reelected so our actual president Andre Manuel Lopez Obrador is sending his term this year and we will have elections in June in the month of June it looks like we will have the first female president in our country and then we have two I would say very bright woman that are running against each other there is a third candidate candidate from a a minor political party that I don’t think he has any chance but I think we will have we will see a large competition between Claudia Sheinbaum who is a very bright woman she’s a scientific she she worked with Al Gore when he got his Nobel Prize she’s been running in the Mexico City as the major of Mexico City of the governor of Mexico City and she’s an an engineer engineer with a doctor in Berkeley University University and then in the other side we s have so Xóchitl Gálvez which is also a very smart woman very I mean she’s she’s been in the politics for many years so it looks like we’re going to have for the first time a female president in Mexico and I think that would be good for the country it it’s interesting you mentioned that right because sometimes here in the United States we we tend to have I think think our perspectives are sometimes uh a bit limited right and and the fact remains that um it’s uh you know at this you know it’s 2024 there has not not been a female president we do have a female vice president and who knows what we’ll see in the next few years but this is um remarkable and also worth paying attention to the fact that Mexico will will will join this group of countries that have you know that has a woman in charge joining of course many other countries that have already done that right so I think it’s a useful something worth keeping in mind right I mean I think sometimes here in the United States we might overestimate just just how avant garde and Progressive we we are so so Fernando just I want to ask you one more question about what’s happening in Mexico in the context of of especially in the context of near Shoring all these companies coming in many cases from China other Asian countries they want to be closer to their main markets um you know to to the extent that you you can I mean how would you compare the experience for a foreign company or or a foreign business person if you compare working in Asia to working in Mexico you know what are some of the you know what are some let’s just say what might be better in Mexico what might not be better in in Mexico well what might be better in Mexico is that we are next to the US and Canada I think that’s the first reason then um I I don’t know how you could compare the the labor cost but I think that the labor cost in Mexico even though the past years minimum salaries has been raising here the economy has been raising so it’s not as cheap as it used to be we still have some advantages compared to China for example also I would have to say that the environment here is I mean you have to comply with with the law many years ago companies will come here because they thought they they would not have to comply with environmental or labor etc that’s not true anymore so from the perspective of having a place where both you are protected by law but also the laws have been standardized up to the same as US and Canada then Mexico would be a place to consider especially I would say in the north states of Mexico we are seeing a lot of companies establishing there then we have the middle Queretaro Puebla Mexico City and the actual government is doing an effort to develop the south of Mexico including a a train that goes from coast to coast and that will compete with the Panama Canal so in that sense I think we are are also seeing the framework that will make Mexico a very competitive country and North America to be very competitive with uh the rest of the world we have also Fred have seen the past I would say three four years more integration between the government of Mexico Canada and the US than never before we have seen all the time the three governments working and working and working not only in the problems that we have to solve migration drug trafficking Etc but also in how to establish the framework to have a very competitive region and probably because I’m here I can see that happen of course we have many challenges yes yet to go but um I see that we are moving moving moving well in the right direction excellent it’s good to hear that um you know we could keep talking about about Mexico but I but I do want to make sure we we talk about some let’s say more um more personal aspects or or topics so our two firms are entering a new phase of cooperation we’ve been working together for for quite some time now I personally have become familiar with many of of the attorneys at your firm and in fact I have interactions with with them I I would say comparable like a comparable number of of interactions to those that I have with some of my own colleagues here at Harris Sliwoski and it’s an experience that I’ve enjoyed greatly but things are now entering a a new a new era so could you could you tell us a little bit about that yes Fred thanks thanks for mentioning that I think it’s a supporter for both of our firms because we just executed like an association agreement or something like that this is informal if you if in in that I mean if you can put it that way in which we will start exchanging more and more our knowledge of our of our different areas or country or whatever we are going to be changing a little bit more and particular participating a little bit more working together in different conferences scenarios social media Etc so we can be a much better fit for clients that like to do business in North America because as you know we’re also inviting some Canadian firms to join us in this and forth in having like really good practice that will go in all North America and I think I as you Fred we are seeing more and more having more integration with uh lawyers from your firm having more contact with clients from both sides and I think is going to be good not only for our firms but especially for clients right I agree I concur so we before we sign off there I want to I want to share some information about some upcoming events featuring in one case Fernando and in another in the other case featuring both of us so on the 8th of May Fernando will be part of a panel uh looking at issues related to the to USMCA the the renewed version of of NAFTA the free trade agreement between Canada Mexico and the United States so obviously something very quite quite related to to to what Fernando was was talking about today so that event that panel will take place as part of the spring event for the Washington State Bar Association International practice section of which our firm is a is a proud proud sponsor and pretty soon I think we’re let’s see two weeks away two two two weeks from today I will be moderating a panel that which in which Fernando will take place at the ilaw conference organized by the Florida Bar International practice section and this panel is going to be looking at all of the chaos and commotion in the world today everything that’s happening as far as the relationship between China and the United States on the west and Russia and increasing social activism it’s going to be a very wide ranging discussion with a focus on how us as lawyers can can help our clients navigate these Waters especially the the legal aspects of them so I’m looking forward to that we we have to sign off pretty soon Fernando but is there anything you want to say about the conference before we sign off I think that those two would be very very good conferences for and I will have to say something very quickly that is that we are living an historical moment we which is the integration on of North America and what we are seeing what’s happening in the world I think it will uh make a speed up the integration of our region and uh we are happy to speak on that we can see it already happened and I think it will be those two events will be wonderful fantastic well Fernando see you in Miami in two weeks and uh thanks everyone for joining us today see you next week than thanks everyone thank you Fred