José Luis de Salles Freire is taking over the presidency of CESA, the group which advocates the interests of Brazil’s law firms, in turbulent times. He talks to David Thorley about the need for stability and a measured approach.
José Luis de Salles Freire
The society was set up, in Freire's words, "because Brazilian law firms felt the need for an institution that would be responsible for advocating their specific interests before the bar association, the government, congress, and the judiciary, as well as before the Brazilian people". In a country in which bar membership is mandatory, and therefore numbers over half a million lawyers, the voices of the small, but economically (in both senses of the word) significant, group of corporate firms needed staking out.
Freire, a founding partner of TozziniFreire Advogados, began his three-year term of office on 30 March, stepping up from his previous role as vice president to Machado Meyer Sendacz e Opice Advogados's Antonio de Souza Corrêa Meyer.
Meyer was seen as a staunch defender of restrictions on foreign law firms - particularly by those who perceive the current situation as protectionist and untenable in today's competitive and open international economy. Initially, Freire has been keen to distance himself personally from the debate.
"I believe that my personal opinion on this issue is not important. What is important is the attitude that CESA as an institution has been taking," he says. "The rules regarding the practice of law are issued by congress and by the Brazilian bar association. Individual members of CESA may be in favour or against the rules issued by these institutions in connection with the practice of law by foreign firms."
How, under a Freire presidency, CESA will assess, collate and present these individual opinions of its members will be the key question. For while CESA is indeed independent of the bar association, its brief is to further the professional and corporate development of its 800 member firms. As the advocate for the group most affected by any potential change - Brazil's top law firms - its role will be crucial in the ongoing debate.
Regardless of Freire's understandable desire to start his term by treading carefully between the two camps, expectations from within Brazil and beyond have nonetheless been raised by the change in personnel. Speaking at a round table for Washington, DC-based practitioners, on page 6, Larry Manning of Jones Day said: "The time horizon I hear for a change in rules is possibly five to ten years; there has just been a change in one of the senior positions in the bar association in Brazil, and perhaps there is going to be a little more interest in this than from his predecessor."
Moreover, around the world similar rules are being relaxed, with India announcing earlier in the year that foreign law firms may now register and offer consultation services in the country (but not practise law).
Freire, however, insists CESA has done all that it can for now. "As an organisation, CESA has amended its by-laws to allow foreign law firms with an office in Brazil to apply for membership of CESA, [and] has no further authority to regulate these matters," he says. "Therefore, tackling this issue is not incumbent upon me. If there are discussions to change the current rules, I shall consult with the members regarding which position they believe CESA should take."
Freire insists there are bigger fish to fry. One of his main challenges, he says, will be "to handle the financial crisis and its legal consequences, and determine how CESA helps lawyers dealing with those consequences".
He sees CESA's role in this as being "to assist our members in discussing issues such as how to retain talent, how to be more productive and innovative, how to better meet clients' expectations".
While Freire's predecessor Antonio Meyer was not perceived as at the vanguard of the movement to break down the more protectionist rules on the practice of law, his valiant, tireless and necessary championing of a relaxation of the rules on pro bono work has had ramifications far beyond the bottom lines of law firms. Few would disagree that he has been fundamental in embedding the practice of pro bono, not only in Brazil, but across the region.
In Freire, he finds an ally on this cause. "Members of CESA are very keen on continuing to do their pro bono work," he says. "It is regulated by the Brazilian bar, and there are discussions as to whether it should be regulated or not. There are ethical concerns from the bar on the possible impact of pro bono work on the work performed by lawyers for the state."
He adds: "The Conselho Nacional de Justiça has issued a resolution in connection with pro bono work, and I will continue to advocate the position of the membership, which was what my predecessor did, clearly in favour of the development of pro bono work which may be of benefit to the general public."
Another task Freire sees before him is to help a new generation of leaders come to the fore in CESA. The organisation was founded in 1982 and Freire is conscious that he is likely to be the last president to be a founding member of the organisation.
"Maintaining the successful policies of our previous administrations" while also encouraging CESA's future managers are two of his chief ambitions.In this he will continue to receive support from Meyer, who has moved up to become president of CESA's general board for a three-year term. The two are keen to pay tributes to each other's service to the organisation - just as Meyer sees Freire as "an outstanding lawyer", who he believes "will be a very good president", Freire is also full of praise for his predecessor's achievements. He "is a leader within the Brazilian bar [who] did a great job as CESA's president", he says.
Moreover, Freire is keen that his presidency will not mean a change in course or values for the association. "What has characterised the previous administrations of CESA is the fact that they have all been very similar; there is never confrontation with the previous administration. The intention is to do more of what has been successfully done by my predecessors," he says.
While the next decade may see fundamental changes for the Brazilian legal community, what is needed more than anything, Freire clearly believes, is a steady hand on the tiller.
(Latin Lawyer 21.05.2009)
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