Kennedys has formed an alliance with Brazil’s RPZ Advogados, in a move that brings the firm an insurance-focused team of five partners and 24 more lawyers.
Kennedys said the tie-up was an important step in its development in the region, now led by Michael Hennessy, founding partner of the firm’s Mexico City office. It added the alliance reinforced its presence in Brazil, a key insurance market in the region.
RPZ has offices in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. Led by managing partner Dennys Zimmermann, it advises on complex insurance claims in Brazil and internationally and across a range of insurance lines, including directors’ and officers’ liability, environmental, casualty, cyber, aviation, marine and transportation. The firm is also involved in insurance litigation.
Hennessy said the alliance was a natural progression of Kennedys’ regional strategy.
“Brazil is a cornerstone market for our clients, and working alongside RPZ Advogados enables us to provide on-the-ground strength backed by international reach,” he said.
Kennedys’ Miami office, opened back in 2010, has paved the way for its expansion across Latin America. The firm now has bases of its own in Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru, alongside associations with firms in the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Panama, Puerto Rico, Bolivia and Ecuador alongside Brazil.
The firm first entered the Brazilian market in 2011 through an association with local firm Torres Marcellino & Associados and two years ago formed another association with three-lawyer AZ Cardoso Advogados, which ended earlier this month.
In Kennedys’ latest financial results for FY25, Latin America saw the most significant surge in percentage terms with an upturn of 27.1%, achieving revenue of almost £13m. The firm, which aims to reach $1bn (£730m) in turnover by 2030, grew its global revenue 13% in FY25 to a new high of £428m.
Kennedys’ growth in Latin America has been mirrored in the US, where the firm has added 12 offices since 2017, most recently last year in Seattle and Los Angeles. In 2020, the firm also formed an association with Canadian firm Dolden Wallace Folick in a move that saw it gain four offices across the country.
Other international firms to form Brazilian alliances recently include Womble Bond Dickinson and CMS. Last year, Greenberg Traurig opened an office of its own in São Paulo, its second in the region after Mexico City.
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