Leading Spanish independent Pérez-Llorca has invested in its New York office with the hire of arbitration specialist Felipe Nazar as a partner.

Nazar, who is admitted to the Chilean and New York bar associations, is joining from White & Case. His arrival at the office, which opened in 2015, adds disputes capability to the branch, which also houses corporate and tax specialists.

He becomes the second partner at the office alongside office head, corporate partner Javier Gómez.

Nazar spent more than seven years as an associate at White & Case and specialises in advising Latin American clients on investment and commercial disputes, in areas including energy and infrastructure, mining, and financial services.

Félix J. Montero, a litigation and arbitration partner at Pérez-Llorca, said: “The addition of Felipe furthers the firm’s international growth strategy. With his arrival, the firm strengthens a strategic area and reinforces the international arbitration practice and the link with Latin American clients.”

Alongside Montero and Nazar, the firm has three associates in New York, two who specialise in corporate law while the third is a tax lawyer.

The firm said it will double its space in the Seagram Building on Park Avenue in the autumn as it plans to grow its existing capabilities in corporate, tax and international arbitration.

Nazar’s practice includes advising investors and states on investment arbitrations. Since 2023, he has been a member of the register of foreign arbitrators of the Centro de Conciliación, Arbitraje y Amigable Composición, part of the Medellín Chamber of Commerce.

Earlier this year, Pérez-Llorca opened its first Asian office, in Singapore, making good on its plan to have a physical presence in the global financial capitals of New York, London and Singapore as well as in Europe’s regulatory capital of Brussels.