Legal Business

Sponsored briefing: Q&A with Nuno Galvão Teles, managing partner of Morais Leitão

What do you see as the main points that identify Morais Leitão as a leading firm in the Portuguese legal market?

One of our key points of recognition has always been the innovation in legal advisory and the significance of being a full-service firm. We regularly advise across many areas and sectors and take on multidisciplinary projects, thus establishing future trends and models while covering all grounds. The main challenge in our very competitive market, with new entrants and a geographical disadvantage, is to continue providing in-depth legal advice while remaining economically sustainable. In order for this kind of approach to be effective, we privilege internal innovation. From project and knowledge management to legal tech, from legal design to AI, we pioneer an innovative approach to procedures and content that produces real benefits for the client, both in terms of the output and of the process that leads to it.

Legal Business

Sponsored briefing: Africa: The land of milk and honey and business as usual

African countries, even with their less advanced healthcare systems and low vaccination rates, have weathered the pandemic well with a low incidence and mortality rate for Covid-19. The impact, therefore, of the pandemic in Africa remains markedly lower compared to the Americas, Europe and Asia. Scientists say it is a paradox and are exploring the hypothesis that Africans have had more exposure to other coronaviruses, which may act as a defence against Covid-19. Another possibility is that regular exposure to malaria or other infectious diseases could prime the immune system to fight new pathogens, including SARS-CoV-2. If tens of millions of Africans have already been infected, scientists question whether the continent should try for ‘herd immunity’ without a vaccine, shielding only the most vulnerable, which might be preferable over control measures that cripple economies in the long run.

Further, Africa’s youthful population stands out against the global backdrop of ageing populations. Only in Africa is the size of the working-age population as a portion of the total population still increasing. In short, Africa is open for business as usual.

Legal Business

Sponsored briefing: Angola – getting back in the game

Morais Leitão’s Claudia Santos Cruz on recent legal developments and the future of the Angolan oil industry in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic

For a brief period in 2009, Angola was Africa’s largest oil producer with production reaching two million barrels per day. Current production is around 1.37 million barrels per day. This reduction is generally attributed to a general reduction in production; low oil prices and more recently Covid-19 pandemic effects.