Six partners and nearly two dozen other lawyers have broken away from DLA Piper’s Brazil affiliate firm Campos Mello Advogados to establish their own law firm, marking one of the most significant migrations of lawyers in recent years in Brazil.


In addition to the exiting partners, two counsel and 19 associates have left Campos Mello to join the new firm, which is called COSRO Advogados. All told, almost 30 professionals are joining the newly formed, full-service firm, which also has recruited several lawyers from elsewhere.


“This is a big move in terms of the market in Brazil,” COSRO managing partner Marcelo Frazão told Law.com International.

“It’s a group that has a lot of experience navigating through global networks, and we’ve made the decision to establish an independent presence and pretty much work with the international law firms that we have a good relationship with that we have built over the years,” he added.

Frazão, who was co-head of the energy and natural resources practice at Campos Mello, is joined at COSRO by Alexandre Bittencourt Calmon, who was global co-head of the energy practice at DLA Piper, and by João Marçal Rodrigues Martins da Silva, who was the Latin America co-head of international arbitration at DLA Piper.

International law firms are forbidden from practicing local law or acquiring law firms in Brazil. This restriction has led to tie-ups such as the one between DLA Piper and Campos Mello.

Also joining COSRO is Bruna Barbosa Rocha, who was head of Campos Mello's life sciences and healthcare practice, Vilmar Luiz Graça Gonçalves, who was head of the firm's environmental practice, and former Campos Mello real estate partner Maria Eduarda Bergamo.

In a joint statement, DLA Piper and Campos Mello said, “Arrivals and departures are a normal part of the firm’s business evolution, and we wish the departing lawyers well as they pursue their new endeavors.”

Campos Mellos added that it "remains committed to providing its clients with the highest quality legal services.”

Campos Mello senior litigation and arbitration associate Beni Flint, tax associate Laura Kurth Marques Carvalho, and energy and natural resources counsel Isabela Morbach Machado e Silva will join COSRO as partners. Other notable additions from Campos Mello include M&A lawyer Jessica Frühauf Filka and litigation and arbitration counsel Eugenie Marie Sophie Caroit, both of whom will be counsel at COSRO.

Frazão described the departing team’s relationship with Campos Mello as “very good and diplomatic,” with clients at the center of conversations.

“In this market, there’s space for everyone,” he added.

With the departures, Campos Mello now lists 149 lawyers on its website, including 36 partners.
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Going Independent

Several of the founding members of COSRO, including Frazão, were part of a large team that previously migrated to DLA Piper from Mayer Brown’s Brazilian affiliate, Tauil & Chequer Advogados.

When Campos Mello onboarded that team in 2021, managing partner Fabio P. Campos Mello said, “We wanted a team with a focus on the high-demand parts of the practice—in particular energy, infrastructure and environmental —and we know our clients are attentive to ESG.”

Frazão said the group was motivated to go independent so it will be able to collaborate with a broader array of international law firms.

“The network [of a global firm] brings a benefit. You may get more referrals. It's pretty much referrals because you cannot fully merge in Brazil,” he said.

Without that independence, lawyers don't get to work with other international law firms, he added. "If you have a very tight connection with one law firm, if you have a commercial agreement with one law firm, you will not be working with the others.”

Going forward, COSRO anticipates collaborating with firms such as Latham & Watkins, A&O Shearman and Kirkland & Ellis—in addition to DLA Piper.

“The relationship with DLA is actually great, both DLA U.S. and International,” said Frazão. “We definitely see DLA as a strategic partner.”

Earlier this year, DLA Piper opened its own office in São Paulo, managed by a hire from legacy Allen & Overy. And in 2023, the firm recruited two high-profile Brazilian lawyers based in New York, one from Jones Day and the other from leading Brazilian firm Mattos Filho.
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International Reach

COSRO has secured office space in Rio de Janeiro and plans to add locations in São Paulo and Brasília next year.

The firm also has lawyers positioned outside of Brazil.

Arbitration and litigation partner Beni Flint is based in Madrid, Renata Salluh, a labor partner who previously worked at large Brazilian firm Machado Meyer, is in Rome, and energy and shipping senior associate Patricia Winter works out of Singapore.

Other leading lawyers who have joined COSRO as founding partners include Rosângela Delgado, a former head of the litigation and arbitration practice at large Brazilian firm Veirano Advogados, and Henrique Rojas, who was a senior energy and natural resources associate at Tauil & Chequer Advogados in association with Mayer Brown.

Law.com International has reached out to Tauil & Chequer Advogados and Mayer Brown for comment on Rojas’ exit.

COSRO works across 15 key industries in Brazil, including energy, life sciences, agribusiness and infrastructure.