Garrigues has been appointed to advise Spain's Ministry of Environment and Rural and Marine Affairs during the country's presidency of the European Union.

The leading Spanish firm will advise the Ministry's head, Elena Espinosa, on matters falling under her jurisdiction being negotiated in Brussels, and on international treaties to which the EU is party.

Partners involved in the advisory work will include Antonio Baena, Santiago Garrido and Jesus de la Morena Olias, all of who come from the firm's environmental practice.

Garrigues is set to take a key role in the multilateral negotiations over the launch of an international treaty to regulate the life cycle of mercury.

Spain's presidency of the EU began in January of this year and will run until June 2010.

The appointment is not unfamiliar territory for Garrigues, as the firm also advised the last Spanish EU presidency in 2002 in a joint venture with PricewaterhouseCoopers.

Juan Pablo Perez Sanchez, an associate in the environmental practice in at Garrigues' Madrid office, told Legal Week: "We are an ideal firm for this kind of service because we have a lot of experienced environmental lawyers and technicians.

"Few firms in Spain have these capabilities and when a country is in this kind of position they want the best to be able to do their best."