Pablo González Mosqueira: From Computer Hobbyist to Leading Corporate Lawyer at Pérez Llorca

Pablo González Mosqueira (Madrid, 1980) confesses that he has not had a great vocation as a lawyer. He remembers that in his youth his greatest hobby was computing. A hobby that, although he admits that he no longer cultivates, he does point out that understanding programming has helped him in his day-to-day life as a Corporate partner at Pérez Llorca to draft contracts. “Contracts must be made so that they are all very logical, very precise and that they do not fail. In a program you make definitions, commands and what you ask the machine to do works. With the contract it is the same. You want a contract that is well done, that regulates what it has to regulate and that everything is well put together and connected,” he explains.

González Mosqueira came from computers to law through the family side, by studying E1 at ICADE, in his words “by inertia.” He remembers that a large part of his family is dedicated to the law, but all of them through public service. The path of the oppositions, however, did not seem designed for him and he chose to work for the private side. “As my family says, I went to the dark side,” he says, while maintaining that his involvement in the world of mergers and acquisitions was “by accident.”

After also studying a master’s degree in legal advice at IE, his first job destination was the Spanish firm CMS Albiñana. At that time he says that what attracted him most was economic criminal law and he saw himself litigating in court in defense of or against large corporations. However, little by little this idea began to fade and the bug of corporate operations bit him. In 2006 he arrived in Pérez-Llorca and there he dove headfirst into M&A. “Pedro [Pérez-Llorca, socio director del despacho]who is the best lawyer in Spain, took me under his wing and I stuck to him like Velcro,” he says.

González Mosqueira became the prodigy of takeover bids in Spain. At only 26 years old, he worked in the team that advised Eon in its takeover of Endesa, the great business battle in the economic history of Spain. “There were competing takeover bids, lawsuits in Spain and the US and everything culminated in a tripartite pact between Acciona, Eon and Enel, which I remember was staged with a photo on the roof of our headquarters in Alcalá. At that moment I thought: this is milk,” he recalls. In 2014, at the age of 33, he was named partner and reflects on the opportunities that the firm gives to his young lawyers, which he says is in his DNA.

In addition to the Endesa takeover, it also helped Eon in the sale of its assets in Spain and Portugal or in the purchase of Eolia by Oaktree. He has worked closely with private equity funds. For example, she has advised CVC on the investment in Abertis, the takeover of 20% of Naturgy or the acquisition of the countertop manufacturer Neolith. Other of his top transactions have been the takeover of Popular by Santander or the acquisition and refinancing of Dia by Letterone.

The key to success, in his words, is not being the most aggressive lawyer. “The important thing is to win the battles that matter. Focus your shot on what really matters to your client and achieve it. You have to give in on things and know that in a negotiation you have to put yourself in your client’s shoes, but also in those of the opponent,” he maintains.

He describes the profession of the M&A lawyer as that of a psychologist, with the ability to read between the lines and from there try to build an agreement. “I’m more into building bridges than tearing them down,” he says.

When he leaves the office and hangs up his suit, González Mosqueira confesses that he is a big fan of sports, among which he mentions skiing, paddle tennis and mountain biking. In addition to his three children, his great passion is music. He remembers that in that first stage he combined his work in the big opas with playing the drums in a rock group. “I’ve gone from being quite a badass and listening to the hardest rock to gradually modulating the level of intensity. Now I’m more in Sabina mode,” he concludes.

The key operations

• Energy. In his career, Eon’s takeover of Endesa stands out, but also the sale of Eon’s assets in Spain or the sale of Eolia to Oaktree.
• Banking. He particularly highlights the advice to Santander on the takeover of Popular in its resolution, as well as the sale of Targobank.
• Venture capital. He has been CVC’s lead advisor in many of its operations in Spain, such as the investments in Abertis and Naturgy or the purchase of Neolith. He has also worked with Freeman on the acquisitions of Palex, Natural Fruit Company and HT Médica. He also participated in Blackstone’s purchase of Testa.

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2024-03-14 05:02:56
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