Garrigues increased its revenues in 2020 to €386.9 million
Thanks to its sound financial footing, the firm has not had to take any extraordinary measures affecting its staff as a result of the pandemic
Garrigues posted revenues of €386.9 million in 2020. Its growth – 1.4% in euros compared with 2019 – was curbed by the sharp fall in the exchange rate in the Latin American countries where the firm is present due to the pandemic’s impact on their economies: at a constant exchange rate and scope, the firm’s revenues grew 3.6% in 2020.
From the moment the pandemic broke out and despite the uncertainty, Garrigues made an across-the-board commitment not to adopt any extraordinary measure to reduce or freeze salaries or lay off its employees. At the same time, it strengthened its focus on attracting and retaining talent, its commitment to diversity and equal opportunities, and redoubled its training efforts.
By practice area, the corporate and commercial department continues to be the largest contributor to the firm’s revenues, accounting for 33.7% in 2020. In the Iberian market, Garrigues once again topped the ranking of legal advisers by number of mergers and acquisitions in Spain and Portugal in the year, with a total of 161 deals worth €15.28 billion, according to the annual report from the TTR business intelligence platform.
The cornerstones on which Garrigues has built its strategy in recent years – internationalization, digitalization and sustainability – provided a solid foundation in an especially complicated year:
Internationalization: non-Spanish offices accounted for 13% of total revenues in 2020. The international teams have continued to grow in line with the firm’s expansion model: own offices staffed with local teams that share Garrigues’ culture and values. The firm has 32 offices in 13 countries.
Digitalization: our digital transformation, in which Garrigues has invested €55.1 million over the past five years, meant that the firm was ready to face the new reality. From the outset of the pandemic, our clients received the same quality service and our teams were able to leverage collaborative and cross-cutting approaches to tackle the most pressing problems faced by companies. In 2020, the firm invested 3.1% of revenues in digitalization and innovation.
Sustainability: our ESG commitment underlies everything we do as a firm. Garrigues has been part of the United Nations Global Compact since 2002, and each year we assess our performance in furthering the Agenda 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In 2020, our team made notable efforts in the areas of social outreach (through pro bono work, volunteering and charity campaigns) and the fight against the climate crisis, as evidenced by the firm’s Eco-efficiency Plan which promotes, among other things, energy efficiency and more responsible consumption habits. In 2020, the firm reached an important milestone: 100% of Garrigues’ offices in the EU use electricity from renewable sources with guarantee of origin, and 87.5% of our offices worldwide.
Fernando Vives, executive chairman of Garrigues, notes that “in a year of large-scale changes and global challenges, Garrigues has emerged even stronger thanks to the work of our 2,125 professionals who have, without a doubt, risen to the occasion, and to the trust of our clients in the 13 countries where we are present.”
