Kennedys has added to its rapidly expanding Americas footprint, entering into an association with an independent firm in Puerto Rico.
The firm has announced that it struck a deal with the two-partner, San Juan-based insurance boutique Cólon & Cólon (C&C).
C&C was founded in 2002 by Francisco Cólon Pagán and now includes partner Francisco Mercado Olivero and two senior associates.
The announcement marks Kennedys latest foray into the Americas in 2017. A merger with US firm Carroll McNulty & Kull on 1 June brought the firm 100 lawyers in New York, Pennsylvania, Illinois and Texas. The firm also took a six-strong team from US firm Sedgwick in September and hired another five of its lawyers to gain a foothold in Bermuda a month later.
Since launching in Miami in 2010, the firm has extended its presence across Latin America to also include Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru.
Kennedys senior partner Nick Thomas has made no secret of his desire for increasing the firm’s footprint in the region and this looks set to continue.
Thomas said: “Our expansion in Latin American and the Caribbean has been rapid but thought-through, with our clients consulted at every stage.
“We have many clients in common with Colón & Colón and they have highlighted both the value of a presence in Puerto Rico and the quality of work Francisco and his team deliver. This confirms the experience of our own lawyers’ dealings with Colón & Colón.”
The Puerto Rican office is Kennedys seventh to open this calendar joining Argentina, Bangkok, Bermuda, Melbourne, Mexico City and Paris.
Colón Pagán said: “This is the perfect move for our firm. We enjoy a similar culture to Kennedys and have experience working with their colleagues in Bermuda, Miami and New York. We also envisage that the association will generate more and higher-profile instructions. Insurance work nowadays demands a global perspective, and Kennedys is leading the way in giving the industry what it wants and needs.”
