Below are some of the main laws that deeply changed the legal and business environment of Brazil after the enactment of the 1988 Constitution, as well as how Leite Tosto e Barros adapted itself to such changes.
●1988: The 1988 Constitution.
●1990: The Consumer Protection Code.
●1991: Leite, Tosto e Barros is founded. The firm is one of the first in Brazil to apply the concept of corporate management to a law firm, also focusing on value objectiveness and speed in delivering services.
●1994: The “Real” Plan.
●1995: The Public Service Concession Law.
●1995: The State Criminal Special Court Laws.
●1995: LEITE, TOSTO E BARROS moves its headquarters to Bandeira Paulista Street in the neighborhood of Itaim, in the south area of São Paulo, with a 300 square meters office.
●1996: LEITE, TOSTO E BARROS strengthens its labor law department with new partners and members of the team. In 2011 it is still one of the strongest and most tenacious departments.
●1996: The creation of Aneel (Brazilian Electricity Regulatory Agency).
●1996: The firm is present in the discussions of the new models of rates and taxes in the electricity sector which arose from the privatization and creation of Aneel (Brazilian Electricity Regulatory Agency).
●1996: We participate in "writing the book" that defined the transmission activities as operations with electricity, concerning the ICMS. The firm was also able to determine that the transmission activity has, in terms of the Income Tax, a reduced tax basis, which turned our to be crucial to the definition of the levels of Income Tax applied to the sector.
●1997: The creation of Anatel (Brazilian Telecommunications Regulatory Agency).
●1997: LEITE, TOSTO E BARROS acts in the yearly years of the cable television sector in Brazil, assisting clients since the participations in the biddings of ANATEL, as well as in the creation of companies’ social contracts, the Anatel Regulations, and ultimately the entire process of creation of cable TV companies in small Brazilian cities.
●1997: The Electoral Law.
●1998: The Privatization of telecommunication services.
●2000: The firm organizes an innovative structure to give legal support to parties in the 2000 election. Consequently it becomes a reference in the sector. By 2010, the office has already acted in favor of most of the political parties of the country. We have been constantly present in campaigns during election years.
●2000: The firm opens the Rio de Janeiro branch.
●2000: In 1998 Ricardo Tosto, founder partner of LEITE, TOSTO E BARROS, began a study that defines the quantity of taxes and other credits owned to the Union and state governments by the Brazilian corporate sector. The great sum as well as the growing number of procedures about the matter in the Judiciary apparently led to a situation with no solution. During conversations with the business community and the Legislative Branch, Ricardo Tosto began the discussions that would lead to the Refis (Tax Recovery Program), which went into effect in 2000. The program has provided a solution to the companies’ difficulties to discharge what is still pending and to the lack of structure problem so that they could be charged by the courts, creating an installment plan and other facilities to pay the tax and social security debts to the Federal Revenue and the INSS (Social Security Tax).
●2000: The creation of Refis (Tax Recovery Program)
●2001: The firm opens the Brasília Branch
●2001: Criminal Special Court Laws in the Federal Court
●2001: The firm strengthens its team in order to respond to new growth in demand coming from the special courts.
●2001 LEITE, TOSTO E BARROS creates a criminal department to work with economic law, international law and environmental law.
●2001: LEITE, TOSTO E BARROS celebrates 10 years since its foundation.
●2001: LEITE, TOSTO E BARROS provides pro bono legal assistance to make sure Brazilian patients had Access to Glivec medicines, used in chronic myelogenous leukemia treatments. The medicine, which was already approved by the official entities of the United States of America, was still not available in Brazil. The proceeding was successful, making sure the Brazilian Public Health Network distributed the medicine to those in need. The medicine is currently being used and imported by the Brazilian Health System.
●2001 and 2002: LEITE, TOSTO E BARROS consolidated partnership agreements with international firms from Switzerland, France, England and the United States of America.
●2002: The New Civil Code
●2003: LEITE, TOSTO E BARROS implements a digital system to manage the proceedings. The initiative allows clients to follow up their proceedings online e also improves the follow up management.
●2003: LEITE, TOSTO E BARROS opens its new headquarters in the neighborhood or Itaim, south area of São Paulo, with 1600 square meters.
●2003: The firm anticipates a trend that would soon be established in the Brazilian market. We have worked to formalize a partnership between a state company and a private company in the electric sector with the objective of creating a partnership to build and operate the transmission line.
●2004: Enactment of the Bill that rules the PPPs (Public Private Partnership)
●2004: The creation of the ombudsman position in order to receive clients’ comments in a more centralized manner and consequently suggest changes with the objective of improving the service. That was an unprecedented initiative among the great Brazilian law firms.
●2004: The Federal Supreme court confirms the constitutionality of the Arbitration Law.
●2004: LEITE, TOSTO E BARROS has its first arbitration proceeding. Due to its tradition in the litigation area, the firm has an easy adaptation and keeps expanding the practices of arbitration and mediation cases.
●2004 a 2006: Ricardo Tosto, founder partner of LEITE, TOSTO E BARROS, becomes president of the Comissão de Reforma do Judiciário da Ordem dos Advogados do Brasil (The Brazilian Bar Association Judiciary Reform Commission), in São Paulo.
●2005: The Enactment of the Bankruptcy Law.
●2005: LEITE, TOSTO E BARROS works on a certain company’s concordat proceeding case, which turned out to be the first one to be transformed into a judicial recovery with the edition of the New Brazilian Bankrupcy Law.
●2006: LEITE, TOSTO E BARROS celebrates 15 years since its foundation and counts on a total of 264 professionals.
●2006: The M&A department of LEITE, TOSTO E BARROS gains prominence after significant performance obtaining great results.
●2007: Significant changes in the Corporate Law.
●2007: Ricardo Tosto, founder partner of LEITE, TOSTO E BARROS, works along the Legislative Branch in order to enable the project of Resource Repatriation, which has the objective of providing tax amnesty to encourage the return of offshore irregularly kept resources by Brazilian citizens. This example, already used in the United States of America, Spain, Mexico, among other countries, would allow the enlargement of resources available to investments in Brazil with the return of assets which were sent offshore due to the economic crisis that happened between 1980 and 2002. The project is still being discussed.
●2007: LEITE, TOSTO E BARROS begins to organize its consulting department with the subdivision of the labor and tax departments, which previously worked only with litigation.
●2007: The Office of LEITE, TOSTO E BARROS in Rio de Janeiro moves to a new 600 square meters Office. The branch becomes independent counting on a total of 4 partners and 16 lawyers in mid 2009.
●2007: The Rio de Janeiro branch strengthens its M&A team.
●2007: The firm begins working in the oil and gas segment and litigation practices in general.
●2007 a 2008: Ricardo Tosto, founder partner of LEITE, TOSTO E BARROS, presides the Comissão de Modernização do Judiciário da Ordem dos Advogados do Brasil (Brazilian Bar Association Judiciary Modernization Commission), in São Paulo. His main effort was made towards discussing and suggesting solutions to the slowness in the São Paulo Justice.
●2008: The consulting Law segment gains more autonomy and an independent structure. By 2010, it is already responsible for 35% of the firm’s revenue.
●2009: LEITE, TOSTO E BARROS initiates a project of accrediting and management of correspondents in Brazil, listing a total of 40 law firms and 30 lawyers in every state of Brazil (except São Paulo)
●2009: LEITE, TOSTO E BARROS celebrates 15 years since its foundation and counts on a total of 300 professionals among partners, associates, trainees and administrative staff.
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