Practice group A title: Tax Consultancy and Transfer Pricing
Advisor: Gabriela Pellón
Job title: Partners
Email: gpellon@galicia.com.mx
Recent matter highlights: Gabriela has a key role within the firm and coordinating the tax practice. Her work has deeply contributed to the consolidation of the firm’s tax practice as well as to the professional development of the practice’s clerks and junior associates.
She has been for more than fifteen years an active member of the Mexican and Latin-American forums discussing tax matters. She is a frequent speaker at high-profile venues, such as the Mexican Annual IFA event. She is a highly distinguished author of many publications regarding tax matters and has been a speaker in many different forums around the country.
Her international interests have driven her to advise not only Mexican companies but numerous foreign companies as well. Gabriela’s people skills and empathy are a great asset to private clients, whom she advises in relation to investments abroad and compliance with respect to tax obligations and wealth management. She has developed a great capacity to structure businesses efficiently, with strict compliance to the law, but always looking for the benefit and satisfaction of her clients.
Advisor: Federico Scheffler
Job title: Partners
Email: fscheffler@galicia.com.mx
Recent matter highlights: Federico has extensive experience in transactional tax advice. He works very close together with the M&A, Energy, Capital Markets, Banking, and Finance, among other practice areas of the firm, assisting the client with not only the structuring of the transaction, but also with the whole negotiation within the M&A process, from kick-off to closing.
He has also participated in various key M&A and Capital Markets most relevant transactions, where the counterparties are the tax partners of national and/or international firms. Federico is also an active member of the International Fiscal Association (Mexico Branch), as he participated in the 2020 Cahiers de Droit, a tax international publication, as Mexico branch co-reporter.
Advisor: Eduardo Michán
Job Title: Partner
Email: emichan@galicia.com.mx
Recent Matter highlights: Eduardo frequently represents commercial and investment banks, private equity funds, pension funds and international corporations with respect to the tax effects in M&A, financing and real estate transactions. He joined Galicia as a partner in June 2022.
He is the President of the International Tax Committee of the Mexican Institute of Public Accountants, and he is an active member of the International Fiscal Association and the Tax Committee of the Mexican Private Equity Association (AMEXCAP).
Eduardo co-authored the book Transfer Pricing Litigation: Theory and Practice published by Lexis-Nexis where he wrote the Mexican chapter. He is also author of various tax articles available in different publications. He has been a speaker of tax matters in seminars in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico and the United States.
He was the leader of the team who won the 2018 Americas Real Estate Tax Deal for GIC´s investment with CCLA awarded by International Tax Review (ITR).
He was also a member of the team who won the 2016 Americas Real Estate Tax Deal of the Year for Blackstone´s acquisition of GE Real Estate Mexico lending platform and commercial real estate loan portfolio, also awarded by The International Tax Review (ITR).
Practice group B title: Tax Controversy
Advisor: Edson Uribe
Job title: Partner
Email: euribe@galicia.com.mx
Recent matter highlights: Edson's experience and recognition in the Mexican tax dispute market is reflected in the role he plays as chief legal advisor in one of the most complex current bilateral negotiations on transfer pricing issues between the Mexican and US tax administrations in the automotive section.
Likewise, Edson's leadership in the analysis, diagnosis and correction of fiscal risks in a recent corporate operation in Mexico that aimed to change the main shareholders of one of the largest electric power cogeneration plants in Mexico stands out.
Edson is also currently leading successfully the negotiation in the course of a tax audit before the Mexican Tax Administration in an iconic controversy of its kind, in which the difference for tax purposes of a specific financial service with respect to the general operation of a bank is at stake.
In the telecommunications sector, the role of Galicia stands out through Edson, as the main tax advisor to one of the largest telecommunications companies in Mexico related to tax disputes not only national but also cross-border.
Edson is the only Mexican member of the Subcommittee on Dispute Avoidance and Resolution of the United Nations Committee of Experts on International Cooperation in Tax Matters.
One of the relevant outcomes in this international academic field is his participation as co-author in the recent book (December 2020) "Flexible Multi-Tier Dispute Resolution in International Tax Disputes" published by the IBFD.
Co-author of one of the top 100 articles at the ITR | World Tax website: the “The Evolution of the Substance-over-Form Doctrine in Mexican Tax Disputes”, dated July 22, 2022
Practice group C title: Tax Litigation
Advisor: Denise Lester
Job title: Partner
Email: dlester@galicia.com.mx
Recent matter highlights: As Galicia’s lead tax litigator, Denise has been able to reverse criteria that had already shaped jurisprudence. She has analysed issues ranging from procedures carried out by the tax authorities, such as the temporary restriction of digital seals, to the filing of means of defence that have established precedents that have served as guidelines for the resolution of new cases, as well as for the interpretation and application of tax provisions and international treaties.
Denise has spearheaded legal defence strategies to challenge the authority’s arbitrary actions and has succeeded in establishing tax litigation as strategic litigation.
Some recent work highlights:
1. Lead counsel to assist a multinational conglomerate (based on India) on several tax audits, whose tax contingency amounts up to approximately MXN 3,000’000,000. In such audits, Denise and her team provided solid arguments to sustain the deductibility of IT payments, as well as to ensure a 0% VAT rate, among other issues.
Regarding tax audits for 2014 and 2015, in the conclusive agreement procedures, with Galicia’s support, the Tax Authority overturned its most significant findings; regarding the rest, Galicia assisted in the auto correction process, with the benefit of a reduction of surcharges and penalties. This resulted, in tax savings amounting to approximately MXN 2,756’000,000, from the findings overturned.
2. Participated as leader of an audit and the conclusive agreement for 2018 and 2016, in connection with derivative transactions and VAT issues related to a renowned brokerage house. The involvement of Galicia’s tax team resulted in a reduction of contingency (tax base) amounting to approximately MXN $3,700’000,000, for 2018. For 2016, the ongoing tax contingency amounts approximately to MXN $8,000,000,000. Galicia’s involvement was significantly valuable in distinguishing between the tax treatment applicable for a bank and a brokerage house before the tax authorities.
3. Advised, as lead counsel, in a conclusive agreement procedure before PRODECON regarding a 2014 tax audit who carried out chartering operations. The strategic advice resulted in settling with the tax authorities at paying with a 10% WHT rate instead of 25%, from a total contingency amounting to MXN 726’165,562.00.
4. Lead counsel for an important maritime carrier, in several refund requests of VAT balances amounting approximately to MXN $ 72 Million, corresponding to several months from 2011 – 2013. The tax team thereby argued the applicability of a 0% VAT rate. However, the tax authority rejected that balance requested, arguing such rate was not applicable since the taxpayer had a PE.
5. Leader in the litigation strategy to challenge certain green taxes levied by certain Stated, that Galicia considers has deficiencies in its regulations. Also assisted in tax proceedings related to the oil and gas industry, specifically with related to private energy generators.
Co-author of one of the top 100 articles at the ITR | World Tax website: the “The Evolution of the Substance-over-Form Doctrine in Mexican Tax Disputes”, dated July 22, 2022
Practice group D title: Wealth Management
Advisor: Gabriela Pellón
Job title: Partner
Email: gpellon@galicia.com.mx
Recent matter highlights: Gabriela has strived to develop long-term personal relationships with clients, who usually seek her involvement initially at the corporate level, and subsequently retain her services as a trusted personal and wealth advisor, often becoming a counsel to the family. She is one of the driving forces behind Galicia’s cross-practice High Net Worth/Private Wealth/Wealth Management group.
Gabriela is ranked by international publications as an expert in Wealth Management and our practice is ranked as Tier 1 in Mexico.
