Benefits of a Partnership

The two economic titans of the Americas – the United States and Brazil – share several common interests, along with many of the same structural and economic challenges. Their governments acknowledge that there is a need for mutual cooperation on a variety of global issues, and their leaders seem willing to engage with one another to make such a partnership work.

“The rapid increase in the breadth and depth of the bilateral dialogue and the Brazilian and American governments’ efforts to maintain the doors open for a more productive and consequential relationship suggest, at a minimum, that they understand they need each other, benefit from working together and risk paying a political price for not doing so,” Huffington Post contributor Paulo Sotero notes in a recent analysis of the two countries.

The reelection of President Barack Obama earlier this month ensured that the respective leaders of the United States and Brazil would remain partners for at least the next two years, until Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff runs for her own reelection in 2014.

Sotero makes the point that while American companies have operated in Brazil for years, the South American nation’s ascension into the top tier of the global economy has empowered Brazilian companies to expand their operations into the United States. As the two countries become more intertwined and overarching governmental policies encourage economic cooperation, businesses will find that their best interests may include expanding operations abroad.

But, before doing so, business leaders need to understand the nuances of Brazilian law. A Brazilian lawyer with experience in all phases of corporate law – mergers and acquisitions, contracts, intellectual property and licensing, compliance and bankruptcy – is best suited to respond to any legal difficulties.