40 under Forty 2017 Suplemento 40u40_2017 | Page 13

40 under F orty A wards 2017
Winners
Marco Antonio Sanz Pérez, Cuatrecasas
Sanz Pérez is a partner at Cuatrecasas. He joined the firm in 2000, and was then seconded to Holland & Knight in
Miami in 2003 and to Skadden in New York in 2008. He also spent six months at Cuatrecasas´ New York office in
2006 and is currently based in the firm’s London office. He advised CaixaBank on the €820m acquisition of Barclays
Bank (Spain), as well as advising ICL Iberpotash on its long-term strategic alliance with AkzoNobel. Sanz Pérez also
advised KKR on the acquisition of 49 per cent of Port Aventura Entertainment and the signing of a shareholders
agreement with Investindustrial.
Margarida Vila Franca, CMS Rui Pena & Arnaut
Vila Franca is a senior associate at CMS in Lisbon. She is responsible, along with a number of partners, for coordinating
a team of ten fee earners in the firm’s corporate law group. Vila Franca has trained a team of 4 lawyers specialising on
financial regulatory matters. In addition, she has advised clients such as ANA – Aeroportos de Portugal, Mercedes Benz
Financial Services and Acciona. Vila Franca has also acted for private equity firms on major transactions in the energy
sector. She is a volunteer with Food Bank (Banco Alimentar contra a Fome) in campaigns against hunger in Portugal.
Marlen Estévez, King & Wood Mallesons
Estévez is a senior associate at King & Wood Mallesons in Madrid. Ten years ago, she was given the task, along with
one of the firm’s partners, of creating a litigation and arbitration department from scratch. She now manages a team
of five professionals in the practice group. Her expertise, acquired in Madrid and London, includes handling civil,
commercial, criminal, administrative and arbitration proceedings. Estevez’s clients include major Iberian banks and
energy companies. This year she founded the Women in Arbitration Spain association, the aim s of which include
promoting female practitioners in international dispute resolution with the aim of achieving gender balance in
arbitrator appointments. In October 2017, Estévez joined Roca Junyent as a partner.
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40 under Forty Awards 2017 • 11