Pioneers in Colombia

We have always been ready and willing to innovate and explore, taking on the most complex transactions, problematic litigation cases and challenging projects with the aim of improving the national and international legal landscape.

Our founding partner, Diego Muñoz Tamayo, set the tone with the firm´s first endeavors, advising on large-scale privatizations in Colombia, including the transfer of the highest volume of state-owned assets the country has yet seen.

Right to Good Name and Representation

1992 – 1993

Diego Muñoz Tamayo successfully presented the first constitutional protection action (acción de tutela) of fundamental rights that obliged the media to correct published false information that harmed a person´s reputation.

Privatization

1994 – 2007

Diego Muñoz Tamayo and his team were at the forefront of privatization processes in Colombia. MTA acted as legal counsel for government agencies in the sale of a very significant percentage of the assets in the gas and electric energy sectors, with a total transaction value exceeding US$5 billion (the equivalent of US$9 billion in 2021 prices).

Privatization by Means of Successive Stock Offerings

1996

MTA continues as the leading privatization law firm in Colombia through devising a groundbreaking move: the implementation of a privatization process through successive stock offerings. Although this legal instrument had been created in 1995, MTA´s move marked the first time it was used in Colombia.

Change in Procedural Case Law

2000

The firm extended the scope of interpretation of procedural law by obtaining a Constitutional Court ruling by which mental illness was recognized as an incapacitating health factor that permits the suspension of judicial procedures.

Corporate Restructuring

2001 – 2004

While Law 550 of 1990 was in force the firm was at the forefront of the first restructuring of a company in the telecommunications sector, at the time, one of the largest ever in Colombia. This corporate restructuring started the trend for many to follow as the country’s development continues.

Protection for Minority Shareholders

2002

In the first case of this type in Colombia, MTA achieved effective protection for minority shareholders from the former Colombian Securities Commission

Good Corporate Governance Practices

2002 – 2004

The firm designed and drafted the first Good Corporate Governance practices for a Colombian state entity.

First Unwinding of a State Entity by Means of an Operational Trust

2003

MTA designed the legal and contractual structure for the first unwinding of a state entity, Telecom. The integrity of the assets whose value exceeded US$4 billion was protected by means of a trust structure.

Privatization Doctrine

2004

Diego Muñoz Tamayo wrote the first book about privatization in Colombia, which remains the most authoritative doctrinal source on this topic.

Electronic Commerce Law

2004

Diego Muñoz Tamayo presided over an arbitration tribunal where evidence was presented by means of video conference, applying the legal basis for the Law of Electronic Commerce for the first time in the country.

Purchase of Non- and Underperforming Asset Portfolios

2005 – 2009

The firm designed the contractual structure that allowed foreign financial entities for the first time to buy underperforming credit portfolios in Colombia.

“Virtual Competitor” in Privatizations

2006

MTA designed and carried out a virtual mechanism for privatization procedures by using a sealed envelope which contained a hidden minimum price below which the state would not sell. The undisclosed minimum was only revealed after the offers from interested parties were made public. Although later judicially challenged, this mechanism prevailed.

Changes in the Regulatory Framework in the Healthcare Sector

2006 – 2009

Diverse administrative and judicial actions undertaken by the firm have produced important changes in the framework and regulatory development of the social security health system in Colombia.

Mechanisms for Clean Development

2007 – 2008

MTA structured and participated in the initial trials for the implementation of carbon emission mechanisms for clean development.

Regulatory Correction by Means of a Writ of Protection

2008 – 2009

The firm made groundbreaking use of a constitutional rights protection action by using one as an instrument of regulatory correction, obtaining a historic ruling from the Constitutional Court of Colombia. Sentence T–760 of 2008 redefined the regulatory framework of the healthcare sector.

International Claim

2008 – 2009

MTA was a pioneer in filing the first international foreign investor claim against the Republic of Colombia under a bilateral investment treaty.

Leniency Program

2010 – 2011

The firm advised on the first leniency program in Colombia under the Law 1340 of 2009.

Good Faith Standards in the Performance of Contracts

2011

Diego Muñoz Tamayo presided over an arbitration tribunal that extended the principle of good faith in the performance of contracts, linking it to good corporate governance practices, company values and business social responsibility.

Abuse of Majority Rights by Shareholders

2013

MTA won the first case in Colombian history for the annulment of a decision adopted through the abusive exercise of majority vote, before the mercantile proceedings jurisdiction of the Superintendence of Corporations.

Environmental Liabilities

2014-2015

The firm’s environmental team helped develop a regulatory strategy for the intervention of areas affected by abandoned mining activities for which the Mining and Energy Planning Unit (UPME), a Special Administrative Unit of the National Energy Commission, was responsible.

Environmental Liabilities

2014-2015

The firm participated in the design of an integral strategy for the management of environmental liabilities in Colombia, managed by the Minister of Environment and Sustainable Development. This issue has no current regulation in Colombia, and we assisted by putting forward a practical proposal for how it might work.