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Benjamim Mendes

He/himPartner
Benjamim is one of the best employment lawyers in Portugal; a reference figure in the local market, who is essential in the management and negotiation of sensitive issues.
— Chambers 2022
Lisbon
About

Labour expert and veteran Benjamim Mendes spearheads the practice for over 40 years, and maintains a loyal and household name client roster. He is a leading lawyer in the employment practice area, focusing his work on individual and mass dismissal procedures, collective bargaining agreements, lay-off procedures and contentious employment matters.

He has an extensive experience of employment issues and provides regular legal advice to large and medium-sized national companies, as well as to several major and well-known multinationals, covering a wide range of sectors, including automotive, retail, technology, financial services, aviation, hospitality & leisure, human resources, recruitment, insurance, water supply and wastewater sanitation, medical services, among other.

He was part of a group of 8 experts appointed by the Parliament and Portuguese Employers’ associations envisaging preparing a study with the objective of making Labour Law more modern and flexible.

He is on the Scientific Board of the International Labour Law Review (RIDT), the first Portuguese electronic publication, with an international dimension, with peer review, specifically targeted to the study of Labour Law and related areas.

He is a former professor of labour law at the university and he is regularly an Invited Teacher in post-graduation courses in Labour Law (Lisbon Law Faculty).

He is a guest speaker at several conferences on Labour Law-related subjects.

Areas of FocusCorporateEmploymentLitigation, Arbitration and InvestigationsReal Estate
Bar admissionsAdvogado admitted with the Ordem dos Advogados (Portuguese Bar Association)

EXPERIENCE

  • Advising on a day to day basis several large national companies, as well as more than 20 multinational companies with a presence in Portugal, covering a wide range of sectors.
  • Representing a large Portuguese Group (15 companies) in the negotiation of the collective bargaining agreement.
  • Representing the national employers’ association in the negotiation of the collective bargaining agreement for the airline sector in Portugal.
  • Advised several large companies on outsourcing processes, including several foreign airline companies operating in Portugal, a large tobacco company, a large global Bank and a leading human resources company.
  • Advising several global companies in dealing with the workers council and with unions, including a leading tobacco company and a leading automotive company.
  • He has advised several large companies in the implementation of restructuring and lay off measures.
  • He leads advice on employment matters in the scope of large cross-border M&A deals and projects in which DLA Piper ABBC provides legal assistance.
Languages
  • Portuguese
  • English
  • French
  • Spanish
Education
  • Lisbon University School of Law, Law Degree, 1978

Awards

  • Iberian Lawyer: recognised with the Outstanding Achievement career award (Labour Awards 2022)
  • Iberian Lawyer: Lawyer of the Year (2021) in Employment
  • Best Lawyers: Lawyer of the Year (2020) in Employment
  • Chambers and Partners: Employment: Band 1
  • Legal 500 Employment: Leading individual
  • Best Lawyers: Lawyer of the Year (2014) in Employment

Publications

He is the author of several publications on Labour Law-related matters:

  • “Non-compete Pacts” (included in Book in Homage to Jorge Carlos Fonseca, former President of Cabo Verde)
  • “(In)admissibility of the unilateral termination of the non-compete pact at the initiative of the worker” (in International Labour Law Review
  • “Effects of expiry of Collective Labour Agreements” (in Revista de Direito e Estudos Sociais)

Prior Experience

  • Partner of DLA Piper ABBC (previously ABBC)
  • Founding Partner of ABBC (DLA Piper relationship firm)
  • Founding Partner of ANBM
  • Former Lecturer at the Lisbon University School of Law
  • Former Assistant Professor of Labour Law at ISCTE

Memberships And Affiliations

  • EELA (European Employment Lawyers Association)
  • APODIT (Portuguese Association of Labour Law)
  • Former member of Lisbon Council of the Portuguese Bar Association
  • Former President of the Jurisdictional Council of the Portuguese Golf Federation
  • Former President of the Disciplinary Council of the Portuguese Golf Federation

My latest insights

Publication

Creation of the “commitment to sustainable employment” measure

21 January 2022 .2 minute read

Connect

Phone

(Work, Lisbon)
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