Armando García Lara
Partner
Biography
Armando brings nearly three decades of experience supporting corporate clients in navigating legal and regulatory challenges tied to business growth, expansion, and investment. His practice focuses on transactional, regulatory, and infrastructure matters, where he provides strategic guidance aligned with clients’ business needs and strategic goals.
With a strong background in corporate and real estate law, Armando advises on mergers and acquisitions and joint ventures, including in sectors such as hospitality, construction, and manufacturing. He regularly participates in real estate transactions across Mexico—including site acquisition, land use compliance, and title review—and advises on the formation of investment vehicles and corporate structures to facilitate development.
In the infrastructure space, Armando supports the structuring and implementation of projects involving highway concessions, urban rail systems, and port developments. He also counsels clients on legal frameworks for public-private partnerships and processes critical to project execution.
His regulatory practice includes advising on compliance programs and legal risk mitigation. He also assists clients in audits and government-facing processes, including responses to regulatory inquiries and enforcement actions.
Before co-founding Rivera García, Armando was a partner at a prominent Mexican firm, where he advised on complex transactions with cross-border components. He began his legal career at the Mexican office of a top U.S. law firm, advising clients on corporate structuring and regulatory compliance for cross-border investments.
- The Academy of American and International Law, Advanced Legal Studies.
- Universidad Panamericana, Postgraduate Studies in Administrative Law.
- Universidad Panamericana, Postgraduate Studies in Commercial Law.
- Escuela Libre de Derecho, Law Degree.
- Mexico
Representative Cases
- Advised leading European steel-processing and structural-solutions firms on acquiring and developing industrial facilities in Mexico, including comprehensive structuring of local joint ventures.
- Represented a prominent U.S. retail developer in negotiating and structuring joint ventures with a major Mexican real estate firm to establish outlets in key urban centers.
- Advised multiple U.S. franchise brands on corporate structuring, due diligence, and transactional documentation for their successful market entry into Mexico.
- Structured and implemented real estate investment funds and corporate subsidiaries for several hotel operators.
- Represented national and international investors in sophisticated hotel transactions and related foreign investment structuring.
- Represented a major cinema operator in the sale of 330 theater screens to a leading domestic competitor, managing corporate transactional matters and regulatory approvals, including antitrust clearances.
- Negotiated and documented a 20-year contract extension for a wastewater treatment provider in a municipality in Mexico, addressing intricate transactional and contractual issues.
- Advised U.S. companies on structuring maquiladora operations along Mexico’s northern border, including corporate, transactional, and regulatory guidance.
- Advised leading European steel-processing and structural-solutions firms on real estate matters including land acquisitions, zoning approvals, permitting, and compliance for developing industrial facilities in Mexico.
- Represented a prominent U.S. retail developer on real estate acquisitions, zoning compliance, permitting, and title verification for the development of key shopping centers.
- Advised multiple hotel chains on real estate acquisitions throughout Mexico, conducting due diligence and structuring real estate investment funds to support their expansion.
- Advised a major port authority on a wide range of real estate matters—including zoning, permitting, and title clearance—for the development of a multi-use terminal at a key Mexican port.
- Counseled U.S. clients on real estate acquisitions and compliance with zoning, permitting, and site development regulations for manufacturing and export facilities along Mexico’s northern border.
- Advised a state entity on developing comprehensive legal-financial models and PPP structures for a major mass-transit corridor project.
- Represented a federal government ministry in establishing legal-financial frameworks underpinning decades of federal highway concessions under a new toll highway scheme.
- Advised a federal government ministry on structuring, bidding, and supervising the implementation of a multi-system suburban railway.
- Advised a national development bank on the structuring and bidding processes for a public-private partnership involving a significant highway project spanning multiple states.
- Represented a railway construction consortium in managing contract compliance and external oversight related to rolling stock procurement for a key interurban train section.
- Coordinated the bidding process for a port authority’s concession to construct, equip, and operate a multi-use terminal at a major port.
- Conducted a compliance audit for a major port container terminal operator to ensure adherence to contractual obligations under a Mexican concession agreement.
- Advised a major cinema operator on compliance and regulatory matters, including securing governmental approvals and antitrust clearance for the sale of 330 theater screens to a competitor.
- Designed and implemented an extensive compliance program for a leading construction firm, including self-regulation measures, codes of conduct, and internal ethics and control procedures.
- Provided compliance counsel during negotiations and documentation for a 20-year contract extension for wastewater treatment services in a municipality in Mexico.
- Advised U.S. companies on regulatory compliance and cross-border compliance frameworks necessary for establishing maquiladora operations along Mexico’s northern border.