The Miami Legal Management Forum 2026, held on 11 June and organised by Gericó Associates, convened General Counsel, Chief Legal Officers, compliance specialists and partners from international law firms to discuss the challenges facing legal departments amid rapid technological, regulatory and reputational change.

The event was sponsored by Akerman, Consortium Legal, Robalino, Aguilar Castillo Love, Cáceres Torres, DMK Abogados, Estudio Olaechea and CorralRosales, with institutional support from the University of Miami School of Law, the Miami International Arbitration Society and the Miami International Arbitration Center. The panels addressed crisis management, compliance, international arbitration, financial sustainability, international expansion and corporate governance.

Leonardo Berrío, General Counsel and Head of Legal Affairs at ESENTTIA / Grupo Ecopetrol, highlighted the current momentum of international arbitration and the position Miami can occupy within that ecosystem: “The forum highlighted three key elements: the continued relevance of arbitration as a dispute resolution mechanism, the challenges associated with integrating legal technology and artificial intelligence into that practice, and Miami’s advantages as an alternative seat to New York, London or Singapore. It has been a valuable opportunity to exchange experiences with fellow General Counsel and law firm practitioners.”

Andrea Mon, Global Director of Ethics, Compliance and Investigations at Fresh Del Monte, underscored the importance of anticipating crises and learning from them: “The key lies in having a framework that manages crises proactively. Companies that fail to learn from a crisis do not reach the level of maturity required to protect their reputation – both externally and among their own employees. Regulated companies generally have these structures in place, yet even within them there are gaps. This is where the compliance professional plays a crucial role: building a complete cycle encompassing intake, triage, investigation and root cause analysis. Smaller companies are the most vulnerable, but best practice is not dependent upon regulatory requirements – it is a management decision.”

Juan Carlos Castillo, Senior Partner at Aguilar Castillo Love, summarised the central message of his panel: “Today’s world leaves no room for reacting once a crisis has already occurred. A crisis is neither won nor lost at the moment it happens – it is determined beforehand. Preparation and anticipation are the real competitive advantage; everything else is execution.”

Arnold Castillo, Managing Director at Secretariat, reinforced this perspective from the standpoint of reputation management and litigation support: “Latin America and the Caribbean are experiencing an increasing diversification of risks, political, security-related and operational, which requires preparation at three stages: before, during and after a crisis. The General Counsel serves as the bridge between internal and external stakeholders, and their role is to communicate transparently in order to maintain or restore the confidence of key stakeholders.”