Ligia Bernardo Email & Phone Number

Texas, United States

Singapore, Sg

Singapore, Singapore, Sg

Singapore, Singapore, Sg

Lead In-House Counsel overseeing all Legal matters for the U.S. group of companies (59 locations, 20 manufacturing facilities, 4000 employees). Supporting senior management and leaders of verious commodities and functions: Spices (Egypt, Europe, Brazil), Cocoa (U.S., Brazil and Mex.), Edible Nuts, Commercial and Specialty Coffee, Dairy, Cotton, Finance, Human Resources, Innovation/Quality & Food Safety, E-Commerce, Information Technology, Agricultural Operations, Supply Chain/Procurement, Payroll, Marketing, etc.Responsible for setting up and developing a Legal function from scratch to support U.S. business operations, emphasizing business and corporate counseling in various matters, including domestic and international corporate and commercial transactions (Civil and Common Law matters), real estate matters, corporate compliance and governance, food safety, trademark and copyright issues, pre-litigation and litigation strategy, general environmental issues (water, wastewater disposal, storm water pollution prevention), drafting and reviewing corporate policies, antitrust and other business matters, including advising management regarding appropriate laws, regulations and policies.

London, England, Gb

• Advises and assists on international business transactions, especially related to civil lawcountries, particularly Latin America• Participates in planning and implementing various cross-border investment strategies,business restructuring, reorganizations, joint ventures, mergers, acquisitions, distributionarrangements encompassing multiples jurisdictions and different legal systems• Assists the Latin America Practice Group leader with coordination of marketing efforts inthe region• At Ford Motor Company (from Aug. 2013 to Nov. 2014): reported to the Corporate Secretary and to the Executive Director of International Transactions, Trade and South America; Dealt with Corporate, Contractual, Commercial, IP, Regulatory, FCPA, Distribution, Investment and other legal matters; Led project to establish Ford's own operations in a Latin American country; Assisted with corporate governance, policies and securities matters; Assisted Treasury, Finance, Ford Credit and other internal teams

Ann Arbor, Michigan, Us

Michigan Grotius Fellowship (merit-based)Common Law formal education

London, England, Gb

• Actively participated in all M&A phases including coordination of multi-disciplinary teams conducting due diligence, consolidation of reports, negotiation of liabilities, collateral and final agreements• Advised and assisted foreign companies setting up businesses in Brazil; negotiated contracts and other corporate documents contemplating national and international obligations; oriented companies with Brazilian Central Bank proceedings; counseled businesses regarding corporate restructurings• Drafted final legal opinions on a variety of issues, including foreign investments, contracts, corporate and IP law and provided support to Tax, Labor and Litigation areas• Oversaw clients matters, supervised a team of 6-7 attorneys and staff, managed business proposals and client billing significantly accelerating the collection time• Coordinated due diligence, advising and negotiating more then ten medium size ($30MM – $200MM) acquisition transactions for mainly U.S. based corporations, but also European and Latin American companies with firm’s partners

São Paulo, São Paulo, Br

(invited by the three leaving partners to join Campos Mello Advogados)- for work description, please refer to Campos Mello's work description

Benton Harbor, Michigan, Us

• Provided leadership as the Department Coordinator; reported directly to the legal director; and managed a team of 4 attorneys and staff• Drafted and negotiated domestic and international contracts, provided legal assistance in different areas of law and business including strategic transactions, new business, import/export, tax and corporate• Part of Whirlpool S.A. merger assisting team in Empresa Brasileira de Compressores S.A. (Embraco) - the world leader in hermetic compressors

• Headed corporate and contractual practices which involved advising Brazilian and foreign clients, and managing a team of 6-7 attorneys and staff• Developed and launched copyright and IP areas specifically focused on technology transfer, technical assistance, license and sublicense agreements• Advised and assisted on a number of other practice groups, including tax consulting, litigation and maritime

New York, Ny, Us

• Analyzed and prepared drafted memoranda, opinions, contracts, articles of incorporations and other legal documents; assisted with updating draft bank, participated in M&A negotiations; conducted due diligence; assisted in the development of IP and copyright practices; prepared proposals for new client business • Attended more than 250 hours of audit, accounting and tax auditing and consulting courses

Us

• Provided support to the Vice-President of Legal Affairs by researching, translating, drafting memoranda, opinion, contracts and other legal documents and communicated with law firms handling our claims regarding legal reports for remittance to our U.S. headquarters

Executive Education - Leading Organization & Change, Business Administration, Management And Operations

Executive Education, Leading And Managing Globally

Master'S Degree, Law

Graduate Program, Gvlaw - Contractual Law

Graduate Program, Corporate Law

Major, Law