AI Magazine Issue 3 2018

52 Acquisition International - Issue 3 2018 Floresta Longo e Associati (FLA) is a professional association of specialised lawyers, tax and labour consultants, and has been named in AI’s Global Excellence Awards as the Best Administrative Law Firm within in Italy in 2018. We invited Professor Antonino Longo to tell us more about the success of the company and what makes it so special. LA provides specialist legal services both in and out of court across a range of practice areas including but not limited to criminal, civil, administrative, fiscal and labour law. Typically, the firm works with a wide range of clients from the public and commercial sectors, and also serves international companies based both in Italy and abroad. Impacting on the industry is the firm’s multidisciplinary approach which offers peace of mind, as well as a single point of contact for companies and organisations across a number of legal aspects. Antonino outlines the firm’s overall mission and describes what steps he plans to take in order for the firm to achieve this, before talking us through the initial conversation that the team have with clients, as they look to gain an understanding of their expectations and outcomes. “FLA is a centre of excellence and acts as a professional services hub in our local area by providing key legal and associated business functions to the wide variety of small, medium and large commercial enterprises that make up our dynamic business environment. We offer a range of different service models ranging from on-demand needs, tactical point solutions and strategic corporate in-house legal services. “When working on a new case or project, our initial approach is to assess our client’s needs in order to tailor a bespoke solution that focuses upon the history of the current issues and the immediate business requirements. Based on our initial analysis, we offer either tactical or strategic solutions depending on the particular issue/s Company: Floresta Longo e Associati Contact: Professor Antonino Longo Address: Via De Caro, 104 (Viale Ulisse), Catania, 95126, Italy Phone: 0039 95 71 22 020 Website: www.fla.it/home/ Holding theAnswers to all yourQuestions F 1803AI22 being addressed. Over the years, since the start of FLA, our very varied and dynamic client base has shaped our service offerings and business model to the point where flexible innovation is an intrinsic part of how we approach each of our clients, both new and existing.” Helping the company to stand out amongst its peers is the unlimited and unrivalled expertise amongst staff. Antonino is keen to comment on the training that staff go through to ensure the highest levels of optimism, as well as the ability of employees to keep on top of relevant trends within the sector. “The wide breadth of our expertise across legal, financial, management and related disciplines touches upon all the aspects of the work environment from the legal to the financial, from the commercial to the personal. We subscribe to industry best practices to preclude conflicts of interest that may arise when clients contract for multiple services. Providing us with a brief overview of the industry, Antonino talks us through the complex nature of the legal sector within Italy, as well as commenting on the fact that the firm’s international client base leads to an unparalleled expertise in certain continental deals. “The provision of legal services in Italy is quite complex, as Italian law has a civil judicial tradition based on a core set of principles that are codified as a referable system that serves as the primary source of law. These principles are subject to fairly continuous updates and changes. Also, our role is to keep abreast in the dynamic context of our clients’ interests and needs. The international nature of our client base means that we also have considerable in-house expertise with the intra national agreements, as well as principles which are articulated by the OECD in relation to BEPS and double taxation.” In order to stay ahead of any upcoming developments within the industry, Antonino points us towards the strict training programme that staff are under. The team monitor the relevant trends “Our core policies assume the highest standards of professional and ethical conduct in our personnel and this applies to their dealings with both internal colleagues and external contacts and clients.”