Abreu Advogados grows 19% and reaches revenue of 49.7 ME in 2023

The law firm led by Inês Sequeira Mendes closed the year in which it celebrated 30 years of activity with its highest-ever revenue and a remarkable growth of 19 per cent over the previous year.

In the year it celebrated its 30th anniversary, Abreu recorded an exceptional performance due to the strengthening of its areas of practice, its commitment to excellence and innovation, the multidisciplinary nature of the services it provides and its commitment to national and international activity.

Abreu Advogados closed 2023 with a consolidated revenue of 49.7 million euros (ME), representing a positive growth of 19 per cent compared to 2022, the year in which it celebrated its 30th anniversary.

The strong performance achieved by Abreu Advogados shows that the reinforcement of practice areas, the commitment to excellence and innovation, the services provided and the focus on national and international activity have enabled it to circumvent global geopolitical instability and the uncertainty of the national political context.

The firm, which is full-service and multi-jurisdictional, has grown in all service areas, with Corporate & M&A, Litigation & Arbitration, Real Estate, Public & Environment showing a greater weight in the firm’s activity in 2023. The firm’s commitment to internationalisation with a focus on the PALOP countries also continues to prove successful, with the international market accounting for 40% of global turnover, with the firm’s network in three global jurisdictions (Angola, Mozambique, East Timor) and at national level in four regions (Aveiro, Coimbra, Porto and Madeira).

Abreu Advogados continues to focus on attracting and retaining talent and has a team of 365 employees, including 232 lawyers and 46 partners.

Unrivalled year for innovation and reputation

The work carried out by the teams at Abreu Advogados was honoured throughout 2023 by various rankings, directories and international entities. The growth, innovation and disruptive nature of the independent Portuguese law firm was highlighted by the Financial Times, where Abreu was considered the most innovative Portuguese firm in Europe, coming 16th in the Financial Times’ renowned ranking, which honoured the 50 most disruptive law firms operating on the continent and winning an award in the “Innovation in Skills Development” category, with the Knowledge Institute (IdC) project, presented at the Financial Times Innovative Lawyers Awards Europe 2023 ceremony.

The firm also saw its Managing Partner, Inês Sequeira Mendes, honoured as “European Managing Partner of the Year” by The Lawyer European Awards, making her the first woman to be distinguished in this category in Portugal.

Regarding the reputation level, the Portuguese law firm was also honoured, winning 3rd place in the “Legal Services” category in the RepScore2024 brand reputation study, developed by consultancy OnStrategy.

In the innovative work done by the law firm, the Knowledge Institute, a knowledge centre incubated within Abreu Advogados, has developed internal and external initiatives that contribute to the development of legal knowledge, always with a focus on the evolution of law and the practice of law. Among the initiatives promoted by the IdC, the following stand out:

Lisbon Law & Tech: an international digital event that aims to be the link between Law and Technology, with prominent national and international speakers on new technology trends in the most diverse sectors of activity.

In-House 4.0: The programme aimed at in-house lawyers, which presents the reality and the main challenges faced by lawyers who work in-house and who have to adapt to the scenarios of Legal Departments 4.0.

Abreu Sustainability School: a unique initiative in Portugal, which promotes debate and training for final-year law students on subjects such as digital inclusion, technology and sustainability.

The year 2023 also saw the consolidation of new projects, especially in digital transformation and adapting to new ESG requirements

2023 was an unprecedented year for Abreu Advogados, not only in terms of results but also in terms of the projects implemented by the firm. Abreu Advogados’ strategy, defined in the strategy of the current Board of Directors, allowed the firm’s professionals to explore, with greater focus, projects in the areas of digital transformation (with emphasis on the Abreu 360 project, a business management and compliance system developed by and for the firm, in addition to the work carried out by the Abreu Tech group, which was responsible for mapping and testing tools and solutions with a focus on productivity and efficiency, resulting in the implementation of 3 solutions using AI) and adapting Abreu to the new ESG requirements (in various projects developed by the ESG team, namely in partnership with Universidade Nova in the Nova Greenlab project, participation in various events and conferences on ESG and sustainability and the partnership with Jornal de Negócios in the Negócios Sustainability 2030 initiative).

Impact: More than 2,740 pro bono hours supporting 24 associations

The area of sustainability and social responsibility is one of Abreu Advogados’ strategic pillars and last year accounted for 2,742 hours of pro bono services by the firm’s teams, which supported 24 associations in the development of their projects. Highlights include support for World Youth Day, as well as the following initiatives:

• Only Portuguese firm nominated for the Pro Bono Outstanding Firm Chambers Awards.

• Launch of Legal Up “Digital Exclusion”: 2023/24 agenda includes various initiatives to combat inequalities and promote digital access and digital literacy in various social strata and age groups.

• CAIS remodelling project: 126 Abreu employees and lawyers took part over two days.

• The World Youth Day project was the largest Pro Bono project ever, with a multidisciplinary team of 15 lawyers contributing to more than 2,500 contracts.

• Association to the Pact for Mental Health in the Workplace.

• We have a total of 40.51% women in top management positions.

• Joining the 3rd edition of the UN accelerator programme “Target Gender Equality” and the Wom’Energy Committee.

• Abreu Advogados has been certified as a Great Place to Work and Best Workplaces Portugal 2023.

• The law firm is a member of the BCSD – Business Council for Sustainable Development and is a member of the United Nations programme for Sustainable Development, the Global Compact.

• Since 2015, Abreu has been the first Portuguese law firm to join the international “B Corp” movement.