OUR PROFESSIONALS

Patricia Agra Araujo

She has over 25 years of experience in competition, compliance and regulatory matters, representing domestic and international clients from all kinds of industries. She has been at the Brazilian Competition Authority (CADE) for four years and in the Secretariat of Economic Law (SDE), which became the General Superintendence of CADE after the promulgation in 2012 of the Brazilian Antitrust Law for nearly four more years. She was also a commissioner of the Commission for Concessions and Permissions of the State of São Paulo, in charge of the regulation and monitoring of concessions and Public-Private Partnerships in public transportation.

In Antitrust/Competition matters, she works with all types of procedures before the Brazilian Competition Authority (CADE), such as M&As, Joint Ventures and Associative Agreement fillings, presentation of third-party opposition to potentially harmful transactions, defense on anticompetitive conduct accusations, negotiations of settlements, cease-and-desist and leniency agreements, assistance to clients in the assessment of commercial practices and agreements to minimize antitrust-related risks.

In the Compliance area, she works in the preparation, review and implementation of compliance programs, ethics codes and internal controls, compliance training, investigation for risk assessment and prevention under the antitrust, public procurement and money-laundering legislation and the most recent Brazilian anticorruption law and its regulations.

With respect to regulated sectors, she advises and represents foreign and domestic clients of all industries before regulatory agencies and bodies (such as the Health and Sanitary Vigilance Agency – ANVISA; Health – ANS; Agriculture, Livestock and Supply, which includes some food regulation – MAPA; Telecommunications – ANATEL; Audiovisual and Media Content – ANCINE; Electrical Energy– ANEEL; Aquatic Transportation – ANTAQ; Civil Aviation – ANAC; Transport – ANTT; Transport Concessions and Permissions Monitoring Agency of the State of São Paulo- CMCP and State of São Paulo Transportation– ARTESP), in the negotiation of settlements and cease and- desist agreements; and studies and legal opinions on regulatory matters, compliance with sector-specific regulations and risk assessment..

Academic Background
  • LL.M. Boston University, Boston, MA, USA.
  • Post-graduate studies in Competition law, Fundação Getúlio Vargas.
  • Post-graduate studies in Corporate law, Pontifícia Universidade Católica of São Paulo.
  • Bachelor of Laws, Pontifícia Universidade Católica of São Paulo.
  • Extension in Law of Business Enterprises, Harvard University.
PUBLICATIONS AND LECTURES
  • Author of the chapters “Experiência Internacional da Disciplina da Concorrência” and “The Recent Development of the Brazilian Competition Policy System”.
  • Co-author of “Brazilian Competition Policy in a Global Perspective.”
    ACADEMIC EXPERIENCE
    • Professor at the Corporate Law and Economic Law Course at Centro Universitário de Brasília (UniCeub).
    • Professor of Civil Law – Contracts at Associação de Ensino Universitário do Distrito Federal (AEUDF).
    AWARDS AND RECOGNITIONS
    • Recognized by Who’s Who Legal: Brazil 2021 and 2022.
    • Year after year recommended by Legal 500 since 2017.
    • Figures among the most admired lawyers in Brazil according Análise Advocacia Mulher.
    • Recognized for her performance year after year in the Competition, Corporate Governance and Compliance area by Best Lawyers.
    • Chambers Brazil 2021, 2022 and 2023 – Contentious recognized partner Patricia Agra Araujo as one of the leading Antitrust lawyers in the country.
    • Highlighted among the most admired lawyers in the world by Women in Business Law (Expert Guides) in 2021, 2020 and 2017.
    • Recognized by Chambers Latin America 2021 and previous editions for her work. Sources highlighted her experience in defending clients and affirmed that “she has good knowledge and experience, allowing her to understand and predict CADE decisions”.
    • Considered one of the leading lawyers in Antitrust and Compliance in Brazil by Latin Lawyer 250 since 2016 and recently in 2024.
    • Year after year considered one of the leading lawyers in Merger Control by Leaders League.
    • Listed year after year in the Compliance, Competition, Sugar and Ethanol, Banks, Construction and Engineering and State of São Paulo areas’ lists of the most admired lawyers in Brazil by Anuario Análise Advocacia 500.
    • Recognized by Análise Editorial, which released the 2023 edition of Análise Advocacia Mulher, as one of the most admired female lawyers in the country.
    LANGUAGES
    • Portuguese, English and Spanish.
    PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS
    • She is a nominated member of the Competition and Regulation Studies Commission of the Brazilian Bar Association (São Paulo Section).
    • She is also a member of IBRAC.
    • Admitted in the American Bar Association, New York, USA.