Leon Fernando del Canto
Founder, Barrister & Spanish Abogado
León Fernando Del Canto founded Del Canto Chambers International Tax & Legal team. Fernando is a tax qualified English Barrister and Spanish Abogado and he is instructed regularly by solicitors and auditors all around the world.
Fernando has broad international tax & legal experience and has represented clients in Madrid, New York, London, Dublin, Delhi, Jersey, Guernsey, Gibraltar, Doha, Dubai, and Hong Kong. He advocates for private clients and their families as well as for companies with international operations.
He got his UK tax qualification with KPMG, Deloitte and Grant Thornton before moving to private practice. In 2006 he became the first Spanish citizen to hold a double qualification as a Barrister in England and Spanish Abogado when he joined The Honourable Society of Lincoln’s Inn in London. He is a member of the Worshipful Association of Tax Advisers in the City of London, a liveryman of the City of London.
Fernando can be instructed by private clients as a public access Barrister through Guernica37 and is accredited as such by the England and Wales Bar Standards Board. Fernando has audience rights in Ireland under the Bar Council in Ireland and in Spain under Abogacía Española.
Specialism:
UK and Spanish Tax Law, Commercial Law and Intellectual Property
Jurisdiction
Spain, England and Wales (London) and Ireland
Based in London
Info
Year of Call:
1999 (Spain)
2006 (England)
2021 (Ireland)
Tax, Legal cases
Advised over 500 private individuals and companies on AngloSpanish tax and legal matters, including acquisitions in Spain, residency, tax planning, tax investigations, and litigation, many of them for High Networth Individuals:
- Tax & Legal advice and full Due Diligence on a €250m acquisition of the Brand and related Intellectual Property assets of one of the top football clubs in the Spanish La Liga by an NYSE-listed SPAC, including a Luxembourg SPV
- Tax & Legal advice and full due diligence to acquire the largest Spanish electric car company by an NYSE-listed SPAC, including a Luxembourg SPV of over €400m
- Advised the largest Spanish sports paper, AS, in a joint venture with a GCC media group.
- Advised Grupo PRISA, the largest media group in the Spanish-speaking world, to secure a €100m capital investment by a GCC sovereign fund.
- Advised on a SOCIMI acquisition of a large building in central Madrid.
- Part of the advisory team organising Sunseeker Yacht Group Restructuring and Taylor Woodrow (later known as Taylor Wimpy) in the EU.
- Advised Smart Design Worldwide on how to expand its operations into Europe and set up a Barcelona office.
- Design and implementation of the Governance Model, including policies and procedures for Q-media (Elan), a government corporation in the State of Qatar
- Part of the advisory team on a nationwide VAT inspection of a 150+ UK optical franchise group
- Advised on the establishment of GAMAG under the UNESCO framework
Litigation and Alternative Dispute Resolutions
Advised corporations, institutions and governments on a diversity of strategic litigation and dispute resolutions with international law implications:
- Advised on UK litigation and alternative dispute resolution options for the top seller of
Spanish wine under the Protected Denomination of Origin rules (post-Brexit)
- Advised on a USD 100m international arbitration dispute in London, according to English
arbitration rules, resulting from a commercial contractual dispute in claims for damages
arising from the contractual breach on a case involving a GCC state defendant and under the Intentional Chamber of Commerce rules. - Advised on tax and litigation aspects of contentious and non-contentious divorces in Spain for non-Spanish celebrities and HNWI with assets over €50m.
- Advised the Spanish government on jurisdictional issues in the UK, including immunity on Estate matters.
- Advised Spanish property development group on litigation and alternative dispute
resolution options on a UK joint venture
- Advised on legal claims against Spanish banks and other institutions representing foreignclients.
- Advised on a contractual dispute between UN FAO and a GCC State involving
international program financing
Intellectual Property
Advising authors, musicians, film directors, artists, media and production and distribution companies with international operations on several tax & legal matters:
- Provided legal and tax advice for top-flight international football teams, including
Tottenham Hotspur and Valencia. - Advised on the Intellectual Property Tax and Legal strategy and business development plan in Europe for Jani King, master European franchisor, including IP holding in Jersey and Hungary SPV and drafting the EU licensing agreements model.
- Advised Huffpost to establish the Arabic version of their website.
Advice on the acquisition of Gulf Film and Grand Cinema, the largest Arabic film distributor and theatrical operator - Legal and IP advice on the rebranding, contractual and licensing model of Novo Cinema in the GCC
Charity Law
Advised international charities and foundations on corporate, tax and legal matters, from setting up to governance and compliance matters:
- Guernica 37 Foundation (California) on tax and corporate matters
- Al Sharq Forum Foundation (Geneve) setting up foundation and licencing arrangements
- Art Aids Foundation (Netherlands, Thailand and Spain) fundraising, tax and governance
- Observatorio de Habla Hispana (London) setting up in London and strategic partnerships
- SYDA Foundation (worldwide) on IP and a variety of matters
- ISKCON (worldwide) on IP and a variety of matters
- The International Order of Freemasonry for Men and Women – Le Droit Humain (UK)
incorporation in the UK - PRASAD project (EU) fundraising and tax matters
- Caravan of Earth (Netherlands) setting up international network
