Carlos Alberto Vela-Treviño
Biography
Carlos is a partner in Baker McKenzie's Information Technology and Communications Practice Group in Mexico City, and the head of the Firm's Technology, Media and Telecommunications (TMT) Industry Group in Mexico. A Certified Information Privacy Manager (CIPM) by the International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP), and an award winner of national accolades on digital transformation and legal innovation, Carlos is recognized by Chambers and Partners, Legal 500 and other international publications as one of the country's leading TMT lawyers. Carlos' strong specialization and multidisciplinary consultancy background (prior to joining Baker McKenzie, he led the TMT legal practice of PwC) and superior legal tech law knowledge, are the foundation of Carlos' unique vision and problem-solving skills, which allows Carlos to assist clients to identify and address corporate, commercial, technical, compliance, tax, regulatory, strategy, expansion and policy issues that arise in different phases of complex technology projects.
Practice Focus
Carlos is one of Mexico's most active privacy and cybersecurity lawyers. He has implemented privacy management compliance programs for over 100 companies, including several Fortune 500 companies. He advises on corporate and commercial matters where privacy is an issue, including e-discovery, FCPA investigations, e-commerce, direct marketing, privacy in the workplace, litigation and M2M communications.
Carlos is proficient in all key areas of IT/C law including telecom regulation/licensing; software, cloud and technology contracts and procurement; design, implementation and monetization of e-commerce portals; marketing, consumer protection and copyright. His clients include social networks, leading marketplaces, mobility platforms, premier cloud providers, data centers operators and other highly innovative companies.
Representative Legal Matters
- Designed and implemented regional privacy compliance programs for several leading pharmaceutical companies.
- Regularly advises social networks and media companies in connection with privacy impact assessments and site operator liability issues before major technology products or services are released.
- Advised a major Spanish venture capital fund in the development of its seed funding program for tech startups;
- Leads a pro bono legal effort for MassChallenge, a major startups accelerator which benefits 35 Mexican tech and social impact startups every year.
- Counseled major traditional e-commerce retailers and marketplaces in launching their e-commerce stores in Mexico.
- Represented clients of various industries in connection with criminal, privacy, consumer protection and criminal investigations initiated by local authorities.
- Managed contractual portfolio for one of the major global cloud services providers.
- Represented the first Mexican MVNO telecom reseller in establishing operations in Mexico.
- Advised car manufacturers on licensing, regulatory, commercial, consumer protection and privacy issues regarding infotainment and other software parametrization services.
Professional Honors
- Winner of the Onix (gold) Award, granted by the Mexican Internet Association for developing and innovative legal tech solution in benefit of a client
Professional Associations and Memberships
- Mexican Bar Association - Member
- Mexican Internet Association (AIMX) - Member
- International Association of Privacy Professionals - Member
- International Association of Outsourcing Professionals - Member
Admissions
- Mexico (2002)
Education
- Norwegian Research Center for Computers and Law, University of Oslo (Master of Laws LL.M. in Information and Communication Technology Law, on full scholarship granted by the Research Council of Norway and the Mexican Ministry of Foreign Affairs) (2006)
- Universidad Panamericana (Bachelor of Laws with honors) (2002)
- University of California, Berkeley - Walter A. Haas School of Business (Certificate on Digital Transformation: Leading People, Data & Technology)
Languages
- English
- Norwegian
- Spanish
Baker & McKenzie Abogados, S.C. is a member of Baker & McKenzie International, a Swiss Verein.