Before joining Linklaters, Maria José worked as Senior Associate at the law firm PLMJ in Lisbon, where she started her career as Trainee and gained experience in Capital Markets, International Projects, Banking & Finance, Tax and Dispute Resolution.
Maria José Sousa Leite is a Managing Associate in the Banking & Projects department of the Lisbon office.
Maria José has previously gained experience in international transactions, assisting international and domestic clients in real estate transactions, in particular in the retail & logistics sector, such as sale & purchase, sale & lease back deals, as well as assisting in the financing matters related to such transactions. She furthermore provided legal advice on cross-border M&A transactions in their different stages, also accompanying clients in the post-transaction phase, and on capital market deals, such as public offerings and public offers for acquisition, in a wide range of sectors, in particular the health and postal sectors.
Maria José obtained a Law Degree at the Porto School of Law of the Catholic University. She then did a Master in Law and Management at the Lisbon School of Law of the Catholic University, followed by an LLM- Master of Laws in Corporate & Securities at the London School of Economics and Political Science with Merits. She furthermore attended an Executive Training on Transnational Governance, Leadership Challenged: Politics and Policy-making in the EU at a Time of Crisis, at the European University Institute.
She is a Member of the Portuguese Bar Association since 2013.
Maria José speaks Portuguese, English, and Spanish.
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