Team

Oscar Graça Couto

Contact

+55 21 3993 2886

ocouto@gcouto.com.br

Areas of Expertise

Environmental

Academic background

Master in Comparative Law (M.C.L.), University of Michigan Law School, 1991

B.A. in Law, Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro, 1985

Languages

Portuguese and English

Experience

Oscar Graça Couto has over 30 years’ experience in Environmental Law and is the head of the firm´s department. His practice focuses on preventive counseling as well as on administrative and judicial litigation, both domestically and in cross-border matters. In the last 10 years, he represented clients in legal suits involving claims of over R$ 200 billion. Formerly a partner at one of the most renowned Brazilian law firms, he set up and headed, for 25 years, its Environmental Law practice.

He is an undergraduate and graduate professor of Environmental Law at the Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro and graduate professor at the Law School of the Getúlio Vargas Foundation (FGV DIREITO RIO). Graça Couto has also acted as guest professor at lectures and courses on environment-related matters at the Brazilian Institute of Petrol, Natural Gas and Bio-fuels (IBP), the National Agency of Petrol, Natural Gas and Bio-fuels (ANP), the Institute of Applied Economic Research (IPEA), the Rio de Janeiro Federation of Industries (FIRJAN), the Brazilian Order of Lawyers (OAB), the Brazilian Institute of Lawyers (IAB) and at the post-graduate Specialization Course in Economic Law at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ).

From 2005 to 2013 Oscar was a Member of the Board at the Brazilian Biodiversity Fund – FUNBIO.

Recognition

Chambers & Partners: Líder Individual (Banda 1 – 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021)
The Legal 500: Advogado Líder (2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019)
Who’s Who Legal: Especialista Global em Destaque (2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018)
Qual advogado: indivíduo líder (2007, 2008, 2009)
Meio ambiente – a lei e os principais advogados do mundo
Melhores Advogados – Advogado do Ano – Ambiental (2021)
Análise 500:
- entre os advogados ambientais mais admirados (2005 a 2020)
- entre os advogados mais admirados do setor de concessões (2020)
- entre os advogados mais admirados da indústria da construção (2020)
- entre os advogados mais admirados do setor de energia (2020)
- entre os advogados mais admirados da indústria de gás e petróleo (2020)
- entre os advogados mais admirados do setor de materiais de construção (2020)
- entre os advogados mais admirados da indústria de celulose e papel (2020)
- entre os advogados mais admirados nas indústrias siderúrgica e de mineração (2020)
- entre os advogados mais admirados nas indústrias de transporte e logística (2020)
- entre Os Advogados Mais Admirados do Rio de Janeiro (2018 a 2020)

Publications

No publications registered!

“Highly respected founding partner Oscar Graça Couto of Graça Couto, Sequerra, Levitinas, Bicudo, Leal & Abby Advogados is a major reference in the environmental arena and is recognized for his active involvement in large and complex cases. He is lauded by his contemporaries, who describe him as ‘an excellent lawyer’ who is ‘very qualified, extremely experienced and well known in the market’. Clients add that ‘he has an in-depth understanding of environment-related matters’ and highlight his ‘profound specialism and availability’ as his greatest qualities” (Chambers Latin America, 2017)