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Home HRCompany Profiles Panama law firm opens branch office in Istanbul, Turkiye

Panama law firm opens branch office in Istanbul, Turkiye

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Rene Padilla Director GMCG

July, 2022 Istanbul, TÜRKIYE GMCG (GLOBAL MARITIMME CONSULTANT GROUP) Law firm, Panama’s third largest maritime law firm, has opened a new independent and exclusive office in Istanbul, Türkiye.

Since 1996, GMCG Legal & Consulting has registered over 1500 vessels of over 60 million GT under the Panama Flag. Law 57 of the Panamanian merchant marine law states that only a law firm can process permanent ship registrations, titles, mortgages, liens and corporate entities and offshore incorporations. GMCG Türkiye will be the first Panama law firm in Türkiye providing these services to the Turkish maritime community as part of its portfolio, which also includes technical items such as Panama Flag State surveys (ASI).

With a strong legacy spanning over 35 years, GMCG provides expert legal, technical, training, engineering, satellite and management consultancy services worldwide. The technically-focused group serves international clients with an extensive portfolio of professional maritime services through its legal, dedicated engineering department and project management teams. GMCG also offers offshore incorporation services for Panama, Marshall Island, Nevis and British Virgin Islands.

Mr Rene Padilla, a Panama/USA dual national, has been the director of GMCG Panama for 20 years and has now relocated to Istanbul permanently to lead this effort. Mr Padilla and his Turkish legal team will provide specialised services to clients both in the region and beyond – from ship builders, owners, agents and seafarers, to offshore operators, to bankers, underwriters and lawyers.

Mr Padilla said, “Istanbul is one of the most important maritime centres in the world, and it has been our longtime goal to complete our global footprint with this office. We are honoured and excited about the opportunity to serve Turkish shipowner and managers.”

GMCG is the largest ship registrar in the world. Its expertise in ship registration matters, which include flagging & reflagging, ship purchase closing procedures, and bareboat registration, are second to none.  During the 35 years that it has been established, GMCG has developed an experienced, highly skilled and respected expert global network of 14 offices worldwide. Specialists have vast experience which allows them to provide clients with the fastest turnaround times and up-to-date advice. This comprehensive portfolio of over 5000 active vessels being serviced with a ‘one-stop-shop’ approach helps clients respond effectively in a highly-competitive, highly-regulated and technically-demanding marine environment.

GMCG is proud of its prestigious group of flags which form the range of its ship registry options. The Group was recently appointed regional national partner for the Barbados Maritimes Ship Registry. The Group is also an agent for St Kitts and Nevis International Ship Registry. It is an advisory body for the Palau International Ship Registry (PISR).  GMCG Group has 26 official appointments from various flags states, providing registration services on their behalf. GMCG experts also act as business development consultants for Class Societies – the Polish Register of Shipping (PRS) and International Register of Shipping (IRS).

Mr Padilla continued, “We would like to congratulate the performance of both IRS and PISR in the Paris MoU – which has been impressive – with PISR now near the top of the grey list.”

Among GMCG’s services are the class-leading maritime courses and programmes in English covering a wide range of subjects, provided through its global training arm GIMET, the Global Institute for Maritime Education and Training. GIMET is an ISO-9001:2015 approved STCW training centre. It is a corporate member of the International Association of Marine & Shipping Professionals (IAMSP) and has full International Association of Maritime Institutions (IAMI) membership.

The newly appointed technical team in Türkiye are trained and qualified advanced EEXI technicians. They will deliver the appropriate services, available to all applicable self-propelled vessels above 400 GT engaged in international voyages, subject to Marpol Annex VI and INTLREG Classification Rules.

GMCG has always looked ahead and supported its clients with a full range of solutions to face oncoming challenges. The new GMCG team in Istanbul invite all Turkish shipowners to take the opportunity and discuss EEXI implementation plans.

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