CORRECTION, 7/18/13, 11:00 a.m. EDT: The tenth paragraph of this article has been corrected to reflect the fact that Nelson Mullins opened its Nashville office last year with a group of Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz attorneys, while the firm also added a group of Cetrulo & Capone litigators to its Boston office. We regret the error.

Nearly a year and a half after announcing its intentions to put down stakes in Brazil, Hogan Lovells has opened an office in Rio de Janeiro—the firm's 44th global location.

In announcing the new South American outpost Wednesday, the firm touted the office's official opening as part of its Brazil practice that will represent both local clients and international entities with operations in the country. (U.K. publication Legal Week noted last year that the office would service clients that traditionally worked with Hogan Lovells's office in Caracas, Venezuela.) Hogan Lovells has received all necessary approvals from the Brazilian Bar Association in both Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, and will operate as a foreign legal consultant in the country. The new office will handle a variety of work that includes cross-border transactions, project finance, joint ventures, and international arbitration.