Terra firma is Latin for solid ground — and that's our practice. An acquisition, an industrial site, a cross-border operation, a contract — or the home behind it all: before anything bears your signature in Mexico, we verify what the papers actually say, and whether the ground under them holds. Mexican counsel, in plain English.
Entity, industrial land with agrarian verification, permits, water rights, executive immigration — the legal skeleton of your nearshoring move, built and run.
For individuals & families→Property due diligence, contracts, wills, residency, certified translation — every service flat-fee, in plain English.
Why you need independent counsel
Most foreigners who lose money here didn't do anything reckless — they simply trusted the wrong assumptions. These are the five that cost them the most:
Legal Spanish is a language of its own — even fluent speakers get lost in it. You wouldn't sign a document you can't read at home; don't do it here. We review, negotiate and explain every document in plain English before you're bound by it.
Permits, registries, banks, tax IDs, utility contracts — Mexican paperwork moves at its own pace, and one missing stamp can freeze a deal for months. We know which office, which window and which order. You don't have to.
Foreigners are a favorite target for paperwork that looks legal but isn't: "notarized" letters with no legal effect, sellers who don't own what they're selling, prices too good to be true. We verify everything at the source — the public registries — not the seller's folder.
A Mexican notario is a highly qualified legal professional entrusted by the State with fe pública — the authority to authenticate and give full legal force to documents. Impressive credentials, but here's the catch: they don't represent you. Neither does the real estate agent. Without your own lawyers, nobody at that table works for you.
Nearly half of Mexico's territory is communal agrarian land that — while it remains under the ejido regime — cannot legally be sold to you, no matter what the seller's paperwork says. (Once lawfully converted to titled private property, it can be bought like any other land.) It's common in exactly the beach towns and countryside foreigners fall in love with. Agrarian law is our specialty; verifying which case you're facing is the trap-detector.
"One conversation with a lawyer now is cheaper than one mistake later. Every client who calls us too late says the same thing: I wish I'd asked first."
— Gabriel Mendoza G., Founding Attorney, Terra Firma
Services · At a glance
Setting up your Mexico operation, closing an acquisition, reviewing a contract — or buying the home behind it all: flat fees quoted in writing, plain English, and you'll know the cost before we start. Every service below has its own page with the full picture.
A focused video call in your time zone with a licensed Mexican attorney. Straight answers, a clear picture of your options — including "you don't need a lawyer for this" when that's the truth.
Book a consultation →Title, liens, debts — and the ejido/agrarian check most buyers skip. Verified at the source, never the seller's folder. Written verdict: proceed, renegotiate, or walk away.
Learn more →Purchase agreements, leases, construction contracts — clause by clause in English, with redlines and the negotiation points that protect you.
Learn more →Agrarian disputes before the specialized courts, successions and family matters, commercial conflicts — with an honest written assessment before anything is filed.
Learn more →S.A. vs S. de R.L., bylaws, RFC, foreign investment registry — the full legal setup, explained in English at every step. For industrial operations, see our nearshoring softlanding practice.
Learn more →Temporary and permanent residency, work authorization, family routes — in the right order, including the sequencing mistake that costs six months.
Learn more →Your foreign will may not protect what you own in Mexico — and cross-border probate can take your heirs years. A Mexican will, coordinated with your fideicomiso beneficiaries.
Learn more →Court-authorized expert translators (peritos traductores) with official validity before courts, immigration, banks and registries. Per page, committed dates.
Learn more →How it works
Pick a time that works in your time zone. 20 minutes, no charge, no phone tag.
We talk through your situation in English. You get straight answers, not legal fog.
If you need more than answers, you'll get a flat-fee quote upfront — in writing, in plain English. No retainers, no hourly surprises.
Free guides
Plain-English legal guides, written by our attorneys. Pick your situation — we'll email it to you free.
About the firm
Terra Firma was founded by Gabriel Mendoza G. on an unusual specialty for a Mexican firm: agrarian law — the communal land regime that governs nearly half of Mexico and sinks more foreign property deals than anything else. Around that core, our practice covers real estate, contracts, corporate law and immigration support. The name is our promise: before you build anything in Mexico, we make sure you're standing on solid ground.
Our base covers the places where foreigners actually settle: Guadalajara and Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco; León, Guanajuato; and La Paz, Baja California Sur — an hour from Lake Chapala's international community, on both coasts, and in the industrial heart of the Bajío. Our clients come from the United States, Canada, Europe, Asia and Latin America. What they have in common: they're not Mexican, and they need someone here who is.
Our promise is simple: we tell you what the law actually says — especially when it's not what you want to hear. That's what independent counsel is for.
FAQ
Yes — with rules. Outside the "restricted zone" (within 100 km of borders and 50 km of coastline), foreigners can own directly. Inside it, you own through a bank trust called a fideicomiso, which gives you full rights to use, rent, sell and inherit. What you can never safely buy is unregularized ejido land — which is exactly why due diligence matters.
Ejido is communal agrarian land created after the Mexican Revolution, governed by a separate legal system. While land remains under that regime, it can't be sold to foreigners, and "deals" involving it usually can't be registered — meaning you can pay and still own nothing. Ejido land CAN lawfully be converted into private property, and once that conversion is completed and registered, foreigners can buy it like any other titled land (directly, or via fideicomiso in the restricted zone). Verifying which case you're facing is exactly what due diligence is for — and our specialty.
Yes — in most industries a Mexican company can be 100% foreign-owned, and foreigners can freely hold shares. The exceptions come from the Foreign Investment Law: a short list of strategic activities is reserved to the Mexican State or to Mexican nationals, and a few sectors cap foreign participation at certain percentages. Your company's bylaws must also include a specific clause on foreign ownership, and the investment gets registered with the National Foreign Investment Registry. In practice: for the typical business a foreigner wants to open — services, tech, logistics, restaurants, real estate ventures — the answer is simply yes, structured correctly.
Of course. Mexican law doesn't care about your passport — the rules for a German, Japanese or Colombian buyer are the same as for an American one. Consultations are in English, by video, and I work with clients in any time zone.
No — and that's the point. The notario holds fe pública: they authenticate and formalize the transaction so it's legally valid, but they don't advocate for your interests. We're your independent attorneys: we work only for you, before you ever reach the notario's desk.
Our base is in Guadalajara and Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco; León, Guanajuato; and La Paz, Baja California Sur — which also puts us on the ground where international buyers concentrate: Lake Chapala and Ajijic, the Riviera Nayarit and Nuevo Vallarta, and the Baja. Beyond those, property research, contract review and company formation can be handled anywhere in Mexico, with trusted local counsel where needed.
Consultants can be great for logistics — moving, house-hunting, settling in. But when the matter is legal (land, contracts, companies, immigration, inheritance), the difference is category, not price: a licensed Mexican attorney holds a verifiable cédula profesional, carries professional responsibility for their advice, and owes you confidentiality by law — secreto profesional. Ask anyone advising you: "If this advice is wrong, who answers, and with what?" A licensed attorney has an answer. That answer is the product.
The first conversation carries no charge. After that, every service is a flat fee quoted upfront — paid securely online in USD by card. No retainers for standard services, no hourly billing surprises.
The first conversation is on us — your time zone, plain English. Bring anything: an acquisition, a property, a contract, a visa. You'll leave knowing exactly where you stand.
Book a consultationNo obligation · Flat-fee quote in writing if you need more
Prefer to talk first? +1 (786) 941-4341 — US line, English spoken · or message us on WhatsApp