The Costa Rican boutique law firm unveiled its new offices at Futura Business & Plaza in Lindora, a space designed to support individuals, families, investors, entrepreneurs and international professionals in matters involving immigration, investment, real estate, corporate and wealth structuring, and dispute resolution.
The opening of a new office often marks the beginning of a new chapter. For Simple Legal Consulting (SLC), however, it represents above all the materialization of a story that began with a small structure and grew stronger through the trust and referrals of its clients.
Herman Duarte, our founder, next with his loyal border collie Kasper.
The Costa Rican boutique law firm presented its new headquarters at Futura Business & Plaza in Lindora, Santa Ana. The space was conceived to support individuals, families, investors, entrepreneurs, digital nomads and private clients facing important legal decisions as they seek to live, invest, build businesses, structure operations or protect their interests in Costa Rica.
More than a physical expansion, the opening reflects the evolution of a practice built client by client, case by case and referral by referral. Under this model, the firm has prioritized a way of practicing law grounded in clearly explaining risks, maintaining transparent communication and honoring the commitments it makes.
Its approach focuses on providing close, personal guidance to those who already entrust the firm with their legal needs, as well as to new clients with whom there is genuine professional alignment. These include families with complex wealth and estate-planning needs, investors, entrepreneurs, senior executives and international professionals who require legal guidance at different stages of their lives or projects.
Simple Legal Consulting brings together immigration, corporate and commercial law, real estate legal advisory, wealth and estate planning, negotiation and dispute resolution, including family and patrimonial matters. Its private-client practice is grounded in a simple reality: the legal needs of an individual or family rarely exist in isolation. A client who initially requires immigration assistance may later need support purchasing property, establishing a company, making an investment, planning an estate or navigating a dispute.
From a Home-Based Practice to a New Headquarters in Lindora
Reception area at Simple Legal Consulting in Futura Business & Plaza
The opening also reflects the journey of Herman Duarte, founder of Simple Legal Consulting (SLC). A Salvadoran and Swiss attorney who later became a naturalized Costa Rican citizen, Duarte first arrived in Costa Rica as an immigrant. Before establishing his own practice, he spent five years working at Batalla Abogados. In 2016, he founded Fundación Igualitos, an organization dedicated to promoting inclusion and the rights of LGBT people.
His academic background includes a law degree from ESEN, subsequently recognized by the University of Costa Rica; an LL.M. in International Commercial Arbitration Law from Stockholm University; and an MSc in Human Rights and Politics from the London School of Economics and Political Science, which he completed as a Chevening Scholar of the British Government. He has also published more than 200 opinion articles, contributed to over ten book chapters and written two books on human rights.
When Duarte founded Simple Legal Consulting (SLC), he worked from home through a flexible professional structure. The new offices are the result of gradual, organic growth driven primarily by former clients, professional relationships and personal referrals.
“For me, this office is a dream come true. It represents a journey built from the ground up: from working at home and handling every case with care, to having a space worthy of the trust our clients had already placed in us,” Duarte said.
A Space Designed as an Extension of the Firm’s Service
The interior design project was led by Diego Solano, a prominent Costa Rican interior designer, with specific design contributions from Daniel Segura, a Costa Rican architect based in Italy who also advises the firm on real estate-related matters.
The design combines contemporary interiors, wood paneling, marble and jade surfaces, custom-made furniture, contemporary art, books and carefully selected objects. The result is a serene and welcoming atmosphere that remains consistent with the firm’s identity.
One of the office’s most distinctive features is a collection of more than 400 pieces of clear quartz. Beyond their aesthetic dimension, they evoke calm, clarity and protection. In a law firm devoted to organizing complex processes and transforming them into understandable legal pathways, the physical environment becomes an extension of the service itself: a space that provides reassurance, encourages focus and supports clients throughout the process.
“We did not open a showroom to manufacture trust. We created a space worthy of the trust that already existed. Simple Legal Consulting (SLC) has grown from very simple principles: tell the truth, explain risks clearly, act transparently and honor what has been agreed. The design does not replace that essence; it makes it visible,” Duarte explained.
Simple Legal Consulting (SLC) office
A New Chapter Without Losing Its Essence
Duarte expressed his gratitude to past and present clients, family members, friends, collaborators and professional partners who have supported the project since its earliest years.
“Every person who trusted us, every referral, every opportunity and every word of encouragement has been a building block in this journey. We did not get here alone. I remain deeply grateful for the support of my family, especially my father and mother, and for the many people who have accompanied me along the way: my first client, Barney Vaughan; my friend, Guille Pagura; my business partner, Manuel Echeverría; and my adviser, Rosa María Bello. We are still the same people, but we are entering a new chapter. The dream continues: we are working to become a leading boutique firm for private clients in Costa Rica, without losing the personal attention, clarity and humanity that brought us here,” Duarte concluded.
Herman Duarte, founder of Simple Legal Consulting (SLC), standing beside Manzanillo (2013), a work by Leonel González, one of the great masters of Costa Rican painting
With the opening of its new headquarters, Simple Legal Consulting (SLC) moves forward with that purpose while preserving the personal attention, clarity and close client relationships that have driven its growth.
For those who choose Costa Rica as a place to live, invest, build a business, work remotely or reorganize an important stage of their lives, the new headquarters reflects a particular approach to legal advice: clear, private, strategic and personal.
