Latin American Arbitration Practitioners | EU (LATAP EU) is an association aimed at building a network of practitioners focused on international arbitration and with strong ties to, or experience in, Latin America and based in Europe.
What we do
Meet the team
Sebastian Coulon Bauer is a Senior Associate in the International Arbitration practice of Schellenberg Wittmer (Zurich), where he has been living for the past four years. His main areas of practice are international commercial and investment arbitration. He has acted as counsel in complex international disputes related to both private and public international law, including arbitrations administered by ICSID, DIS, ICC, and CAM Santiago. He has also represented parties in commercial litigation and arbitrations in Chile.
Sebastian obtained his J.D. from the University of Chile and his LLMs from the University of Heidelberg and the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies (MIDS).
Ricardo Gerhard is an associate at Volterra Fietta. He is based in London, UK, where he has been living for the past four years. Ricardo advises States, international organisations and private entities on a wide variety of contentious and non-contentious public international law matters, including the law of treaties, the law on State responsibility, the law of the sea, international humanitarian law, international investment law and Business & Human Rights. Ricardo has represented States, State-owned entities and private entities in international investment arbitrations under different rules, including ICSID, ICC and UNCITRAL, particularly in disputes related to oil & gas, infrastructure, financial services, telecommunications and pharma.
Ricardo obtained his J.D. from the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM) and his LL.M. from King’s College London.
Ignacio Guaia practices arbitration and international commercial law independently from Geneva since 2022, after a ten-year stint at LALIVE. He acts as counsel and arbitrator and is active in international business transactions, where he advises parties in diverse industries. He has been involved in matters covering several key sectors in Europe and Latin America, including mining, energy, sports, telecommunications, life sciences and biotechnology.
Ignacio obtained his law degree at the Universidad de Buenos Aires (2008) and his LL.M at King’s College London (2010).
Juan Camilo Jiménez-Valencia is a senior associate in Hanotiau & van den Berg. He acts as tribunal secretary in complex international commercial and investment arbitrations, both ad hoc and under a variety of arbitration rules, spanning various industry sectors. Juan Camilo is currently based in Brussels, although in the past five years he has also lived in Paris and Geneva. Before joining Hanotiau & van den Berg, Juan Camilo was an associate in an international law firm in Bogotá where he represented clients in civil, administrative, and unfair trade litigation before local courts and domestic and international arbitration tribunals. He also was a Professor of Roman Law at his former law school in Bogotá.
Juan Camilo holds a law degree from the Pontificia Universidad Javeriana of Bogotá (Colombia) and obtained his LL.M. in International Dispute Settlement (MIDS) from the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies and the University of Geneva (Switzerland), where he was awarded a full merit-based scholarship. He is bilingual in English and Spanish, conversant in French and has a basic understanding of Portuguese.
Maria Claudia Procopiak is an independent arbitrator at Procopiak Arbitration based in London and Rio de Janeiro. Maria Claudia sits as arbitrator in a wide variety of international arbitration matters under all major institutional and ad hoc arbitral rules. She was previously a Deputy Counsel at the ICC International Court of Arbitration in Paris and a senior associate at Dechert LLP where she worked for a decade in Paris and London, representing States, State-owned entities and private companies in commercial and investment arbitrations.
Maria Claudia holds a law degree from the Pontifícia Universidad Católica do Paraná (Brazil) and obtained her LL.M. in Private International Law from the Université Pantheon-Assas Paris II (France).
Yael Ribco Borman is a Senior Associate in the International Arbitration practice of Gaillard Banifatemi Shelbaya Disputes. She is currently based in Frankfurt, Germany, but has also lived in Paris and Amsterdam (among many others). Yael advises companies, State-owned entities and States in international arbitrations under the Rules of the ICSID, UNCITRAL, ICC and CRCICA, particularly in disputes related to oil & gas, renewable energies and infrastructure. Her experience includes investment treaty arbitrations under both bilateral and multilateral treaties, as well as commercial arbitrations. Yael also works alongside local counsel in setting aside proceedings before domestic courts.
Yael obtained her J.D. from the Universidad de Montevideo, in Uruguay, and her LL.M. (cum laude) from the Universiteit van Amsterdam, in the Netherlands.
Luis Miguel Velarde Saffer is an associate in the International Arbitration practice of Lalive SA. He is based in Geneva, where he moved recently after living in Paris for 7 years.
Luis Miguel has advised investors, private companies, States and State-owned entities in international arbitrations under the Rules of ICSID, UNCITRAL, ICC and the Peruvian Chamber of Commerce, among others, particularly in disputes related to mining, transportation, construction & infrastructure, and energy. His experience includes commercial as well as investment treaty arbitrations.
Luis Miguel has been Professor of Contract Law and Property Law at various universities in Peru, and has published a book titled “Contracts: Theory and Practice. A Comparative Perspective” (2015).
Luis Miguel obtained his J.D. from the Universidad Católica del Perú, and his LL.M. from Harvard Law School.
Ana Martinez Valls is an Associate in the International Arbitration practice of Sidley Austin (NY/DC), who is currently based in London. Ana has represented clients in investor-state and commercial arbitrations, including proceedings conducted under the ICSID and UNCITRAL Rules, as well as ICC, SCC, and CIAM arbitrations seated in Spain,New York, Miami, Perú, Panamá, and France. Ana has a dual training in civil and common law and speaks English, Spanish, and French. She is recognized in the Nova 111 List Spain as one of the 10 professionals under 35 with the highest potential in the legal services.
Ana obtained her J.D. and her BBA from IE University and her LL.Ms from Columbia Law School (James Kent Scholar and Fulbright scholar) and IE Law School (cum laude)
