JUAN FERNÁNDEZ-ARMESTO

Armesto & Asociados
General Pardiñas, 102
28006 MADRID - SPAIN
Tel. (34) 91 562 16 25
jfa@jfarmesto.com

Juan Fernández-Armesto is a professional arbitrator. He has been President of the Spanish Securities and Exchange Commission (CNMV) (1996-2000), partner of Uría & Menéndez (1983-1996) and Chaired Professor of Commercial Law (1988-2009).

A profile of Juan Fernández-Armesto was published on November 17, 1997 in the Financial Times.

On May 13, 2009 a jury organized by El Mundo, the Spanish daily, included him among the 20 persons “most important in the global finance and economy within the last two decades”.

Experience as arbitrator

Since 2001 Juan F.-Armesto has acted as sole arbitrator, co-arbitrator or chairman in more than 73 proceedings, including investment, commercial and construction arbitrations. A list with a detailed description of each case is attached.

Investment arbitrations

He has participated as chairman or co-arbitrator in the following cases:

Under ICSID Rules:
      -  Unisys Corporation vs. Argentina (Chairman).
      -  SAUR International vs. Argentina (Chairman).
      -  Phoenix Action Ltd. vs. Czech Republic (Co-Arbitrator).
      -  Joseph Charles Lemire vs. Ukraine (Chairman).
      -  Tza Yap Shum vs. Peru (Co-Arbitrator).
      -  City Oriente Limited vs. Ecuador (Chairman).
      -  Holcim Limited, Holderfin B.V. and Caricement B.V. vs. República Bolivariana de Venezuela
         (Chairman).

Under NAFTA and CAFTA:
      -  Vito G. Gallo vs. Canada (Chairman).
      -  TCW Group, Inc. vs. República Dominicana (Co-Arbitrator).

Under UNCITRAL Rules:
      -  Canadian Investor vs. República Bolivariana de Venezuela (Chairman).

Under ICC Rules:
      -  Spanish Investor vs. Cuba (Co-Arbitrator).

He has also been chairman in an arbitration between Central Banks under ALADI rules.

Commercial and construction arbitrations

Juan Fernández-Armesto has acted as arbitrator in more than 60 commercial arbitrations, involving a very wide array of disputes affecting sales of enterprises (misrepresentations, adjustment of price, accounting issues), shareholders’ agreements and joint venture contracts, agency and distributorship agreements, finance and banking agreements, hotel management agreements and other commercial contracts.

He has also been designated arbitrator in various construction disputes relating to dams, power plants, oil and gas pipelines, turnkey plant construction agreements and other infrastructure projects.

The commercial and construction arbitrations in which he participated include more than 31 cases administered by the ICC, plus cases administered by AAA, LCIA, and ad hoc procedures under UNCITRAL Rules. He has also been appointed mediator in a case managed by the ICC.

In domestic Spanish arbitrations he has been nominated arbitrator in cases under the administration of Corte Española de Arbitraje, Corte de Arbitraje de Madrid, Tribunal Arbitral de Barcelona, CIMA and ad hoc.

Recognitions

Chambers Guide 2009 lists Juan F.-Armesto in the “Most in Demand Arbitrators – International” section (“bringing a wealth of experience to his arbitration work … and is regarded by some as the best of the best in Spain”) as well as in the Spanish section (“one of the most prestigious arbitrators in the world, with a great commercial mind”).

Member of the Panel of Arbitrators of ICSID, designated by the Kingdom of Spain.  Other arbitration panels of which he is member include AAA/ICDR, Euroarbitration, CIMA and Corte de Arbitraje de Madrid.

Vice-Chairman, IBA Arbitration Committee (2008-2009).

Co-founder and Vice-Chairman, Club Español del Arbitraje (Spanish Arbitration Association) (2005-  ).

Representative, Spanish Committee at the ICC Arbitration Commission (2001-  ).

Public appointment

In October 1996 Juan F.-Armesto was designated by the Spanish government Chairman of the Spanish Securities and Exchange Commission (CNMV), an institution modelled on the American SEC, and with equivalent powers.  The CNMV is an independent regulator, entrusted with the supervision of the Spanish stock exchanges, including public offerings and tenders of securities, and mergers and acquisitions among listed companies.  It also acts as regulator of the brokerage and the investment fund industry.  The CNMV’s scope of activity includes the investigation and sanctioning of insider trading, market manipulation and other abusive conducts in the securities area.

As Chairman of the CNMV he chaired more than 200 disciplinary proceedings in matters relating to the securities markets.

The four-year term for which he was designated expired in October 2000.

Professional and academic experience

Between 1983 and 1996, Juan F.-Armesto was partner of the law firm Uría & Menéndez.  In 1993 he became the head of the litigation and arbitration area of the firm and acted as counsel in more than 40 domestic and international arbitrations.

In 1978 he started to teach commercial law as Assistant Professor at Comillas University - ICADE in Madrid.  He was designated Chaired Professor of such University in 1988 and continued teaching until 2009.

Curriculum vitae

Born in New York in 1953, he lived for 10 years in Germany, obtained the Abitur at the German School in Madrid (1972), and then received Degrees in Law (ICADE, Madrid, 1977) and in Business Administration (ICADE, Madrid, 1978) and an Iuris Doctor (Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, 1983 summa cum laude).

He has been awarded by the Spanish Government the “Gran Cruz de la Orden de Isabel La Católica”, Spain’s highest civil order.

Bilingual Spanish-German; English; Portuguese and working knowledge of French.

Publications and conferences

Juan F.-Armesto has published two books, various chapters in collective publications, numerous articles and participated as speaker in more than one hundred and fifty public events.

A full list of his articles and the text of many of them, as well as his conferences, can be seen in the "Publications and Conferences" area of this web site.

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