Task Force on Legal Representation of American States in Investment Arbitration

• To determine whether the States have created internal governmental structures in charge of the defense of the State.
• To determine what capacity building measures have been implemented by the States.
• To research what are the most important factors considered by States when selecting external counsel.
• To establish whether public procurement regulations apply to the selection of external counsels.
• To discover whether open public or by-invitation biddings take place.
• To determine what law firms have been retained by the States as lead counsels and as local co-counsels.
• To describe the challenges that the States or the law firms might face during the retainment proceedings.
• To provide policy recommendations.

Task Force Leadership

The Task Force is co-chaired by Ricardo Vásquez Urra (Partner, Vásquez Urra Abogados, Santiago de Chile) and Analía González (Partner, Baker Hostetler LLP, Washington DC).

Ricardo Vásquez Urra is the founding Partner of Vásquez Urra Abogados, Law Firm based in Santiago, Chile, and is head of its litigation and arbitration practice. He specializes in dispute resolution, conflict prevention, litigation, commercial, investment and construction arbitration, and M&A disputes. Ricardo has represented individuals, national and international companies and governments, in a wide range of industries, including energy, mining, construction, health, pensions, retail, banking, investment funds, reinsurance and securities, experienced in ad-hoc and institutional arbitrations under the ICC, UNCITRAL, ICSID and CAM Santiago arbitration rules, governed by various substantive laws, and seated in diverse jurisdictions. Ricardo also acts as arbitrator in national and international forums being on the Panel of Arbitrators of the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes of the World Bank (ICSID), the Beijing Arbitration Commission/Beijing International Arbitration Centre, and the Santiago Arbitration and Mediation Centre (CAM Santiago).

Analía González is the leader of Baker Hostetler LLP's international litigation and arbitration practice for Latin America, based in Washington DC. She specializes in international arbitration and litigation, with a focus on investment and commercial arbitrations. Analía has represented clients before a variety of arbitral tribunals, including the International Center for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID), and the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) and the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and in ad hoc arbitrations in the framework of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL). Analía works as an arbitrator in commercial arbitrations under the auspices of the International Court of Arbitration of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) and the International Court of Arbitration of the American Chamber of Commerce of Peru (AmCham-Peru). She is also a member of the ICSID Panel of Arbitrators, appointed by Uruguay. She served as Vice President of the Investment Arbitration Committee of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC Mexico) (2018-2022), and as a member of the International Arbitration Editorial Board of the prestigious Law360 publication (2021-2022). She has received numerous accolades from prestigious international publications such as Chambers Latin America, the Legal 500 USA, Who’s Who Legal and Latinvex.

Task Force Members

The Members of the Task Force are: