Dispute resolution: arbitration in Chile

‘Chile’s leading international arbitration practice‘, Bofill, Mir & Álvarez Jana fields a sizeable 21-strong department that has enviable expertise in arbitrations carried out before both domestic and international forums. Notwithstanding the uncertainty generated by the Covid-19 pandemic, the team has maintained a steady caseload in proceedings held under the rules of: the Arbitration Centre of the Santiago Chamber of Commerce (CAM Santiago); the International Court of Arbitration (ICA) of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC); the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID); The Arbitration Institute of the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce (SCC); and ad-hoc matters. Recent representative work includes defending clients’ interests in disputes involving the construction, energy, real estate and mining industries. ‘Simply brilliant‘ name partner Andrés Jana is a figure of international standing and one of the region’s foremost arbitrators; he co-leads the practice with the ‘very talented‘ Rodrigo Gil who is active in both domestic and international arbitration. Key senior associates within the dispute resolution team are Victoria Demarchi and Nicolás Zisis (both of whom have international associate experience), and Carla Dittus, who is an arbitrator at CAM Santiago; along with Alfonso Marcos, who returned to the firm in September 2020 after completing an LLM in Spain; and Jorge Rodillo, who was promoted in early 2020. Since publication, Dittus has been raised to the partnership - effective January 2022.

Full-service legal giant Carey fields a sizeable, 23-strong, arbitration practice that has extensive experience in national and international commercial and investment arbitrations; the 'top-notch' team acts before a range of local and international institutions, such as CAM Santiago, ICC and ICSID, as well as under the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) rules. The practice's attorneys are also experienced in arbitrating disputes in the media, construction, energy, mining and pharmaceuticals sectors (among others). Appointed by the ICC as a member of the ICA in Paris for the 2018-2021 term, Gonzalo Fernández co-leads the practice with Aldo Molinari, who handles environmental disputes and commercial arbitration; Ricardo Reveco (insolvency, bankruptcy proceedings and construction disputes); and Juan Carlos Riesco, whose broad practice includes national and international arbitration. Key associate support comes from the experienced Roberto Villaseca and Mónica Pérez.

Fielding a 30-strong practice, the 'extremely competent and reliable' full-service firm, Claro & Cia., specialises in high-stakes domestic and international arbitration; the team regularly acts as counsel or arbitrators in international arbitral proceedings under the rules of CAM Santiago, ICC, International Centre for Dispute Resolution (ICDR) and the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA), among others. The practice also houses several members who are on CAM Santiago’s roster of arbitrators. The department has five practice co-heads: senior partner José María Eyzaguirre G, who has extensive arbitration experience; commercial arbitration specialists Cristóbal Eyzaguirre and José Miguel Huerta; Nicolás Luco (energy arbitration); and Felipe Ossa (current chairman in Chile of the ICC Arbitration Committee and the Spanish Arbitration Club). Young partner Santiago Bravo (who made partner in January 2020), and senior associate Felipe De Marinis both regularly participate in domestic and international tribunals; fellow senior Vicente Portales' experience also includes domestic and international proceedings, particularly in relation to financial and construction disputes.

Arbitration currently counts for over 60% of Gutiérrez, Waugh, Jimeno & Asenjo's overall caseload. The 'very dedicated and knowledgeable' 16-strong team is consistently involved in high-profile arbitrations before prominent national arbitration centres, such as CAM, but also before international forums such as the ICC and the ICSID; generally, matters that involve complex disputes in the construction, mining, telecoms, energy, banking, finance, insurance and retail sectors, among others. The practice group's key figures include: the highly experienced Pedro Pablo Gutiérrez, long 'a lawyer with a strong reputation in the market'; Cristóbal Jimeno, who focuses on the resolution of financial, insurance and complex construction disputes; and administrative litigation expert Juan Francisco Asenjo, whose practice includes acting before arbitral panels on a wide range of disputes. The second line of notable practitioners includes Joaquín Castillo, the first non-founding partner of the firm, whose practice increasingly covers consumers rights; and associate attorneys Jaime Elgueta and Sebastían Zamora, who also assist with arbitration work.

Housing a team of expert arbitration lawyers, Barros & Errázuriz has extensive experience in arbitration proceedings before CAM, ICC and other chambers of commerce, with typical work for the group involving acting for major clients in significant arbitrations involving construction and energy projects. The principal contacts are founding partner José Tomás Errázuriz, who is overall head of the dispute resolution practice; and Luis Eduardo Toro, who specialises in complex commercial arbitration. Other active arbitral practitioners include Javier San Martín (dispute resolution, consumer protection, and reorganisations/liquidations); public law head David Cademartori, whose practice includes telecom- and energy-related international arbitration; and José Luis Corvalán (domestic and international commercial arbitration), who was made partner in April 2021.

Bofill Escobar Silva Abogados' sizeable, 24-strong team is highly rated for its experience in the resolution of complex and cross-border business disputes before international arbitration tribunals; and the firm has experienced notable growth in arbitration cases involving large infrastructure projects. Jorge Bofill consistently plays an active role in arbitral matters with international components, including cases before ICSID and the ICC; Sebastián Yanine has extensive experience in representing local and foreign clients in domestic and international arbitration, including commercial and investment treaty arbitration under ICC, UNCITRAL and ICSID rules; while Francisco Aninat's current mandates include acting for a pair of Colombian investors in a $350m ICSID investment arbitration against the Republic of Chile.

Arbitration work represents approximately 60% of the work conducted by Cariola Díez Pérez-Cotapos' 'outstanding' dispute resolution department. The 18-strong team (including two partners who are listed as CAM Santiago arbitrators) has longstanding experience in complex arbitration concerning international infrastructure disputes, mining company-related energy supply contracts, and shareholder disputes, among other matters. The practice has four co-heads: litigation head Florencio Bernales, who undertakes arbitration in addition to his national and international litigation caseload; construction and insolvency expert Fernando Urrutia; Raimundo Moreno, whose experience includes ICSID investment arbitrations; and business litigation and arbitration specialist Jorge Boldt. Key support comes from senior associates José Ignacio Azar and Trinidad Torres.

Garrigues Chile's 'very strategic' five-member team has been particularly active, recently, with regards to corporate conflicts and construction and real estate disputes, as well as consumer-related class actions, and insurance, tax and administrative litigation. Leading the practice, Mónica van der Schraft ('extensive participation in arbitration activities' and the first female Chilean arbitrator to be appointed president of an ICC arbitral panel) focuses on complex arbitration and litigation proceedings. Key support comes from principal associate Cristóbal Sarralde, who demonstrates 'dedication to arbitration cases' and has experience in both domestic and international proceedings; and senior associate José Joaquín Verdugo, who assists with a variety of ordinary, summary, collection and ad-hoc proceedings.

Marinovic & Alcalde Abogados is regularly sought out for high-stakes arbitrations involving public infrastructure/project concessions, construction and engineering, oil and gas, M&A, and trusts and large estates. Leading the team is arbitration, civil law and litigation specialist Enrique Alcalde, a former Philippi Prietocarrizosa Ferrero DU & Uría (PPU) dispute resolution head (and since 2018 one of only 20 members of the Arbitral Commission for the Chilean Public Concession System). Providing integral support are fellow name partner Nicolás Marinovic, whose practice regularly includes complex arbitrations; and Benjamin García (a partner since 2019), who also worked with Alcalde at PPU and is an appointed arbitrator on the Santiago Court of Appeal arbitration roster.

Key areas of work for Philippi Prietocarrizosa Ferrero DU & Uría's 'committed' 14-strong team include construction, energy, entertainment and insurance disputes, as well as real estate, concessions and infrastructure, and civil and commercial claims. Practice head Jorge Vial ('one of the best in Chile in this field'), who regularly handles foreign and domestic arbitrations, joined the firm in May 2020 from Vial Larraín Abogados, where he was founding partner. Notable associate-level support is provided by Catalina Amenabar, who has both local and international experience under CCI, CIADI, UNCITRAL and CAM/CCBC rules (among others); and Josefa Larraín, who undertakes litigation, arbitration and negotiation as part of a dedicated disputes' practice.

Contreras Velozo‘s six-member team, co-headed by experienced partners Óscar Contreras Blanco and Álvaro Awad, has extensive experience in both national and international arbitration, particularly complex and large-scale cases; its dispute-resolution assistance covers several industries, notably the construction, financial and energy sectors. Contreras’ experience includes leading high-value arbitration proceedings in the construction and energy industries; particularly experienced in CAM Santiago and ICC rules, Awad’s track record includes dozens of arbitral proceedings, both ad hoc and institutional.

‘Prepared at all times‘, the 10-strong team at boutique firm Fleischmann & León Abogados is best known for its resolution of disputes involving infrastructure, construction, public works and mining concessions. The principal figures are Hernán Fleischmann Chadwick, an infrastructure and construction specialist, who is ‘a tremendous strategist with great business vision‘; fellow name partner Juan Ignacio León Lira, whose practice includes domestic and international arbitration; and Paulo Román Reyes (a 2019 arrival from the former Aninat Schwencke & Cia), who focuses on civil and commercial litigation, insurance and arbitration. Since publication, the departure of León in early 2022 has seen Román take on a name-partner role with the firm reorganised as Fleischmann & Román Abogados.

The ‘excellent‘ 10-strong team at Morales & Besa has been particularly active, recently, with construction-related arbitrations involving the distribution of risks in infrastructure and public works projects – further to the pandemic’s impact on the economic equilibrium of contracts. Recognised for his expertise in disputes surrounding construction and contract interpretation, Gonzalo Cordero heads the practice, which includes senior associates: Orlando Palominos, who regularly represents public works concessionaires before arbitral tribunals; Juan Ignacio Eymin, who also assists with disputes before arbitration courts; and the recently promoted Nicolas Corbeaux, who re-joined in 2020 after undertaking an LLM at NYU. Since publication, Palominos has moved to Lembeye Abogados - with effect from Janaury 2022.

The second largest practice at the mid-sized, full-service Prieto Abogados, the seven-member arbitration team regularly represents clients before arbitrators in disputes involving energy, construction, real estate and retail. The practice is co-led by Fernando Samaniego, who specialises in real estate, construction and antitrust litigation (and is regularly appointed as arbitrator in construction disputes); and arbitration specialist Alberto González V. Also integral to the practice is founding partner Claudio Undurraga, an active member of the firm’s energy and arbitration practices; beneath partner level, the broad disputes’ practices of counsel Juan Pablo Riesco and senior associate Cristóbal Jiménez sees them frequently involved in arbitral matters.