About

Rui de Oliveira Neves is general counsel, head of compliance and company secretary at Galp Energia, a Portuguese energy company with activities in oil and gas exploration, production, transport, and retail. With its diverse operations in a wide number of legally challenging jurisdictions, Galp has frequently drawn on Neves’ expertise to settle litigations, secure competitive contracts, manage risks and help lead industry-wide initiatives related to tax packages. Neves is also widely recognised as one of Portugal’s leading authorities on the energy sector, particularly in the field of global natural gas contracts, and has significant experience in corporate law, capital markets and securities. He sits as executive director of the Institute of Petroleum and Gas Association for Research and Advanced Training (ISPG), a partnership between Galp and six of Portugal’s leading universities that seeks to promote energy research and expertise. Neves, formerly a partner at Portuguese firm Morais Leitão, Galvão Teles, Soares da Silva for 15 years, is among the most respected corporate counsel in the country. He has contributed to the development of Portugal’s legal community as the author of many books and articles on corporate law and capital markets, and as a visiting lecturer at the Faculty of Law of the Universidade Católica Portuguesa and the Faculty of Law of the Universidade de Lisboa. In addition to these many commitments, Neves is an arbitrator at the Commercial Arbitration Institute of the Oporto Commercial Association and a member of the Governance Lab, a group of corporate counsel, academics, private practice partners and legal commentators from across the Portuguese-speaking world that seeks to develop a best-practice approach to governance by combining practical experience with theoretical insight.