40 under Forty 2017 Suplemento 40u40_2017 | Page 9

40 under F orty A wards 2017
Winners
Ignacio Díaz Cortés, Hearst España
Díaz Cortes is head of legal at magazine publisher
Hearst España. In 2004, he joined the intellectual
property (IP) department at law firm Mullerat in
Madrid. He later joined Herrero y Asociados. In
2005, Díaz Cortés joined Hammonds (now known
as Squire Patton Boggs), before joining Ashurst in
2007. At Ashurst, he dealt with IP, regulatory and
corporate matters. In 2014, Díaz Cortes became head
of legal at Hearst España. He is secretary of the
board of the Hearst Espana companies’ group. Díaz
Cortes is responsible for implementing a new data
protection policy for the company’s EU entities,
he also advises the US parent company on Latin
American ventures.
Inés Vazquez, Gómez-Acebo & Pombo
Vázquez is a partner at Gómez-Acebo & Pombo.
She joined the firm upon graduation, and moved
into its litigation and arbitration department in
2004. She became a partner in the firm in 2015.
Vázquez’s practice focuses on national and
international arbitration and litigation proceedings
involving joint ventures, acquisitions, construction
projects, technology and telecommunications.
Vázquez is currently the Spanish head counsel for
five investment treaty arbitrations (with a total
value of €500m) in which she is representing foreign
renewable energy investors in dispute with the
Kingdom of Spain. Vázquez is also advising a client
on a €450m multijurisdictional dispute involving
an international arbitration before the International
Chamber of Commerce.
Jabier Badiola, Dentons
Badiola became a partner at Dentons aged 38
after joining from Clifford Chance where he was
a senior associate. In 2016, he worked on 47 deals
with a combined value of €2.8bn. Badiola advised
a syndicate of lenders, including Banco Santander,
on the restructuring of Sando Group’s €700m bank
debt. In 2016, Badiola also advised on a pioneering
Spanish aircraft finance transaction – it was the first
such transaction involving international security
interests entering through the Spanish point of
entry. Badiola built a team of five finance lawyers
from scratch at Dentons, which has since been
included on the panels of financial institutions
including ING and Banco Santander.
www.iberianlawyer.com
José María Viñals
Camallonga,
Lupicinio
International Law
Firm
José María Viñals
Camallonga is a
partner and director
of international
operations at Lupicinio
International Law Firm
in Madrid. He is the
first Spanish lawyer ranked in legal directories as
an expert in three different jurisdictions (Russia,
Cuba, and Iran). He is also been ranked in the
Legal 500 for his expertise in European Union law,
project finance, and energy. Significan t recent work
included advising on a major rooftop photovoltaic
plant developed by the British company Eco2 in
Spain.
Truly international
Viñals Camallonga says managing international
operations are among the biggest challenges
he faces in his role. In 2012, he was appointed
Lupicinio’s director of international operations,
a position that involves leading and managing a
team of 20 lawyers, of eight different nationalities,
spread between Madrid, Dubai, Havana, Tehran,
and Algiers. Viñals Camallonga says: “I firmly
believe that for a lawyer to be truly considered an
international lawyer, he must make the legal world
seem flat.”
He adds that building the firm’s presence in the
Middle East has been one of his most significant
achievements. He says: “One of my greatest
challenges was opening the Dubai office, of which
I am chairman, and creating and leading the first
Spanish law firm in the United Arab Emirates as
well as the first Spanish legal team specialised in the
Middle East region.”
Bridging the gap
He also played a key role in helping his firm to
become one the first Spanish law firms to have an
official alliance agreement approved by the Cuban
Ministry of Justice. Viñals Camallonga says: “I
do my best to bridge the social and cultural gap
between clients and complex jurisdictions, with the
aim of facilitating a smooth transition for the client
as they move from the known to the unknown.”
40 under Forty Awards 2017 •
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