TILPA - International Trade & Investment Law

Legal Counsellor and founder of TILPA

Dr Jorge A. HUERTA-GOLDMAN is TILPA´s Managing Director and main lawyer, advising companies, governments and other stakeholders on international trade and investment law. 

His practice focuses on the legal aspects of international trade.  He works on transactional law, such as contract law, payment terms, penalty clauses, INCOTERMS and arbitration, working closely with different enterprises.  He also advises on the law of international investment agreements, such as, NAFTA Chapter 11, the Energy Charter Treaty or Bilateral Investment Treaties, working with governments and investors/investments.  His practice also includes international trade law (working with enterprises and different WTO Members), such as the law of the World Trade Organization, free trade agreements and administrative law applicable to trade (e.g., antidumping, import taxes and custom procedures).

He teaches trade and investment law, and is often invited as a lecturer or visiting speaker to different universities (law schools, and other schools such as economics, business administration and political science).  He trains government officials on trade and investment law, and is a frequent speaker at leading trade, investment and commercial seminars throughout the world (list of teaching and speaking engagements).

Jorge HUERTA-GOLDMAN is an active researcher, publishing books, academic articles and short articles for practitioners (list of publications).

1. Experience

Jorge HUERTA-GOLDMAN worked for more than twelve years as trade legal adviser for the Mexican Ministry of Economy mainly in Geneva—negotiation/administration of international agreements with substantial experience in State Arbitration.

He worked for three years as a private litigator on mercantile law (debt recovery, contract breaches, negotiable instruments, among others). 

He has ample experience in domestic and international litigation before different tribunals. For example, he has had direct participation in the litigation of more than twenty WTO dispute settlement cases (covering all WTO procedural stages).

He was the Chairman of the WTO Committee on Anti-dumping Practices (2008-2009), administering the functioning of the agreement and reaching consensus on disputed topics.

He has directly participated in many trade and investment negotiations, such as:

• Contract negotiation;
• WTO Dispute Settlement Understanding;
• WTO Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights;
• Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement;
• WTO market access for industrial goods, including both tariffs and non-tariff barriers;
• WTO disciplines on agricultural products, including subsidies and market access;
• WTO Antidumping Agreement; and
• WTO disciplines on trade and development.

2. Education

• Ph.D. (Magna cum Laude), University of Neuchâtel, Switzerland, Law School, (2005 – 2008);
• Visiting Scholar at Columbia University, Law School, New York, United States (fall 2006).
• LL.M., European Community Law, College of Europe, Bruges, Belgium (2000 - 2001), scholarship from Banco de México;
• LL.M., International Trade Law, University of Arizona, Tucson, United States (1997 – 1998), scholarship from the University of Arizona and the National Law Center for Inter-American Free Trade; and
• Law degree, ITESO, Guadalajara, Mexico (1992 – 1996), student exchange at the Universidad Iberoamericana, Mexico City, in 1995.

 3. Other interests

• Scuba diving, cycling, skiing, playing football, tauromaquia (bull fighting) and badminton;
• Philanthropy: initiator of “Ayuda a Ayudar” (Help to Help), a fund-raising programme in favour of children in rural areas of Mexico in cooperation with Jorge HUERTA-GOLDMAN’s old high school.