Practice areas

• Corporate Governance
• Corporate/M&A
• Infrastructure
• Private Equity

Profile

José María joined Pérez-Llorca as partner of the Corporate department in 2015. He has practiced law since 1997 and has worked at various prestigious Spanish and international firms and as General Counsel of AGBAR (one of the largest water utilities in Spain and South America).

Studies:

• 2011 General Management Programme (PDG), IESE Business School
• 1998 Doctorate in Law, Universidad de Zaragoza
• 1994 Master’s degree (LL.M), Harvard Law School
• 1991 Degree in Law, Universidad de Zaragoza

He speaks Spanish, Catalan, English and Italian.

Experience

José María specialises in both public and private M&A. He has extensive experience in acquisitions, joint-ventures and development of green-field and brown-field infrastructure projects in Spain and abroad (UK, USA, China, Chile, Colombia, etc.). José María also specialises in law for non-profit organisations and is secretary for a number of boards of trustees (Fundación AGBAR, Fundación Aquae, Fundación CETaqua, etc.). José María is also secretary to the board of directors of several companies in the water sector (Sabadell Water Company and HIDRALIA).

Academic and Publishing Collaborations

He currently lectures on Business Law at ESADE Business School. Also, he lectured on Business Law at the University of Zaragoza from 1991 to 1997.

He is a regular speaker and lecturer at seminars and conferences and he has published several articles, amongst which include:

• “The Use of Computers to Control Fraud in the Securities Markets” (“El uso de la informática como medio para controlar el fraude en los mercados de valores”) Revista Iberoamericana de derecho informático, No. 4, 1994. From page 541 on.
• “Institutional Investors as Way to Fix the Conflict of Interest between Directors and Shareholders in Listed Companies” (“Los inversores institucionales como medio para resolver el conflicto de intereses entre administradores y accionistas en las sociedades cotizadas”), Revista de Derecho Bancario y Bursátil, October-December 1995, from page 857 on.
• “Comments on the Relationship between Antitrust and Cooperative Law” (“Algunos comentarios sobre la relación entre el derecho de defensa de la competencia y el Derecho de cooperativas”) Revista Jurídica de economía social y cooperativa, No 10, 1999, From 25 on.
• “New Investment Opportunities in the Spanish Energy Market” IE/Pérez-Llorca Chair for Commercial Law (June 2016). José María spoke at the event which took place at Metropolitan Club in New York.

Professional Organisations

The Barcelona Bar Association (ICAB).
Membership Officer (European Representative) in the Water Law Commitee of the International Bar Association.

Recognition

José María de Paz features in various legal directories such as:

• Chambers Europe: ‘Corporate/Commercial’ in Barcelona.
• Best Lawyers®: for Corporate and M&A Law, Financial Institutions, Private Equity Law, Venture Capital Law, Banking and Finance Law and Capital Markets Law.

Awards

• Best Lawyers®: Venture Capital “Lawyer of the Year” (2021) in Barcelona.