What drew you to the law?
I have always been interested in having a positive impact in other people’s lives. Hence, when I had to choose a career path I asked my grandfather, the person who I admire the most, how I could achieve that. He told me then that there are three professionals that are essential in helping anyone thrive: a good doctor, an excellent accountant, and a decent lawyer. People literally give their physical, financial and legal life to them. I try to stay away from hospitals; numbers are not my friends; and there was no lawyer in the family. My choice was simple. I love to respectfully argue and disagree.
What do you enjoy most about teaching?
Helping students learn a new set of skills and values that will allow them to thrive as individuals in a complex world. In the classroom, we teach them to be respectful of ideas contrary to their own, to separate people from arguments, and to listen carefully to their colleagues before jumping into conclusions. Moreover, we teach them to always be persistent, and reargue their case whenever they find a dead end. Respect, tolerance, the art of listening, and the strength of persistence; the world would be a better place if everyone shared these skills and values.
What do you hope students gain from your courses?
Energy is everywhere: it powers our cars, trains, and airplanes; it is there when we turn our TV, computers, smartphones, refrigerators, and stoves; and it is the primary source of revenue for many nations. Moreover, energy sources can be found in the most diverse geographical space, such as deep-water hydrocarbon reservoirs, gas fields in the Antarctica, or wind turbines in desserts. The way we conceptualize modernity today would be impossible without these energy sources. The same can be said about law and society. Without constitutions, rules, regulation, and court decisions governments would be unable to operate. It is law what powers democracies, global transactions, and civil authority. It is law what allows us as human beings to peacefully interact with each other. Studying the intersection of law and energy is an electrifying experience that can intensify any lawyer’s career.
What did you do prior to entering academia?
Prior to my doctoral studies at Harvard Law School, I was an Associate at Curtis, Mallet-Prevost, Colt and Mosle, LLP where I practiced international investment arbitration with a focus on cases related to the hydrocarbons industry in Latin America. I also presented an amicus brief before the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, and served as a legal advisor on international law and the laws of the sea at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Mexico. For the past three years I have been an Affiliated Scholar at the Center for U.S. and Mexican Law of the University of Houston Law Center where I serve as a Project Co-Director with Dr. Richard McLaughlin (Texas A&M at Corpus Christi) for a binational study on offshore regulation of oil and gas resources in the Gulf of Mexico. In addition, as a doctoral candidate at Harvard, I was a Teaching Assistant at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, where I assisted Professor Francisco Monaldi with his course on Political Economy of Oil and Mining in Developing Countries.
What are you passionate about outside the law?
Apart from spending time with my wonderful wife and my two sons, I love scuba diving. I once dove in an abandoned oil platform in the Gulf of Mexico – it was one of the most trilling experiences of my life. I even proposed to my wife during a night dive in the Caribbean. I am also a fan of wine tasting, dancing cumbia and tango, and cooking. The most memorable nights of my live involve doing these three activities.
What are your research interests?
My current lines of research include international petroleum transactions, arbitration in the hydrocarbons sector, the impact of human rights in the energy sector, U.S.-Mexico energy relations, and international adjudication of energy disputes.