Noiana is global co-head of the firm's International Arbitration group and co-head of the firm's Latin America practice.
Noiana’s practice focuses on investor-state and commercial arbitrations across a variety of sectors such as oil and gas, mining, telecommunications, infrastructure, aviation and airport services, sovereign debt, agriculture, and food production and distribution. Noiana has extensive experience throughout Latin America and has been ranked as one of the top 35 female lawyers specializing in the region.
Noiana is civil and common law trained and has acted as counsel and arbitrator in more than 45 high-stakes, cutting-edge commercial and investment treaty arbitrations conducted under the auspices of the ICSID, ICC, PCA and/or ICDR, and under the UNCITRAL rules in both English and Spanish.
Noiana currently represents several investors in disputes against Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Guatemala, Honduras and Venezuela. As Freshfields’ Country Relationship Partner for Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Guatemala and Peru, she possesses unique knowledge of each country’s legal market.
Noiana is admitted to practice in Buenos Aires and New York.
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- Securing a $380m award for Burlington Resources, Inc. (ConocoPhillips) in an ICSID contractual and investment treaty arbitration against Ecuador following Ecuador’s imposition of royalties on extraordinary revenues, and reducing Ecuador’s $2bn environmental counterclaim to an award of $40m in its favor.
- Representing Pan American Energy in an ICSID arbitration against the Republic of Bolivia in respect of the expropriation of its investment in Empresa Petrolera Chaco, a hydrocarbon exploration and production company. The case was successfully settled for $350m, the highest settlement ever paid by Bolivia.
- Representing Repsol in relation to its dispute with Argentina over the highly controversial nationalization of its investment: Repsol’s 51 percent stake in local oil company YPF. This is one of the highest-profile direct expropriations in a decade, with major front page news coverage throughout the world, and was recognized as Deal of the Year (Disputes) by Latin Lawyer in 2014. The case settled for an amount in excess of $5bn.
- Representing Grupo Agroinsumos Iberoamericanos in a recently filed ICSID arbitration against Venezuela under the Venezuela-Spain BIT, in relation to the expropriation of its investment in the most important group of companies in the food and agriculture sector in Venezuela.
- Representing Mexican telecommunications giant América Móvil in an ICSID Additional Facility arbitration against Colombia under the free trade agreement between Mexico and Colombia, in relation to the expropriation of the assets held by Colombia’s largest mobile phone provider.
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Education
- LLM, International Law, New York University School of Law 2012.
- MBL, cum laude, International Business and Taxation Law, Université Paris I Panthéon Sorbonne, Paris, France 2002.
- JD (Abogado), summa cum laude, University of Buenos Aires, Buenos, Aires, Argentina 1997.
Professional
- Co-chair of the International Bar Association (IBA) Investment Arbitration Committee.
- Former Member of the International Council for Commercial Arbitration (ICCA) Drafting Committee on Protocols for Fair and Efficient Arbitration.
- International Bar Association (IBA) Recognition and Enforcement of Arbitral Awards Subcommittee.
- Steering Group of the IBA Guidelines and Rules Subcommittee.
- Co-Chair of the Institute for Transnational Arbitration (ITA) Diversity & Inclusion Task Force.
- Member of the Academic Council of Arbitration Channel.
Awards
- Women In Business Law Commercial Arbitration Practitioner of the Year (2023)
- Minority Corporate Counsel Association (MCCA) Rainmakers Award (2021)
- Lawdragon Leading Lawyers in the United States (2020)
- Hispanic National Bar Foundation "Latina Leadership Award" (2019)
- Law360 MVP Award for International Arbitration (2018)
- National Women in Law Award for Thought-Leadership (2018)
- Latin America’s Top 35 female lawyers for achievements in international arbitration (Latinvex, 2018-2023)
Languages (in addition to English)
- Spanish (native), French (fluent), German (intermediate).
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