About

Patricia Sawyer is a senior lawyer with 29 years of experience working with international energy companies in Colombia and Venezuela. Over the course of her legal career she has had substantial exposure to corporate, oil and gas related matters from a legal and commercial perspective, applying the knowledge to her companies’ benefit. Joining Canadian energy company Pacific Exploration and Production Corporation, when it was still known as Pacific Rubiales, in 2008 as a legal corporate manager, Sawyer established the legal department, forming a cohesive unit that is now comprised of a large group of highly qualified lawyers that actively support the strategic direction of the company. In addition, Sawyer is responsible for the creation of a regulatory compliance department in Colombia that can respond to local authorities and liaises with the company’s overall compliance department in Canada. Sawyer received special recognition for her contribution when Pacific became the first foreign oil company to be listed on Brazil’s stock exchange. ‘In general one of my biggest achievements has been obtaining international credibility, recognition and reputation as a key lawyer in the international oil industry’, says Sawyer. ‘I have ensured that Colombian law is complied with, but have a clear understanding of each company and management needs, culture and their challenges’. Before joining Pacific, Sawyer spent her entire legal career working in in-house legal roles at various international oil companies in Colombia and Venezuela, namely Operaciones de Producción y Explotación Nacionales, Texas Petroleum Company, Lasmo Oil Colombia and Hocol.