Since 2008, Miquel Griño Tomás has served as the general counsel of the HERA Group, a Spanish business dedicated to the waste management and implementation of environmental technologies, with broad international presence in Europe, Middle East and Latin America.

Throughout his career, Griño claims one of his main objectives has been to raise awareness about the importance of the role of in-house lawyers. ‘I have introduced improvements in the management of internal processes, so that the in-house lawyers are taken into account from the start of a negotiation. In addition, I have tried to transmit to all the lawyers of my teams that the advice has to be oriented to the achievement of the business of the company, and not merely to point out the legal risk’ says Griño. He was previously responsible for corporate legal advice within AGBAR Group – a subsidiary of Suez – for more than 11 years. During this time he assisted with the company’s dedication to the treatment and distribution of drinking water in Spain and Latin America, for which he had the opportunity to participate in negotiations and conflicts at the highest level in several countries. He advised the company during turbulent times including a crisis in Argentina that began in 2001, in which the expropriation of the water supply concessions of several cities took place. At this time, claims were filed in the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) in which Griño had active participation.

As there was little precedent in the ICSID at the time, Griño reveals it was necessary to perform an in-depth analysis of the institution and the mechanisms established by international law to protect investments. In addition to his work in important and large scale businesses, Griño also utilises his experience to collaborate with universities at ESADE law school and the University of Barcelona, as well as other forums specialised in international arbitration. He has published articles, organised seminars and is a regular speaker on the subject. ‘This has given me is a better vision about the prevention of legal risks in foreign investments, and the designing of strategies to prevent them’ reveals Griño.