B ernardo Sepúlveda Amor

Most recently, Judge Sepúlveda has been President of an arbitration tribunal in a case before the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) and he is co-arbitror in a case administered by the PCA under UNICTRAL Rules. He is also presiding arbitrator in an ICC Case as well as acting as co-arbitrator in a case before the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce.

Judge Sepúlveda served as Judge of the International Court of Justice in The Hague for the period 2006-2015 and he was elected Vice-President of the Court from 2012 through 2015. Judge Sepúlveda has been an ad hoc Judge of the International Court of Justice in the “Case concerning Avena and other Mexican Nationals (Mexico vs. The United States)”. He is President of an arbitration tribunal in a case under the UNCITRAL rules administered by the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA). Judge Sepúlveda was a member of the United Nations International Law Commission from 1997 through 2005 and President of the United Nations Commission on Transnational Corporations in 1980. He was also General Counsel of Empresas ICA, S.A.B. de C.V., from 1997 through 2005.

Judge Sepúlveda was Mexico´s Ambassador to the United Kingdom from 1989 to 1993. From 1982 to 1988 Judge Sepúlveda was Mexico´s Secretary of Foreign Affairs and prior to that, in 1982 he served as Mexico´s Ambassador to the United States of America. From 1976 to 1980 Judge Sepúlveda was the General Director of International Affairs of the Mexican Ministry of Finance and Public Credit. From 1971 to 1975, Judge Sepúlveda was Director of the Foreign Investment Program for the Ministry of Finance and Public Credit and from 1968 to 1970 he was Legal Counsel to the Mexican President´s Office.

Judge Sepúlveda has received multiple prestigious awards and recognitions, most recently the National Jurisprudence Award from the Barra Mexicana Colegio de Abogados in 2014. Also in 2014, Mexico´s National Institute for Public Administration awarded him the Medal for International Administrative Merit. In 1984, former King Juan Carlos I of Spain granted Judge Sepúlveda the Principe de Asturias Award in recognition for his contribution to peace in Central America and in 1985 UNESCO granted him the Simon Bolivar Award. He is also Knights Grand Cross of the Order of Saint Michael and Saint George (UK), Grand Officier de la Légion d’Honneur (France), and Gran Cruz de la Orden de Isabel la Católica (Spain).

In the academic field, Judge Sepúlveda has been professor of International Law at El Colegio de México. He has also lectured at foreign universities, including Oxford, Cambridge, NYU, Cornell, Barcelona and Valencia. In October 2016, The Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM) University Committee, designated him as Extraordinary Investigator of that institution.

Judge Sepúlveda obtained his law degree from the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM) in 1964 where he graduated magna cum laude and his Master’s Degree in International Law from the University of Cambridge in 1966.

Judge Sepúlveda has been involved in the following cases:

• President of the arbitral tribunal in ICSID case Empresa Eléctrica del Ecuador Inc. v. Ecuador (Case No. ARB 05/9), appointed by the ICSID President of the Administrative Council.
• President of the arbitral tribunal in ICSID case Grupo Francisco Hernando Contreras v. República de Guinea Ecuatorial (Case No. ARB (AF) 12/2, appointed by the ICSID President of the Administrative Council.
• President of the arbitral tribunal in UNCITRAL case Tenoch Holding Ltd. (Cyprus) v. The Republic of India, (PCA case No. 2013-23, appointed by the Parties and administered by the PCA.
• President of the arbitral tribunal in UNCITRAL case Iberdrola, S.A. and Iberdrola Energía S.A.V. v. Bolivia, having the PCA as appointing authority. September 15, 2015
• President of an arbitral tribunal in UNCITRAL case Nile Douma Holding (Bahrain), v. Arab Republic of Egypt, PCA case No. 2017/09, appointed by the designated appointing authority and administered by the PCA
• President of an arbitral tribunal in ICC case El Salado de Cementos (España) v. República de Cuba (ICC 21846/ASM/JPA) , appointed by the ICC Secretariat.
• President of an arbitral tribunal in ICC case Fuerza y Energía Tuxpan (México), v. Comisión Federal de Electricidad (México), ICC case No. 21092/ASM/JFA, appointed by the ICC Secretariat.
• President of an arbitral Tribunal in an ICSID case No. ARB/20/1, between AFC Investment Solutions SL. v. República de Colombia.
• Member of an arbitral tribunal in PCA Case No. AA932 (1) Dusko Knezevic, (2) Atlas Capital Holding Ltd. and (3) Meljine Complex Ltd. v. Montenegro, appointed by the Respondent.
• Member of an UNCITRAL arbitral tribunal case the PV Investors v. Spain, PCA case No. 2012-14, appointed by the Respondent and administered by the PCA
• Member of an arbitral tribunal in Novernergia II v. Kingdom of Spain, SCC case 2015/063, appointed by the Respondent, administered by the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce
• Member of the ICSID Annulment Committee in the Caratube International Oil Company and Devincci Salah Hourassi v. Republic of Kasakhstan (ICSID Case Arb/13/13), Annulment Proceedings. Appointed by the ICSID Chairman of the Administrative Council.
• Member of the ICSID Annulment Committee in the Union Fenosa v. Arab Republic of Egypt (ICSID Case No. ARB14/14, Annulment Proceedings. Appointed by the ICSID President of the Administrative Council.
• Member of the ICSID Annulment Committee in the Tethyan Cooper Company v. Republic of Pakistan, (ICSID Case No. Arb/12/1.) Appointed by the ICSID Chairman of the Administrative Council.
• Member of the ICSID Annulment Committee in the Attila Dogan Construction and Installation Co. Inc. v. The Sultanate of Oman, (ICSID Case No. ARB/16/7). Appointed by the ICSID Chairman of the Administrative Council.
• Member of an arbitral tribunal in the PCA Case No. 2022-18, Kimberly Clark S.L.U. v. República Bolivariana de Venezuela, appointed by the Respondent.
• Member of the ICSID ad hoc Committee in the Rizzani de Echer S. p. A., Obrascón Hearte Lain S.A. and Trevi S.p.A. v. State of Kuwait. (ICSID Case No. ARB 1718) Annulment Proceeding.
• Appointed by the Secretary General of the Permanent Court of Arbitration as nominating authority in the PCA Case AA 905: Construtora Queroz Galvao S.A. Centro Construcciones S.A. U.T. Salvador v. Provincia de Buenos Aires.
• Member of the Commission on Conciliations in the case Qatar/United Arab Emirates, appointed by the Chairperson of the UN Committee On the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (2020-2023).