Biography
Pietro is a Senior Associate at Signature Litigation with experience in public international law, investor-State arbitration, and international commercial arbitration.
He has advised and represented corporations, individuals, and States on matters of public international law before national and international courts and tribunals, as well as arbitral tribunals constituted under major arbitration rules (eg ICC, ICSID, LCIA, SCC, and UNCITRAL).
He is also often engaged in pro bono litigation involving human rights issues.
Before joining Signature Litigation, Pietro was an Associate at Morrison & Foerster LLP. Prior to entering private practice, he worked at the European Union Delegation to the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) and at the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL).
Pietro is admitted to practice in Brazil and Portugal, and is a Registered Foreign Lawyer with the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) in England and Wales. He is fluent in Italian and Portuguese, and speaks Spanish.
Pietro is ranked in The Legal 500 UK 2022 guide as a Recognised Practitioner for Dispute Resolution: Commercial Litigation (Premium) and an Associate to Note for Dispute Resolution: International Arbitration. He is described as “very approachable” and someone who “stands out for his extreme knowledge of details of a case, his level of coordinating all process matters and very friendly attitude.”
Experience
Public International Law and Human Rights
- Advising an African state on electoral best practices in light of its public international law obligations.
- Advising an American state on its sovereign immunities rights in litigation before the courts of an European state in the context of a NATO military base; advising that same state on the possibility of bringing a claim before the International Court of Justice.
- Advising the same American state on its sovereign immunities rights in litigation before the courts of another European state in the context of an employment agreement.
- Advising a Middle Eastern state on its international humanitarian law rights and obligations in the region.
- Advising a South American state on its obligations deriving from a judgment of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights.
- Representing a politically persecuted South American individual in proceedings before the Inter- American Commission on Human Rights.
- Representing an individual who seek leave to remain in the United Kingdom as a stateless person.
- Petitioning an African court against an abortion ban in light of the State’s obligations under the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and other human rights treaties.
- Advising a non-profit organisation on strategic litigation before the courts of African state and before the East Africa Court of Justice on law reforms affecting the ability of the civil society in that state to self-organise as a non-profit entity.
- Working with the Alliance for Marriage in the Americas to ensure marriage equality through the Inter- American Human Rights System.
Investor-State Arbitration
- Representing the claimant in ICSID arbitration arising out of the indirect expropriation and violation of the FET standard after Slovakia prevented the investor from conducting drilling operations following protests from local activists.
- Representing the claimants in two related ICSID arbitrations arising out of the expropriation of a glass bottling plant in Venezuela.
- Representing the claimant in SCC arbitration arising out of the forced sale of the claimant’s shareholding in a Polish bank.
- Representing the claimant in PCA/UNCITRAL arbitration arising out of the expropriation of the claimant’s liquid petroleum gas infrastructure in Pakistan (jurisdiction only).
- Advising a Southeast Asian investor and a politically exposed person on the possibility of bringing an investment treaty claim against an East Asian state for FET violation/denial of justice.
- Advising a Latin American company on the possibility of bringing an investment treaty claim against another Latin American state for indirect expropriation and FET violation.
International Commercial Arbitration
- Representing the claimants in an LCIA arbitration concerning the respondent’s refusal and/or failure to indemnify and keep indemnified the claimants in accordance with the terms of an indemnity agreement.
- Representing the claimant in an ICC commercial arbitration concerning engineering and prototype agreements.
- Representing the respondent in an ICC commercial arbitration concerning technology and procurement agreements.
- Representing the defendants in a Section 68, English Arbitration Act challenge to set aside a LCIA award.
Global Investigations
- Member of the US Department of Justice Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) Monitorship Team for a major Latin American engineering and construction group accused of bribing foreign public officials in more than ten countries.
- Managing a FCPA investigation for an international management consulting firm prompted by the “Luanda Leaks”.
- Managing a FCPA investigation for an international management consulting firm in connection with the investigations initiated by and the assassination of the Maltese journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia.
Publications
Guest Comment, Macro developments in the mining sector going forward – Global Mining Review – April 2022, Volume 5, Issue 3
“UK Introduces New Global Anti-Corruption Sanctions Regime”, Morrison & Foerster LLP, 20 May 2021
”Arbitrator bias: lessons from sports arbitration”, Practical Law Arbitration Blog, 18 April 2021
“EU Set to Introduce Mandatory Environmental and Human Rights Due Diligence Law”, Morrison & Foerster LLP, 23 March 2021
“From genesis to apocalypse: As Belgium heralds the end of the uncertainty on intra-EU BITs, has the UK missed an opportunity in a post-Brexit world?”, Practical Law Arbitration Blog, 26 February 2021
“Modern slavery in financial services: no room for complacency”, Practical Law Magazine, 25 February 2021
“The World Is Your Oyster? Supreme Court Confirms UK Jurisdictional Gateway for Parent Company Liability”, Morrison & Foerster LLP, 18 February 2021
“Watch Out and Speak Up: The UK Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner calls for Immediate Action in the Finance Industry”, Morrison & Foerster LLP, 1 February 2021
“The New ICC Arbitration Rules”, Morrison & Foerster LLP, 12 January 2021
“Thank you, next, please: English court strikes out business and human rights claim in light of parallel proceedings in Brazil”, Practical Law Dispute Resolution Blog, 3 December 2020
“A Shift Towards a More Co-ordinated Approach? – The LCIA Updates Its Arbitration Rules”, Morrison & Foerster LLP, 19 August 2020
“UK Companies Responsible for Business and Human Rights Violations Overseas”, Morrison & Foerster LLP, 8 June 2020
“Agreement for the termination of intra-EU BITs signed: the bell tolls?”, Practical Law Arbitration Blog, 14 May 2020
“Micula v Romania: rematch clause activated?”, Practical Law Arbitration Blog, 6 March 2020
“Macau Ups Its Game: A Discussion on the New Arbitration Law 2019”, Kluwer Arbitration Blog, 21 January 2020
“MoFo APAC Arbitration Update: October 2019”, Morrison & Foerster LLP, October 2019
“Micula v Romania: an OK (and not a KO) in the latest round of proceedings”, Practical Law Arbitration Blog, 27 September 2019
“UK Introduces New Global Anti-Corruption Sanctions Regime”, Morrison & Foerster LLP, 20 May 2021
”Arbitrator bias: lessons from sports arbitration”, Practical Law Arbitration Blog, 18 April 2021
“EU Set to Introduce Mandatory Environmental and Human Rights Due Diligence Law”, Morrison & Foerster LLP, 23 March 2021
“From genesis to apocalypse: As Belgium heralds the end of the uncertainty on intra-EU BITs, has the UK missed an opportunity in a post-Brexit world?”, Practical Law Arbitration Blog, 26 February 2021
“Modern slavery in financial services: no room for complacency”, Practical Law Magazine, 25 February 2021
“The World Is Your Oyster? Supreme Court Confirms UK Jurisdictional Gateway for Parent Company Liability”, Morrison & Foerster LLP, 18 February 2021
“Watch Out and Speak Up: The UK Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner calls for Immediate Action in the Finance Industry”, Morrison & Foerster LLP, 1 February 2021
“The New ICC Arbitration Rules”, Morrison & Foerster LLP, 12 January 2021
“Thank you, next, please: English court strikes out business and human rights claim in light of parallel proceedings in Brazil”, Practical Law Dispute Resolution Blog, 3 December 2020
“A Shift Towards a More Co-ordinated Approach? – The LCIA Updates Its Arbitration Rules”, Morrison & Foerster LLP, 19 August 2020
“UK Companies Responsible for Business and Human Rights Violations Overseas”, Morrison & Foerster LLP, 8 June 2020
“Agreement for the termination of intra-EU BITs signed: the bell tolls?”, Practical Law Arbitration Blog, 14 May 2020
“Micula v Romania: rematch clause activated?”, Practical Law Arbitration Blog, 6 March 2020
“Macau Ups Its Game: A Discussion on the New Arbitration Law 2019”, Kluwer Arbitration Blog, 21 January 2020
“MoFo APAC Arbitration Update: October 2019”, Morrison & Foerster LLP, October 2019
“Micula v Romania: an OK (and not a KO) in the latest round of proceedings”, Practical Law Arbitration Blog, 27 September 2019
Areas of Expertise
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Sylvie Gallage-Alwis and Gaëtan de Robillard assess the impact of the Conseil national de la consommation’s new practical guide in Le Monde du Droit
28 September 2023