As member of WAGEMANN | Arbitration, he works mainly as a litigation lawyer representing national and international companies in construction arbitration trials and related proceedings before the ordinary courts.
Furthermore, he provides legal advice, Contract support services and strategic contractual management in engineering and construction projects, mainly in Chile and several Central American countries.
His extensive experience includes advising on infrastructure-related construction projects for copper mines in both the start-up and operation phases, execution of wind farms and photovoltaic parks, private construction, highway construction and upgrading of electrical substations, among others.
Álvaro has vast experience regarding engineering and construction projects, given that he has participated in the review of bidding documents, the preparation of strategic communications, as well as in the preparation and analysis of claims and compensation requests.
His deep understanding of the field is combined with his litigation experience, which allows his performance to be highly specialized regarding the arbitrations handled by WAGEMANN | Arbitration.
During his professional career, and before joining WAGEMANN, he provided comprehensive legal advice to individuals, companies, and non-profit organizations, and litigated in trials of diverse nature. In addition, he performed pro bono activities, with a particular dedication to the protection of the rights of minors.
For several years -and to this day-, he has served as an actuary in arbitration trials administered by the Arbitration and Mediation Center of the Santiago Chamber of Commerce (CAM Santiago).
Given his pre-eminent interest in arbitration, he is a member of the Young ITA (Institute for Transnational Arbitration) and has participated in its mentoring program for the 2021-2022 period. He is also a member of the Young ICCA (International Council for Commercial Arbitration).
He has collaborated, as arbitrator, in the preparation process of the teams of the Law School of Universidad de Chile and Universidad Andrés Bello for the 2022 International Arbitration Competition.
Together with lawyer and head partner of WAGEMANN Arbitration, Elina Mereminskaya, he co-authored the paper “¿Debiera la ley prever lo imprevisible? Las tendencias imprevisibles en Chile ante la pandemia de Covid-19” (or in its original title Should the law foresee the unforeseeable? The unforeseeable trends in Chile in view of the Covid-19 pandemic), published in September 2020 by the International Bar Association´s (IBA) journal, Construction Law International, which addressed the challenges of the construction sector in the face of the health crisis.
His research work, which he prepared for his degree in Law and Social Sciences, explored the potential of State arbitration in Chile, under the title “Participation of the State as a party in arbitration, with special emphasis on international investment arbitration and international commercial arbitration”.
In turn, he published the columns entitled “Deliberate Default of the Principal Against the Contractor: a Blow to Trust” and “The Return of the (Social) State and the of Public Works Concessions System”, in 2022 both in Industria Legal magazine.
- Representation of a Chilean subsidiary of a French company in an arbitration before the CAM Santiago against a Chinese contractor in connection with a subcontract for the installation of equipment in a highly complex public hospital.
- Representation of a multinational wind farm owner in two arbitrations before the CAM Santiago against a Portuguese EPC contractor.
- Representation of a Peruvian subcontractor in an arbitration against and negotiation with a U.S. company, one of the main lithium producers in the world.
- Representation of a Spanish subcontractor in multiple arbitrations before the CAM Santiago related to the construction of transmission lines and substations.
- Representation of a Spanish contractor in an arbitration before the CAM Santiago against one of the main Chilean construction companies, in connection with a subcontract for the construction of tunnels in a public dam project in the north of Chile.
- Representation of a Spanish contractor in a lawsuit before the ordinary courts against a public agency in the Valparaíso Region.
- Representation of a Chilean subsidiary of a French company in a lawsuit before the ordinary courts against a mining company.
- Representation of a Chilean contractor in an arbitration before the CAM Santiago against a public company in relation to the implementation of a Low Nox control system in boilers in a refinery.
- Advising an Indian client in an ICC arbitration against a Spanish EPC contractor in a dispute related to a photovoltaic plant in northern Chile.
- Advising a Chilean client in a lawsuit before the ordinary courts against a public utility service in connection with the construction of roads in the south of Chile.
- Advised a Chinese construction company and its concession company in connection with a water dam concession project in its claims against the Ministry of Public Works.
- Advising a Spanish contractor in dispute management, including mediation, in multiple transmission line and substation construction projects.
- Advised a national construction company in the execution of several real estate projects, including shopping centers and residential buildings.
- Counsel to a Spanish construction company in the execution of a project for the remodeling of a corporate building of a public company.
- Strategic contract and claims management for an Italian contractor regarding a contract for the construction of mining tunnels for a public company.
- Counsel to a Chilean subsidiary of a French company in a dispute with a Chinese contractor, related to a subcontract for the installation of equipment in a high complexity public hospital.
- Advice and strategic contract management for a Latin American multinational in an EPC contract for the construction of a Pebble crushing and milling plant for a Canadian mining company in northern Chile.
- Preparation of a Covid-19 Force Majeure claim for a Spanish subcontractor which, once submitted, was accepted by the Minister of Energy.
- Development, as co-author, of a claims analysis report and counsel on the same, for a client who owns a pulp mill.
- Preparation, as co-author, of a technical contractual diagnosis and strategic analysis report, as well as legal advice for a Peruvian client regarding a construction contract signed with a US company, one of the main lithium producers in the world.
- Collaboration and participation in the preparation of a technical report for a Spanish client, in connection with a concession contract for the execution, repair, maintenance and operation of a public fiscal work related to a highway in the south of Chile.
- Collaboration and participation in the preparation of a technical report for a Spanish client, regarding a concession contract for the execution, repair, operation and maintenance of a public work related to a highway in the north of Chile.
- Participation in the preparation of technical and contractual diagnostic reports, as well as in claims and compensation requests in the framework of infrastructure projects for clients in Central America.
- Participation in the preparation of technical and contractual diagnostic reports, as well as in claims and compensation requests in the framework of infrastructure projects for clients in Central America.
- Lawyer, University of Chile.
- Chilean chapter of "Chambers & Partners - Construction Law Practice Guide 2023", with Elina Mereminskaya, Alex Wagemann and Claudio Inostroza.
- “Should the law foresee the unforeseeable? The unforeseeable trends in Chile in view of the Covid-19 pandemic”, with Elina Mereminskaya, published in Construction Law International Magazine, Vol 15 N°3, September 2020, of the International Bar Association, London, United Kingdom.
Spanish and English.