María Carolina Durán

María Carolina’s representative matters include:

• Defending a South American government against claim for more than US$500 million brought under an FTA in connection with investments in the mining industry.
• Defending a South American government against a US$50 billion BIT claim related to investments in real estate development.
• Defending a South American government against a US$7 billion BIT claim brought under a related to the failure of a commercial bank.
• Defending a South American state-owned company in the energy sector in a commercial dispute over royalties that included a a US$60 million counterclaim. 
• Defending a Central American government against a US$30 million claim under an FTA related to investments in the real estate sector.

Prior to joining Sidley, María Carolina worked as a consultant at the International Finance Corporation of the World Bank Group, for the Investing Across Borders biannual publication. María Carolina focused her work on the analysis of public policies related to the foreign investment climate in the Latin American and MENA regions. María Carolina also practiced for at a law firm in Colombia, with a focus on administrative and commercial law. She advised multinational companies from different economic sectors on matters related to their investment projects in Colombia, including the purchase of a coal mine and the purchase of hydrocarbons, and represented clients before administrative courts in Colombia. Maria Carolina also worked as a legal intern at the Foreign Investment Department of Proexport Colombia (now ProColombia), an entity attached to the Colombian Ministry of Trade, Industry and Tourism.

María Carolina is a native Spanish speaker, is fluent in English and speaks French.

• Co-founder of Georgetown International Arbitration Alumni