Simon Navarro

SIMON NAVARRO GONZALEZ is a Global Co-Leader of Sidley’s International Arbitration and Trade practice. With a global practice and over 20 years of experience, Simon has won and collected 9-figure awards in the U.S., Latin America, and Europe, devised award-enforcement strategies worldwide, obtained annulment of awards before domestic courts, and successfully led coordinated investor-state arbitration, commercial arbitration, and international trade claims for foreign investors. In 2026, he received Law360’s “MVP” award, which is widely regarded as the highest recognition in the U.S. for international arbitration. 

Simon has acted as counsel and arbitrator in some of the most complex, high-value commercial, and investment treaty arbitrations, both ad hoc and under the rules of the major arbitral institutions. He has advised in a broad range of industries, including oil and gas, renewable energy, banking and insurance, M&A transactions, construction, maritime, infrastructure, airports, and concession contracts. Simon has extensive experience, as counsel and arbitrator, in cases involving projects or parties from Latin America, under the substantive laws of the U.S., UK, Spain, and most Latin American jurisdictions. He has led dozens of multi-party arbitrations involving states or state-owned entities.

This year alone, Simon has obtained groundbreaking victories in several continents, under various applicable laws and in different languages, showing Simon’s international practice, his wide-ranging skills, and his versatility. In the U.S., Simon has obtained the dismissal of a US$150 million arbitration for a technology company, which was awarded US$6 million in legal costs; and is representing a sovereign country in U.S. award-enforcement proceedings that Law360 identified as one of its “Five International Arbitration Cases to Watch for 2026.” In Latin America, Simon helped an infrastructure private equity firm in obtaining a US$1.2 billion ICDR award for a portfolio company, against a Latin American state-owned entity, and is currently representing that firm in a parallel ICSID arbitration against that Latin American country. In Europe, Simon obtained the first annulment of an arbitration award on jurisdictional grounds by the High Court of London in the last five years, which led to his selection as a runner-up for “Litigator of the Week” by The American Lawyer’s Litigation Daily; and a US$150 million victory for a U.S. private equity portfolio company in an arbitration involving one of the largest ever real estate transactions in Spain.

Simon is ranked by the main legal directories both in the US and Latin America. He has been named as one of “Latin America’s Top 100 Lawyers” by Latinvex (2025–2026) — which included only 10 arbitration practitioners — and has been honored by Chambers Global for Arbitration (International) (2025–2026), Chambers USA for International Arbitration: Counsel (2026), and Chambers Latin America for International Arbitration (2025–2027). His clients describe him as “someone who you always want on your side of the bench. He handles the most complex and sophisticated cases and knows the record by heart. He makes complicated things look easy. He delivers and he wins” (2026). Other clients describe him as “one of the quickest legal minds” who “knows our business in and out and is a pleasure to work with” (2026). He has also been recognized as a “Leading Partner” in International Arbitration by Legal 500 Latin America (2026–2027).

• A private equity firm in obtaining a US$1.2 billion award for a portfolio company, against a Latin American state-owned entity.
• A U.S. private equity firm in an ICC arbitration in obtaining a US$150 million award, arising from one of the largest real estate transactions ever conducted in Europe, in excess of €8 billion, and involving more than 3,000 individual claims.
• A Canadian company in the largest ever NAFTA investor-state claim against Mexico (in excess of US$2.4 billion).
• A combined strategy leveraging investor-state arbitration, commercial arbitration, and international trade claims in connection with a public concession in Mexico.
• A Spanish company in successfully challenging an ICC award before English courts for lack of jurisdiction of the arbitral tribunal, which is only the second successful challenge on those grounds in the past 5 years.
• A sovereign state in opposing enforcement of various investor-state awards before the district courts, the Courts of Appeal, and the Supreme Court of the United States.
• A European telecommunications company in ICSID arbitration against a Latin American state over the reversion of assets associated with a concession. Award in excess of US$380 million.
• A company in APAC in the first-ever claim filed under a Singaporean investment treaty. Won and collected on the award.
• British and Spanish investors in an investor-state case against the state of Colombia in connection with a toll-road concession.
• A Peruvian company in the enforcement proceedings of a billion-dollar award before United States courts.
• A Canadian company in an ICC arbitration in connection with a shareholder dispute over the ownership of the shares and the proceeds from a public concession in a Latin American country.
• A Latin American state in an ICSID arbitration proceedings against a Spanish investor.
• A company based in APAC in an ICC arbitration against a Latin American state in connection with the exploitation of the largest iron ore deposit in the world.
• A European company in national and international disputes concerning expropriatory measures adopted by a Latin American state.
• A Brazilian company in two AAA arbitrations involving a joint venture to transport iron ore in Brazil.
• A U.S. private equity manager in an ICC arbitration regarding the early withdrawal of funds by investors.
• A Spanish construction company in commercial arbitration involving a put option agreement over the shares of a joint venture.
• Two European oil and gas companies in an UNCITRAL arbitration in connection with an LNG project in a North African country.
• An ICDR arbitration involving a sale and purchase agreement and a put option agreement over the shares of a U.S. tracking devices company.

Some of the above matters were handled prior to joining Sidley.

• Hispanic Society Museum and Library, International Advisory Council
• IE Law School, Professor of Advocacy
• New York International Arbitration Center, Board Member
• Institute for Transnational Arbitration, Advisory Board
• New York City Bar Association, Inter-American Affairs Committee
• Spain-US Chamber of Commerce, Member
• American Bar Association, Member