WorldCity Business Magazine

Q&A with Daniel Gonzalez: Meditation in Miami

by Mary Dempsey

In 2004, Daniel Gonzalez played a lead role in an arbitration award that nabbed headlines in Europe. Gonzalez and another partner at the Miami office of Hogan & Hartson led a team of 15 lawyers in a case in London that won a $95.7 million award for a Luxembourg smart-card manufacturer. That company, Gemplus, had been in a dispute with its co-founder and former chairman over an $85 million payment: The executive called it a gift while the company said it was a loan. The lawyers in the case represented parties from five countries and, although the arbitration was seated in London, the laws of Luxembourg applied and the proceeding were conducted in French.

For years, high-profile international arbitration cases have unfolded in global business and finance centers like New York, London and Geneva. Now Miami been added to that roster. Even more, South Florida lawyers are increasingly called to represent companies in arbitration disputes, regardless of the location. Both Hogan & Hartson and Greenberg Traurig have their lead international arbitration attorneys based in Miami. Gonzalez says Miami’s profile as an arbitration center is only going to grow.

WC: Something’s happening on Hogan & Hartson’s 20th floor.

GONZALEZ: We’re building an arbitration center.

WC: What does that involve?

GONZALEZ: You need to have a setting that’s like a court. Usually there are three arbitrators and a number of witnesses. These are usually pretty involved and sophisticated sessions. We’ll have technology so presentations can be made on big plasma screens.

WC: Does the new in-house arbitration center signal something about Miami?

GONZALEZ: The International Chamber of Commerce [which pioneered commercial dispute resolution with its International Court of Arbitration] will tell you that Miami is second or third in terms of active arbitration cases.

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WC: Why?

GONZALEZ: International arbitration has boomed because as the world markets have become global, this is the only name of the game.

WC: But why Miami?

GONZALEZ: Latin America in the early to mid-90s had an economic boom. Several Latin American governments saw that it was wise to privatize. As a result, there were a lot of project finance deals, infrastructure projects. You had lot of U.S. companies going to the region worried about the rule of law.

WC: So it started with construction projects?

GONZALEZ: In the telecom sector, there’s also been a lot of arbitration. But construction and power plants used arbitration clauses before everyone else.

WC: Why is that?

GONZALEZ: Arbitrations are seen as a quicker form for resolution. And there’s a finality; court action can go on for years. For construction, the advantage is to get it resolved sooner and not hold up a project.

WC: Is arbitration more expensive than going to court?

GONZALEZ: It can be cheaper. It may be expensive at the first level, but overall it can be less expensive than going through appeals in court.

WC: Miami became a popular spot for arbitration because of deals between U.S. companies and Latin American governments or firms?

GONZALEZ: It used to be that if you had a dispute with a U.S. company and one in Argentina, for example, you’d arbitrate in a neutral place, like Berlin, Germany. But companies began to realize that it was inconvenient to bring witnesses to a place 5,000 miles away. Miami was seen as safe, easy and a geographically even distance for everyone.

WC: Is there any other reason why Miami has become synonymous with arbitration?

GONZALEZ: There’s no real legal reason. It is cheaper than New York to arbitrate here for hotel prices, for lawyers’ hourly rates. But more importantly, Miami is seen as a neutral place. It’s acceptable to a Latin American company. The fact that there are multiple languages spoken here seems more welcoming.

WC: Are you seeing any new developments in international arbitration?

GONZALEZ: Lawyers for Spain are trying to get into the game. Spain just passed a new arbitration act more accepting of international arbitration in Spain. And Spanish companies are heavily investing in Latin America. You’re seeing a lot of lawyers in Spain following into the arbitration world.

WC: So Spain will become an arbitration center?

GONZALEZ: Some of the interest is in arbitration in Miami. Spanish law firms are creating affiliations and relationships with us, with local law firms.

WC: Are there any up-and-coming places for arbitration within Latin America?

GONZALEZ: Mexico certainly sells itself as a center for arbitration. And that may have appeal if you’re in Central America. But not overall.

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WC: Tell us your most interesting or ground-breaking arbitration case this year?

GONZALEZ: One of the advantages that clients pursue in arbitration agreements is that they’re confidential.