Partner at IUSPUBLIK El Salvador.
www.iuspublik.com.sv
– Doctor of Private Law (2018)
– Master’s Degree in Business Law (2014).
– Notary Public (2012).
– Attorney admitted by the Corte Suprema de Justicia to practice law in all its branches (2008).
– Professor in the Doctoral Program in Private Law at the Universidad Autónoma de Barcelona and the Universidad Doctor José Matías Delgado.
– Professor in the Master’s Program in Administrative Law at the Universidad Doctor José Matías Delgado.
– Professor of Postgraduate Programs in Administrative Procedural Law at the Universidad Tecnológica.
EDUCATION:
2012- 2017 UNIVERSIDAD DR. JOSÉ MATÍAS DELGADO – UNIVERSIDAD AUTÓNOMA DE BARCELONA, Doctor of Private Law, Santa Tecla, El Salvador
2012-2014 UNIVERSIDAD DR. JOSÉ MATÍAS DELGADO – UNIVERSIDAD AUTÓNOMA DE BARCELONA, Santa Tecla, El Salvador, Master’s Degree in Business Law
2009– 2010 UNIVERSIDAD CENTROAMERICANA JOSÉ SIMEÓN CAÑAS (UCA), Advanced Studies in Civil and Commercial Procedural Law. San Salvador, El Salvador.
2003– 2007 ESCUELA SUPERIOR DE ECONOMIA Y NEGOCIOS (ESEN), Bachelor of Laws (Licenciado en Ciencias Jurídicas). Santa Tecla, El Salvador.
AWARDS AND RECOGNITIONS:
Year Award Institution 2019 Award for the Lawyer with the Greatest Professional Promise.
Recognition granted for “(…) his outstanding brilliance, professional activity and academic life”. Revista Derecho y Negocios
2019 Recognized in the legal directory in the “Dispute Resolution” area, under the “Up and Coming” category, of the Latin America Ranking: “Up-and-coming lawyer Henry Orellana is recognized for his expertise in public law disputes, with notable skills in Administrative and Constitutional Law. His practice also includes assisting clients with arbitration proceedings and consumer protection cases”.
Chambers and Partners, London, 2020 Directory 2018 Recognized in the legal directory in the “Dispute Resolution” area, under the “Up and Coming” category, of the Global Ranking: “Up-and-coming lawyer Henry Orellana of Iuspublik is recognized by sources as a highly professional lawyer. His practice covers administrative and constitutional law, with particular experience in handling consumer protection cases. He also acts as party counsel in arbitration proceedings”.
Chambers and Partners, London, 2019 Directory 2017 Recognized in the legal directory in the “Dispute Resolution” area, under the “Up and Coming” category. “Up-and-coming partner Henry Orellana of Iuspublik receives praise from market observers, who describe him as <a very intelligent lawyer, highly competent in litigation matters>. Sources call him <a brilliant lawyer>”.
Chambers and Partners, London, 2018 Directory 2013 Outstanding contribution to the drafting of the Bill on the Ley de la Función Pública (Civil Service Law), Casa Presidencial, Subsecretaría de Gobernabilidad y Modernización del Estado
WORK EXPERIENCE:
01/2011–Present IUSPUBLIK El Salvador San Salvador, El Salvador
Partner
Duties: I specialize in the practice of Administrative Law and related legal areas. My practice also includes Constitutional Law, Consumer Law,
Banking Law, Securities Law, Regulatory Law, Aviation Law, Administrative Procedural Law, Public Procurement, Competition Law, Tax Law, Municipal Tax Law and Arbitration.
I have appeared as counsel for the plaintiff in more than 275 contentious-administrative proceedings and in 70 amparo proceedings before the Sala de lo Constitucional (Constitutional Chamber). I have also acted as defense counsel in more than 250 administrative sanctioning proceedings before the Tribunal Sancionador de la Defensoría del Consumidor and in 120 conciliation hearings at the Defensoría del Consumidor.
As counsel for taxpayers, I have taken part in 125 administrative proceedings for the ex officio assessment of municipal taxes, and as defense counsel in 5 audit proceedings before the Corte de Cuentas de la República. In arbitration, I have taken part in 25 proceedings, 17 of them ad hoc arbitrations and 8 institutional arbitrations before the Centro de Mediación y Arbitraje de la Cámara de Comercio e Industria de El Salvador.
In addition, I provide consulting and advisory services to companies, regulators and government bodies. Among them, I have had the opportunity to serve the Subsecretaría de Gobernabilidad y
Modernización del Estado, the Asamblea Legislativa, ASAFONDOS, AFP CRECER, AFP CONFÍA, ABANSA, Banco Davivienda S.A., Banco Agrícola S.A., Banco Scotiabank S.A., Banco Atlántida S.A., Banco Azteca S.A., Banco G&T Continental El Salvador, S.A., Laboratorios COMBISA S.A de C.V., Almacenes Simán, S.A. de C.V., Grupo Roble, Grupo Real and Telemovil El Salvador (Tigo), among others.
10/2007-11/2011 MENA GUERRA Y ASOCIADOS
Legal Associate San Salvador, El Salvador 02/2007–09/2007 CORTE SUPREMA DE JUSTICIA Centro de Documentación Judicial Legal Associate San Salvador, El Salvador.
12/2005–01/2006 BUFETE GIRÓN, GIRÓN & MORALES Legal Associate San Salvador, El Salvador.
SPECIFIC EXPERIENCE IN AD HOC ARBITRATION:
Year Role Tribunal
2019 Presiding Arbitrator, Ad Hoc Arbitral Tribunal: Insurance company v. insured
2019 Counsel for an Autonomous State Entity, Ad Hoc Arbitral Tribunal: contractor v. Autonomous Entity
2019 Secretary, Ad Hoc Arbitral Tribunal: Waste collection services concessionaire v. Municipality
2019 Secretary, Ad Hoc Arbitral Tribunal: Public limited company v. Shareholders
2018 Secretary, Ad Hoc Arbitral Tribunal: Hydroelectric company v. Insurance company
2016 Secretary, Ad Hoc Arbitral Tribunal: Salvadoran law firm v. Costa Rican law firm.
2016 Secretary, Ad Hoc/ Technical Arbitral Tribunal: Municipality v. construction company
2014 Secretary, Ad Hoc / Technical Arbitral Tribunal: autonomous institution v. construction company
2012 Secretary, Ad Hoc Arbitral Tribunal: machinery and equipment financial leasing company v. lessor company
2012 Secretary, Ad Hoc Arbitral Tribunal: Exporting company v. Insurer
2011 Secretary, Ad Hoc Arbitral Tribunal: Real estate company v. Lessor company
2011 Secretary, Ad Hoc Arbitral Tribunal: State entity v. international conglomerate
2011 Secretary, Ad Hoc Arbitral Tribunal: Shareholders v. Company
2011 Secretary, Ad Hoc Arbitral Tribunal: Construction company v. State entity
2009 Secretary, Ad Hoc Arbitral Tribunal: Lessor company v. Lessee company
2009 Secretary, Ad Hoc Arbitral Tribunal: Construction company; v. Municipality
2009 Secretary, Ad Hoc Arbitral Tribunal: Construction company v. State entity
SPECIFIC EXPERIENCE IN INSTITUTIONAL ARBITRATION BEFORE THE CENTRO DE MEDIACIÓN Y
ARBITRAJE DE LA CÁMARA DE COMERCIO E INDUSTRIA DE EL SALVADOR
Year Role Tribunal
2019 Secretary, Institutional Arbitral Tribunal (arbitration at law): Construction company v. Subcontractor
2018 Secretary, Institutional Arbitral Tribunal (arbitration at law): government contractor company v. subcontractor company.
2017 Secretary, Institutional Arbitral Tribunal (arbitration at law): property leasing company v. Lessor company.
2016 Secretary, Institutional Sole-Arbitrator Tribunal: property leasing company v. Photovoltaic energy project developer
2015 Secretary, Institutional Arbitral Tribunal: Civil engineering company v. Electricity trading company
2014 Secretary, Institutional Arbitral Tribunal: Electricity trading company v. electricity distribution company
2013 Secretary, Institutional Arbitral Tribunal: Concession company v. concessionaire
2010 Secretary, Institutional Arbitral Tribunal: Electricity trading company v. electricity distribution company
LANDMARK CASES:
– CASE ONE: Unlawful fines imposed under consumer law
See judgment of the Sala de lo Contencioso Administrativo, reference 38-2016, of 26-02-2020.
Client: Financial institution Transaction Value: $4, 447,500.00 (original amount)
Litigation start date: December 10, 2013 End date: February 26, 2020
Other firm lawyers involved
Dr. Ricardo Mena Guerra
In 2012, the Defensoría del Consumidor (DC) opened an investigation against La Hipotecaria for 5 alleged infringements of the Ley de Protección al Consumidor (LPC). At the end of the administrative proceedings, the DC’s Sanctioning Tribunal imposed three fines and a refund order totaling $3,172,215.75. This outcome required us to challenge the sanctioning decision before the Sala de lo Contencioso Administrativo. At the end of the judicial proceedings, the Chamber (i) declared unlawful the sanction for charging fees “for mortgage services” and “insurance
management”. That fine amounted to $89,550.00. This ruling also included the declaration of unlawfulness (and annulment) of the refund order in the amount of $2,903,715.75. (ii) The Chamber declared the charge relating to prepayment installments partially unlawful, in the sense that it considered the imposition of a penalty appropriate but did not uphold the amount of the fine, which had been set at $89,550.00. The Chamber also did not uphold the refund order. It therefore ordered the TSDC to recalculate the amount of the fine, clarifying that the new fine must be lower than the original. It also indicated that the refund order must be limited to the amounts that La Hipotecaria had not already refunded to consumers; and (iii) the Chamber declared unlawful the sanction relating to the early repayment surcharge clause ($89,550.00). This outcome meant a 98% reduction of the original amount in fines and refunds.
– CASE TWO: Effectiveness and validity of administrative acts classifying transactions as VAT-exempt
See judgments of the Sala de lo Contencioso Administrativo, references 589-2014 of September 8, 2017 and 269-2016 of 15-V-2017.
Client: Company engaged in financing new and used vehicles Transaction Value: $2,812,466.12
Litigation start date:
December 8, 2014 End date: September 8, 2017
Other firm lawyers involved
Dr. Ricardo Mena Guerra
Dr.. Adán Lemus Valle
In 2002, under the then-applicable Art. 46(f) of the VAT Law, the DGII classified as exempt the company’s transactions consisting of money loans, insofar as the payment or accrual of interest was concerned. That legal provision was amended in 2004 and 2009. The first amendment contained a transitional provision confirming the validity of the 2002 administrative act. The 2009 amendment referred neither to the 2002 administrative act nor to the 2004 transitional provision. In 2012, the DGII initiated audit proceedings, arguing that the 2002 administrative act was no longer valid and seeking to have the company pay VAT on its transactions. In court, we were able to demonstrate that the DGII’s actions amounted to (unlawful) ex officio revocations of favorable administrative acts and that the 2002 classification of exempt transactions remains valid and in force.
– CASE THREE: Unconstitutionality of the Ley Especial para Facilitar la Cancelación de las Deudas Agraria y Agropecuaria, specifically its Art. Art. 2(d), 3 para. 1 and 4 para. 1. See amparo judgment against a statute, reference 702-2013, of February 4, 2015. Client: Private bank. Transaction value: undetermined
Litigation start date:
September 11, 2013 End date: February 4, 2015
Other firm lawyers
involved
Dr. Ricardo Mena Guerra
Dr. Adán Lemus Valle
Subject of review: Enactment of the Ley Especial para Facilitar la Cancelación de las Deudas Agraria y Agropecuaria, specifically its Art. Art. 2(d), 3 para. 1 and 4 para. 1.
Constitutional rights violated: Freedom of contract, right to property, right to judicial protection and right to equality. Review parameters: Arts. 2, 3 and 23 of the Constitution. In its judgment upholding the claim, the Constitutional Chamber declared that: (a) paragraph 1 of Article 4 LEPFCDAA violates the right to freedom of contract (Art. 23 Cn.) by removing the Bank’s power to decide whether or not to contract and to determine the content of the contract. Furthermore, this provision violates the right to judicial protection (Art. 2 Cn.) by restricting the Bank’s free access to the courts, preventing it from completing judicial proceedings or initiating new ones to recover credits owed to it; In addition, (b) it interpreted Article 3, in conjunction with Article 2(d), both of the LEPFCDAA, in conformity with the Constitution, so that, in order not to violate the right to property (Art. 2 Cn.), the debt forgiveness must be understood as not operating by operation of law, but only with the Bank’s consent.
– CASE FOUR: Unconstitutionality of the disproportionate fines contained in Art. 30 of the 30 la Ley de Regulación de los Servicios de Información Sobre Historial de Crédito de las Personas. See amparo judgment against a statute, reference 109-2013, of January 14, 2016. Client: Trade association. Transaction value: undetermined
Litigation start date:
July 3, 2013 End date: February 4, 2015
Other firm lawyers involved
Dr. Ricardo Mena Guerra
Dr. Adán Lemus Valle
Subject of review: Enactment of Art. 30 of the Ley de Regulación de los Servicios de Información Sobre Historial de Crédito de las Personas. Constitutional rights violated: Right to property, due to non-observance of the principle of proportionality. Review parameters: Arts. 2 and 246 of the Constitution. Article 30 of the Ley de Regulación de los Servicios de Información Sobre Historial de Crédito de las Personas sets out the penalties to be imposed for the infringements provided for in Articles 28 and 29 of the same statute. The amounts of these penalties are disproportionate and, being pecuniary, directly affect the assets of those subject to them, such that, owing to their disproportionality, they violate the right to property established in Article 2 Cn.
SPECIFIC EXPERIENCE IN CONSULTANCIES FOR STATE ENTITIES:
Year Role Consultancy
2016 Specialist Consultant, Consultancy for the Organismo Promotor de Exportaciones e Inversiones de El Salvador (PROESA): Legal analysis
on the application of Article 53 of the Ley Especial de Asocios Público Privados (Special Law on Public-Private Partnerships) to the project entitled
Supply of Driver’s Licenses, Vehicle Registration Cards and Motor Vehicle License Plates, Administration of the Public Vehicle Registry and Associated Services
2011-2013 Member of the Consulting Team, Consultancy for the Subsecretaría de Gobernabilidad y Modernización del Estado: Drafting of the Bill on the Ley de la Función Pública
2008- 2009 Member of the Consulting Team, IDB // Asamblea Legislativa Consultancy: Drafting of the Bill on the Ley de la Jurisdicción Contencioso Administrativa
TEACHING EXPERIENCE:
Universidad Autónoma de Barcelona and Universidad Dr. José Matías Delgado:
– Professor in the Doctoral Program (2017 to date). Full Professor of “Tax Law”.
Universidad Dr. José Matías Delgado:
– Professor in the Master’s Program in Administrative Law (2015 to date). Full Professor of “Administrative Organization”.
– Professor in the Master’s Program in Administrative Law (2015 to date). Full Professor of “Tax Law”.
– Speaker at the lecture “Sanctioning Powers of the Public Administration”, May 2015.
Universidad Centroamericana José Simeón Cañas:
– Instructor in the Diploma Course in Administrative Sanctioning Law, January – February.
Escuela Superior de Economía y Negocios:
– Instructor in the Course on Salvadoran Administrative Law: Current Status and Reform Prospects. Asociación Salvadoreña Derecho y Desarrollo (ADESA), April
2015.
Universidad Tecnológica:
– Professor in the Postgraduate Program on the Ley de la Jurisdicción Contenciosa Administrativa.
Centro de Formación Profesional, Banco Agrícola:
– Instructor in Municipal Tax Law. San Salvador, August – October 2013.
– Instructor in Consumer Law. San Salvador, August – October 2012.
Escuela de Capacitación Fiscal, Fiscalía General de la República:
– Specialized Course in Administrative Procedural Law: the new Ley de la Jurisdicción Contencioso Administrativa, January – February 2018
– Municipal Tax Law, March 2011.
– Administrative Sanctioning Law, April 2011.
IUSPUBLIK Training.
– Specialized Course in Administrative Procedural Law: the new Ley de la Jurisdicción Contencioso Administrativa, for a regional law firm. January 2018
– Specialized Course in Administrative Procedural Law: the new Ley de la Jurisdicción Contencioso Administrativa, for the DAVIVIENDA Legal Department, February 2018;
– Course in Administrative Procedural Law: The New Contentious-Administrative Proceedings. Expectations and Challenges. December, 2017.
– Course in Salvadoran Administrative Sanctioning Law, September 2017.
ACADEMIC PUBLICATIONS:
– Book and other research
Los títulos de imputación de responsabilidad en el derecho administrativo sancionador salvadoreño, published in the collective work Temas de Derecho Administrativo Sancionador, Editorial Jurídica Salvadoreña, San Salvador, 2019.
Derecho Administrativo Sancionador Salvadoreño: Aplicación de los principios constitucionales del Derecho Penal al Derecho Administrativo Sancionador, San Salvador, Iuspublik, September 2017. Legal deposit: 18-2017. Also available at: http://iuspublik.com.sv/wpcontent/uploads/2019/03/DERECHO-ADMINISTRATIVO-SANCIONADORSALVADOREN%CC%83O.pdf
Aplicación de los Principios Penales Constitucionales al Derecho Administrativo Sancionador, doctoral thesis, Universidad Dr. José Matías Delgado, 2017;
Límites a la Potestad Sancionadora de la Administración Pública y en especial sobre el Principio de Culpabilidad, Universidad Autónoma de Barcelona and Universidad Dr. José Matías Delgado, 2014
– Articles
“El Aviso de Demanda en la nueva LJCA”, Revista Derecho y Negocios, N°80, San Salvador, September 2018. Also available at: http://iuspublik.com.sv/wpcontent/uploads/2019/03/EL-AVISO-DE-DEMANDA-EN-LA-NUEVA-LJCA.pdf
LAS TASAS MUNICIPALES POR LICENCIA DE FUNCIONAMIENTO, available at: http://iuspublik.com.sv/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/Las-tasas-municipales-por-licencia-defuncionamiento.pdf
“La determinación de oficio de la obligación tributaria municipal desde la óptica del ordenamiento
jurídico salvadoreño”. Revista Ratio Legis, N°4. Guatemala City. March 2011.
http://www.revistaratiolegis.com/4-cuarta-edicion
“Los Tributos Municipales en El Salvador”. Asociación Salvadoreña Derecho y Desarrollo. San Salvador, February 2011. Available online at: http://adesaelsalvador.blogspot.com/
Co-author of the study “Agrupaciones Ilícitas en la jurisprudencia salvadoreña”. Centro de Documentación Judicial de la Corte Suprema de Justicia. San Salvador, 2007. – Opinion articles
“El crimen nuestro de cada día”. Centro de Estudios Jurídicos. San Salvador, August 2009.
“La Reforma Fiscal y sus efectos”. Centro de Estudios Jurídicos. San Salvador, December 2009.
“Educación superior pública de calidad”. Centro de Estudios Jurídicos. San Salvador, January 2010.
“De abogados y gitanos”. Centro de Estudios Jurídicos. San Salvador, March 2010. All available online at: http://centrodeestudiosjuridicos.blogspot.com
“Derecho y Desarrollo”, Asociación Salvadoreña Derecho y Desarrollo, November 2010.
“La Justicia en Huelga”, Asociación Salvadoreña Derecho y Desarrollo, January 2011.
“Todavía hay Jueces en Berlín”, Asociación Salvadoreña Derecho y Desarrollo, February 2012. All available at http://adesaelsalvador.blogspot.com.
MEMBERSHIPS:
Founding member and first President of the Asociación Salvadoreña Derecho y Desarrollo (ADESA).
Member of the Centro de Estudios Jurídicos (CEJ).
Member of the Board of Directors of the Asociación Alumni-ESEN 2012-2013.
COURSES AND SEMINARS:
2017 Diploma Course in Commercial Arbitration, Cámara de Comercio e Industria de El Salvador (CAMARASAL) San Salvador, El Salvador
2017 International Congress on Commercial and Investment Arbitration, CAMARASAL San Salvador, El Salvador.
2012 Specialized Course in Notarial Law, ESEN La Libertad, El Salvador
2011 Diploma Course in Administrative Sanctioning Law, ESEN La Libertad, El Salvador
2011 Arbitrator Training Course, CAMARASAL San Salvador, El Salvador.
2011 Diploma Course: Introduction to the U.S. Legal System, ESEN – ADESA La Libertad, El Salvador.
2010 Course on Legal Interpretation and Argumentation, ESEN La Libertad, El Salvador.
2009 Investment Arbitration Seminar-Workshop: A Practical View. CAMARASAL – Hogan & Hartson San Salvador, El Salvador.
2008 Seminar on International Commercial Arbitration and Investment Arbitration. CAMARASAL – CLIFFORD CHANCE – ESEN San Salvador, El Salvador.
2007 Consumer Protection in El Salvador, Defensoría del Consumidor La Libertad, El Salvador.
2007 Current Status of Contentious-Administrative Jurisdiction in El Salvador, ESEN La Libertad, El Salvador.
2006 1st Central American Congress on Law and Economics, ESEN La Libertad, El Salvador.
2006 XLII Inter-American Bar Conference: The Rule of Law and Free Trade, FIA San Salvador, El Salvador.
2006 Comparative Justice Systems of El Salvador and the Japanese Criminal Procedure System: Challenges for Future Procedural Reform, JICA, ILANUD, FESPAD San Salvador, El Salvador.
2004 Course on Rhetoric and Public Speaking, Dr. Alfonso Ortega San Salvador, El Salvador.
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