Biography: Environment

With over 20 years of experience in the field, Leopoldo Burguete-Stanek is recognised as one of the most well-renowned and influential environmental lawyers in Mexico. His expertise in all aspects of environmental and natural resource laws, with particular strengths in energy, water management, hazardous waste control, atmospheric pollution, environmental impact and due diligence and auditing, natural protected areas, land contamination and soil restoration, mining, forestry, oil and gas activities, and all aspects of environmental litigation and dispute resolution.

His practice also comprises several specialist areas, advising on conventional and alternative tourism projects, the federal maritime zone and exclusive economic area, analysis of fiscal benefits and entitlements, as well as providing legal advice on the development of emission reduction projects under the Kyoto Protocol.

Leopoldo Burguete-Stanek received his law degree from Universidad La Salle in 1983. He obtained a Masters in Comparative Law, as a visiting scholar from the University of Illinois in 1985; and a Masters in International Law from the Southern Methodist University in 1986. He received a postgraduate degree in Economic and Corporate Law from Universidad Panamericana in 1987 and an environmental law certificate from the Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México in 1988.

He was professor of environmental law at Escuela Libre de Derecho, the Universidad Panamericana, Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México and the Universidad Anahuac in their graduate programmes. He is a member of the eighth cohort of the Leadership for Environment and Sustainable Development Programme (LEAD); he recently left his post as coordinator of the environmental law committee of the National Association of Corporate Lawyers and also served as coordinator of the professional activities area of the Mexican Bar Association's environmental law commission and as co-chair of the environmental committee and member of the board of directors of the US-Mexico Bar Association. He is currently the regional representative for Middle America of the International Bar Association's section on energy, environment, natural resources and infrastructure law.

Previously, Mr Burguete-Stanek directed the Mexico City office and headed the environmental department of the Mexican law firm Bryan, Gonzalez Vargas y Gonzalez Baz, SC and later co-founded the first law firm dedicated solely to environmental law in Mexico. He is currently partner at Gonzalez Calvillo, SC, where he is in charge of the environmental law and sustainable development law practice area.

Specific issues that Mr Burguete-Stanek has worked on recently include the development of utility sized thermoelectric power plants in north and central Mexico and windfarms in the country's southern region and the construction of its ancillary facilities; a clean development mechanism hydroelectric project, and an array of environmental business risk assessments in matters of real estate and industrial activities. Finally, Mr Burguete-Stanek is able to advise and guide his clients through many aspects of cross-border transactions and project planning, including the management of social facets affecting a project, through the implementation of international standards for project finance.