Valentina Botello León

About me

Areas of expertise: international trade law, investor-State dispute resolution, public international law, international commercial arbitration.

Nationality: Colombian

Languages: Spanish, English, French, Portuguese, Turkish and Dutch (varying levels of proficiency).

Professional experience

  • Permanent Court of Arbitration | Assistant Legal Counsel | The Hague, The Netherlands | February 2026 – present.
  • Lévy Kaufmann-Kohler | International Arbitration Trainee | Geneva, Switzerland | August 2025 – January 2026.
  • Ministry of Trade, Industry and Tourism of the Republic of Colombia | International Legal Affairs Officer | Bogotá, Colombia | May 2021 – September 2024.
  • Advisory Centre in WTO Law | Secondment Lawyer | Geneva, Switzerland | October 2022 – June 2023.
  • Álvarez Zárate & Asociados | Investment Arbitration Attorney | Bogotá, Colombia | July 2019 – March 2021.

Education

  • LL.B from the Universidad Externado de Colombia.
  • Master 1 in International Law from the Université Paris II Panthéon-Assas.
  • Master 2 in Public International Law from the Université Paris II Panthéon-Assas.Cum laude distinction. Thesis: “Les Nations Unies et la mise en oeuvre de la paix en Colombie” (supervised by prof. Carlo Santulli).
  • LL.M. in International Dispute Settlement (MIDS) from the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies and the University of Geneva.Thesis: “Accounting for Asymmetry: The Relevance of the Respondent State’s Development Level in Investment Treaty Arbitration” (supervised by prof. Zachary Douglas).

Bar Admission: Bogotá, Colombia (2020)

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