Biography
Avocat à la cour (Buenos Aires Bar)
Avocat à la cour (Buenos Aires Bar)
Patricio Grané specializes in international arbitrations, and especially in the area of investment treaties and international trade. It operates in a wide range of economic sectors, including financial services, energy, mining and metallurgical sectors, construction, agri-food, transport, and hospitality.
He has several years of experience representing companies and states with twenty complex international arbitration proceedings under the aegis of various arbitration centers, namely the International Center for the Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID), the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) and the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL), and the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL), involving parties from Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and South Asia. He also intervened to assist sole arbitrators and arbitral tribunals.
Patricio Grané has also been involved in high-stakes international tax fraud litigation. Prior to joining the firm, Patricio Grané worked in the international arbitration departments of leading law firms in Paris and Geneva as well as in Buenos Aires.
Patricio Grané has also worked as a legal assistant at the Federal Court of Appeal in Buenos Aires and legal advisor at the Ministry of Finance of Argentina where he acquired extensive experience in public law and administrative law.
Admitted to the Buenos Aires Bar, Patricio holds an LLM in international dispute resolution, known as MIDS, from the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva and from the University of Geneva.
Patricio Grané works in four languages: English, Spanish, Italian and French.
Professor Clay has a leading practice as arbitrator in domestic and international arbitration. He has vast experience as chairman, sole arbitrator or co-arbitrator, in a wide range of sectors, including energy, telecommunications, construction and distribution. He was appointed by the French Republic as arbitrator in the first ICSID arbitration brought against France, and presently sits on several ICSID tribunals. He has also been involved in arbitrations conducted under the aegis of other major arbitration centres, including the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA), the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce (SCC), the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA), the Arbitration Chamber of Milan (CAM), the OHADA Common Court of Justice and Arbitration and the Mediation and Arbitration Centre of Paris (CMAP).
Professor Clay has also developed specific expertise in sports law. He is on the list of arbitrators for the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) and the French National Olympic and Sports Committee (CNOSF).
Professor Clay has deep experience advising and representing States, multinational corporations and private clients in domestic and international arbitrations, with a specific focus on disputes involving energy, telecommunications, construction and distribution.
Professor Clay also has a leading sports practice. He has advised and represented motor sport companies and professional footballers, including the French captain Kylian Mbappé against the football club Paris Saint-Germain.
A leading authority on French arbitration law, Professor Clay is frequently instructed to advise and represent clients in relation to set-aside and enforcement proceedings before the Paris Court of Appeal and the French Court of Cassation.
EXPERIENCE
Representative Cases
Counsel for a Latin American State against a Spanish financial company in an ICSID arbitration evaluated at 220 million USD concerning the alleged expropriation of a savings and loan institution.
Counsel for a Latin American State against a British farm company in an ICSID arbitration evaluated at 150 million USD regarding the alleged expropriation of a cattle farming business.
Counsel for a Latin American State against a Barbadian trust manager in an ICSID arbitration evaluated at 400 million USD concerning a concession to repair a cable car system and renovate two hotels.
Counsel to a Latin American State in UNCITRAL and ICSID arbitration proceedings evaluated at 1.1 billion USD brought by the shareholders of Spanish food import and distribution companies for the alleged expropriation of their assets in the food industry.
Counsel for a South Asian State against an Australian Joint Venture in an ICSID arbitration evaluated at 4 billion USD arising out of the denial of a mining lease application for a copper-gold project.
Counsel for a Latin American State against a car importer from Barbados in an ICSID arbitration evaluated at 120 million USD arising out of currency controls imposed on the luxury car import business.
Counsel for a Latin American state against a US shipbuilding company in an UNCITRAL arbitration evaluated at 450 million USD regarding the breach of a contract for the repair and upgrade two navy frigates.
Counsel for a Latin American state against a bottle manufacturer in an ICSID arbitration evaluated at over 1 billion USD regarding the alleged expropriation of two bottle manufacturing plants.
Counsel for a South Asian state against a Turkish powership company in an ICSID arbitration evaluated at 1.2 billion USD following the detention of electricity generation vessels.
Professor Clay is a professor agrégé at the Sorbonne Law School (Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne), where he directs the International Arbitration Law and Alternative Dispute Resolution programme.
Professor Clay has played a leading role in shaping the arbitration landscape in France. He founded Sorbonne Arbitrage, an association which acts as a central hub for the Sorbonne’s arbitration law activities. Before that, he founded the University of Versailles’ Masters Programme Arbitration and Business Law, known as the “MACI”, a genuine talent incubator, which he also directed for twelve years. At the University of Versailles, he also served as Vice-President and Dean of the Faculty of Law.
Professor Clay has published a dozen books, approximately 180 articles and delivered over 150 lectures, many of them abroad.
For over twenty years, Professor Clay has written the Panorama of Arbitration Law and Alternative Dispute Resolution, published annually in the Recueil Dalloz.
A full list of Professor Clay's publications may be found here.
Professor Thomas Clay has been ranked in the category “Excellent Arbitrator” by Décideurs Magazine every year between 2010 and 2021, and subsequently in the category “Incontournable” (Top Tier) in 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025 (Rank 1).
He was also ranked “Excellent Lawyer in Arbitration Law” by Décideurs Magazine in 2022, 2023 and 2024, and “Incontournable” (Top Tier) from 2025 onwards. He received the 2011 Trophy for Best Arbitrator, awarded by Décideurs Magazine and the Paris Bar, and was distinguished among the Elite of the 30 Best Lawyers of the Paris Bar in 2020.
He was described by Who’s Who Legal in 2015 as a “high-qualified, reliable and efficient arbitrator”, in 2016 as a “skilful practitioner” with an “intimate understanding of French Arbitration Law”, and in 2021 as “a key figure in the market”, being referred to as “one of the most prominent sole practitioners in France” and “certainly among the very best”. He was ranked by Who’s Who Legal in 2022, 2023 and 2024 as an “Arbitration Thought Leader”.
Professor Clay was ranked by Chambers in 2023 in the category International Arbitration: Arbitrators – France, as well as in the category Most in Demand Arbitrators – Europe. He is described there as “excellent”, “very bright and talented”, “very fair, very proactive and knows the cases well”, and his extensive experience as an arbitrator in Africa is also highlighted.
Press articles
Le Monde
Other publications
Radio and television appearances
Interviews and portraits
Special Adviser to the President (Bâtonnier) and Vice-President (Vice-Bâtonnière) of the Paris Bar (2026–2027)
Member of the Board of Directors of the Paris Bar School (École de Formation du Barreau) (2026–2027)
Vice-President of "Paris, place d'arbitrage"
Member of "Paris, place de droit"
Head and founder of "Sorbonne Arbitrage" (Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne)
Associate member of the International Chamber of Commerce Institute
Member of the Board of Directors of the French Arbitration Association
Member of the Institute for International Arbitration
Member of the Orientation board of the Club de l'arbitrage
Co-chair of the Italian Arbitration Association in France
Member of the International Association of Procedural Law
Member of the American Association of Private International Law
Member of the academic board of the International Academy of Law and Economics
Expert of the French Institute of International Legal Experts
Member of the Association of Law Teachers
Member of the Institute for Expertise, Arbitration and Mediation
Member of the Advisory Board of the European Court of Arbitration of Versailles
Member of the Advisory Board of the European Court of Arbitration
Member of the Venezuelan Arbitration Committee
Member of the Board of the OHADAC Regional Arbitration Center
Member of the Editorial Board of the Paris Journal of International Arbitration
Member of the "Sorbonne Private and public economic law" research department
Co-director of the "Sorbonne Sport Law" research department
Honorary Director of the University Research Team in International Arbitration Law (University of Versailles)
Member of the Editorial Advisory Board of the Journal of International Dispute Settlement
Member of the Editorial Board of the Revista brasileira de arbitragem
Member of the Advisory Board of the Journal of Arab Arbitration
Member of the Scientific Board of ohada.com
Member of the Scientific Committee of the International Review of Law and Political Science (Cameroon)
Member of the Editorial Board of Arbitration and Mediation Magazine (Brazil)
Member of the Pedagogical Committee of the International School of Alternative Dispute Resolution.
EXPeRIENCE
Representative Cases
Counsel for a Latin American State against a Spanish financial company in an ICSID arbitration evaluated at 220 million USD concerning the alleged expropriation of a savings and loan institution.
Counsel for a Latin American State against a British farm company in an ICSID arbitration evaluated at 150 million USD regarding the alleged expropriation of a cattle farming business.
Counsel for a Latin American State against a Barbadian trust manager in an ICSID arbitration evaluated at 400 million USD concerning a concession to repair a cable car system and renovate two hotels.
Counsel to a Latin American State in UNCITRAL and ICSID arbitration proceedings evaluated at 1.1 billion USD brought by the shareholders of Spanish food import and distribution companies for the alleged expropriation of their assets in the food industry.
Counsel for a South Asian State against an Australian Joint Venture in an ICSID arbitration evaluated at 4 billion USD arising out of the denial of a mining lease application for a copper-gold project.
Counsel for a Latin American State against a car importer from Barbados in an ICSID arbitration evaluated at 120 million USD arising out of currency controls imposed on the luxury car import business.
Counsel for a Latin American state against a US shipbuilding company in an UNCITRAL arbitration evaluated at 450 million USD regarding the breach of a contract for the repair and upgrade two navy frigates.
Counsel for a Latin American state against a bottle manufacturer in an ICSID arbitration evaluated at over 1 billion USD regarding the alleged expropriation of two bottle manufacturing plants.
Counsel for a South Asian state against a Turkish powership company in an ICSID arbitration evaluated at 1.2 billion USD following the detention of electricity generation vessels.
Experience
Representative Cases
Counsel for a Latin American State against a Spanish financial company in an ICSID arbitration evaluated at 220 million USD concerning the alleged expropriation of a savings and loan institution.
Counsel for a Latin American State against a British farm company in an ICSID arbitration evaluated at 150 million USD regarding the alleged expropriation of a cattle farming business.
Counsel for a Latin American State against a Barbadian trust manager in an ICSID arbitration evaluated at 400 million USD concerning a concession to repair a cable car system and renovate two hotels.
Counsel to a Latin American State in UNCITRAL and ICSID arbitration proceedings evaluated at 1.1 billion USD brought by the shareholders of Spanish food import and distribution companies for the alleged expropriation of their assets in the food industry.
Counsel for a South Asian State against an Australian Joint Venture in an ICSID arbitration evaluated at 4 billion USD arising out of the denial of a mining lease application for a copper-gold project.
Counsel for a Latin American State against a car importer from Barbados in an ICSID arbitration evaluated at 120 million USD arising out of currency controls imposed on the luxury car import business.
Counsel for a Latin American state against a US shipbuilding company in an UNCITRAL arbitration evaluated at 450 million USD regarding the breach of a contract for the repair and upgrade two navy frigates.
Counsel for a Latin American state against a bottle manufacturer in an ICSID arbitration evaluated at over 1 billion USD regarding the alleged expropriation of two bottle manufacturing plants.
Counsel for a South Asian state against a Turkish powership company in an ICSID arbitration evaluated at 1.2 billion USD following the detention of electricity generation vessels.