DLA Piper Commercial partner named new UNHCR Spain chair

DLA Piper Commercial partner José María Gil-Robles has been named UNHCR Spanish Committee president

DLA Piper Commercial partner José María Gil-Robles (pictured), replaces Matilde Fernández, who has been since 2017 in the position, as chair of the Spanish committee of United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), a non-profit association whose mission is to carry out awareness campaigns on the cause of refugees and raise funds that are given to the United Nations Refugee Agency.

In José María Gil-Robles’ words, “replacing a person with the sensitivity and energy of Matilde Fernández in the presidency of UNHCR Spain Committee, and doing it in the complicated times we are experiencing, with figures of refugees and displaced people who do not stop growing, is an extraordinary challenge, which I face with great enthusiasm and with the peace of mind of having the UNHCR Spain team behind, led by Francesco Sciacca.”

This is a complementary activity to the pro-bono projects in which DLA Piper participates, which, as Gil-Robles highlights, is one of the law firms that spends the most time on pro-bono projects worldwide, actually “many of our lawyers have been and are involved in projects with UNHCR outside and within Spain.” In the last year alone, the firm’s professionals dedicated 220,000 hours per year to pro-bono projects, which is equivalent to more than 150 full-time lawyers dedicated to these projects. DLA Piper’s lawyers in Spain stand out for being one of the firm’s most active groups, leading some of the most relevant pro-bono projects.