Jesús Villegas Ruiz

Biography

Jesús Villegas Ruiz is a partner based in Caracas who advises domestic and multinational companies on complex corporate, compliance and energy-related matters, with a particular focus on regulated industries and infrastructure projects. He has extensive experience advising energy and oil and gas companies on corporate structuring, regulatory compliance, sanctions, anti-corruption and internal investigations in Venezuela. Jesús regularly supports clients navigating high-risk regulatory environments, foreign investment frameworks and cross-border transactions. He is a frequent speaker and published author on compliance, regulatory law and sanctions in Venezuela.

Practice Focus

Jesús focuses his practice on corporate, compliance and energy law, advising clients on the regulatory, corporate and sanctions aspects of energy and infrastructure projects in Venezuela. His experience includes advising oil & gas and energy companies on corporate governance, investment structures, regulatory approvals, anti-corruption compliance, sanctions risk and internal investigations. Jesús regularly assists multinational clients operating in highly regulated environments, supporting strategic transactions, project development and ongoing operations across the energy value chain.

Representative Legal Matters

Advised a major international oil and gas company on anti-corruption and compliance matters related to its operations in Venezuela, including Venezuelan law and FCPA implications.
Advised a major international oil and gas company on the corporate and investment structure of its business and assets in Venezuela.
Acted as leading sanctions counsel for an international energy-related company operating in Venezuela, advising on risk mitigation and business continuity.
Advised on regulatory and corporate aspects of complex business projects involving highly regulated industries in Venezuela.
Led the legal strategy for cross-border corporate transactions involving energy-related assets with significant regulatory and tax implications.
Advised multinational clients on regulatory compliance and internal investigations in connection with operations in the Venezuelan energy sector.
Advised a major international oil and gas company on anticorruption matters related to its operations under Venezuelan law and FCPA implications.
Advised Distillers United Group in the sale of the premium brand "Diplomático."
Advised a major international oil and gas company on the corporate and investment structure of its business in Venezuela.
Advised Aurelius Group on the post-acquisition integration of its interests in Venezuela.
Led the legal team that closed a cross-border transaction between companies in Barbados with tax implications for a Venezuelan corporation for a transaction worth USD 20 million.
Led the legal team that set the legal strategy that won in the Supreme Court union litigation for an important FMCG corporation in Venezuela.

Professional Honors

Premio de la Academia de Ciencias Políticas y Sociales de Venezuela "Dr. José Santiago Nuñez Aristimuño"
Municipal honor for Lawyer's Day in honor of Henrique Iribarren Monteverde by the Legislative Council of Baruta Municipality, July 2023

Professional Associations and Memberships

Caracas Bar Association
Venezuelan Society of Commercial Law (SOVEDEM)
Venezuelan Compliance Association

Corporate Responsibility

Pro bono advisor to Fundación Educación e Innovación Industrial (FUNDEI) regarding its corporate governance structure to accomplish its social and educational purposes to the community.

Pro bono advisor to the Fundación Red de Historia Digital Venezolana, a non-profit organization dedicated to rescuing and preserving Venezuela's cultural heritage through digitizing at-risk historical archives.

Admissions

Venezuela (2015)

Education

Central University of Venezuela (Postgraduate Diploma in Administrative Law) (2025)
IESA School of Management (Master of Business Administration) (2023)
University of Pennsylvania Law School (Master of Comparative Law) (2018)
University of Pennsylvania Wharton School (Certificate in Business and Law) (2018)
Boston University School of Law (LLM) (2017)
Harvard University Law School (Program on Negotiation, Mediation & Conflict Management) (2017)
Central University of Venezuela (JD, magna cum laude) (2015)

Languages

English
Spanish

Speaker, “Introduction to Compliance & Risk Management,” World Compliance Association Compliance Meeting: Global trends and local challenges in regulatory compliance," Caracas, Venezuela, May 2024
Speaker, “Compliance in a digital environment,” Caracas Legal Tech, Universidad Metropolitana, Caracas, Venezuela, March 2024
Speaker, “Compliance and Integrity Culture in corporate organizations,” Conference on Compliance and new trends in good corporate governance, Universidad Metropolitana, Caracas, Venezuela, November 2023
Speaker, “Internal Corporate Investigations,” IV Corporate Law Conference, Universidad Metropolitana, Caracas, Venezuela, October 2023
Speaker, “Compliance Programs and Antitrust” related issues, CIDEP - Centro para la Integración y el Derecho Público, Caracas, Venezuela, January 2023
Speaker, “Compliance, risk assessment, and technology,” First Meeting of Compliance Experts, Caracas, Venezuela, December 2022
Author, "Derecho económico y programas de cumplimiento," Revista Electrónica de Derecho Administrativo Venezolano - CIDEP, 2022
Speaker, “Challenges in Regulatory Compliance in Venezuela” Sociedad Venezolana de Derecho Mercantil, November 2022
Speaker, “Masterclass on Compliance & Regulatory Analysis for Enterprises” at the Central University of Venezuela, Master of Private International Law, November 2022
Author, "Algunos problemas de cumplimiento trasnacional," Anuario de la Maestría de Derecho Internacional Privado y Comparado No. 4 de la Universidad Central de Venezuela, 2022
Speaker, “Good Corporate Practices and Compliance in Venezuela,” Legal Committee of the British Venezuelan Chamber of Commerce, July 2022