Claudette M. Christian

Now resident in Washington, D.C., where she is Co-lead of the firm's Brazil practice, Claudette is known in Latin American legal and business circles for her client focus and ability to run large and complex transactions.

Since the late 1990s, Claudette has played a key role in the development of Brazil's energy industry through her representation of Petrobras, the Brazilian national oil company. Most recently, she has assisted clients in complex international finance transactions; in structuring, negotiating, and closing major transactions in the construction and financing of oil extraction, drilling, and transportation vessels; and in equity and debt investments in several industries, including offshore oil and gas production, wireless telecommunications projects, and renewable energy projects.

She is currently assisting international clients with issues related to their entry and expansion of operations in Brazil and Brazilian clients with existing or planned activities outside of Brazil. She also represents several major energy clients in connection with resolving contractual disputes, including those that have gone to international arbitration.

Claudette is active in many professional organizations and is frequently sought out as a speaker at oil and gas industry and cross-border investment events in Brazil and the United States. She has been recognized by a number of leading industry and legal publications in the United States and Brazil, including Forbes Magazine and Latin Lawyer. Notably, she has been recognized as an Acritas Star; Latin Lawyer recognized her in 2014 as International Lawyer of the Year, the first time an American was selected for this honor; Petroleum Economist named her a Top Lawyer in Brazil for oil and gas matters, and she was one of only several Americans chosen for Latin Lawyer's Women in Law. She is also the editor of the first and second editions of The Guide to Infrastructure and Energy Investment.

Claudette has been a role model, mentor, and champion for female and minority attorneys and was the firm's Chief Diversity Officer for several years and served on the boards of Women in Law Empowerment Forum and International Senior Lawyers' Project. Prior to opening the firm's Brazil offices, she served as Co-Chair of Hogan Lovells' Global Board from 2010 to 2012. She also served as a member of the firm's Executive Committee and co-head of the Latin America Practice Group.