Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría

Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría is an expert in advising companies on the new Spanish regime for foreign investment in strategic sectors approved in March 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 crisis. The regime includes critical infrastructure technology, energy and other essential sectors of activity.

She has been a member of the Spanish Council of State since 2018.

A counsel for the state since 1998, she was chief counsel for the state in León and at the High Court of Justice of Madrid.

She was vice president of the Spanish government and minister of the presidency (2011-2018), as well as minister for regional administrations (2016-2018). She was also spokesperson of the government (2011-2016), and chaired several ministerial commissions, including Spain’s Inter-ministerial Brexit Commission (2016-2018).

She was a parliamentary spokesperson for the Spanish People’s Party during the government’s ninth legislature. Previously, she was the deputy spokesperson in the Constitutional Commission of the Spanish Congress of Deputies.

She also served as technical advisor in the Cabinet of the First Vice President, and of the Minister of the Interior of the Spanish government.

She has held several positions in entities of the state-owned industrial holding company (SEPI) group, as a member of the board of directors of Clínica Castelló and secretary of the INISAS board of directors.

She has been an associate lecturer in EU policies and administrative law at the Universidad Carlos III de Madrid.