Inspiring Women in Law: a conversation with Julia Villanueva, Litigation, Insolvency and Restructuring Partner at Bomchil  

"Justice is not just an ideal, it is a passion that drives us to fight for what is right"

Julia Villanueva is a reference in the Argentine legal field, standing out as a partner at Bomchil law firm and contributing her vast experience in Litigation, Insolvency and Restructuring. With more than thirty years of experience, her career includes a notable stint as Judge of the National Chamber of Commercial Appeals, where her commitment to justice and excellence has led her to face some of the most complex cases in the country. In this interview, Julia shares her inspiring story, the challenges she has overcome and her perspective on the future of law in Argentina.

Latin Counsel: What motivated you to study law and, in particular, to specialize in the area of litigation and insolvency?

Julia Villanueva: As probably happens to every law student with a vocation, my motivation was given by the desire to fight for Justice, so my initial inclination was not so much business law, but Constitutional and Criminal Law. However, as a result of a problem faced by my father’s company, which was an important grain stockpiling company that competed in the country with the largest ones, I deeply studied insolvency law, which, as it usually happens with crises, ended up being a great opportunity, since I discovered that my great passion was business law -not only insolvency law-, a passion that has always guided me.

Latin Cousel: What challenges did you face when you started your career in the judicial field and how did you overcome them?

Julia Villanueva: The challenges were many, but all of them were personal. I got married very young, I had three children in a row and, in order to study, I had to move from the interior of the country to the Capital, so I did not have the support of my family, who remained in my hometown. The initial period was, for that and for an additional accumulation of things, of much sacrifice, which I was able to face -I suppose today- because of that strength that passion gives, which, when it is as intense as mine is, allows people to know that, in order to be happy, there is no other possible path open to them, so that sacrifice must be submitted to and the bet must be doubled.

Latin Counsel: Throughout your judicial career, is there any case that has marked a before and after in your career? Why?

Julia Villanueva: There was no particular case, but many, very many, that gave me an immense experience, which, in the end, ended up marking my life, because it gave me visibility and allowed me, after having had the honor of serving my country, to be called from various private law firms. I was appointed Judge of First Instance when the worst economic crisis ever experienced by the Republic broke out -in 2001-, which had a full impact on the corporate jurisdiction in which I worked, where the restructuring of the most important companies was processed. The need to solve the problems generated by corporate insolvency, which encompasses and jeopardizes the most diverse interests -from those of the employers to those of the employees, passing through the suppliers and ending with the consumers-, demanded (not only from me but also from other judges at that time), a lot of dedication, a lot of study and a lot of creativity, because we had to try to avoid greater damages and find the best way to continue.

Latin Counsel: What do you consider the most important aspects of being a judge in the commercial area?

Julia Villanueva: The commercial judge must be someone who is very well prepared. The subject matter itself is very technical and you have to know it. The court in which I worked -which is national- is the only one in the country that has exclusive competence in this area, but this competence is very broad, because it is not limited to insolvency law, but covers contractual conflicts, markets, securities, corporate or corporate, insurance and, in short, conflicts related to all areas related to the company. In law firms, these areas are usually handled by different departments, which is not the case of the commercial judge, who is alone and must therefore be up to the task. However, this is not the only important aspect of being a good judge; it is also essential that he or she knows not only the law, but also the facts and the various realities, because only in this way can true justice be dispensed, without being bound by prejudices that can lead to deviations from correct reasoning.

Latin Counsel: What are the main differences between your work as a judge and your current work as a partner at Bomchil?

Julia Villanueva: In any field, I have always worked a lot, probably more than necessary, with difficulties in delegating, which, they say, is not good. There is no difference in that, because, both before and now, I dedicate an immense amount of my time to work. The work is not so different either, because both the judge and the lawyer have to know what solution they want to reach and they have to be able to substantiate it. Probably, the design of the strategy makes the difference: except for the insolvency scenario, in which the judge "makes his way as he goes along", in the others it is common for the magistrate to find, when passing sentence, that everything has already been done by the lawyers, so he must decide on the basis of the scenario that others have already presented to him. On the other hand, the lawyer has the exciting mission of designing that strategy in order to convince the judge that the solution he proposes is the right one. There are also differences in the dynamics of the work. When I decided to leave my position as a judge, several of my former colleagues told me that it would be difficult for me to work as a team and share decision-making. But the opposite happened to me. The richness of working as a team -especially with professionals with the excellence that characterizes my partners- has been one of the great discoveries of this new stage. They are very well prepared, do their work with enormous dedication and have received me incredibly well, so the synergy that has been generated and the interdisciplinary vision that is allowed in all cases results in a work environment that could not be better.

Latin Counsel: How has the field of commercial and bankruptcy law in Argentina evolved since you started your career?

Julia Villanueva: Argentine law has simply changed since then, in very few years. The emergence of consumer law has challenged dogmas that were previously considered almost insurmountable. Class actions have appeared and developed, requiring a great deal of creativity and dedication from judges, especially commercial judges. The "new" Civil and Commercial Code of the Nation has entered into force, which maintained much of what had gone before, but also introduced changes that had to be incorporated and must continue to be incorporated. And fundamentally, corporate law has undergone a great "revolution", which implied leaving behind a very imperative system, in order to relax the rules and allow greater freedom. Bankruptcy law, on the other hand, has remained unchanged, in spite of the changes -even paradigmatic- that have been observed in the world, many of which, in my opinion, should be incorporated into Argentine legislation, which cries out for an urgent reform.

Latin Counsel: What legal changes or trends do you currently see in the area of insolvency and restructuring in Argentina with the new government?

Julia Villanueva: In that area, there is not much. Some rules that are of interest to the commercial world have been modified and the new government has appointed a commission to reform corporate law, of which I have had the honor of being a member. However, as far as I know, there is, at present, no concrete progress to modify the bankruptcy legislation, so it is a pending matter.

Latin Counsel: How does technology influence the field of law today, especially in your area of specialization?

Julia Villanueva: As in all areas, technology has generated -also in my area- an immense impact. Let us bear in mind that today the judicial file is completely digital; and, as there have been no changes in the procedural law -at least at the national level- to accompany that evolution, it has occurred the curiosity that judges and lawyers have accepted, guided by the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation through Acordadas, new rules that adapt to the new situation, but that, to tell the truth, do not always have legal backing. In insolvency proceedings, this has been notorious, since, despite the fact that the procedure is regulated by a law that integrates not only the code of procedure but also the substantive law, the design of the process has received that imprint with a profound alteration that, among other things, is evidenced in everything related to the timely verification of the insolvency liabilities.

Latin Counsel: What skills do you consider essential for those who wish to pursue a career in law, particularly in litigation and restructuring?

Julia Villanueva: Passion. I don’t know if it’s a "skill," a gift or karma, but if you don’t have passion, you have to do something else.

Latin Counsel: In your experience as a teacher, what aspects of law do you consider the most difficult to teach and why?
Julia Villanueva: What is necessary, I don’t know if it is difficult, is for the teacher to catch the students’ attention. There are subjects in which this is easier, because they are linked to experiences that, with their pluses and minuses, we all have. For example, it is often rightly said that "we are all consumers", so when I teach this area of law, I usually notice a natural interest that leads to rich discussions in which everyone participates. On the other hand, when we are dealing with a more technical branch -such as, for example, corporate law-, it is necessary for the professor to implement mechanisms that encourage this interest, such as the use of the "case method", that is, the presentation of conflicts, real or imaginary, that lead the student to seek a solution.

Latin Counsel: How do you keep up to date in a field that is constantly changing, such as commercial law?

Julia Villanueva: The study of commercial law, so to speak, "has no return". There will never come a time when a professional dedicated to this branch of law will be able to stop studying without stopping working (at least seriously). The change is vertiginous and it is necessary to keep up with it; and, for that, not only is it necessary to be updated in that way, but, many times, it is necessary to encourage, both from the judges’ and lawyers’ side, practical solutions that anticipate, in fact, the change that, sooner or later, the law will end up experiencing. In my particular case, not only my professional practice but also my intense academic activity require me to be constantly updated, since I could hardly teach law -as I do in several universities, both at the undergraduate, postgraduate and master’s levels- without having studied it first. That is, for me, the best way.

Latin Counsel: What role do you think ethics plays in the practice of law, especially in complex litigation?

Julia Villanueva: The right to go to court and its counterpart, the right of defense, require the lawyer to be loyal to his client and to strive to seek the best possible alternative to achieve the solution he needs. However, there are codes that cannot be exceeded, because loyalty is also owed to the judge and respect for the other participants in the lawsuit. This is part of professional ethics, which, in the end, is also the ethics that must be applied in life. Personally, since I have been a judge, I also know that one should never underestimate the intelligence of the court, which should not be biased against it by bringing arguments that we all know are against the rules or manifestly incorrect.

Latin Counsel: How do you handle the stress and pressure that can come with your different roles in the law?

Julia Villanueva: For people like me - I don’t want to say "addicted" to work, but more or less - pressure is adrenaline and that is life. I usually receive criticism from my children, but I guess they don’t understand me, because they don’t know how wonderful it is to reach the legal solution sought, whatever it takes, and to be able to write it down. I am happy with what I do and, although this does not prevent me from having an allergy attack from time to time, the balance is always positive. Besides, thank God, I always have the infinite emotional support of my family, which is an infallible escape valve for any pressure.

Latin Counsel: What impact has your work had on the development of jurisprudence in insolvency and restructuring matters?

Julia Villanueva: Great, because I have been the author -sometimes alone and others accompanied by fellow judges- of landmark judgments, not only in insolvency matters, but also in contract and corporate law, which are my own areas of jurisdiction. I had that opportunity, because that jurisdiction is very small in number of members and very immense in competence, given that, being located in the Federal Capital, it attracts the most important insolvency and corporate conflicts in the country, since most of the relevant companies have their domiciles there.

Latin Counsel: What advice would you give to the new generations of lawyers who are starting their careers in law?

Julia Villanueva: That there is nothing that, with passion, cannot be achieved. Women’s lives have been, and still are today, despite significant advances, more difficult than men’s. Sometimes, this is the result of assumptions about the future. Sometimes this is the result of unfair asymmetries, but sometimes it happens because we ourselves want it to, because we feel that our place is at the side of our children. Make no mistake: these are our needs, not those of the children, who, when they grow up, will be proud, among other things, of what their mother has done. We have to juggle, I know, but, even so, anything is possible.

Latin Counsel: Finally, how would you like to be remembered in your professional career and what legacy do you hope to leave in the field of law in Argentina?

Julia Villanueva: I don’t expect to be remembered. I just want to live now.

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