Our extensive network includes top experts from academia and industry.
Our extensive network includes top experts from academia and industry.
José Alberro
Senior Advisor
José Alberro coheads Cornerstone Research’s international arbitration and litigation practice. His expertise focuses on applied economic and financial modeling across a variety of industries, with particular depth in oil and natural gas, petrochemicals, consumer goods, industrial inputs, and telecommunications. He specializes in damages estimation in the context of international arbitration; mergers and antitrust; tariff design in network industries (electricity, natural gas transportation and distribution, water); and economic impact analysis.
Dr. Alberro has provided expert testimony on four continents, involving both investor-state and commercial disputes. He has testified in proceedings under ICSID, UNCITRAL, ECT, and ICC rules. He has been an expert in cases related to investments in oil and gas assets, mining, construction, sweeteners, alcoholic beverages, and port operations. Most recently, Dr. Alberro was chosen as a damages expert by the Costa Rican government in an ICSID arbitration.
He was the founding CEO and president of Pemex Gas, a large Mexican gas and liquids company, and served as Pemex’s chief representative during NAFTA negotiations. He has consulted for the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, the United Nations Development Programme, and the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean.
Dr. Alberro taught at universities in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Mexico. His research and analyses have been widely published, including in the GAR Guide to Damages in International Arbitration, the ICSID Review, the Journal of Damages in International Arbitration, and the International Arbitration Law Review. Dr. Alberro is named as one of the world’s leading expert witnesses and thought leaders by Who’s Who Legal. Financier Worldwide has recognized him as an exceptional expert and “power player” in the field of international arbitration.
Our extensive network includes top experts from academia and industry.
Ronnie Barnes
Vice President
Ronnie Barnes coheads Cornerstone Research’s international arbitration and litigation practice. Dr. Barnes is an expert in accounting, damages, and valuation. He specializes in cases that raise complex valuation issues, including the estimation of the cost of capital, the determination of country risk premia, and the valuation of complex financial instruments such as derivatives and structured finance products. Who’s Who Legal has recognized Dr. Barnes as a leading expert witness in legal arbitration and a Global Leader in assessing the quantum of damages in the financial advisory and valuation field.
Dr. Barnes has provided written and oral testimony in a number of litigation and arbitration matters in the United Kingdom, United States, Canada, South Africa, and internationally. He has addressed such topics as the tax treatment of hire purchase contracts; the quantum of damages in commercial disputes; the economic equivalence of different financial derivatives; the cost of capital in the contexts of a competition enquiry and valuation disputes; the use of derivatives in alleged share price manipulation; and stock market efficiency in shareholder actions.
In addition to serving as a testifying expert, Dr. Barnes leads teams that support academic and practitioner experts. In this capacity, he has worked on numerous matters related to financial institutions and financial products. He has addressed issues related to the analysis of damages stemming from alleged misrepresentations and omissions in corporate disclosures, as well as other matters requiring sophisticated accounting, financial, and/or economic analysis.
Dr. Barnes has published research on a range of topics, notably cross-border valuation, valuation methodologies, damages, and the role of economic and econometric analyses in damages assessments. He has authored or coauthored multiple articles, as well as chapters in leading reference books on international arbitration.
A UK-qualified chartered accountant, Dr. Barnes previously held positions in accounting and investment banking firms, as well as a consulting firm and academia. He has more than a decade of experience teaching courses in corporate finance, accounting, and valuation, among other topics.
International Arbitration and Litigation Capabilities
Cornerstone Research has worked with experts providing trial testimony in foreign venues, adapting our services to the standards and protocols of the different jurisdictions. For example, we applied our experience with finance and securities markets to address the issues in the first case to reach trial under Ireland’s Companies Act. In other trials, we have analyzed accounting, tax, and economic issues arising in breach of contract and intellectual property contexts.
We have consulted to attorneys involved in matters pending in major arbitral venues. We apply our expertise in finance, economics, accounting, and regulation to address complex international business issues. Our clients have included firms in the financial and professional services, energy, high-technology and consumer goods, as well as public-sector entities.
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Selected Professionals
Our staff consultants contribute expertise in economics, finance, accounting, and marketing, as well as business acumen, familiarity with the litigation process, and a commitment to provide outstanding support.
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