Role: Faculty of Law of the University of Macau
China

  Contact: fernandodsimoes@umac.mo

  Research Interests:
Contract Law | Commercial Arbitration | Legal Ethics | Socio-legal Studies

Originally from Portugal, where he graduated from the Faculty of Law of the University of Coimbra, Fernando Dias Simões holds a PhD from the Faculty of Law of the University of Santiago de Compostela (Spain). Since 2011 he is Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Law of the University of Macau, where he teaches Contract Law and Commercial Arbitration. He is also Visiting Professor at the Institute of International Studies in Bangkok (Thailand).

While at Emory Fernando will pursue research into the position of citizens/consumers in water concession contracts. His project, entitled Public Interests in the Water Industry, departs from the traditional concept of ‘Public Services’ to analyze the role played by consumers in modern water concession contracts, namely as regards investment arbitration. Public-private partnerships promoted the dissociation between services provided by the state and services that relate to public interests, frequently without the creation of a clear legal framework to govern these services. The globalization process further affected the definition and content of what used to be considered a ‘public service’. Public authorities are put in a challenging position, as they need to combine their role in the provision of services of public interest and the fulfilment of their international legal obligations arising from investment treaties.