Joanna Heskia

We are a law firm specialised in complex legal proceedings, with emphasis on white collar crime litigation and criminal legal advice related to business and financial activity.

The partners of the firm, Alejandro Espinoza and Joanna Heskia, have more than 25 years of experience in advising individuals and companies in highly complex litigation, representing banks and financial institutions, insurance companies, airlines, real estate companies, energy companies, television channels, radio and media, educational institutions, forestry industries, fishing companies and shipyards, as well as municipalities, among other corporations.  Additionally, both have a long professional practice representing parliamentarians, Mayors and other high authorities.

Joanna Heskia is a Law graduate at Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile. She has an MA from the Interamerican University of Puerto Rico and has also postgraduate Studies at the Applied Social Studies Faculty of the University of Exeter, UK. She is a specialist in criminal law and criminal procedure, and as such, has been a part time Professor at University Alberto Hurtado, Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile, University of Talca and Universidad Central. She has a litigation Diploma at Cleveland State University, Ohio, and in the National Advocacy Center, Columbia, South Carolina, and a White Collar Crime Diploma also by the National Advocacy Center, USA. She has also a Certificate in Anti trust Law at Universidad del Desarrollo. She has also taught classes in the Judicial Academy, the Public Defendant´s Office and the Prosecutor´s Office, both in Chile, and in Mexico, Argentina and Uruguay.

She started her career at the Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile and in 2002, she became a senior associate at Rivadeneira, Colombara & Zegers, (former Colombara & Olmedo). She was shortlisted to become the National Public Defender and in 2014, she founded Espinoza & Heskia, a boutique white collar litigation firm.

She is Counsellor to Amparo y Justicia Foundation which deals with victims of sexual assault, she was a commissioner of the Chilean Jesuit Commision against clergy abuse and commissioner of the Santiago Archdiocese Commision for clergy abuse prevention.

She won the Probono Foundation Criminal Lawyer of the year 2010

She is Director and Secretary of the Female Lawyers Association of Chile and a member of the Chilean Bar Association.

She has a serious of publications in criminal law and criminal procedure, both in Chile and abroad.