José Antonio Escalona

José Antonio Escalona de Molina holds a dual Bachelor in Law and in Economics & Business from Comillas Pontifical University/ICADE (1985/86). He is a partner at Escalona & De Fuentes, where he has been heading the commercial law department since 2006. He is the director — and faculty member — of the Executive Master in Business Legal Advice. He is a member of the Madrid Bar Association and of the International Bar Association.

Before then, he had been a lawyer at Morrison & Foerster, in San Francisco (United States); a lawyer and partner at Uría Menéndez (1996–2000); and deputy director-general of alliances and acquisitions at Telefónica, SA, taking the lead in legal matters related to the group’s M&A operations (2001–03).

His practice focuses on commercial law in general and on mergers and acquisitions in particular. He has advised venture capital firms and various Spanish and international groups on numerous operations involving the acquisition and sale of companies, as well as on all types of shareholder and investment agreements.

He has extensive experience in the corporate environment and corporate governance. He has been secretary of the board of directors of Ence Energía y Celulosa, SA since 2006 and served in the same role at Indra Sistemas, SA from April 2015 to July 2021. He has been a member of the board of several privately held companies.

Another important aspect of his practice involves advising on corporate restructuring, including debt refinancing, structural modifications, and other corporate transactions. He also provides advice in the field of family business law.

He has been a lecturer for the ‘Financial & Banking Contracts’ module of the Master of Access to the Legal Profession programme at the San Pablo CEU University Foundation Institute of Higher Studies, and for the ‘Commercial Contracts’ module of the Master in Private Law programme at the Madrid Bar Association.