Graciela Josefina Dixon Caton
Partner
Contact details
Specialties
- Civil and Commercial litigation
- Domestic and international arbitration
- Criminal Law
- Human Rights
- Constitutional Law
Professional profile
He was Judge of the Supreme Court of Justice of Panama from January 1998 until December 2007, being elected by his peers to serve as President of this organ of the State during the period of January 2006 to December 2007 within which promoted an aggressive process of institutional modernization that included the introduction of a new management model called “justice without paper” with the object of reducing the time and increasing the transparency in the justice system panamanian.
He is currently a member of the panel of arbitrators of the Centre for Conflict resolution (CESCON) of the Panamanian Chamber of Construction and the Center of Conciliation and Arbitration (CECAP) of the Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture of Panama. Moreover, it has integrated the list of Arbitrators of the Court of Arbitration of the Official Chamber of Commerce of Madrid, Spain and has given multiple lectures in conferences for arbitration within and outside the Republic of Panama. In your experience, has served as an Expert (Legal Expert Witness) in Arbitration proceedings before the International Chamber of Investment Arbitration (ICSID) in Washington, DC and in disputes Commercial Arbitration at ICC in the city of Miami, USA. In addition he has served as Sole Arbitrator and has served on panels as Co-Arbitrator in commercial disputes and construction in the Republic of Panama.
Since 2011 forms part of the Committee of Experts on the application of standards, and international conventions of the International Labour Organization (ILO). Also in 2011, he chaired the World Conference on Human Rights of the Organization of United Nations, held in Geneva, Switzerland.
In June 2017 he joined as a Judge on the Administrative Tribunal of the inter-American Development Bank with headquarters in the city of Washington, D. C.
In March 2018, Judge Dixon Caton was distinguished as a Speaker in the Background for the Commemorative Session of the LXXII meeting of the United Nations General Assembly to mark the International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave trade.
Prior to joining the judiciary, panamanian, he practiced law litigator for 19 years. He also served as:
- Vice-president of the Board of Directors of the Authority of the Region Interoceanic Panama (ARI), agency in charge of the transition process, transfer and design of the use and integration to the jurisdiction of the Republic of Panama of the infrastructure, buildings and grounds of the former Panama Canal Zone, on application to the International Treaties signed and ratified between the Republic of Panama and the united States of America.
- Consultant to the Fund, United Nations Children's fund (UNICEF).
- Observer International for the United Nations in the Restructuring of the Court of Justice of Ecuador.
He is a member of the National College of Lawyers of Panama as well as of the International association of Judges (UIM). He has held the presidency and vice presidency of the International Association of Women Judges (IAWJ) for its acronym in English), an organization that brings together more than 4,000 women, female judges of the five continents. He has also chaired the Latin american Federation of Judges (FLAM), an advisory body to the Organization of American States, which brings together associations of judges and magistrates from more than 15 countries of Latin America and the Caribbean.
In the academic field, he has taught the subjects of Human Rights, Social Security Law and Political Science at the University of Panama, and in the Latin american University of Science and Technology (ULACIT). Taught courses in International Law at the Interamerican University of Puerto Rico as a visiting professor. He has lectured both in the center of higher studies as well as in the Law School of Harvard University in Boston, Massachusetts, in the Medgar Evers College in Brooklyn, NY, in the School of Law of the University of Santo Domingo and in the City Montessori School of Lucknow, India, on the occasion of the World Conference of Presidents of Courts.
Graciela J. Dixon Caton is a graduate of the University of Panama, where he earned a Bachelor of arts degree in Law and Political Science and a Post graduate Degree in Teaching Higher. He is a specialist in Criminal Law and Human Rights, as well as in Constitutional Law, this last degree obtained at the University Carlos III of Madrid, Spain. Account also with advanced training in International Commercial Arbitration of the International Chamber of Commerce based in Paris, France. The Judge Dixon Caton has good handling of the languages Spanish and English and also speaks, reads and writes moderately French.