Dr Leopoldo Parada

Profile

I joined the University of Leeds School of Law as Lecturer in Tax Law in the academic year 2019-20, following a  position as visiting professor of International and European Tax Law at the University of Turin in Italy (2018-2020). Prior to that, I held academic positions as a postdoctoral researcher at the IBFD in Amsterdam (2018-2019), and as a research associate at the Max Planck Institute for Tax Law and Public Finance in Munich (2014-2017). In the past, I practised full-time as an attorney at law and tax advisor in Chile, Brazil, and the United States. I hold a law degree from the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, an LL.M. in International Taxation from the University of Florida Levin College of Law (USA), and a Ph.D. in Law from the University of Valencia in Spain. My Ph.D. thesis received the qualification of summa cum laude and has been awarded the "Universitè Paris 1 Pantheón-Sorbonne Award for the best Ph.D. thesis in Tax Law in 2018 and the "University of Valencia Extraordinary Doctoral Prize" for the best Ph.D. thesis in Law in the period 2017-2020. 

My research focuses primarily on the international implications of base erosion and profits shifting, tax avoidance and corporate income taxation, the application of double tax conventions, and the tax implications of digitalisation in the economy. I am the author of books, chapters of books, and several academic articles in recognised international tax law journals. Most notably, I am the single author of the book titled “Double Non-Taxation and the Use of Hybrid Entities” (Wolters Kluwer, 2018), and editor of two collective volumes: “Corporate Taxation, Group Debt Funding and Base Erosion” (Eucotax Series, Kluwer Law International, 2020) and “A Research Agenda for Tax Law” (Edward Elgar Publishing, 2022). I am also a regular speaker in specialised conferences around the world and I feature frequently in written and visual media discussing new developments in international taxation. 

The impact of my academic work goes also beyond academia and interacts constantly with social developments in the area of taxation. An example of this is the 2019 official report of the US Congressional Research Service on “Digital Services Taxes (DSTs): Policy and Economic Analysis”, where my work on digital taxation has been cited extensively. Similarly, in 2021 my work on hybrid entities has been referred by the EU Advocate General in his opinion in the case Veronsaajien oikeudenvalvontayksikkö (Exonération des fonds d’investissement contractuels) /Case C-342/20. I have also actively participated for around two years with the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) in important investigations related to tax avoidance, evasion, and fraud, including the so-called “Pandora Papers” in 2021. In 2020, I was recognised in the "TaxCOOP 35 Leaders of the Future in Taxation" excellence list as one of the most promising tax policy experts who passionately contribute to the advancement of taxation and tax justice worldwide.

I am an active member of the Society of Legal Scholars (UK), the European Association of Tax Law Professors (EATLP), and the International Fiscal Association (IFA)-UK branch. I also hold a seat in the Tax Committee of experts of the Joint Italian Arab Chamber of Commerce (JIACC) and the GCC Tax Law Expert’s Arena, and I am a member of the Chilean Bar Association. Finally, since Jan 2020, I am also an external examiner of the LLM in International Tax Law at the King's College of London.

Responsibilities

• Deputy Director Centre for Business Law & Practice (CBLP)

Research interests

My research interests include the international tax implications of base erosion and profit shifting, as well as the challenges posed by the global digitalization of businesses. In particular, I am extremely interested in the latest international tax reforms led by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), which includes a proposal for changing the current international allocation of profits rules for multinationals with highly digitalized businesses, as well as a global proposal for imposing a minimum international level of effective corporate income taxation. Broadly speaking, I am also interested in all issues related to the application of Double Tax Conventions, tax avoidance and evasion, corporate income taxation and EU tax matters, such as violation of fundamental freedoms and state aid issues.  

Qualifications

• PhD in Law, University of Valencia (Spain)
• LLM in International Taxation, University of Florida Levin College of Law (USA)
• JD in Law, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile (Chile)

Professional memberships

• Society of Legal Scholars (UK)
• European Association of Tax Law Professors (EATLP)
• International Fiscal Association (IFA) UK Branch
• Tax Committee of Experts of the Joint Italian-Arab Chamber of Commerce (JIACC)
• Tax Committee of Experts GCC Tax Law Expert’s Arena
• Chilean Bar Association

Student education

I teach generally in the areas of commercial, company, and tax law.

Research groups and institutes

• Centre for Business Law and Practice

Current postgraduate researchers

• Theophilus Tawiah
• Yunze Xiao