Delia M. Arias De Leon is an associate in the Firm’s Litigation Department. Her practice focuses primarily on white collar criminal defense, regulatory enforcement actions and internal investigations for a wide variety of institutions and non-profits.
Ms. Arias De Leon is recognized in The Legal 500 Latin America for Compliance & Investigations where she is noted for "her commitment to excellence and her ability to provide comprehensive legal support on large projects.”
Ms. Arias De Leon also has experience working on complex commercial litigations. Notably, Ms. Arias De Leon is part of the Debevoise team that won summary judgment on behalf of YPF, the largest energy producer in the Republic of Argentina, defeating claims for roughly $15 billion in damages and prejudgment interest. This was a landmark win for YPF, securing dismissal of a case that has been pending in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York since 2015.
Ms. Arias De Leon is committed to mentoring other Latinas and LGBTQ individuals, and is a representative for both the Latino/a and LGBTQ+ Affinity Groups on the Firm's Diversity Committee. She also serves on the Board of Directors of the Hispanic National Bar Foundation, as well as the Latino Justice PRLDEF’s Líderes Young Professionals Board.
Ms. Arias De Leon joined Debevoise in 2020. She received a J.D. from Columbia Law School in 2020, where she was a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar, and was awarded the Richman Leadership Fellowship in recognition of her outstanding leadership qualities. Ms. Arias De Leon was also the pro bono director for the Human Rights Law Review and a coach for Columbia’s Asylum and Refugee Law Moot Court.
Ms. Arias De Leon received a B.A. cum laude from Wellesley College in 2016, where she was President of her Senior Class.
She is a native Spanish speaker and is proficient in French.