Terry professor quoted far and wide as Mexico’s energy reform takes shape

Tim Samples, an assistant professor of legal studies at Terry, has been quoted widely in the international press for his expertise on Mexico’s energy policies.

In early November, the Wall Street Journal quoted Samples in a major story breaking news that two of Mexico’s leading political parties had brokered a deal on energy reform. Those revelations sparked controversy across Mexico and prompted a tweet about the article by one of Mexico’s most visible politicians, Andrés Manuel López Obrador.

The same story was reproduced in Wall Street Journal Americas and reverberated across Latin America in articles quoting Samples in La Nación (Argentina), Reforma (Mexico), El Mercurio (Chile), Banca & Negocios (Venezuela), La Prensa de Honduras (Honduras) and over a dozen outlets throughout Mexico. Days later, the Financial Times quoted Samples with an in-depth take on the events as well.

President Enrique Peña Nieto’s proposals would rewrite parts of the Mexican Constitution to allow greater private investment in the energy sector. More recently, the Financial Times again quoted Samples in a story looking forward at the political sensitivity of energy reforms and upcoming deadlines.

“You never want to completely write off Amlo [López Obrador] and the ability that he’ll have to mobilize nationally around this issue. It seems like a low-risk threat, but it’s definitely going to be a headache,” said Samples. However, he added, “It does seem like all signs are pointing to a meaningful reform.”

A former lawyer for international firm Hogan Lovells, Samples has co-authored two journal articles focusing on Mexico’s energy laws. The latest, titled “The Past, Present and Future of Energy in Mexico: Prospects for Reform Under the Peña Nieto Administration” was published in the Houston Journal of International Law.