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On Friday, 19 December, a solemn investiture ceremony was held in the Central Hall of the Royal Academy of Jurisprudence and Legislation, organised by the General Council of Official Colleges of Social Graduates of Spain (CGCOGSE). The ceremony marked the award of the Distinguished Cross of the 2nd Class of the Order of San Raimundo de Peñafort to Mr José Conesa Ballestero, Acting President of the Illustrious College of Social Graduates of Barcelona, the first Social Graduate in Catalonia to receive this distinction.
José Conesa
Employment Lawyer
The ceremony was presided over by Mr Francisco Javier Vieira Morante, President of the High Court of Justice of Madrid, accompanied in his role as host by Mr Francisco Javier San Martín Rodríguez, President of the CGCOGSE, and Mr Luis Cazorla Prieto, Secretary General of the Royal Academy of Jurisprudence and Legislation.
Mr José Conesa Ballestero was sponsored by Mr Fernando Salinas Molina and Ms Rosa María Virolés Piñol, Justices of the Social Chamber of the Supreme Court.
The laudatory address in honour of Mr José Conesa Ballestero, delivered by lawyer Mr Jordi Ligüerre Forés, highlighted that the award recognised not only the jurist but also his dedication to the profession, a selfless Social Graduate and Lawyer who, through outstanding commitment and effort, has built an impressive career that is genuinely worthy of admiration.
In his acceptance speech, Mr Conesa paid special tribute to the late President Mr Vicenç Cardellach i Marzà, who had originally put forward the nomination for this distinction, describing him as a friend and mentor, and as the person who has written more pages in the history of our cherished profession than anyone else: great pages that have charted the path forward for the future.
Mr Francisco Javier San Martín Rodríguez, President of the General Council, then presented Mr Conesa with the insignia of the Distinguished Cross of the 2nd Class of the Order of San Raimundo de Peñafort.
The solemn ceremony was attended by numerous authorities, judges, members of the Standing Committee of the General Council, fellow professionals, friends of the recipients, and distinguished figures from the worlds of the Judiciary and academia.
The award was formally conferred by Order of the Minister of Justice dated 6 December 2012 (Official Gazette of the Ministry of Justice No. 2150, January 2013), having been proposed by the General Council of Official Colleges of Social Graduates of Spain at the request of the Illustrious College of Social Graduates of Barcelona.
José Conesa Ballestero qualified as a Social Graduate on 6 October 1967 and subsequently as a Lawyer, admitted to the Bar Associations of Barcelona and Madrid. He is the founding shareholder and principal of "Bufete Jurídico Conesa & Asociados". He holds diplomas in EU Law and Company Law from the Polytechnic University of Madrid, as well as in Economic and Business Studies. He is also a member of the EU and International Law Section of the Barcelona Bar Association, and a member of the International Association of Labour Law and Social Security. He is a founding member of the "Association Européenne des Avocats", of the firm's own network of law offices ELEN (European Legal Network), of which he was the inaugural President, and of the Spanish Legal Network, which he also founded.
He lectures at the Faculty of Economic and Business Sciences in Barcelona, covering employment law and Social Security, across various master's programmes and courses. He has also taught at the School of Legal Practice and continues to do so at the campus of the Barcelona Bar Association, as well as at the School of Employment Law Practice of the Barcelona College of Social Graduates.
He is the author of numerous articles and academic works on labour, civil, procedural and commercial law, with particular expertise in EU social law, a field in which he specialises and teaches.
