Team

Daniela
Valencia

Senior Associate

Daniela is a senior associate in Cariola’s Labor, Social Security and Immigration practice and the team’s principal associate for advisory and immigration work, including due diligence, compliance and internal investigations.

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Degree: Chile, 2016.

Experience

She was an associate in the employment group from 2016 to 2019 and rejoined the firm in 2022 after serving as a cabinet advisor at Chile’s Ministry of Labor and Social Security (2019–2022). In that role she advised government officials on labor matters, including the legislative process of labor-related bills, and participated in significant negotiations with unions across various industries.

This experience provides her with a unique understanding of how labor regulations are developed, the objectives pursued by authorities in their enforcement, and giving her first-hand insight into the regulator’s perspective.

Her time as an in-house counsel in one of the leading mining companies in Chile and worldwide gave her first-hand exposure to the operational and organization challenges faced by the companies we advise. This background has strengthened her ability to anticipate employment risks, prevent conflicts, and bring a practical and strategic perspective to legal counseling.

Advice to

  • She advises companies on labor relations, hiring and terminations, collective bargaining, social security, occupational health and safety, restructurings arising from plant closures or corporate changes, due diligence, outsourcing, and representation before the Labor Directorate. Her internal investigations work includes matters under the Karin Law.
  • She advises multinational groups on work permits, temporary and permanent residence for expatriates, and global mobility.

Education

  • Certificate in University Teaching (2024).
  • Course on Conciliation and Mediation of Labor Disputes, ILO International Training Centre (2021).
  • Master’s in Labor and Social Security Law, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile (2021).
  • Sign Language Course, CEA – Office of the Comptroller General of Chile (2021).
  • Certificate in Labor Law, with a concentration in Collective Labor Law and Bargaining (2016).
  • Certificate in Litigation and New Procedures (2015).
  • Law degree, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile (2015).

Academic Activities, Recognitions and Memberships

  • Immigration Law Instructor, Legal Clinic, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile.
  • Teaching Assistant in Labor Law, School of Law, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile.
  • Instructor, Legal Training Program for Workers and Employers.
  • Chambers and Partners — Associate to Watch, Labour & Employment, Chile (Latin America 2026, 2027).
  • The Legal 500 — Leading Associate, Labour and Employment, Chile.
  • Best Lawyers — Labor and Employment Law (2023, 2024, 2025, 2027).

Languages

  • Spanish
  • English