Luis Guinot Jr. (April 8, 1935 – March 19, 2022) was an American diplomat who was the U.S. ambassador to

Costa Rica Costa Rica, officially the Republic of Costa Rica, is a country in Central America. It borders Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the northeast, Panama to the southeast, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, as well as Maritime bo ...

from 1991 to 1993. Nominated by

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

George H. W. Bush George Herbert Walker BushBefore the outcome of the 2000 United States presidential election, he was usually referred to simply as "George Bush" but became more commonly known as "George H. W. Bush", "Bush Senior," "Bush 41," and even "Bush th ...

on May 30, 1991, Guinot was confirmed by the

United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...

in the summer of 1991 and soon afterwards relocated permanently to San José where he presented his credentials to then Costa Rican President Rafael Ángel Calderón Fournier on August 27, 1991. He left the post on March 1, 1993. Prior to his

nomination Nomination is part of the process of selecting a candidate for either election to a public office, or the bestowing of an honor or award. A collection of nominees narrowed from the full list of candidates is a short list. Political office In ...

, Guinot was commissioned in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

in 1958 and served for 14 years including four years in the

United States Navy Reserve The United States Navy Reserve (USNR), known as the United States Naval Reserve from 1915 to 2004, is the Reserve Component (RC) of the United States Navy. Members of the Navy Reserve, called reservists, are categorized as being in either the S ...

. He was a partner and attorney with the law firm of Kelley Drye & Warren in

Washington, DC Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and Federal district of the United States, federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from ...

. From 1974 to 1985, Guinot served as a partner and attorney with the law firm of Rose, Schmidt, Chapman, Duff and Hasley. From (1972 to 1974), Mr. Guinot served as Assistant General Counsel for the

Department of Agriculture An agriculture ministry (also called an agriculture department, agriculture board, agriculture council, or agriculture agency, or ministry of rural development) is a ministry charged with agriculture. The ministry is often headed by a minister f ...

. In addition, Mr. Guinot was a self-employed attorney at law and

consultant A consultant (from "to deliberate") is a professional (also known as ''expert'', ''specialist'', see variations of meaning below) who provides advice or services in an area of specialization (generally to medium or large-size corporations). Cons ...

and served as Administrator for the Office of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico in Washington, DC from 1969 to 1972. He also served as an associate attorney with the law firm of Faerber and Cerny (1968–1969) In private practice he has represented the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, as well as private Puerto Rican clients and political organizations. Guinot has authored numerous articles and appeared as a speaker on US-

Latin American Latin Americans (; ) are the citizenship, citizens of Latin American countries (or people with cultural, ancestral or national origins in Latin America). Latin American countries and their Latin American diaspora, diasporas are Metroethnicity, ...

relations and international free trade agreements. He has also appeared at symposia and on numerous panels focused on Puerto Rico's

commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the 15th century. Originally a phrase (the common-wealth ...

relationship with the United States. In 2003, he was selected by the Hispanic Association on Corporate Responsibility as one of eight Fortune Board Honorees, a distinction granted to outstanding

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

leaders serving on the boards of large corporations. Guinot is a member of the board of directors of Tampa Electric Co. and its parent company, TECO Energy. Guinot held a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

degree from

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...

(Class of 1957) and a

juris doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...

from

Columbus School of Law The Catholic University of America Columbus School of Law is the law school of the Catholic University of America, a private Roman Catholic research university in Washington, D.C., United States. More than 370 Juris Doctor students attend the ...

The Catholic University of America The Catholic University of America (CUA) is a private Catholic research university in Washington, D.C., United States. It is one of two pontifical universities of the Catholic Church in the United States – the only one that is not primarily ...

(Class of 1968). Fluent in both Spanish and English, he was married and the father of five children. He was latterly a partner with the Washington D.C. law firm of Shapiro, Sher, Guinot & Sandler. Guinot died on March 19, 2022, at the age of 86. He was buried at

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is the largest cemetery in the United States National Cemetery System, one of two maintained by the United States Army. More than 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington County, Virginia. ...

References

External links

Official Nomination Announcement
from the George Bush Presidential Library
Biography
on the "Council of American Ambassadors" website
Biography
on "Shapiro, Sher, Guinot & Sandler" website {{DEFAULTSORT:Guinot, Luis 1935 births 2022 deaths Ambassadors of the United States to Costa Rica Burials at Arlington National Cemetery Columbus School of Law alumni Military personnel from San Juan, Puerto Rico New York University alumni People from San Juan, Puerto Rico Puerto Rican diplomats Puerto Rican people of French descent United States Navy officers United States Navy reservists

See also

References

External links