Sovereign & States Disputes and Enforcement Summit 2025

Uniquely bringing the Sovereign Disputes and FIRE communities together

to address the latest in Sovereign & States Disputes and Enforcement.

In-person

29th & 30th January 2025 | The Law Society, 113 Chancery Lane, London

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Currently Confirmed Speakers!

Charles T. Kotuby
Of Counsel
Three Crowns

Charles Kotuby is a Professor of Practice and the Executive Director of the Center for International Legal Education at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law. 

Professor Kotuby is currently an Of Counsel with Three Crowns in Washington DC and was previously a partner in the Global Disputes practice of Jones Day in Washington DC. He has spent over 20 years of experience as an international law counsel representing multinational corporations and sovereign states in complex international disputes. He has acted in international arbitrations and litigations across a range of sectors and industries, has been counsel to represented clients with treaty-based claims in Central Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East, and has appeared as counsel in international matters before the U.S. Supreme Court, the Court of Justice of the European Union, ICSID, UNCITRAL and ad hoc arbitral tribunals. 


Charles T. Kotuby
Charles T. Kotuby Of Counsel
Three Crowns
Steven Finizio
Partner
Wilmer Hale

Steven Finizio is a partner at Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr LLP, and co-partner-in-charge of the firm’s London office.  He has acted as counsel and arbitrator in international arbitrations involving the laws of jurisdictions in Europe, Asia, Africa, South America, and the US, and has been counsel in disputes under international treaties and in international courts.  He is Professor of Practice at SOAS University of London and Deputy Director of the SADRC.  His publications include “A Practical Guide to International Commercial Arbitration:  Assessment, Planning and Strategy” and “International Commercial Arbitration” in The Law of Transnational Business Transactions.   He is a member of the GIAC Advisory Council and the Protem Committee for the AIAC Court of Arbitration, and a past member of the LCIA Court.


Steven Finizio
Steven Finizio Partner
Wilmer Hale
Andrea Menaker
Partner
White & Case

Andrea Menaker is Head of the Firm's Public International Law Group and specializes in investment arbitration, where she has represented respondent States and claimant investors in equal measure in some of the most ground-breaking investment arbitration cases. Andrea also has an active practice in relation to enforcement of arbitral awards and has coordinated such actions worldwide for clients, in addition to serving as arbitrator and expert witness on investor-State issues. After more than a decade in the Firm's Washington, DC office, Andrea transferred to London in 2019 to grow and co-lead the Firm's investment arbitration practice there.


Andrea Menaker
Andrea Menaker Partner
White & Case
James Castello
Partner
King & Spalding

James Castello has advised and represented clients (and has arbitrated disputes) in a wide range of commercial and investor-state proceedings under multiple arbitral rules. Based in Europe for 23 of his 36 years in practice, James now serves as both counsel and arbitrator.  According to Chambers Global, he is “praised by market commentators as an ‘absolutely open, thorough, fantastic lawyer,’” and is "highly praised by clients for his ‘extensive, in-depth experience’ in international arbitration."


James Castello
James Castello Partner
King & Spalding
Professor Martins Paparinskis
Professor of Public International Law
University College London

Professor Martins Paparinskis joined UCL Faculty of Laws in 2013. Prior to this, he was a Junior Research Fellow at Merton College Oxford and a Hauser Research Scholar at the New York University. He took an LL.B. from the University of Latvia, before coming to the UK to take his M.Jur. (Dist, Clifford Chance Prize), M.Phil (Dist), and D.Phil. from the University of Oxford. He is a Member of the PhD Scientific Board of the Doctoral College of the University of Milan-Bicocca and a Global Fellow at the National University of Singapore Centre for International Law, and has held visiting positions at the National University of Singapore and the University of Bologna. He has received UCL Laws Excellence Award for Legal Teaching (EXALT): Graduate (2016) and was nominated for Student Choice Awards (2023, 2024).


Professor Martins Paparinskis
Professor Martins Paparinskis Professor of Public International Law
University College London
Cationa Paterson
Partner
Omnia Strategy LLP

Catriona Paterson is a Partner at Omnia Strategy.  Catriona advises and represents States and companies on a wide variety of contentious and non-contentious international dispute resolution and public international law matters, including investment treaty arbitration, the protection of investments under bilateral and multilateral investment treaties, recognition and enforcement of foreign arbitration awards, international humanitarian law and human rights law.  Catriona has acted as counsel in disputes conducted under all of the principal arbitration rules, including ICSID, ICSID Additional Facility, UNCITRAL, ICC, and LCIA, and across a variety of industries and business sectors.


Catriona Paterson
Cationa Paterson Partner
Omnia Strategy LLP
Arif Ali
Partner
Dechert

Arif Hyder Ali is a globally ranked and recognized lawyer with over 30 years of experience in international dispute settlement, including investor-State and international commercial arbitration, state-to-state disputes, and cross-border litigation. He is currently the Co-Chair of Dechert LLP’s International Arbitration and Public International Law Group. He has served as lead trial counsel and arbitrator (sole, party-appointed, presiding) in arbitrations under all the major arbitral regimes and the laws of over 50 civil and common law jurisdictions, as well as Islamic law and public international law. He has also held positions at leading academic institutions (Georgetown University Law Center, University of Dundee’s Centre for Energy, Mineral Law, and Policy) as an adjunct law professor, honorary lecturer and global faculty member. He has worked as a senior lawyer in two international organizations: from 1993 to 1996, he was a Section Chief at the United Nations Compensation Commission, a subsidiary organ of the United Nations Security Council, and from 2000 to 2001, he served as Senior Counsel at the World Intellectual Property Organization Arbitration and Mediation Center.


Arif Ali
Arif Ali Partner
Dechert
Sylvia Tonova
Partner
Jones Day (UK)

Sylvia Tonova is a Global Disputes partner in the London office of Jones Day.  She focuses on the resolution of complex, high-stakes international disputes, with a particular emphasis on disputes between foreign investors and governments. She acts as both counsel and arbitrator and is appointed to the ICSID Panel of Arbitrators and the HKIAC List of Arbitrators.

Sylvia's experience spans Europe and the Middle East, Africa, Latin America, and Asia in a range of industries, including mining, oil and gas, energy, and telecommunications. She has represented clients under all the major arbitration rules and advises clients on arbitration clauses, sovereign immunity, and protecting investments against political risk.

Sylvia is recognized in The Legal 500, Chambers, Who's Who Legal: Arbitration, and Who's Who Legal: Mining. She serves on the International Bar Association's Arbitration Committee as co-chair of the international commercial arbitration case law subcommittee and teaches enforcement of awards at Roma Tre Law School.


Sylvia Tonova
Sylvia Tonova Partner
Jones Day (UK)
Hector Sbert
Partner
ECIJA (Spain)

Héctor is a partner in the litigation and arbitration, restructuring and insolvency and compliance areas of ECIJA’s Barcelona office. He has more than 20 years of experience advising national and international clients from all sectors in the areas of litigation, arbitration and insolvency law. He has been recognized by prestigious rankings such as “Best Lawyers” and “Who’s Who Legal” among the best lawyers in Spain in his areas of practice. He is also a specialist in litigation linked to cryptocurrencies, cybersecurity and cyber fraud, as well as fraud related to unconventional assets, such as wine products and art and collectibles.

He is the representative for Spain of FraudNet, a worldwide network of lawyers that, under the auspices of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), brings together the leading international specialists in asset tracing & recovery. He is also a Member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators of London (MCIArb.) and a Registered Mediator with the Ministry of Justice.

Héctor holds a PhD in Law from the Universitat Pompeu Fabra, an Executive MBA from IESE, and a law degree from the Universitat Pompeu Fabra. In addition, he has been a member of the Governing Board of the ICAB (Barcelona Bar Association) and has chaired the Bar Association’s Ethics Committee.

Héctor speaks Spanish, Catalan, English, French, German, Italian and French.


Hector Sbert
Hector Sbert Partner
ECIJA (Spain)
Anya George
Partner
Schellenberg Wittmer Ltd (Switzerland)

Anya George is a partner in Schellenberg Wittmer's dispute resolution group. As a trilingual and dual qualified lawyer (Switzerland and England & Wales), she represents states, state-owned entities and private companies in complex multi-jurisdictional disputes across a wide range of sectors, with particular emphasis on energy infrastructure, commodities and natural resources, insurance and reinsurance contracts, and manufacturing and sales agreements.

Anya has acted in over 60 arbitrations under the ICC, LCIA, CAS, UNCITRAL and Swiss Rules, as well as in ad hoc proceedings. She has special expertise in arbitration-related litigation, including enforcement and setting-aside proceedings before the Swiss Supreme Court, in both French and German. She also advises clients on ESG-related issues.

Anya is a lecturer in International Commercial Arbitration at the University of Zurich. She is also a member of the ICC Swiss Commission of Arbitration and ADR and of the Board of the Swiss Arbitration Association (ASA).


Anya George
Anya George Partner
Schellenberg Wittmer Ltd (Switzerland)
Dr. Stuart Dutson
Partner
Simmons & Simmons

Stuart has drafted complex choice of law clauses and multi-tier and multi-party arbitration and jurisdiction agreements for many transactions, including multi-million dollar M&A deals and international oil and gas projects in the Middle East, Nigeria, India and South America.

Stuart has conducted arbitrations under both common law and civil law in England, mainland Europe (including Sweden, Switzerland, Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic), the Middle East, Africa and Australia. He has acted for and against parties from the UK, mainland Europe, Central Europe, Asia, North and South America, Australia and Africa.


Dr. Stuart Dutson
Dr. Stuart Dutson Partner
Simmons & Simmons
Richard Clarke
Partner
Kobre & Kim (Dubai)

Richard Clarke is an English barrister focused on resolving international commercial disputes, typically involving cross-border claims, civil fraud and insolvency. He advises multinational corporations, investors and individuals on the monetization and defence of claims, financial instruments, judgments and arbitral awards. Mr. Clarke often assists clients facing atypical events with the potential to impact the future course their business, including in M&A, joint venture and shareholder disputes.

Mr. Clarke has acted in complex litigation in the High Court and Court of Appeal in London, DIFC Courts, ADGM Courts and Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU). His arbitration portfolio includes awards rendered in accordance with major institutions and rules, including ICC, LCIA, DIAC, ICSID, HKIAC, UNCITRAL and LMAA.

He has been based in the Middle East for over eight years, and has been recognized by Chambers & Partners as "a star of the future," and the Legal 500 as having “made a major impact in the region.”


Richard Clarke
Richard Clarke Partner
Kobre & Kim (Dubai)
Yves Klein
Partner
Monfrini Bitton Klein (Switzerland)

Yves Klein’s main activity is litigating and coordinating transnational asset recovery proceedings on behalf of victims of economic crimes or parties seeking to enforce their claims against assets concealed in Switzerland or abroad. He develops strategies for the international search and recovery of assets, coordinates cross-border proceedings and represents his clients, including individuals, companies, foreign governments, and liquidators of foreign insolvencies, before civil, criminal and bankruptcy courts, in order to recover crime proceeds and obtain damages, notably from facilitators (banks, financial companies, fiduciaries, etc.).


Yves Klein
Yves Klein Partner
Monfrini Bitton Klein (Switzerland)
Fabio Trevisan
Partner
BSP (Luxembourg)

Fabio Trevisan is a partner and head of BSP’s Dispute Resolution practice. His practice focuses on a wide spectrum of complex commercial, corporate and financial litigation and arbitration.

He has played a role in a number of high-profile cases, with over two decades of experience in managing and conducting litigation for his clients in almost all sectors.

Fabio has experience of over 30 years in all forms of dispute resolution including litigation, mediation and arbitration as well as general banking, corporate and commercial dispute resolution. He has extensive experience of applications for enforcing and obtaining freezing injunctions in international arbitration, enforcements of ICSID awards, and more generally in the recovery of assets.

Fabio has further developed a reputation in real estate matters and commercial contracts.


Fabio Trevisan
Fabio Trevisan Partner
BSP (Luxembourg)
Tuvan Yalim
Partner
Kabine Law

Tuvan Yalım is a partner at Kabine Law Office. Mr. Yalım’s work focuses on challenging and high value commercial disputes. Mr. Yalım has represented clients from various sectors in international commercial and investment arbitration cases before a broad range of arbitral institutions, and has been involved in many complex international litigations which resulted in landmark decisions in various jurisdictions. Mr. Yalım also practices as a transaction lawyer, specializing in M&A and finance, and has advised clients on some of the largest international transactions involving Turkish parties over the last decade. Mr. Yalım’s practice also includes cross-border investigations and compliance, financial crimes and international asset restructurings for corporates and family holdings.


Tuvan Yalim
Tuvan Yalim Partner
Kabine Law
Dr. Abayomi Okubote
Executive Director
Africa Arbitration Academy

Dr. Abayomi Okubote
Dr. Abayomi Okubote Executive Director
Africa Arbitration Academy
Trevor Withane
Partner
Ironbridge Legal (Australia)

Trevor Withane is one of Australia’s leading disputes and insolvency lawyers, who has been consistently recognised as such in Legal 500 and Doyle’s Guide.

A former UK lawyer, Trevor started his legal career at global elite firm, Allen & Overy, followed by a stint at Mishcon de Reya in fraud defence before being called to the English Bar, where he was involved in several commercial and fraud related cases.

Having relocated to Australia, Trevor founded Ironbridge Legal where his practice focuses on acting for corporates, directors, high-net-worth individuals and liquidators in complex, often bet-the-farm, disputes – in court and in arbitral proceedings. Trevor also advises clients in relation to recognition and enforcement of overseas judgments, arbitral awards and insolvency proceedings in Australia.

Ironbridge Legal is a truly specialist, conflict free and intellectually rigorous disputes and insolvency law firm, with offices in Sydney and Melbourne. The firm represents clients in all courts in Australia, regardless of state.


Trevor Withane
Trevor Withane Partner
Ironbridge Legal (Australia)
Steven Perles
Founder
Perles Law Firm

Steve Perles is the founder of the Perles Law Firm, PC, a law firm specializing in private litigation against state sponsors of terrorism which have included Iran, Syria, Sudan, and Libya. Additionally, the firm bring suits against large financial institutions that launder money for terrorist organizations.

Steve’s 40-plus year career has resulted in reparations for thousands of American victims of terrorism and their family members. In 1986, Steve took on the first successful case of its kind, pursuing a foreign sovereign for injury to a U.S. citizen. He represented Hugo Princz, a US passport holder enslaved in the Nazi concentration camps of Auschwitz and Dachau, in a lawsuit against Germany. He successfully worked with members of Congress to ensure that Mr. Princz and all other people held in Nazi concentration camps while U.S. citizens received compensation from the German government.  In 1996 the goal of Princz, to hold sovereign states accountable for gross violations of international norms, was codified as law when Congress passed the state-sponsored terrorism exception to the Foreign Sovereign Immunity Act. Steve brought the first case under this exception, Flatow v. The Islamic Republic of Iran, on behalf of the estate and family of a young woman murdered by an Iranian-sponsored terrorist attack in Gaza.   


Steven Perles
Steven Perles Founder
Perles Law Firm
Piers Plumptre
Partner
Gibson Dunn

Piers Plumptre is an English qualified partner working in the London office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher. Piers is a member of the Dispute Resolution and International Arbitration Groups.

Piers’s practice includes international arbitration and enforcement, complex commercial litigation, financial services disputes, and international fraud and white collar crime. He has extensive experience of international litigation and arbitration matters, spanning multiple jurisdictions, and in a wide variety of sectors.


Piers Plumptre
Piers Plumptre Partner
Gibson Dunn
Cathalijne van der Plas
Partner
JahaeRaymakers (The Netherlands)

Cathalijne conducts an international practice that consists for the main part of international judgement enforcement and civil asset tracing & recovery, with an accent to financial crime matters.

In addition, because of her special expertise on private international law, Cathalijne van der Plas is frequently called in as ‘lawyer’s lawyer’ by fellow professionals in order to render opinions or give advice on complex issues concerning the international jurisdiction of courts, the applicable law and the recognition and enforcement of foreign decisions or arbitral awards. She has a unique knowledge of the intersections of private international law, public international law and international sanctions law, with regard to among other things supermandatory rules and immunity from jurisdiction and from execution.


Cathalijne van der Plas
Cathalijne van der Plas Partner
JahaeRaymakers (The Netherlands)
Jean-Sébastien Bazille
Partner
Gide Loyrette Nouel

Partner, admitted to the Paris Bar in 2010, Jean-Sébastien Bazille assists clients in all fields of civil and commercial disputes (contractual disputes, M&A litigation, tort, debt recovery and enforcement proceedings, etc.). He also specialized in international law and advises companies as well as States and para-statal entities on solving their disputes, both during the pre-litigation and litigation stages, before domestic and international courts.

Jean-Sébastien is a graduate of Rennes I and Montpellier Universities.

He is a member of the International Law Association (ILA) and the French Society for International Law (Société Française de Droit International, SFDI).

Jean-Sébastien speaks French and English


Jean-Sébastien Bazille
Jean-Sébastien Bazille Partner
Gide Loyrette Nouel
Samantha J. Rowe
Partner
Debevoise & Plimpton (UK)

Samantha J. Rowe is a partner in Debevoise & Pimpton’s International Dispute Resolution Group. Ms. Rowe has represented private clients and States across multiple jurisdictions in arbitrations and litigations governed by various substantive laws and conducted under the rules of the ICC, LCIA, ICSID, UNCITRAL and SIAC. She is a solicitor (England & Wales) and admitted to the New York bar. Ms. Rowe has been named to The Lawyer’s Hot 100 list, and was named a Rising Star for International Arbitration by Law360, and a UK Rising Star, and a Rising Star in the Commercial Arbitration practice category at the Euromoney Legal Media Group Europe Rising Stars Awards. Ms. Rowe is included in The Legal 500’s International Arbitration Powerlist, and she is listed by Who’s Who Legal (2022) as a leading lawyer and thought leader for arbitration. Chambers Global (2023), Chambers UK (2024) The Legal 500 UK (2024), and The Legal 500 Latin America (2023) recommend her for International Arbitration; The Legal 500 UK (2024) further recommends her for Public International Law.


Samantha J. Rowe
Samantha J. Rowe Partner
Debevoise & Plimpton (UK)
Lútsen de Vries
Partner
Staunch Law

Lútsen de Vries specialises in the resolution of complex, cross-border disputes through litigation, arbitration and mediation. Lútsen is a seasoned, strategic litigator with a broad practice and experience in disputes in relation to investments and BITs, construction, M&A transactions, gas prices and ESG. His practice also encompasses setting aside and revocation proceedings, the worldwide recognition and enforcement of arbitral awards and judgments, attachments issues, mass claims litigation and discovery claims. Lútsen holds an MSc in International Business & Management and studied at the universities of Edinburgh (LLM), Barcelona and Groningen. Lútsen acts as chairman of the board of classical music collective Pynarello.


Lútsen de Vries
Lútsen de Vries Partner
Staunch Law
Jagdish J. Menezes
Of Counsel
Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP

Jagdish Menezes is a senior associate at the London office of Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP, one of the world’s largest law firms dedicated to litigation. He joined the firm in 2014. His practice focuses on international arbitration (investor-state and commercial), as well as multi-jurisdictional disputes involving issues of fraud and corruption. He has specific experience in disputes involving sovereigns as parties or counterparties, or raising government relations concerns.  He is admitted to practice in India and as a Solicitor of England & Wales with Higher Rights of Audience. 

Jagdish was recognised by the 2020 UK edition of Legal 500 as a key lawyer for commercial disputes and described in a testimonial as a “tremendous professional” with an “extremely impressive…degree of commitment and mastery of the case and applicable laws of multiple jurisdictions”. He is also listed among the Arbitration Future Leaders (Non-Partners) in the Who’s Who Legal Guide 2023.


Jagdish J. Menezes
Jagdish J. Menezes Of Counsel
Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP
Professor Antonios Tzanakopoulos
Professor of Public International Law
University of Oxford

Antonios is Professor of Public International Law at the Faculty of Law and Fellow in Law at St Anne's College. He has taught as a visitor at the Universities of Paris (Paris II - Assas, Paris X – Nanterre), Angers, London (King's College), Athens (National and Kapodistrian), Bern (World Trade Institute), Jerusalem (Hebrew University), at the Interdisciplinary Center (IDC) in Herzliya, and at the China University of Political Science and Law in Beijing. He was previously lecturer in international law at University College London and at the University of Glasgow. Antonios has also delivered a special course at the Xiamen Academy of International Law in 2017 and has been invited by the Curatorium of The Hague Academy of International Law to deliver a special course in 2026. 


Professor Antonios Tzanakopoulos
Professor Antonios Tzanakopoulos Professor of Public International Law
University of Oxford
Anne Hoffmann
Independent Arbitrator
Hoffmann Arbitration

Anne K. Hoffmann is an internationally recognised arbitrator with over two decades of extensive experience in both commercial and investor – State arbitration. Ms. Hoffmann is dual-qualified in Germany and England & Wales and has practiced across the globe in both civil law and common law jurisdictions. During that time, she worked at leading law firms in London, Geneva and Dubai before focusing on her practice as an independent arbitrator.


Anne Hoffmann
Anne Hoffmann Independent Arbitrator
Hoffmann Arbitration
Elena Fedorova
Lawyer - Of Counsel
Bonifassi Avocats (France)

Elena Fedorova specializes in civil fraud/asset recovery, recognition and enforcement of arbitral awards and foreign judgments, complex cross-border civil matters, and criminal proceedings. Elena often intervenes in cases involving former Soviet Union countries. At Bonifassi Avocats, which she joined in 2014, Elena represents BTA Bank of Kazakhstan as a civil party in the criminal investigation against Mukhtar Ablyazov, who is accused of defrauding the bank of $7.5 billion in one of the largest known frauds ever perpetrated. Elena also counsels the English trustees of Boris Berezovsky’s estate to recover assets he beneficially owned in France. She handled the recognition in France of a $200 million US judgment involving a bad bank, and civil fraud litigation for asset recovery involving complex corporate structures in offshore jurisdictions. Elena successfully defended a $50 million arbitral award in setting-aside proceedings with fraud allegations. She often obtains evidence in France for domestic and foreign civil proceedings. She contributed to several complex actions to recognize and enforce foreign judgments, including many against sovereign entities, along with related asset recovery.


Elena Fedorova
Elena Fedorova Lawyer - Of Counsel
Bonifassi Avocats (France)
The Honourable Thabo Chakaka Nyirenda
Attorney General
The Republic of Malawi

The Honourable Thabo Chakaka Nyirenda
The Honourable Thabo Chakaka Nyirenda Attorney General
The Republic of Malawi
Peter Griffin
Director
Slaney Advisors

Peter is the founder and a Director of Slaney Advisors. He is a lawyer qualified in New York and Paris (retired), and is a former partner in the law firms of Shearman & Sterling LLP and Baker Botts LLP. Throughout his career as a lawyer, Peter focused exclusively on foreign investment and particularly foreign investment disputes. His experience brought him close to many industries, particularly the extractive industries, financial and property sectors. In 2007, Peter left the day-to-day practice of law to focus on offering more cross-disciplinary advice to a select number of existing clients. Slaney Advisors is the result of that initiative.


Peter Griffin
Peter Griffin Director
Slaney Advisors
Steven Rajavinothan
Head of ATE & Associate Director, Contingent & Litigation Risk
VALE Insurance

Steven Rajavinothan
Steven Rajavinothan Head of ATE & Associate Director, Contingent & Litigation Risk
VALE Insurance
Emma Ruane
Partner
Peters & Peters

Emma has extensive expertise in civil fraud litigation, in particular obtaining and defending worldwide freezing injunctions. As a result of her work on behalf of the Department of Health, Emma has experience in litigating private damages actions in competition cases alleging abuse of dominant position and entry into anti-competitive arrangements. In the competition litigation practice area, Legal 500 described Emma as “very sharp”.

Emma’s work often involves cross-border or international elements: amongst other things Emma was part of the team that defended the former CEO of what was Nigeria’s fourth largest bank, conducting 2 weeks of the trial of the claim in Lagos. Emma has also assisted in the taking of evidence from witnesses in Nigeria, made representations on behalf of clients at the United Nations In New York and drafted evidence in support of an anti-suit injunction seeking to prevent the continuation of a claim filed in Israel.


Emma Ruane
Emma Ruane Partner
Peters & Peters
Michael-James Currie
Director
Primerio

Michael-James Currie is a Director of Primerio and co-founder of the Primerio South African practice. His regulatory and commercial law practice is pan-African and he has practiced across several countries and regional blocs including Botswana, Egypt, Kenya, Mauritius, Namibia, Nigeria, South Africa, Eswatini, Tanzania, COMESA and CEMAC. Key areas of practice include commercial and corporate law, competition law and complex commercial litigation. Mike has consistently been recognised as a “Best Lawyer in South Africa” and also serves as the “Global Law Expert for Competition Law in Nigeria.” In addition to his practice areas, Mike is a regular speaker and author who has published several articles, papers and opinion pieces. Mike currently serves as the African Regional Representative for the International Bar Association’s Anti-Corruption Committee.


Michael-James Currie
Michael-James Currie Director
Primerio
Baiju Vasani
Arbitrator and Barrister
Twenty Essex

For well over 20 years, Baiju has focused exclusively on international arbitration matters. He has served as counsel and arbitrator (sole, wing, and chair) in international arbitrations involving ICSID, ICC, LCIA, ICDR, SIAC, HKIAC, UNCITRAL Rules, bilateral investment treaties (BITs), the Energy Charter Treaty, NAFTA, DR-CAFTA, and public international law. He has also advised states on the negotiation and drafting of investment treaties, and investors on the (re)structuring of their investments for maximum treaty protection consonant with tax and corporate governance strategies.


Baiju Vasani
Baiju Vasani Arbitrator and Barrister
Twenty Essex
Naomi Briercliffe
Partner
Squire Patton Boggs

Naomi Briercliffe is a partner in the International Dispute Resolution Practice Group based in London. She acts for clients as counsel and advocate in disputes involving all types of contracts, investment treaties and public international law issues. She has represented clients in arbitrations under the rules of all major arbitral institutions, as well as in ad hoc proceedings. She has also acted in state-to-state disputes, including before the International Court of Justice and the Iran-US Claims Tribunal, and has significant experience of enforcement and other arbitration-related matters before domestic courts.


Naomi Briercliffe
Naomi Briercliffe Partner
Squire Patton Boggs
Nikos Asimakopoulos
Director - Disputes
Alaco (UK)

Nikos Asimakopoulos joined Alaco in 2008. He focuses on dispute-related assignments on behalf of law firms and their clients, working internationally. He has developed specific expertise in the extractive industries, particularly in Russia, Central Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. Nikos holds a BSc and an MSc in Economics from the universities of York and Bath, respectively.  He speaks Greek and Russian.


Nikos Asimakopoulos
Nikos Asimakopoulos Director - Disputes
Alaco (UK)
Emmanuel Kaspereit
Partner
Archipel (France)

Emmanuel Kaspereit is a partner of Archipel specialising in international litigation, including cross-border proceedings, enforcement, interim measures, and international asset tracing. He has considerable experience in enforcement of foreign judgments and arbitral awards against sovereign states and in fraud matters. He advises French and international clients on defining and carrying out strategies for recovery of assets.


Emmanuel Kaspereit
Emmanuel Kaspereit Partner
Archipel (France)
Jon Felce
Partner
Cooke, Young & Keidan (UK)

Recognised by The Legal 500 as a “rising star” “headed for the very top”, and by Who’s Who Legal as a Global Elite Thought Leader for both Asset Recovery and Commercial Litigation, Jon specialises in high-value, complex international commercial disputes with particular expertise in civil fraud, enforcement and asset recovery (including both commercial and sovereign debt), and he has obtained a number of ground-breaking orders in this regard. Chambers & Partners describes Jon as “incredibly impressive” and “an incredible tactician”, recognising him for his civil fraud work. The Legal 500 has called Jon a “bright young gun with a shrewd mind and a calm approach” and states there is “complete trust and faith in Jon’s advice and his expertise”, recognising him as a leading individual for civil fraud, a next generation partner for banking litigation, and recommending him for premium commercial litigation, international arbitration and commodities disputes. Jon has an international practice with clients including states, financial institutions, corporate clients, high-net-worth individuals and insolvency practitioners, and has acted on a number of complex and high value Russian/CIS cases.


Jon Felce
Jon Felce Partner
Cooke, Young & Keidan (UK)
Maria Fogdestam Agius
Partner
Westerberg & Partners

My practice as part of the firm’s Dispute Resolution Group focuses on international dispute settlement. In particular, I advise and represent States and private entities in matters pertaining to public international law, treaty-based dispute settlement and international human rights.

I have expertise on a wide range of public international law topics, including inter alia the law of treaties, the law on State responsibility, the law on State and diplomatic immunity, international investment law, the law of the sea and Business & Human Rights. I have experience of protecting foreign investments through international arbitration, advising individuals and companies on claims against governments and on the enforcement of awards against sovereign entities. I have equally assisted States defending against claims before international courts and tribunals and safeguarding sovereign and diplomatic immunities before national courts. I have represented corporate as well as sovereign clients in international arbitration and litigation and have appeared as an advocate before the International Court of Justice in The Hague and the Swedish Supreme Court. I also practice in human rights, advising in particular on Business and Human Rights regulatory and guidance frameworks, corporate ESG responsibilities and human rights due diligence.


Maria Fogdestam Agius
Maria Fogdestam Agius Partner
Westerberg & Partners
Sebastian Neave
Managing Director
JS Held

Sebastian Neave joined J.S. Held in May of 2022 as part of J.S. Held's acquisition of GPW. Sebastian Neave is a Managing Director in the Global Investigations practice in J.S. Held’s London office. He advises clients on complex disputes involving fraud, asset recovery, and a range of cross-border litigation and arbitration claims. He has over 10 years of investigations experience, having started his career in the London office of Kroll before working in PwC’s Forensics practice and at a specialist dispute consultancy.

He has developed specific expertise in disputes related to Russia and the CIS and has worked on a number of the more high-profile matters emanating from the region. Elsewhere, he has assisted clients in disputes over assets in sub-Saharan Africa, North Africa, and the Gulf. Working with GPW Sovereign Debt Advisors, the firm’s dedicated sovereign recovery practice, he also has extensive experience gathering evidence to support recovery strategies against a diverse collection of states and state-owned commercial parties.


Sebastian Neave
Sebastian Neave Managing Director
JS Held
Javier Garcia Olmedo
Senior Counsel
BSP (Luxembourg)

Javier is a Senior Counsel in BSP’s Dispute Resolution practice. He has over 10 years of experience in public international law and arbitration.

 

He has represented parties in commercial and investment arbitrations under all the major arbitral rules and institutions, including ICSID, PCA, UNCITRAL, ICC and LCIA. He also has experience in litigation proceedings, with a focus on proceedings to seek recognition and enforcement of arbitral awards.He combines private practice with academic activity. He is a Research Scientist at the Faculty of Law, Economics and Finance (FDEF) of the University of Luxembourg, where he teaches public international law, international dispute settlement and human rights law. In addition, he frequently speaks at international conferences and has published extensively on international arbitration and public international law in leading academic journals. Previously, he taught the LLM in International Dispute Settlement at Queen Mary University of London and was a Research Fellow at the Max Planck Institute Luxembourg. 


Javier Garcia Olmedo
Javier Garcia Olmedo Senior Counsel
BSP (Luxembourg)

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