Center for International Investment and Commercial Arbitration (CIICA), Young Arbitration Group (YAG)

We are delighted to announce that Ms. Amanda Lee FCIArb will be speaking at CIICA's 10th anniversary conference on the first day, 12th April, and conducting a session on careers in international arbitration on the second day, 13th April. Her brief bio is given below: Amanda J. Lee, FCIArb is an Arbitrator trading as LML Arbitration, and a Consultant at Costigan King, London. She is admitted as a solicitor in England and Wales, and to the Bars of New York State and the U.S. Supreme Court. Her practice focuses on the automotive, construction, financial services, and waste management industries. Amanda’s experience encompasses arbitration, construction adjudication, litigation, and mediation. She serves as sole and party-appointed arbitrator in ad hoc and institutional arbitration proceedings across a variety of sectors and seats. Amanda is a Visiting Lecturer at the University of Law, UK and holds numerous advisory roles. She is the Founder of Careers in Arbitration and ARBalance. Amanda is recognized as a Future Leader: Arbitration by Lexology Index and named in the Lawdragon Global Litigation 500. #CIICA10

It's time for another speaker announcement and it is none other than Kabir Duggal, Ph.D. who we are thrilled to have as a speaker at CIICA's 10th anniversary conference! Although Dr. Duggal needs no introduction, here is his brief bio: He is a Senior Fellow and Advisor at the Center for International Commercial and Investment Arbitration at Columbia Law School (CICIA) and an attorney in Arnold and Porter's New York office, focusing on international arbitration and public international law matters, serving both as arbitrator and mediator.?He is recognized as a “Chartered Arbitrator” (the highest ranking for arbitrators) by both the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators and the Asian Institute of Alternative Dispute Resolution.?He also frequently serves as an expert on international arbitration and public international law matters. Dr. Duggal is also a Lecturer-in-Law at Columbia Law School, an adjunct Professor at Fordham Law School, and a Course Director and a Faculty Member for the Columbia Law School-Chartered Institute of Arbitrators Comprehensive Course on International Arbitration.?He also acts as a Consultant for the United Nations Office of the High Representative for Least Developed Countries (UN-OHRLLS) on the creation of a novel "Investment Support Program."?Dr. Duggal works closely with the U.S. Department of Commerce's Commercial Law Development Program (CLDP) as an expert.?He has also conducted training and capacity-building sessions for several Governments on public international law and dispute resolution matters. He has published over 60 articles and has spoken at over 400 arbitration events all over the world.?He is a graduate of the University of Mumbai, University of Oxford (DHL-Times of India Scholar), NYU School of Law (Hauser Global Scholar), Leiden Law School (2019 CEPANI Academic Prize), and is currently pursuing an SJD Degree from Harvard Law School.?Dr. Duggal is admitted to practice law in New York, District of Columbia, England & Wales (as a Barrister), and in India.?His LinkedIn profile is available here: https://lnkd.in/gT6nNBNs #CIICA10

We are delighted to share that Ms. Saadia Bhatty will be speaking at CIICA's 10th anniversary conference. Ms. Bhatty is a dual-qualified attorney, admitted to the New York and Paris bars. She is a Partner in the International Dispute Resolution (IDR) team of Gide’s London office and co-head of the international dispute resolution practice of London. Prior to working for Gide in London, she worked for Gide in Paris and global law firms' international arbitration and public international law practices in London and New York. She has more than 15 years of experience advising and representing States and private entities on a wide range of contentious and pre-contentious international dispute resolution law matters, in particular in international commercial and investment arbitrations. She also has specific expertise in public international law matters, including drafting and negotiating international investment treaties for States (especially in Africa). Ms. Bhatty has acted as counsel in numerous investment and commercial arbitration proceedings conducted under the rules of various institutions (including those of the ICC, ICSID, LCIA, SCC, the Organization for the Harmonization of Business Law in Africa (OHADA), HKIAC and CAS) as well as ad hoc arbitrations (UNCITRAL), dealing with the laws of both civil and common-law jurisdictions. She has specific experience in the energy, oil & gas and construction sectors, especially in Asia, Africa and the Middle East. She has also advised the African Union in the International Court of Justice’s advisory proceedings relating to the Obligations of States in respect of Climate Change. She also sits as an arbitrator and is part of the roster of a number of arbitral institutions including CIICA’s. Ms. Bhatty is a Board and Executive Committee member of a number of professional organisations, including the African Academy for International Law Practice (AAILP), the European Federation for Investment Law and Arbitration (EFILA), the Center for International Investment and Commercial Arbitration in Pakistan (CIICA), and the ArbitralWomen group. She is also the President of the Harvard Women in Defense, Diplomacy and Development in London (Harvard W3D London Chapter). She also co-hosts the influential The Arbitration Station Podcast. A graduate from Harvard Law School, the Paris I Panthéon-Sorbonne University in Paris, and the Ecole Normale Supérieure, Saadia regularly writes articles and lectures in international law, trains private practitioners and government officials, and speaks at conferences in international arbitration across the world. She is ranked in the top legal directories including in Chambers Global, Legal 500 (both in the UK and Paris guides) in International Arbitration (“Powerlist” and “Next Generation Partner”), WWL (as a Future Leader in International Arbitration), and Best Lawyers UK and was recently shortlisted as “Partner of the Year” by Legal Leaders Awards. #CIICA10

We are pleased to share that Mr. David SYED will be speaking at CIICA's 10th anniversary conference. Based in London, Mr. Syed is a Partner at Dentons Europe and Head of Europe Sovereign Advisory. He will share his insights on how to reform Pakistan's international investment regime, a topic of vital importance for aspiring and current international law practitioners as well as relevant government officials. Bio As head of Dentons’ Sovereign practice, Mr. Syed represents governments, sovereign wealth funds, and state-owned enterprises on complex finance transactions, transformation and litigation. His practice also focuses on coordinating large diverse teams or consortiums on finance and corporate transactions, including high-value complex cross-border transactions, privatizations and transformation projects ranging from $100 million to multi-billions across many industry sectors including energy, mining, transportation, infrastructure and telecommunications. Mr. Syed has transactional experience in a wide variety of countries across Europe, the Middle East, Latin America, Africa and Asia. He has also been extensively involved on pro-bono matters including, amongst others, being on the Board of Advisors of Indego Africa, a NGO that supports women in Africa through economic empowerment and education (2017-present), as Chairman of Positive Planet UK, a NGO focused on developing economic, social and environmental inclusion around the world in a fair and sustainable way (2015-present) and a member of the UK Board of Trustees for the cultural event Festival d’Aix en Provence (2010-present). Prior to joining Dentons in November 2017, he was a founding partner of Orrick's Paris office, and the French office of Watson, Farley & Williams. Previously he was in-house counsel at Renault. In July 2010, Mr. Syed was inducted into the National Order of the Legion of Honor in France. He was also appointed an Officer of the Malagasy National Order in 2018. Recognition Recognized in IFLR1000, categories M&A and Banking & Finance Recognized in Best Lawyers, category Finance Inducted into the auspicious French “Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur” Appointed as Officer of the Malagasy National Order Memberships Member of the Board of Advisors of Indego Africa, a NGO that supports women in Africa through economic empowerment and education (2017-present) Director of Positive Planet UK, a NGO focused on developing economic, social and environmental inclusion around the world in a fair and sustainable way (2015-present) Member of the UK Board of Trustees for the cultural event Festival d’Aix en Provence (2010-present) Prior and Present Employment Partner, Dentons, 2017-present Managing Partner for Strategy, Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe, 2014-2017 Partner, Member of the Board and Management Committee, Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe, 2002-2014 Partner, Watson, Farley & Williams, 1992-2002 #CIICA10

We are thrilled to announce that Professor George Bermann will be joining us at CIICA's 10th anniversary conference to deliver the keynote speech! Professor Bermann is Chair of CIICA's Global Advisory Board and has been a source of invaluable guidance since CIICA's inception which is why it is fitting that he is the keynote speaker when CIICA's celebrates this significant 10-year milestone. Professor Bermann's brief bio is given below: Professor George Bermann is professor of law and director of the Center for International Commercial and Investment Arbitration at Columbia Law School. He has been arbitrator in scores of international commercial and investment cases since 1985 under the aegis of most leading international arbitral institutions. He is head of the global advisory board of the New York International Arbitration Center (NYIAC), fellow of Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, founding member of the Governing Board of the ICC International Court of Arbitration (Paris), head of the advisory board of the Thai Arbitration Center (Bangkok) and Center for International Investment and Commercial Arbitration (Lahore, Pakistan), and board member of both the Tehran?Regional Arbitration Center in Iran and the Japan Institute for International Arbitration Research and Training (Tokyo) . Professor George Bermann was Chief Reporter of the ALI Restatement of the US Law of International Commercial Arbitration, co-editor-in-chief American Review of International Arbitration and member of board of editors of Revue de l’Arbitrage. He co-authored (with E. Gaillard) the UNCITRAL Guide to the New York Convention and authored many books (most recently “Twilight Issues in International Arbitration”), book chapters and articles on international dispute resolution, notably international arbitration (most recently The Applicable Law in Investor-State Arbitration, in The Award in International Investment Arbitration (C. TiTi & K. Fach, eds.) (forthcoming 2024) and In the Cross-Fire between International Arbitration and E.U. Law, 2023 Paris J. Int’l Arb. 61 (2023). He serves regularly as expert witness on issues of international arbitration before both national courts and arbitral tribunals. He represents the American Arbitration Association as observer in UNCITRAL Working Group III. #CIICA10

Registration for CIICA's 10th anniversary conference is now open!

We are pleased to share with you all the latest blog post for YAG's blog titled “The Enforcement of Arbitration Agreements and Anti-Suit Injunctions – An Overview of the UK Supreme Court’s Judgment in UniCredit Bank GmbH v RusChemAlliance LLC” written by Mr. Muhammad Siddique Ali Pirzada. Mr. Pirzada provides an insightful analysis of this seminal UK Supreme Court judgment with a sharp focus on the jurisprudential underpinnings of anti-suit injunctions and the judgment’s significance/implications for the governing law of an arbitration agreement and its enforcement: https://lnkd.in/gAUYxnFb Here is Mr. Pirzada's bio:? ? Mr. Muhammad Siddique Ali Pirzada is a Final-year LL.B. (Hons.) candidate at the?University of London (Pakistan College of Law – PCL) an alumnus of Repton School Dubai, UAE. He presently serves as the Managing Editor at the Legal Education & Access Portal (LEAP) and President of the PCL Study Circle Society. He has participated as an Oralist in the Philip C. Jessup International Moot Court Competition 2023. Mr. Pirzada has authored articles in leading publications such as the University of Oxford Politics Blog, Cambridge International Law Journal, Georgetown Journal of International Law, The Oxford Middle East Review, Cornell Journal of Law & Public Policy, Center for International Investment and Commercial Arbitration, European Studies Review, and South Asia Foresight Network. Mr. Pirzada has gained practical experience through internships at top-tier law firms, including Al Tamimi & Company (DIFC) in their International Litigation and Dispute Resolution Department, Bhandari Naqvi Riaz, and Mohsin Tayebaly & Co., focusing on Arbitration, Commercial Litigation, Corporate & Commercial Advisory, Constitutional Law, and Media & Entertainment. Additionally, he interned at the Supreme Court of Pakistan under the mentorship of Honourable Mr. Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah. Mr. Pirzada is also a member of the Young International Arbitration Group a London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA) sponsored association for the younger members of the Arbitration community and has contributed as a Research Assistant to The Millennium Project, with a focus on the intersection of Artificial Intelligence and Foreign Policy. Furthermore, he is the youngest columnist for several reputable platforms, offering insights on contemporary legal and policy issues.

We are delighted to share with you all that CIICA's 10th anniversary conference is being organized on 12 & 13 April, 2025, in Islamabad!

We are excited to launch YAG's latest initiative titled "Write (Right) to Speak"! As part of this initiative, we will be inviting two authors of YAG's blog posts who have written on the same topic to speak on a YAG webinar. Here's how it will play out: a. Authors/speakers will share their views (preferably slightly divergent to make it more interesting :) So it will be a bit like a faceoff but one aimed at learning from each other's perspectives with an open mind which is why we have the next two rules below: b. At the start of the webinar, both authors/speakers will state at least one point on which they agree with the other; and c. At the end of the webinar, both authors/speakers will have to state at least one more point on which they agree with the other speaker. A lot of lawyering is about communication and we believe this initiative will help young arbitration practitioners, both current and aspiring, to hone their written and oral communication skills while developing a deeper understanding of an important arbitraiton topic. So if you're game, send in your blog post at [email protected] on one or even both of the topics of the most recent blog posts by Friday, September 20th: 1. The Intersection of AI and International Arbitration: Promises and Pitfalls: https://lnkd.in/g7iTWK2X 2. One-Sided Arbitration Clauses in Pakistan Government Contracts: https://lnkd.in/gx6SKnJV

We are pleased to share the latest blog post for YAG's blog titled "One-Sided Arbitration Clauses in Pakistan Government Contracts” written by Hamza Nizam Kazi. In this lucidly written post, Mr. Kazi analyzes the key features of assymetrical arbitration clauses in Pakistan Government contracts, their pros and cons, and their broader implications for fairness, transparency and international perception/image: https://lnkd.in/gx6SKnJV The author's bio is given below: Hamza Nizam Kazi is an experienced corporate lawyer having experience in advising to various companies, conglomerates and telecom industry and advising startups. Moreover, Hamza is an Advocate High Court, contract specialist and supply chain professional, having experience of drafting and advising on various commercial/supply chain contracts. He has experience in providing legal support on commercial, supplier contracts and contract negotiations including service level agreements relating to service sector. He has been associated with Ernst & Young, Cybernet (Lakson Group), YB Holdings (Lucky Cement Group), Multinet Pakistan Jaffer Group of Companies. He is currently a Sr. Legal Counsel at Lucky Core Industries. He is also a visiting faculty member at Institute of Business Management (IoBM), Karachi and has been associated with other universities as visiting faculty. Hamza is a Co-Chair for MENA Region for Campaign for Green Arbitration an initiative to reduce the environmental impact of international arbitrations and Steering Committee Member for Young Arbitration Group (“YAG”) for The Center for International Investment and Commercial Arbitration (CIICA) which is Pakistan’s first international arbitration center. Hamza writes for various online blogs and magazines including Profit Pakistan.