International Arbitration

Related Professionals

Overview

The quality of their output is second to none. - Chambers UK, 2022
Our team has extensive experience in international commercial and investor-state arbitrations across all key sectors of the global economy.

We guide clients through every stage of their cross-border disputes, from crafting risk mitigation strategies, conducting successful settlement negotiations, handling complex bet-the-company arbitrations, enforcing and executing arbitral awards in courts around the world, as well as dealing with any collateral court litigation. We deal with arbitrations and other proceedings, whatever the place, language, governing law, or subject matter.

Our practice is dynamic and commercially minded. The team adopts a holistic approach to dispute resolution that focuses on achieving our client’s commercial goals. Our language capabilities, cultural diversity, and broad legal training enable us to better understand the dispute and all its nuances, allowing us to assess our client’s options and present the case in the most compelling way possible.

We represent clients in major international commercial arbitrations under the auspices of all leading arbitral organizations, including the ICC, ICDR, LCIA, HKIAC, PCA, SIAC and the SCC, as well as ad-hoc arbitrations.

We also regularly represent investors and states or state-entities in investor-state arbitrations conducted under the rules of ICSID and ad-hoc arbitrations governed by the UNCITRAL Rules.
We offer end-to-end solutions that put our clients in the strongest possible position to successfully navigate their cross-border legal risks and obtain the results that will best serve their needs.
Kirkland Represents North American Investment Fund in HKIAC Arbitration, Wins Over US $230 Million in Damages
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Capabilities

  • Advice to obtain maximum available protection under international law, including bilateral, multilateral and regional treaties.
  • Coordination with corporate and tax departments to obtain maximum commercial and tax benefits.
  • Market, economic, political and litigation risk assessment.
  • Dispute resolution agreement drafting.
  • Holistic approach to dispute resolution, from the early stages of a potential dispute, assessing alternative solutions to prevent the dispute from elevating, with the commercial goals of our clients at the forefront of our actions.
  • Dynamic, innovative and proactive strategic dispute resolution counselling in the Americas, Europe, Asia, and Africa.
  • Proactive approach to protecting client’s legal position.
  • Effective negotiation and early settlement strategy.
  • Analyzing alternative dispute resolution mechanisms to obtain speedy and positive results.
  • Devising effective case strategy for business context.
  • Deep experience in bringing and defending international commercial and investor-state arbitrations.
  • Extensive experience in multi-forum, multi-proceedings disputes.
  • Successful tracing of assets and enforcement of awards globally,
  • Deep experience in handling and managing collateral and related global litigation.
  • Representation of a leading Russian industrial group in a US$47 billion LCIA arbitration. The dispute concerned a shareholder dispute in a major Russian entity.
  • Representation of a publically traded biotech company in an ICDR arbitration against a Brazilian supplier involving contract and IP issues with parallel injunctive proceedings in the US courts. 
  • Representation of a leading Russian industrial group in a US$100 million LCIA arbitration. The dispute concerned a valuation agreement.
  • Representation of an Asian alternative investment management firm in a SIAC arbitration commenced by two Singaporean individuals in connection with an investment in Asia. Representation includes related proceedings in the courts of the BVI, Singapore, and Thailand.
  • Representation of a multinational insurance company in an ICC arbitration arising out of an M&A transaction in the Brazilian health insurance industry, conducted fully in Portuguese. 
  • Representation of a European real estate company in a series of post-acquisition international arbitration disputes (ICC and LCIA) involving a multitude of claims and cross claims of several billion Euro arising out of transactions in a number of jurisdictions worldwide.
  • Representation of a North American pension fund in relation to a US$200 million HKIAC arbitration regarding an infrastructure investment in mainland China. Representation includes freezing injunction proceedings in Hong Kong, Cayman and the BVI.
  • Representation of a Middle Eastern publicly traded company in an ICC arbitration against an African Government on claims arising out of a customs modernisation contract, including a multi-million dollar award and successful enforcement through the English High Court. Representation included a freezing order on the African state’s assets that secured full settlement of the award.
  • Representation of one of the world’s largest electronics companies in a complex multijurisdictional billion dollar dispute that also included proceedings in France, Germany and the U.S.
  • Representation of a Chinese insurance and financial services group in an investment arbitration against a European state in connection with the de facto expropriation of its €2.2 billion investment, a treaty arbitration featured in The American Lawyer.
  • Representation of a Middle Eastern company in a series of disputes, including an ICSID arbitration against a Middle Eastern state relating to the expropriation of a US$800 million telecoms investment.
  • Representation of a Middle Eastern company in an investment treaty arbitration against an Asian state. The claim related to the expropriation of the client’s investment as well as claims of unfair treatment of the client by the state. This treaty arbitration was featured in The American Lawyer.
  • Representation of a U.K. investor in an UNCITRAL investment treaty arbitration against a South American state in relation to a government-supervised customs inspection and audit program.
  • Extensive experience in providing strategic advice to investors in connection with investment protection relating to direct and indirect expropriations, including in a recent Central American multi-billion dollar infrastructure project.
  • Substantial experience in advising international investors from a large number of backgrounds and industry sectors in connection with potential investment arbitrations against Middle Eastern, African, and Asian states.

Named #1 in Global Litigation Top 50

The Lawyer, 2023

International Arbitration Firm of the Year

Benchmark Litigation Europe, 2019 and 2021

Cross-Border Capabilities

Practices