I02HH

SPEAKER PROFILES
Benjamin F. Hughes, Independent Arbitrator and Mediator
Benjamin Hughes is an independent arbitrator and mediator based in Seoul and
Hong Kong. Previously he was the founding co-chair of the international dispute
resolution practice group at Shin & Kim, and adjunct professor of law at Korea
University Law School. Mr. Hughes has extensive experience as counsel in
international arbitrations in Asia, Europe and the United States, and under all
major arbitral rules. He has been appointed as the sole, chair or co-arbitrator in
arbitrations under the rules of the ICC, SIAC, HKIAC, CIETAC and KCAB. Mr. Hughes
has been recognized as a leading practitioner in the field of international arbitration
in Chambers Asia-Pacific, Legal 500, PLC Which Lawyer, Who’s Who Legal, the
Global Arbitration Review, Asialaw and Asia Legal Business. Fluent in Korean, Mr.
Hughes has played an active role as an advisor to the KCAB and the Korean Bar
Association. In October 2011, Mayor Won-Soon Park made Mr. Hughes an Honorary
Citizen of Seoul in recognition of his contributions to the legal community.
Dr. Habib Al Mulla, Chairman of the DIAC Board of Trustees and Partner,
Baker & McKenzie Habib Al Mulla, Dubai, UAE
Dr Habib is one of the UAE’s most highly respected legal authorities. He has over
29 years’ experience in UAE law and has drafted many of the modern legislative
structures in place in Dubai today. Dr Habib is a strong advocate for the improvement
and modernisation of UAE Laws. He is a frequent commentator on the legislation
and economy of the UAE and is often consulted to draft and advise on Federal and
Emirate level laws. Dr Habib focuses his practice on litigation and arbitration. He
is Vice Chairman of the Board of Trustees for the Dubai International Arbitration
Centre (DIAC) and is Chairman of the CIArb (Chartered Institute of Arbitrators) UAE
Committee. He created the concept of financial free zones in the UAE and was
the architect of the legal framework establishing the Dubai International Financial
Centre (DIFC), the first financial free zone in the UAE. Dr Habib also served as
Chairman of the Legislative Committee of the Dubai Financial Services Authority
(DFSA). Dr Habib has been lead counsel on numerous UAE and international
arbitrations across a variety of sectors including construction, finance, commerce
and maritime, as both counselor or expert witness. He is experienced in many
arbitration rules including the Dubai International Arbitration Centre (DIAC),
the Abu Dhabi Conciliation and Commercial Arbitration Centre (ADCCAC), the
International Chamber of Commerce Arbitration Centre, the LCIA and the ICSID.
Dr Habib is regularly appointed as a party nominated expert and court expert
in domestic and international arbitration proceedings for his expert opinion on
matters relating to UAE law.
Derrick Dale QC, Barrister, Fountain Court
Derrick Dale QC is a barrister at Fountain Court with a practice covering commercial
disputes, civil fraud, banking, insurance and professional negligence. Since taking
silk in 2010 he has become increasingly part of the international arbitration scene.
Specifically, in the last year he appeared in numerous arbitral court challenges
in the Commercial Court in London which have raised important points of law
in the areas of (i) whether a an arbitral award with a “show cause” provision is
sufficiently certain (KCM v U&M [2014] EWHC 2374); (ii) the circumstances in which
the English Court will grant a worldwide freezing injunction notwithstanding the
existence of an exclusive enforcement jurisdiction clause in favour of the Zambian
courts (U&M v KCM [2014] EWHC 3250); (iii) the test as to when a party making a
court challenge to the arbitral award should be required to pay as security the full
amount due under the award as a condition of making the challenge to the award;
(KCM v U&M [2014] EWHC 2145. Derrick also sits as an LCIA arbitrator.
Alec Emmerson, Consultant, Clyde and Co, Middle East Disputes Expert
Alec was a Partner of Clyde & Co in Guildford, Hong Kong, London and Dubai for
30 years and remains in Dubai as a consultant with the Firm. He has acted as party
counsel in numerous ICC, LCIA, SCMA, CIETAC, DIAC,ADCCAC, AAA, UNCITRAL,CAMM
and ad hoc arbitrations involving international trade, joint ventures, insurance/
reinsurance, property, telecommunications, infrastructure, energy and shipping/
ship building. Since becoming a consultant 6 years ago he has become well known
as an international arbitrator accepting appointments as Chair, Co-Arbitrator and
Sole Arbitrator in a similar range of disputes mainly involving parties in Europe,
Middle East, India and Asia. In 2011 a leading directory described Alec as “disputes
Czar….” and he is recognised in GAR, Chambers, Who’s Who Legal and other
publications as an arbitrator and mediator. He speaks regularly at conferences
and on business radio as well as writing on arbitration topics.
Victor P. Leginsky, Chartered Arbitrator B.Ed., J.D., FCIArb
Victor P. Leginsky, Canadian citizen, is an experienced international arbitrator
and Barrister & Solicitor, resident in Dubai, UAE since April 2007. Victor has prior
high-level mediation experience having been appointed by the Attorney General of
British Columbia, Canada, to be the Chair of the Manufactured Home Park Dispute
Resolution Committee. He brings over 25 years of arbitration experience in Canada.
Victor has earned the internationally-recognized designations of Chartered
Arbitrator and Fellow from the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators. He is a committee
member of the International Court of Arbitration (ICC) – UAE and member of
ICC-Canada. He is alternate regional chapter co-ordinator of the Association of
International Petroleum Negotiators (AIPN) and launched its seminar on oil & gas
dispute resolution in the Middle East. He co-instructs, with Prof. Dr. Klaus Peter
Berger a practical course in International Commercial Arbitration in Dubai. He is
registered as a Barrister with the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) Courts
and is a member in good standing of the Law Society of British Columbia, Canada.
Simon Cartwright, Partner, Holman Fenwick Willan
Simon handles a wide range of matters, specialising in shipping and international trade.
Simon joined the Dubai office in August 2006. He has rights of audience to appear
and conduct cases before the DIFC courts. He is qualified as a solicitor in England
and in New Zealand. He regularly handles matters in international arbitral forums
and the English High Courts.
Simon is ranked in both the Legal 500 EMEA and Chambers Global legal directories,
highly recommended for his shipping work and praised for his “strong shipping
knowledge” and “practical commercial solutions.”
He is also named in the UAE’s edition of Who’s Who Legal, earning praise for his
trade and commercial litigation work.
James Fox, Senior Associate, Clyde & Co
James Fox is a Senior Associate at Clyde & Co in the UAE, where he has been based
for the last 7 years. He previously practiced in England and is a solicitor of the
Supreme Court of England and Wales.
James has extensive experience in resolving complex, high value disputes
conducted under the rules of ADCCAC, DIAC, DIFC-LCIA, ICC, LCIA and before the
UAE and English Courts. James has a broad corporate and commercial disputes
practice and his clients include leading companies in the defence, energy and
finance sectors.
The Legal 500 and Chambers Global both rank Clyde & Co as a first tier firm in
dispute resolution in the UAE.
Nassif BouMalhab, Partner, Clyde & Co
Nassif BouMalhab is a barrister and solicitor, and a Partner in Clyde & Co’s Middle
East Dispute Resolution Group based in the Dubai office. He practises corporate
and commercial litigation and arbitration with an emphasis on shareholder, joint
venture, agency, distribution, banking, finance and real estate disputes, and
financial crimes. Nassif represents a wide range of businesses, including financial
institutions and leading multinational companies in the leisure and hospitality,
energy, transport and logistics sectors.
Nassif is listed amongst Asian-MENA Counsel’s External Counsel of the Year 2013
for the United Arab Emirates as voted by the In-House Community, where in-house
counsel is reported to have said “[Nassif] is the best arbitration lawyer”.
In a survey on law firms in the United Arab Emirates for the 2012 edition of The
Legal 500 EMEA (the commercial client’s guide to Europe, Middle East and Africa
legal profession) a client said “Mr BouMalhab is extremely resourceful in the
practice of the law in the U.A.E. — he always asks what the client wants (to
achieve) and is very pragmatic in solving our problems. He is extremely responsive
and timely with his advice”.
The Legal 500 and Chambers Global both rank Clyde & Co as a first tier firm in
dispute resolution in the UAE.
Christopher Grout, Registrar, Qatar International Court and
Dispute Resolution Centre
Christopher has been based at the QICDRC in Doha for just over one year. As
Registrar, he is head of the Registry that services both the Qatar International
Court and the Qatar Financial Centre Regulatory Tribunal. He also manages the
Dispute Resolution Centre which, over the past year, has played host to a number
of arbitrations and mediations where, in the case of arbitrations, the seat has
been the State of Qatar. In addition, the Qatar International Court exercises
judicial oversight where the seat of the arbitration is the Qatar Financial Centre
and so this too falls within Christopher’s remit. More specifically, Christopher is
responsible for the management aspects of the Centre and in particular the case
management of cases that come before the Court and Tribunal. Where required,
Christopher will provide procedural directions in relation to cases and, along with
his team, will be available to assist parties with any queries they may have in
relation to the workings of the Centre. Amongst other things, he chairs a number
of QICDRC-user committees, actively engages with the development of legal and
judicial education and training in the State of Qatar and provides ad-hoc lectures
at a number of universities both in Qatar and the United Kingdom. Furthermore,
Christopher is a practicing barrister in England and Wales at 15 New Bridge
Street, the Chambers of David Aarongberg QC and James Mulholland QC, having
been called to the Bar (Inner Temple) in 2007. Christopher’s main specialism
is in the field of crime where he regularly defends across a broad spectrum of
criminal offences.
S. Ravi Shankar, Senior Partner, Lawsenate
S. Ravi Shankar is an International arbitration lawyer practising in the field of
arbitration and corporate dispute resolution. He is a Senior Partner in the New
Delhi based Lawsenate law firm. He is a qualified Advocate on Record in the
Supreme Court of India. He is also the President of “Arbitration Association of
India” which is a national body of practitioners, arbitrators and users. He is holding
a Post graduate degree in Business Administration and a degree in the field of law.
He is having about 20 years of experience in the field of dispute resolution and
has travelled across the globe on various assignments. He has published various
publications in the field of law particularly in the field of Arbitration. He also has
addressed various international and domestic conferences in the field of Dispute
resolution. He has handled various high value arbitrations and litigations in India
and outside India. He is an active member of various international professional
organisations including IBA, ICCA, IAA, IAI, AAI etc.,