FACULTY FOR THE WAWA WRITTEN ADVOCACY COURSE
From left to right, we are honoured to have Dr Christopher Boog, Antonia Birt, Antony Crockett, Yuet Min Foo, Yasmine Lahlou, Kirsten Odynski, Samantha J. Rowe, Naomi Tarawali, Alexandra Van Der Meulen, and Dr. Nicolas Wiegand. Their short bios are set out below.
Christopher Boog is a Vice-Chair of the International Arbitration Practice Group of Schellenberg Wittmer. He splits his time between the firm's Singapore and Zurich offices. Chris represents clients in international commercial, investment and sports arbitrations as well as in setting-aside proceedings before the Swiss Supreme Court and sits as arbitrator under all leading sets of arbitration rules as well as ad hoc.
Chris is admitted to the Bar in Switzerland as well as in Singapore as a foreign lawyer. He has vast experience in disputes seated in civil and common law jurisdictions governed by many different laws.
Chris has been ranked as one of a small number of Global Elite Thought Leaders by Who's Who Legal Arbitration recognizing lawyers "at the peak of the profession" for several years. He is the 2020 recipient of the ASA Prize for Advocacy in International Commercial Arbitration, awarded every two years to international arbitration counsel to recognize exceptional advocacy in international arbitration.
Chris has been described as "one of the best in the business" and "one of the stars in international arbitration" (Who's Who Legal). According to clients and peers, he is "exceptional in all respects", "outstanding", "just brilliant" and "one of the best advocates I have ever seen" (Who's Who Legal). The same directory remarks that “Christopher has superb control during complex hearings", is "well organised and in control of his cases" and "is absolutely excellent for dispute resolution within the construction industry". Other sources report that he is "brilliant and to-the-point" and "always provides solutions, which really makes him stand out; we don't have to wait long for a solution that is based on a sound, thought-out point of view" (Chambers Global). According to another client Chris "has superb analytical and advocacy skills. He is admired for his ability to explain (orally and in writing) complex technical or factual issues in simple terms" (Legal 500).
Antonia is a partner in Reed Smith's Global Commercial Disputes Group. Antonia is based in Dubai, having practised dispute resolution in the MENA region and beyond for the last 14 years. She advises on the full cycle of complex, high-value commercial and construction disputes.
Antonia focuses on dispute avoidance. As part of that, Antonia advises clients on effective drafting of dispute resolution clauses. She also supports clients in proactive contract management and document management, helping them stay ahead of potential disputes.
When disputes do occur, Antonia focuses on achieving amicable resolutions, using a variety of settlement and alternative dispute resolution tools, including expert determination or mediation. Antonia's approach combines strategic foresight with a commitment to practical, client-centred solutions.
Antonia has represented state, national and multinational clients in arbitrations in a variety of industry sectors including oil and gas, energy and water, construction and engineering, project development and real estate, distribution, corporate and M&A, as well as other financial and commercial disputes. She has experience acting under the rules of the ICC, LCIA, DIFC-LCIA, DIAC, ADCCAC, ICDR, and UNCITRAL, with seats in the major arbitral centres as well as various GCC jurisdictions, and pursuant to numerous governing laws, including those of the UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, as well as the laws of England and Wales.
Since 2013, Antonia sits as arbitrator in disputes under the ICC, LCIA, DIAC, and DIFC-LCIA rules. She is also listed on several institutional panels.
Antonia represents clients facing commercial disputes before the DIFC and ADGM courts. Antonia has full rights of audience before the off-shore courts of the UAE, and acts as counsel and advocate.
Together with the team's onshore litigation experts, Antonia also advises clients regarding their most complex disputes in local UAE courts (working together with experienced local counsel).
Antonia regularly contributes to the arbitration community. Antonia recently has been appointed as UAE delegate to the ICC Global Commission on Arbitration and ADR for the term 2024-2027. Since 2019, Antonia teaches the International Arbitration Practicum to LL.M. students at the Pantheon Assas University Paris II, UAE. She is the co-chair of the Equal Representation in Arbitration Pledge Middle East Sub-Committee. Antonia is a member of the IBA Commercial Arbitration Case Law Sub-Committee responsible for the UAE, having co-authored the original and updated editions of the IBA Guide on Arbitration, UAE law chapter.
Antonia was named Arbitration Lawyer of the Year at the Lexis Nexis Women in Law Awards 2024. She was also shortlisted for Middle East Rising Star Award at the Chambers Middle East Awards 2024. Antonia is ranked in Who’s Who Legal in Arbitration 2025 as Recommended for Arbitration, having previously been ranked as Most Highly Regarded of the Future Leaders; and in Chambers and Partners Global 2022 to 2024 Dispute Resolution as an Up and Coming Practitioner.
Antony Crockett is a partner of Herbert Smith Freehills who specialises in public international law and complex cross-border dispute resolution. Antony leads HSF's global Business and Human Rights practice and is a member of the firm's ESG leadership group.
Antony has extensive experience advising governments, international organisations and private sector clients in the area of public international law, including in relation to investment treaty arbitration, State and diplomatic immunity, sanctions and embargoes, recognition of States and governments, human rights and international economic law.
Antony is tri-qualified, in Australia (Victoria), England & Wales and Hong Kong SAR. He acts as advocate in international arbitration proceedings and in arbitration-related court proceedings.
Yuet Min graduated with First Class Honours from the National University of Singapore in 2006. Prior to joining Drew & Napier in 2008, Yuet Min was a Justices’ Law Clerk at the Supreme Court of Singapore.
Yuet Min advises clients mainly on civil disputes relating to a wide range of commercial contracts, with the aim of achieving commercially-viable solutions for clients. She has been described by a client as “very skilled” and “extremely dedicated to the needs of the client”.
Yuet Min regularly appears before the Singapore Courts as lead counsel. Besides maintaining an active litigation practice, many of Yuet Min’s matters involve SIAC and ICC arbitrations as well as arbitration-related Court proceedings. She has particular experience and interest in dealing with multi-lingual proceedings and has conducted a bilingual international arbitration under the UNCITRAL Arbitration Rules.
She has been appointed arbitrator in a number of SIAC, ICC, and ad hoc international arbitrations, and is an arbitrator on the SIAC Reserve Panel. She has also conducted arbitrations under expedited procedures.
Yuet Min is a co-author of the Chambers and Partners Global Practice Guides – Litigation 2022 (Singapore chapter), and also of the chapter Arbitration in Singapore and Malaysia in the Italian edition of the Arbitration Law Treaty published by Edizioni Scientifiche Italiane (Italian Scientific Editions), 2022.
Yuet Min speaks English, Mandarin, Malay, and the Hokkien dialect.
A partner at international disputes boutique Chaffetz Lindsey in New York, and fluent in English, French and Italian, Yasmine Lahlou has over 20 years of experience in international arbitration and litigation. Initially trained in Paris and admitted in New York, Yasmine is experienced in civil and common law systems. Yasmine has represented clients in arbitration proceedings conducted under all major institutional rules and in ad hoc proceedings. Her practice spans a broad range of industries and sectors, including construction, energy, mining, food and beverage and pharmaceuticals. She has acted as a presiding, sole co‐and emergency arbitrator in ICC, SCC, ICDR/AAA CRCICA (in Cairo) and LCIA arbitrations.
Yasmine also has extensive award and judgment enforcement experience.
Yasmine has been named one of 17 “Global Elite Thought Leaders” in North America & the Caribbean— a title reserved for the top 2.5% of ranked practitioners considered the “very best by peers and clients, achieving the highest number of recommendations in the research”— by Who’s Who Legal 2023 Arbitration report.
Kirsten Odynski is a partner in White & Case's International Arbitration Practice, based in the Paris office. Kirsten has experience in commercial and investment treaty arbitration across a number of sectors, and a focus in the energy and construction sectors. She has acted as an adviser in ad hoc and institutional arbitrations under most major institutional rules and has experience with dispute avoidance / adjudication boards and claims management.
Kirsten has served on the ICC Task Force for Resolving Climate Change Related Disputes through Arbitration and ADR and was recognized in Who's Who Legal as a Future Leader in Arbitration. She has also been active in White & Case's pro bono work in the area of public international law and legal education service programs, including White & Case's sponsorship of the Philip C. Jessup International Moot Court Competition.
Kirsten Odynski is a “smart and well-respected” arbitration practitioner who is praised by peers as “very dedicated, excellent with clients and a team player”. Who's Who Legal
Samantha J. Rowe is a partner in the International Dispute Resolution and Business Integrity Groups whose practice focuses on international arbitration and public international law. Ms. Rowe has represented private clients and States across multiple jurisdictions (most notably, Latin America, Asia, the Middle East and Eastern Europe) in arbitrations governed by various substantive laws and conducted under the rules of the ICSID, UNCITRAL, SIAC, the ICC and the LCIA. She has experience across a broad range of industries and sectors, including energy, mining, construction, financial services and pharmaceuticals. She advises clients on a broad range of international law issues, including the international protection of investments, and represents her clients in associated disputes.
Ms. Rowe has been named to The Lawyer’s Hot 100 list, which recognizes the profession’s most innovative and inspirational lawyers. The magazine noted the “precedent-setting cases” she advises on. She was also named a Rising Star for international arbitration by Law360, a UK Rising Star, and a Rising Star in the Commercial Arbitration practice category at the inaugural Euromoney Legal Media Group Europe Rising Stars Awards. Ms. Rowe is included in The Legal 500’s inaugural 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 (2023) and The Legal 500 UK (2023) recommend her for International Arbitration, with the guides noting that she is “an excellent lawyer with a clarity and expression of thought that enables complex matters to be understood quickly.” She is said to be “extremely professional and knowledgeable” and a “brilliant advocate.” The Legal 500 UK (2023) further recommends her for Public International Law with clients noting that she is “an excellent communicator with deep knowledge of international law.” In previous editions of the guides, clients note she “provides sharp insight from various angles.” The Legal 500 Latin America (2023) also recommends her for International Arbitration, noting in particular her energy sector experience.
Ms. Rowe is a solicitor of the Senior Courts of England & Wales and is admitted to the New York bar. She is fluent in French and Spanish and proficient in Portuguese and frequently handles contentious matters involving these languages.
Ms. Rowe is a highly active member of the arbitration and public international law communities. She serves on the Board of the Business and Human Rights Lawyers Association, is a member of the ICC’s Informal Working Group on Business and Human Rights, a member of the Executive Board of the International Centre for Dispute Resolution’s Young & International Group, a member of the International Centre for Dispute Resolution’s Advisory Council, is on the Editorial Board of the European Investment Law and Arbitration Review, and is on the Board of Reporters for the ITA Arbitration Report.
Ms. Rowe has previously served as the Rule of Law Vice Chair and Steering Committee Member of the American Bar Association’s Arbitration Committee, on the IBA Task Force for the Review of the 2010 Arbitration Rules on the Taking of Evidence, on the Board of Directors and the Program Committee of the New York International Arbitration Center, and on the Programme Committee for the American Society of International Law’s 2013 Annual General Meeting.
She speaks regularly on arbitration-related issues and has authored or co-authored a number of publications in the field, including most recently: “A Duty to Disclose, a Duty to Inquire: French and European Courts Address an Arbitrator’s Independence and Impartiality,” LexisPSL (September, 2021); “The 2020 revisions to the IBA rules on evidence – change for a new decade,” Global Arbitration Review (August, 2021); “Renewable Energy Investments – International Protections to Mitigate Risks,” Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Foundation (August, 2021); “Current trends in ‘umbrella clause’ claims arising from breaches of contractual obligations,“ IBA (June, 2021); “The Portigon v. Spain Decision: Upholding International Law Protections for Financial Instruments,” EMPEA Data and Intelligence (June, 2021); “Germany: Mandatory Human Rights Due Diligence,” Compliance & Enforcement (May, 2021); “Halliburton Company v. Chubb Bermuda Insurance Ltd: Failure to Disclose but No Bias,” The ICC Dispute Resolution Bulletin (March, 2021); “Resolving Perceived Norm Conflict through Principles of Treaty Interpretation: The January 2019 EU Member States’ Declarations,” European Investment Law and Arbitration Review (January, 2021); “Debevoise Discusses Banks and Climate-Change Initiatives,” Columbia Law School Blue Sky Blog (January, 2021); “UK Guide to Arbitration,” In-House Lawyer (November, 2018); “Tactics and procedures used in international arbitration to promote efficiency,” Experiencias y Retos del Ecuador en el Arbitraje de Inversión y Comercial (September, 2018); “Corruption as a defense in arbitration,” Practical Law (February, 2018); and “The Role of the Tribunal in Controlling Arbitral Costs,” The International Journal of Arbitration, Mediation and Dispute Management (May, 2015). She also serves on the ITA Board of Reporters and as co-editor of the ABA’s International Dispute Resolution News and the European Investment Law and Arbitration Review. She regularly contributes to the ITA Arbitration Report and KluwerArbitration.com.
Ms. Rowe has also co-authored a number of chapters in industry publications. These include a chapter in the International Arbitration Country Comparative Guide, published by The Legal 500 (2019-2022); the “Compensation in Energy Arbitration” chapter in The Guide to Energy Arbitrations, published by Global Arbitration Review (2017 & 2019); the “Protecting Property Rights in Investment Treaty Arbitration - A Misleading Rubric?” chapter in Investment Treaty Arbitration and International Law, Juris, Vol.9 (May, 2016); the “Fair and Equitable Treatment Issues in Oil & Gas Investment-Treaty Arbitration” chapter in The Leading Practitioners’ Guide to International Oil & Gas Arbitration, Juris (July, 2015).
Ms. Rowe received her B.A. (Hons.) with First Class Honours in English Law and French Law from the University of Oxford, Wadham College, a Certificat Supérieur de Droit Français from the Université de Paris II Panthéon-Assas and an LL.M. in International Legal Studies from New York University. She was a scholar of Wadham College and received a Dean’s Graduate Award at NYU.
Alexandra Van Der Meulen is a partner in our international arbitration group.
She specializes in public international law, investment arbitration, and international commercial arbitration.
Alexandra has acted as counsel for States before the International Court of Justice, including for Chile in its maritime boundary dispute against Peru and in a dispute with Bolivia concerning Bolivia’s claim to sovereign access to the Pacific Ocean. In 2020, she appeared as advocate for Bahrain in two parallel appeals from decisions of the ICAO Council in cases brought by Qatar against Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain.
She has also appeared as counsel in institutional and ad hoc arbitral proceedings, including under the ICC, LCIA, SCC, ICSID, ICSID additional facility, and UNCITRAL Rules.
Since 2017, Alexandra has been listed as a “Future Leader” in Arbitration by Who’s Who Legal.
She is admitted to practice in Paris and New York and is bilingual in English and French. Alexandra teaches an annual course of seminars on international commercial arbitration at the University of Fribourg, an annual course of seminars on international dispute settlement at Université Paris 5 and is a visiting international law lecturer at King’s College, London.
Since July 2023, Alexandra is a Vice-President of Paris Arbitration Week.
Nicolas specializes in international commercial and investment arbitration with a focus on corporate, joint venture, licensing and IP, sales, distribution and supply disputes, in particular in the life sciences, energy, technology, construction and infrastructure as well as mobility sectors. He is highly experienced with arbitration in or in relation to or involving parties from Asia, Europe and the US. Having lived and worked for many years in both civil law (Germany, Switzerland) and common law (Hong Kong, Singapore, California, New York, Australia) jurisdictions, Nicolas is experienced in handling cases under both legal traditions. He has so far acted in more than 140 international arbitrations under all major arbitration rules as well as ad hoc cases governed by a broad range of different substantive laws. He also acted in investment disputes and other disputes involving states and state-owned enterprises or authorities.
Nicolas is a very experienced arbitrator. To date, he has sat in 44 international cases covering a wide range of both civil and common law jurisdictions, including, primarily, Korea, Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore, PRC, Germany, Switzerland, California and New York, but also Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, UAE, Kuwait, Qatar, Mongolia, Sri Lanka and others. His cases are seated at the major arbitration hubs worldwide.
Nicolas joined CMS in 2006 and was made partner in 2013. In 2009/2010, he was seconded to Clayton Utz in Sydney. He has been head of the CMS arbitration practice in the Asia-Pacific region for almost a decade. In January 2020, he has been appointed as co-head for the firm's dispute resolution practice, and in 2023 he also became the head of the firm's US related arbitration practice. Nicolas is regularly engaged as a speaker at international arbitration conferences and holds offices with and gives training courses for several arbitral institutions.
FACULTY FOR THE KLUWER ARBITRATION BLOG ADD-ON MODULE
Dr Crina Baltag, FCIArb, Docent, is Associate Professor in International Arbitration and the Academic Director of the LL.M. in International Commercial Arbitration Law at Stockholm University. Crina also practices as an arbitrator and she is a qualified attorney-at-law, member of the Romanian and Bucharest Bar, with extensive practice, for over twenty years, in international commercial and investment arbitration, international dispute resolution, private international law. Crina is widely recognized as a leading international arbitration academic and arbitrator. She is frequently invited as keynote speaker to address topical issues in international arbitration and dispute resolution.
Since 2018, Crina is a delegate observer to the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL), the core legal body of the United Nations, with key role in the harmonization and modernization of the law of international trade, including arbitration, mediation, electronic commerce, insolvency law etc. Currently, she is actively participating in UNCITRAL Working Group II: Dispute Settlement, addressing technology-related dispute resolution and adjudication, and in UNCITRAL Working Group III: Investor-State Dispute Settlement Reform, which elaborates the international framework for a multilateral investment court system, among others.
Crina’s academic work includes published monographs and edited volumes on Investors, States, and Arbitrators in the Crosshairs of International Investment Law and Environmental Protection [co-author, BRILL, 2020]; The Future of Investment Treaty Arbitration in the EU [co-editor, Wolters Kluwer, 2020]; Construction Arbitration in Central and Eastern Europe: Contemporary Issues [co-editor, Wolters Kluwer, 2019]; The Energy Charter Treaty: The Notion of Investor [author, Wolters Kluwer, 2012] etc., and numerous publications in leading legal journals and reviews, including on the Denial of Benefits in Investment Law [Max Planck Encyclopaedia of International Procedural Law, Oxford University Press, 2019]; on Article V(1)(e) of the New York Convention: To Enforce or Not to Enforce Set Aside Arbitral Awards?, [Journal of International Arbitration, Volume 39, Issue 3 (2022) pp. 397 – 410]; on Recent Trends in Investment Arbitration on the Right to Regulate, Environment, Health and Corporate Social Responsibility: Too Much or Too Little? [ICSID Review - Foreign Investment Law Journal, Oxford University Press, 2023], etc.
Crina is frequently engaged as expert in international dispute resolution reform, including by T 20, the official G 20 engagement group, on Reforming Investor-State Dispute Settlement and Promotion of Trade and Investment Cooperation (Saudi Arabia, 2020); the International Bar Association (IBA) on the revision the Guidelines on Conflicts of Interest in International Arbitration, 2023; and by arbitration institutions, in the revision of their arbitration rules, including by the Asian International Arbitration Centre (AIAC) and the SCC Arbitration Institute. Crina also advises States in the implementation of modern arbitration, mediation and commercial litigation legislation.
Crina holds various appointments, including as the managing editor of Kluwer Arbitration Blog, co-managing editor of the ITA Arbitration Report and member of editorial boards of prestigious journals in the field, including of the Journal of International Arbitration, Brill Research Perspectives in International Investment Law and Arbitration, Bloomsbury’s Global Energy Law and Policy etc. Crina is Vice-Chair of the Academic Council and member of the Executive Committee of the Institute for Transnational Arbitration (ITA) of the Center for American and International Law.
Besides her academic work, Crina has been involved in international arbitration for over twenty years as arbitrator, legal expert, counsel, and the head of Amcham Brazil Arbitration and Mediation Center. Crina has been appointed in numerous arbitrations, as presiding, sole arbitrator and co-arbitrator under the rules of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA), the Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC), the Arbitration Institute of the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce (SCC Arbitration Institute), the Finland Arbitration Institute (FAI), Vienna International Arbitral Centre (VIAC) and the Court of International Commercial Arbitration-Romanian Chamber of Commerce (CCIR-Romania).
Crina is member of the Board of the SCC Arbitration Institute, and a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators.