Leonora Riesenburg is an Independent Chartered Arbitrator and Accredited Mediator at INTADR DMCC, Dubai, and an International Tenant at 4-5 Gray’s Inn Square in London. She is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (CIArb), a Fellow of Asian Institute of Alternative Dispute Resolution (AIADR), and stands as a leading figure in international arbitration, mediation and adr in Middle East, Asia, and the UK. Leonora specialises in complex disputes across key sectors, notably in investment, infrastructure, construction, real estate, joint ventures, banking and finance, and receives routine Chairmanship appointments. Her affiliations with prestigious arbitral institutions—among them the ICC, LCIA, SIAC, DIAC, ADCCAC, SCCA, MIAC, AIADR—further solidify her standing as a leading figure in international arbitration. Leonora’s leadership is reflected in her previous roles as Branch Chair of CIArb UAE, as an Elected Member of the Board of Management for CIArb London, and member of DIFC Courts Arbitration Division Working Group. She is a member of LCIA Arabs Users’ Council and a member of the Swiss Arbitration Association. Leonora is a highly in demand faculty member for the CIArb globally and the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) in the MENA Region and in the UK, playing a pivotal role in shaping the next generation of dispute resolution practitioners. Her global influence extends through her service with leading institutions worldwide, including in Asia, the Governing Council of the Hyderabad Arbitration Centre (HAC) in India as well as the Global Advisory Panel for Musaliha International Centre for Arbitration and Dispute Resolution (MICADR) in Pakistan.

Xin is a partner in Freshfields’ Asia dispute resolution group. Recognised as one of the most accomplished lawyers in Asia, “40 under 40”, by the Asian Legal Business (ALB), Xin specialises in international arbitration and cross-border litigation with a focus on Asia-related M&A and joint venture disputes. Xin has over 15 years of experience acting in a wide range of complex and highvalue cross-border disputes involving multinational corporations and governments. These matters have included litigation in the US, China, Hong Kong, UK, BVI, Cayman, and Singapore, and arbitration before ICSID, ICC, SIAC, HKIAC, CIETAC, LCIA, JAMS, and SHIAC, as well as ad hoc arbitrations under UNCITRAL rules. He has handled disputes and projects involving all Southeast Asian jurisdictions, including Vietnam. Xin is triple-qualified in New York, the PRC (non-practicing), and Hong Kong. He is also a Member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (UK). Xin worked in Freshfields’ New York office for a year, and prior to joining the firm, he worked for four years with a leading Chinese law firm in Beijing and the World Bank in Washington D.C. Xin received his LL.M. from Harvard Law School and his M.A. in International Law and B.A. in Law from Renmin University of China.

Shobna Chandran graduated with First Class Honours from NUS Law, and was a Justices Law Clerk to the then-Chief Justice Chan Sek Keong and the Court of Appeal bench until 2008. Shobna has worked with 3 Senior Counsels in her 15- year career (Davinder Singh SC, Philip Jeyaretnam SC, and Chelva Rajah SC). Shobna’s expertise is in high-value cross border commercial litigation, arbitration, insolvency and appellate matters. Shobna’s boutique firm offers Shobna’s extensive experience thriving in appellate advocacy and high stakes cross-border commercial disputes. Shobna has successfully argued cases, winning all the way up to the Court of Appeal against Senior Counsel. Shobna has handled arbitration cases ranging from telecommunications to pharmaceutical industry to solar/ renewable energy, shareholder disputes, banking and finance disputes, of more than a billion dollars. Shobna was recognised as one of the top lawyers under 40 by Singapore Business Review in 2017, and in 2023 and 2024 commended as “Litigation Star” by Benchmark Asia Pacific. In October 2023, Shobna was named as Singapore Rising Star by Asian Legal Business for her exceptional work in the disputes space. In June 2024, Shobna was named as one of the top arbitration lawyers in the region by Benchmark Asia Pacific’s Top 40 under 40.

Prof. Elijah Putilin, FCIArb is an independent arbitrator and counsel. Clients and peers describe him as being “highly able, keen and very efficient”, “a world class practitioner” and praise him for his ability “to present even the most complex concepts in a simple and understandable manner”. Prof. Putilin regularly sits as a Sole-Arbitrator, Presiding Arbitrator, or co-arbitrator in cases administered by leading institutions that involve application of civil, common, or international law. Prof. Putilin has also represented and advised clients in over a hundred disputes before SCAI, SCC, LCIA, ICC, ICDR and ICAC (Russia) tribunals, foreign and domestic courts of all levels, international trade tribunals and sporting bodies. His expertise spans over variety of industries, including oil & gas, banking & finance, construction, TMT, and agriculture. In addition to his arbitrator and counsel work, Prof. Putilin lectures on international commercial and investment arbitration at the Tashkent State University of Law and is an Adjunct Professor of international dispute resolution and business law at leading universities in Central and South‐East Asia. Prof. Putilin is a member of the SCC Arbitrators’ Council and a member of the Supervisory Board of the IAC (Kyrgyzstan).

With over 25 years’ experience in dispute resolution, litigation, and arbitration, Edmund regularly appears as lead counsel in cases before the Singapore High Court and Court of Appeal, as well as in international arbitrations. His diverse practice includes commercial and corporate disputes, energy and natural resources, media and telecommunications, breach of confidence, defamation, employment, medical and healthcare disputes as well as pre-emptive relief and injunctions including Worldwide Freezing / Mareva Injunctions. Edmund also actively sits as an arbitrator, and has conducted arbitrations seated in Singapore, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam and Brunei, as sole arbitrator, tribunal chairman / presiding arbitrator and tribunal member. He is a fellow of CIArb, SIArb, MIArb, AMINZ, HKIArb, PIArb and ACICA. He is also admitted to the panels / lists of, among others, the AIAC (Malaysia, formerly KLCRA), AIFC (Kazakhstan), BANI (Indonesia), BDAC (Brunei), BVIIAC (British Virgin Islands), CAA (Taiwan), HKIAC (Hong Kong), KCAB (Korea), IIAM (India), MIAC (Maldives), NCAC (Cambodia), PIAC (Vietnam), PDRC (Philippines), IMA (Russia), SCCA (Saudi Arabia), SHIAC (Shanghai), TIAC (Uzbekistan), TAI (Thailand), VIAC (Vietnam) and VLCAC (Vietnam). Of note, Edmund’s commercial disputes expertise extends well beyond Singapore to the ASEAN region, in particular Indonesia. In the course of his career, Edmund has acted for a variety of prominent Indonesian private clients and major corporations in international disputes. His achievements for Indonesian clients include obtaining a USD 35 million ICC Jakarta-seated arbitral award against PT Pertamina (Persero) and PT Pertamina EP, as well as defeating the enforcement of 99.7% of a USD 130 million SIAC award obtained by the Astro Group against First Media (a Lippo Group company). Edmund has received wide recognition in the Legal 500, Chambers & Partners, Best Lawyers, Benchmark Litigation, Asialaw and Who’s Who Legal guides.

Sameet Gambhir, FCS, LLB, is a seasoned legal, compliance, and risk management professional with over 35 years of distinguished experience across leading organisations like UFlex Limited, DCM Shriram, KPMG, Schneider Electric, and Hill & Associates. Currently serving as Sr. Vice President & Group Head – Legal at UFlex, he has also completed a Leadership Effectiveness Programme from IIM Bangalore. Mr. Gambhir’s expertise spans corporate legal affairs, governance, ESG, IPR, crossborder transactions, regulatory compliance, M&A, risk management, data privacy, and labour laws. He has been repeatedly recognised as one of India’s top GCs, with accolades including Forbes India’s Top In-house Counsel (2021–24), Legal500’s GC Powerlist (2022–24), and LegalEra’s Distinguished Legal Minds.He has also received honours from ASSOCHAM, Business World Legal, UBS Forums, and LexTalk World. He holds leadership roles in key national legal and corporate governance bodies, including PHDCCI, CII, ASSOCHAM, DMA, ICSI, BIS, and EODB (Ministry of Commerce & Industry). A respected academic voice, he regularly lectures at top institutions like IMT, IMI, LBSIM, and NDIM. A pro-bono contributor and a keen golfer, Mr. Gambhir exemplifies thought leadership, integrity, and cross-sectoral excellence in corporate legal affairs.