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.

Christopher has occupied the role of Registrar at the QICDRC since 2012. As Registrar, he is head of the Registry that services both the Qatar International Court and the Qatar Financial Centre Regulatory Tribunal. The Qatar International Court (established in law as the QFC Civil and Commercial Court) has jurisdiction over civil and commercial disputes which relate to those institutions, authorities and other entities established or conducting business in the QFC. In addition, since 2017, the Court has additional responsibilities where it is nominated as the Competent Court for arbitrations seated in Qatar pursuant to the provisions of Law No 2 of 2017 issuing the Law of Arbitration in Civil and Commercial Matters. Christopher is responsible for the case management of cases that come before the Court and Tribunal and will, where necessary, conduct costs assessments following the conclusion of cases. 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. Christopher is a qualified barrister of England and Wales and is an Associate Member at 15 New Bridge Street (London), the Chambers of Martin Rutherford QC, having been called to the Bar (Inner Temple) in 2007. Christopher’s main specialism is in the field of crime, particularly criminal defence. In 2019, Christopher was appointed a Deputy District Judge (England & Wales) assigned to the South Eastern Circui.

Paul Key Q.C. is recognised as one of the leading QCs at the English Commercial Bar. He has particular expertise and specialism in arbitration, both international commercial arbitration and investment treaty arbitration (including ICSID). He also regularly appears in arbitration-related Court matters, including appearing in the English Supreme Court in Jivraj v Hashwani. He has been ranked in the top-tier (band 1) rankings for arbitration for over 10 years and has consistently been identified as one of the leading figures in that field (“a real arbitration expert”, “few can rival his expertise, ability and knowledge in the field of arbitration”, “the first port of call for important arbitration disputes”, “an arbitration guru”). He has appeared as advocate in over 300 major international arbitrations worldwide, as well as appearing regularly before the English Courts (at all levels) and foreign Courts on arbitration matters. In addition to his extensive experience in international commercial arbitration, he is one of the very few English QCs to have real expertise in investment arbitration. He has been lead counsel in a very large number of BIT / investment arbitrations, acting both for and against States. He is Visiting Professor in international arbitration law at King’s College, London, and has lectured and published widely in this field. He has been a longstanding representative of the UK on the ILA International Commercial Arbitration Committee and is also a delegate for the UNCITRAL Working Group on Arbitration.

Jay Alexander, a senior trial partner, leads Baker Botts’ International Arbitration and Dispute Resolution Practice. With more than 30 years of experience resolving international disputes, Chambers reports, that he “has the intellect and the personal qualities that anyone would wish for in a counsel” (2019) and is “a compelling communicator in all environments” (2019), “one of the best international litigators” (2018). Mr. Alexander has acted as advocate or arbitrator in disputes throughout the world. He has served as lead counsel in numerous arbitrations seated in the Middle East (Doha), Europe, North America and Asia, including some of the world’s highest value arbitrations. Recent matters have arisen in the LNG, construction, oil, telecommunications and technology sectors. Collectively, Mr. Alexander has handled many multi-billion dollar arbitrations, with total amounts in dispute exceeded US$ 125 billion. Throughout his career, Mr. Alexander has helped his clients with international disputes arising out of many jurisdictions, including Qatar, Belgium, Brazil, Cameroon, Canada, China, Ecuador, Egypt, England, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Libya, Mexico, Mongolia, Mozambique, the Netherlands, Nigeria, Norway, Panama, Peru, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Venezuela.

Sarah Malik is an experienced and well-regarded lawyer whose 20-year career to date has spanned internationally. Prior to founding SOL International Ltd in the UAE in August 2018, she practiced as a Barrister at a leading set of Chambers in London, worked as employed Counsel at a leading UK law firm and headed the Advocacy and Investigations team of an International law firm in Dubai. She is a member of the SIAC Users Council in the Middle East and is appointed on the Lagos Panel of Arbitration Neutrals. Sarah is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators and accepts appointments to sit as an arbitrator. Sarah undertakes international commercial arbitrations as Counsel (DIAC, ADCCAC, DIFC-LCIA, ICC) and practices commercial litigation in the DIFC and ADGM Courts. In addition to practice, she is a visiting lecturer at Middlesex University Dubai in International Commercial Litigation and Arbitration. Sarah is often invited to speak at conferences within UAE and internationally and has participated in numerous successful arbitration events in Dubai and overseas.

Huw is the Chief Legal Officer (Acting) and Legislation Director of the Qatar Free Zones Authority. QFZA was established in 2018 to oversee and regulate the worldclass free zones in Qatar. Huw is a qualified barrister of England and Wales, a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators and a Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors accredited mediator. Huw joined QFZA in 2019 after previously working in Qatar for eight years, and has extensive experience advising both private and public sector firms in developing and securing commercial contracts and regulatory frameworks, and translating complex legal and compliance requirements into practical solutions. Prior to working in Qatar, Huw held a number of senior governmental positions in Wales, United Kingdom, working as a legal advisor to the government and latterly as Head of Regulation and Investigations.

Andrew Fallon is a Chartered Quantity Surveyor (MRICS, MSCSCI) with 20 years’ experience in the construction industry in main contracting, client side and thirdparty consulting. He has acted as expert witness in matters of quantum. Andrew has written several expert reports and been cross examined twice as the party appointed expert. He has extensive experience and resolution of commercial and contractual entitlements with employers, contractors and their supply chain members. In addition to his commercial projects Andrew has been engaged in the analysis, preparation and submission of a number of claims for extensions of time and additional payment. Andrew’s detailed construction knowledge and practical experience obtained through working at all management levels within construction companies means that he is able to quickly and proficiently analyse and understand the issues that lie at the heart of construction disputes. Geographically, Andrew has worked in Ireland and Qatar, with further experience on projects in Hong Kong, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon and Sri Lanka. In addition to his primary degree (BSc) in Quantity Surveying, Andrew also holds an LLM in Construction Law and Arbitration. He also assists with the development of RICS members by participating in roles as candidate councillors as well as sitting on assessment panels for candidates sitting their Assessment for Professional Competence in order to obtain their MRICS qualifications.

Jonathan Blaney is a counsel with K&L Gates. His practice encompasses complex construction, energy and infrastructure work with a particular focus on dispute resolution and international arbitration. Prior to joining K&L Gates, Jonathan worked at a number of leading law firms advising clients in respect of matters in Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Australia.

Ayush heads the disputes practice in the Mumbai office of the firm. Prior to joining K Law, Ayush was associated with some of the largest firms in India, AZB & Partners and Khaitan & Co. Ayush has advised several corporate power houses and multinational companies, both domestic and international spanning various industries and sectors. He has extensive experience in sectors including shareholder disputes, infrastructure, insurance, petrochemicals, debt and equity financing, telecom, hospitality, manufacturing, information technology and consumer. Ayush has advised and acted in various matters which led to landmark judgments being passed by courts in India. Notably, Ayush was a part of the matter which laid down the law on: whether the issue of fraud can be arbitrated upon in Indian law; and the jurisdiction of courts for passing interim orders during enforcement of foreign awards in India.

Dania is a lawyer specialized in transactional commercial law, holds a Phd in Contractual law (France). She joined Al Tamimi Law Firm ― Dubai, in 2014, Corporate Commercial Practice. Dania was a senior legal counsel with Oracle Corp and a Former lecturer ― Business Law at American University of Beirut. She holds a PhD from University of Montpellier ― France and an Executive EMBA Insead 2018.

Dr. Ehab Maher Elsonbaty is the Senior Legal Counsel, Head of Corporate Governance and Government Affairs in Qatar Investment Authority since Feb.2014, where he is also Member of the Management Investment Committee, the National Asset Management Committee, the New Product and process Working Group, the Crisis & Disaster Management Committee, and the Electronic and Physical Documents Working Group . Before this he served for almost 6 years as a Senior Legal Advisor to the Office of H.R.H. the Amir of the State of Qatar and a Member of the Council of Ministers Permanent Committee for legislative Affairs in addition to many other legal & policy committees. Previously her served in the Egyptian Public Prosecution and Juduicay for more than 15 years, where his last position was a Judge in Cairo’s Court of Appeal. He is admitted to the Bar and a certified and practising arbitrator and mediator. Dr. Elsonbaty holds two Masters and PhD degrees. He writes and lectures on cyber laws, litigation & ADRs and private international law in various universities and research institutes. He has provided consultancies to the ITU, UNODC, UNECA, Council of Europe, UNCTAD, UNESCO, Arab League, and ARADO. Dr. Elsonbaty speaks Arabic, English, Italian and French. His areas of specialization are: Commercial Transactions (M&A, Corporate), (ADRs), Corporate Governance and Compliance, Private Interntional law, Cyber.

Jason is an experienced commercial and contracts manager at senior level. He has extensive experience managing and advising major international infrastructure and specialist projects, particularly in Asia and the Middle East. He has worked at Qatar Rail since 2014, most recently as Director of Contract Administration where he was responsible for the commercial management of the Qatar Integrated Railway Program ― a multi-year, multi-project portfolio valued at more than USD 20 billion. Before joining Qatar Rail he took a study sabbatical, at the end of which he was called to the bar of England and Wales. Prior to this he spent more than 10 years in Asia, where he mainly worked for large Japanese contractors on international rail projects. He is a Chartered Quantity Surveyor and an accredited mediator with degrees in law and quantity surveying.

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 Generalof 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.