SEEA Sponsor

Event Details

International arbitration has experienced a worldwide rise following globalisation of commerce, and development of international law regulating relations between the countries. It is a valuable tool for escaping domestic court systems and its use is likely to increase with the more frequent reliance on the foreign investments. This tendency did not avoid the South Eastern Europe countries, the judicial systems of which have been going through a significant transformation since collapse of the "Eastern Block", where arbitration was unfamiliar to the domestic legal systems, and since then their dramatic transitioning to the markets fully integrated in the world economy.

We are inviting you to join us in Vienna for the inaugural South Eastern Europe Arbitration Conference (SEEA), where we will unlock the future trends in International Arbitration in this region through discussions covering the most topical issues that transform the essence of the Disputes and Arbitration laws in South Eastern Europe. We have a line-up of stellar speakers – including leading scholars and practitioners in their countries and worldwide. We will explore the current trends in the field of the dispute resolution. We will have valuable insights from the leading arbitrators, exchange information about recent developments in regional arbitration centres and glean insights from in-house counsels' perspectives. All of this at a beautiful venue, in a golden month of October, in the heart of charming Vienna.

Please join us for this exciting and insightful event and share your views on shaping the future of the International Arbitration in South Eastern Europe.

Organizers

Değer Boden

Founding Partner

Boden Law

Tatiana Minaeva

Partner and Head of Investor-State Arbitration

RPC

Anne K. Hoffmann

Independent Arbitrator

Hoffmann Arbitration

Agenda

October 12, 2023

Main Schedule

08:30 - 09:30

Registration

09:30 - 09:40

Opening Remarks

09:40 - 10:05

Guest Speaker Dr. Stanimir A. Alexandrov

Special Guest Dr. Stanimir A. Alexandrov

10:05 - 10:30

Keynote speech of Prof. Christopher Schreuer

Keynote Speaker Prof. Christoph Schreuer

10:30 - 11:45

First panel: Transformation of disputes in the region

Moderator: Deger Boden

Değer Boden

Khawar Qureshi KC

Jennifer Morrison Ersin

Nenad Stankovic

Lazar Tomov

11:45 - 12:00

Coffee Break

12:00 - 13:15

Second panel: Transformation of arbitration laws and procedures

Moderator: Tatiana Minaeva

Tatiana Minaeva

Iuliana Iacob

Stelios Gregoriou

Petr Vošahlík

Eric Leikin

13:15 - 14:30

Lunch

14:30 - 15:45

Third panel: Ask the Arbitrators

Moderator: Anne K. Hoffmann

Anne K. Hoffmann

Constantine Partasides KC

Prof. Crenguta Leaua

Prof. Vladimir Pavić

Pencho Stanchev

15:45 - 16:00

Coffee Break

16:00 - 17:15

Fourth panel: Ask the Arbitration Centres

Niamh Leinwather

17:15 - 17:30

Closing Remarks

17:30 - 19:00

Cocktail

Sponsor Registration - Regional Law Firm

Standard Price€2,000

Sponsor Registration - International Law Firm

Standard Price€2,500

Speakers

Special Guest Dr. Stanimir A. Alexandrov

Principal at Stanimir A. Alexandrov PLLC

Keynote Speaker Prof. Christoph Schreuer

Of Counsel at Zeiler Floyd Zadkovich

Değer Boden

Founding Partner at Boden Law

Tatiana Minaeva

Partner and Head of Investor-State Arbitration at RPC

Anne K. Hoffmann

Independent Arbitrator at Hoffmann Arbitration

Niamh Leinwather

Secretary General VIAC at Vienna International Arbitral Centre of the Austrian Federal Economic Chamber

Constantine Partasides KC

Partner at Three Crowns LLP

Prof. Crenguta Leaua

Professor at Bucharest University

Prof. Tania Iossifova

Professor at University of National and World Economy

Prof. Vladimir Pavić

Professor at University of Belgrade

Khawar Qureshi KC

Partner at McNair International

Jennifer Morrison Ersin

Counsel at Bradley

Iuliana Iacob

Partner at Muşat & Asociaţii

Nenad Stankovic

Partner at Stankovic & Partners (NSTLAW)

Stelios Gregoriou

Managing Partner at Gregoriou Law Firm

Petr Vošahlík

Partner at BBH

Lazar Tomov

Founding Partner at Tomov & Tomov

Eric Leikin

Partner at Freshfields

Pencho Stanchev

Partner at DPC

STANIMIR A. ALEXANDROV works as an arbitrator in treaty-based investor-state disputes and international commercial arbitrations.

Mr. Alexandrov serves as an arbitrator in numerous cases and has been appointed to the panels of arbitrators of various arbitral institutions. He is designated by the Chairman of ICSID's Administrative Council to serve on ICSID's Panel of Arbitrators. Mr. Alexandrov has more than 25 years of experience in investor-state and international commercial arbitration. Until August 2017, he was co-leader of the international arbitration practice at Sidley Austin LLP. Mr. Alexandrov is consistently listed as a leader in the field of international arbitration in publications including The Best Lawyers in America, Chambers, The Legal 500: United States, The Legal 500: Latin America, and The International Who's Who Legal, and has been recognized as "Lawyer of the Year International Arbitration – Governmental" and "Lawyer of the Year International Arbitration – Commercial."

Before he entered private practice, Mr. Alexandrov was Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs of Bulgaria, where he managed Bulgaria's relations with the European Union (EU), the United Nations, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), and NATO, worked on Bulgaria's EU and WTO accession, and was responsible for all legal work of the Foreign Service.

He has a doctoral degree in international law and is a professor at the George Washington University Law School in Washington.

Christoph Schreuer is an expert and thought leader in international investment law, frequently referred to as “the leading authority on investment arbitration” (Who’s Who Legal 2018).

Christoph Schreuer is working as an independent expert and arbitrator in investment cases – at the last count, in more than 50 major investment arbitrations. He is a member of the ICSID Panel of Conciliators and Arbitrators. Christoph Schreuer has an abundance of experience as arbitrator under the rules of ICSID and UNCITRAL. Also, he is the author of numerous expert opinions rendered in investment arbitrations. Also see the ICSID profile of Prof. Schreuer.

Christoph authored numerous books and articles in the field of investment arbitration, including “The ICSID Convention: A Commentary” (Cambridge University Press, First Edition in 2001; Second Edition in 2009; Third Edition in preparation) and “Principles of International Investment Law” (Oxford University Press, First Edition in 2008; Second Edition in 2012; with R. Dolzer; Third Edition in preparation). Most recently in 2020, he published the book “International Protection of Investments – The Substantive Standards” (Cambridge University Press, 2020; with A. Reinisch). Christoph Schreuer’s full list of publications and lectures can be found on his personal website.

He is a graduate of the Universities of Vienna (Dr. iur. 1966), Cambridge (LL.M. 1970) and Yale (J.S.D. 1979). During his academic career he was a Professor of Law at the Universities of Salzburg, the Johns Hopkins University and the University of Vienna, as well as an Assistant Professor at the University of Graz.

Christoph works in English (fluent) and German (native).

Değer is the founding partner of Boden Law, specializing in energy law and arbitration. With an exceptional track record, she has solidified her reputation as a prominent figure in the energy sector globally. Değer’s expertise extends across various energy-related domains, including infrastructure and arbitration matters. Her exceptional abilities have earned her prestigious accolades, featuring listings in Legal 500, Chambers & Partners, and Who’s Who Legal, where she is acknowledged as a leading individual in the energy and natural resources field.

Değer possesses extensive experience in steering project development and finance transactions in diverse energy areas, encompassing power, oil and gas, ports, metals & mining, and general infrastructure. Her unique energy practice in Turkey has significantly contributed to her global recognition. Commencing her career in Turkey, Değer has been intricately involved in numerous facets of the Turkish energy sector, acclaimed for her adeptness in structuring intricate energy investments and agreements, as well as adeptly resolving complex challenges within the energy industry.

Her expertise spans a wide range of areas within the sector, including commodity trade transactions, mergers and acquisitions (asset and stock acquisitions), project finance transactions, concession agreements, host-government agreements, and turn-key EPC contracts. Clients rely on her unparalleled guidance to avoid or resolve disputes and regulatory issues, including intricate energy regulations, employing various means such as negotiation, mediation, arbitration, and litigation. She has extensive experience in international commercial and investment treaty arbitration. Furthermore, Değer serves as an esteemed arbitrator in disputes arising from energy contracts.

Her involvement in multifaceted projects across various jurisdictions underscores her proficiency in navigating intricate energy sector landscapes, encompassing EPC contracts, long-term supply agreements, and technology transfer agreements.

Beyond her professional accomplishments, Değer is a respected authority in the field, actively engaging in publications, teachings, and speaking engagements pertaining to arbitration and energy matters. Notably, she serves as a lecturer for the “Energy Project Management and Law” course at the Energy Systems Engineering Department of Kadir Has University. She also holds a coveted position as a member of the Advisory Board of the Center for Energy and Sustainable Development (CESD) of Kadir Has University, further cementing her commitment to fostering energy sustainability. In addition, Değer contributes as a Board member in the esteemed Carbon Footprint and Sustainability Association.

Değer serves as the chair of the Energy Commission of the Istanbul Arbitration Center.

She speaks English, French and Turkish.

Tatiana Minaeva specializes in international arbitration (both commercial and investor-state) and in cross border litigation proceedings. Tatiana has experience representing international clients in a broad spectrum of disputes relating to financial services, energy, mining, telecoms, construction, international sale of goods, and technology. Tatiana is ranked as a "global leader" in international arbitration by Who's Who Legal: Arbitration 2021, 2022 and 2023 and is recommended by Legal 500 for her work in international arbitration.

Tatiana is featured as a "distinguished advisor" in the 2023 edition of the Financier Worldwide – Power Players in international arbitration.

Tatiana is on the panel of many of the leading arbitral institutions and is often appointed as an arbitrator (including as a sole arbitrator) under the Rules of UNCITRAL, LCIA, ICC, SCC and ICAC. Tatiana has published extensively on the topic of International Arbitration and is regularly invited to speak at industry conferences.

Tatiana is a co-author of the book ICSID Rules and Regulations 2022 – Article-by-Article Commentary, which offers practical and theoretical guidance for experienced arbitration practitioners.

Anne K. Hoffmann is an internationally recognised arbitrator with over two decades of extensive experience in both commercial and investor – State arbitration. Ms. Hoffmann is dual-qualified in Germany and England & Wales and has practiced across the globe in both civil law and common law jurisdictions. During that time, she worked at leading law firms in London, Geneva and Dubai before focusing on her practice as an independent arbitrator.

To date, Ms. Hoffmann has acted as chair, sole arbitrator and co-arbitrator in arbitrations under the auspices of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA), the Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC), Stockholm Chamber of Commerce (SCC), the Hong Kong International Arbitration Centre (HKIAC), the Swiss Rules, the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC-LCIA), the Vienna International Arbitration Centre (VIAC), the Dubai International Arbitration Centre (DIAC), the Korean Commercial Arbitration Board (KCAB), the Cairo Regional Centre for International Commercial Arbitration (CRCICA) and the German Arbitration Institution (DIS) as well as under the UNCITRAL Rules and ad hoc. The disputes concerned a great variety of sectors and were governed by different laws.

Ms. Hoffmann is a German national and conducts arbitrations in English and German. She also has very good knowledge of French and Russian.

In addition to her membership in various arbitration organisations, Ms. Hoffmann is on the panel of arbitrators of SIAC, HKIAC, KCAB and AIAC. She is also a member of the SIAC Users Council.

Ms. Hoffmann has been consistently recognised as a Global Leader Arbitration in all editions of Who is Who Legal since 2014. She is also listed by Chambers Global as “Most in Demand Arbitrator” and on the Legal 500 Arbitration Powerlist Middle East.

Constantine, one of the founding partners of Three Crowns, has appeared as lead counsel in some of the largest international arbitrations of the last two decades. He has secured a series of multi-billion dollar awards for his clients, and defended others in ‘bet-the-company’ claims arising in a number of different business sectors.

Constantine’s experience includes:

Securing a landmark $9 billion award for ConocoPhillips against Venezuela in an ICSID arbitration
Securing a $2 billion award on behalf of ConocoPhillips against PDVSA, the State Oil Company of Venezuela, in one of the largest ICC arbitrations in history
Securing a $2 billion award for two oil and gas majors against the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation
Securing a $1.98 billion award against the Kurdistan Regional Government in an LCIA arbitration
Securing a favourable award on behalf of Elliott Associates in a UNCITRAL arbitration against the Republic of Korea
Securing a favourable award on behalf of CNOOC, Occidental Petroleum and Consolidated Contractors Company in an ICC arbitration against the government of Yemen
Successfully representing Dana Gas (the largest privately-owned energy company in the Middle East) in an LCIA arbitration
Appearing for the ICC International Court of Arbitration before the UK Supreme Court in relation to the challenge of an arbitrator in the celebrated case of Halliburton v Chubb (click here to view appearance)
In addition to his counsel work, Constantine appears regularly as arbitrator, including in disputes that involve States and State entities. He has experience acting as Chairman or Sole Arbitrator in cases under the ICC Rules, the LCIA Rules, the SCC Rules, and the UNCITRAL Rules.

Constantine is recognised internationally in all major directories and publications at the top of the arbitration market. Over the last decade, he has been named each year in the Top 20 “Global Elite Thought Leaders” by Who’s Who Legal, which describes him as “the leading arbitration lawyer in London”, “exquisite as an advocate”, and “a leader of his generation”. Chambers recognises him as one of only two “Star Individuals” in international arbitration in London, with a market source saying he is “seen as one of the go-to people in the world for a party who is involved in a large and complex arbitration”. He is also listed in the “Hall of Fame” for international arbitration in The Legal 500.

Constantine is a co-author of the fourth, fifth, and sixth editions of the leading textbook on international arbitration, Redfern and Hunter on International Arbitration. He is a Member of the ICCA Governing Board and a Director of the LCIA Board.

Constantine is a solicitor-advocate (Higher Courts Civil) and was appointed King’s Counsel in 2014. He was educated at King’s College, London and Cambridge University.

Crenguta Leaua is an experienced arbitrator, acting frequently in arbitrations under the ICC rules or the UNCITRAL Rules. She is also listed as arbitrator by the WIPO list of neutrals for intellectual property disputes and by various institutions in Austria (VIAC), Romania, Bulgaria, Moldova, Poland, Slovenia, Kuala Lumpur, Shanghai and Beijing (CIETAC – both on the list for commercial cases and the list for investment arbitration under Belt & Road). She is a member of the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA), of the International Council of Commercia Arbitration (ICCA), of the Swiss Arbitration Association ( ASA) and of the International Bar Association (IBA) Arbitration Committee. She is past Vice- President of the ICC International Court of Arbitration and a member of the ICC Commission on Arbitration as well as of a number of its task forces, including the task force on climate change and arbitration and the task force on construction law and arbitration. Since 2017, she is named as Thought Leader in International Arbitration by the Who’s Who Legal.

Crenguta also acts as counsel in commercial arbitral proceedings under the ICSID rules, as well as in commercial arbitration under the rules of ICC, WIPO and of other arbitral institution or under UNCITRAL rules. She is a founding partner of “Leaua Damcali Deaconu Paunescu – LDDP” Law firm in Bucharest, Romania, a firm included in top 100 law firms specializing arbitration worldwide (GAR100 – Global Arbitration Review).

Her experience in technology- related legal work include: software development (including blockchain technology and cryptocurrency), internet law, intellectual property law (copyrights, trademarks, patents and R&D), aviation law, construction law, energy law, mining ( both mineral resources and oil & gas), environmental law. Examples of notable cases of arbitrations and ADR include a dispute on the development and implementation of the software used by the judiciary system in Romania, a number of disputes on the rehabilitation design and works of the largest hydro-powerplant on Danube river, a dispute on the design of the masterplan for the national integrated transportation system of Romania and a complex dispute of over 4,7 billion USD comprising environmental law issues and state of the art technologies for a gold mine exploitation.

She is author or co-author of 5 books and over 50 articles on topics such as international arbitration, intellectual property, construction law, commercial law, corporate law.

Crenguta holds a Ph.D. from Bucharest University and has completed an executive education program at Harvard University and a further education program in the field of blockchain and cryptocurrency at the London School of Economics. She is a Visiting Associate Professor at the Bucharest University Faculty of Law, teaching International Comparative Arbitration and Construction Arbitration and an Associate Professor of Business Law and EU Law at the Bucharest University of Economics. She was a visiting scholar at Columbia Law School in New York and was invited for lectures on arbitration-related topics by professors or students’ arbitration associations at a number of universities including Science Po, Georgetown University, Columbia University, Washburn University.

She is fluent in Romanian, English and French, has a good command of Italian and basic knowledge of German and Spanish.

Vladimir Pavić is Professor at the Faculty of Law, University of Belgrade, where he teaches Private International Law, Arbitration, Competition Law and Investment Protection. He currently serves as VicePresident of the Belgrade Arbitration Center and is a member of the State Council of the Republic of Serbia for Private International Law and the International Advisory Board of Vienna International Arbitral Centre. He served as VicePresident of the Permanent Court of Arbitration attached to the Serbian Chamber of Commerce. He acted as arbitrator, counsel and expert witness in a number of ad hoc arbitrations and arbitrations organized under various institutional rules, and is listed since 2013 in the Global Arbitration Review’s The International Who’s Who Legal for Arbitration, as well as on the lists of arbitrators of institutional arbitrations attached to chambers of commerce in Serbia, Croatia, Montenegro, Macedonia and Georgia. He has advised and acted in a number of crossborder litigations in both civil and common law jurisdictions and has taught as a visiting professor at graduate and postgraduate level at a number of universities. He holds his LL.B from the University of Belgrade, Faculty of Law (1994), and his LL.M. (1996) and S.J.D. (1998) from the Central European University, Budapest. He was a FCO Chevening/Soros Visiting Student at the Lincoln College, Oxford University (19967) and a researcher at the T.M.C. Asser Instituut, Den Haag (1996).

Khawar Qureshi KC is widely recognised as one of the world’s leading advocates in the fields of International Arbitration, Commercial Litigation and Public International Law. From offices in London and Doha he has acted for or against more than 60 States including the USA, Russian Federation, Argentina, India and Kenya. From 1999-2006, before becoming one of the youngest Silks in 2006, as one of around 20 UK Government "A" Panel Treasury Counsel he had the highest level of UK Security Clearance, advising and representing UK authorities such as the SFO and Ministry of Defence on hundreds of matters including UN/EU/UK Sanctions. He has undertaken dozens of arbitrations as Lead Counsel including ICSID, UNCITRAL, LCIA, ICC, SIAC matters.

He has appeared at all levels of the English Courts, and was the first English Barrister ever to establish an office outside the UK in 2008 at the Qatar Financial Centre. He has taught Commercial and International law at Cambridge University, LSE and Kings College London. He was Chairman of TheCityUK Legal Services Group from 2010-2015 and was appointed a Deputy High Court Judge in 2013.

Jennifer Morrison Ersin focuses her practice in international disputes. She advises clients in international investment and commercial arbitrations across a range of sectors. She has acted in proceedings governed by the rules of arbitration of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL), American Arbitration Association (AAA), and International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID). Jennifer has acted in arbitrations seated in jurisdictions around the world.
Her experience includes advising clients on federal government construction contracts disputes, and arbitrating construction, energy, and agribusiness matters. She also has extensive experience handling matters that arise from municipal infrastructure projects.
Jennifer has particular experience in acting in disputes involving sovereign states. She has most recently represented contractors against sovereign employers including Libya and Ethiopia. This experience extends to counseling contractors on how to best exit high-conflict states, including Libya and Afghanistan.
Jennifer is also adept at handling matters before U.S. courts, particularly where those matters include an international element or a foreign party. She is able to assist foreign clients in Section 1782 discovery actions and enforcement actions.
*Admitted in New York and the District of Columbia; not yet admitted to the Mississippi Bar.

Iuliana specialises in international arbitration. She acted as counsel in multiple high-stake arbitral disputes under the rules of almost all major arbitral institutions across a wide range of sectors, as well as in complex cases involving applications for provisional measures, annulment of Arbitral Awards or recognition and enforcement proceedings. She regularly advises clients in connection with complex investment protection matters.

Iuliana assisted and represented clients in relation to complex domestic litigations arising out of major infrastructure projects and in high-stake proceedings before international courts (the Court of Justice of the European Union, the European Court of Human Rights).

Iuliana is a member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators and of the ICC Institute of World Business Law. She is listed on the panel of arbitrators of the Bucharest Court of Arbitration, the Court of Arbitration of the Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Permanent Court of Arbitration of the Romanian-German Chamber of Industry.

Nenad Stankovic, attorney at law and senior partner at law firm Stankovic and Partners.
Nenad graduated from Belgrade University Law School and has been a member of the State and Belgrade Bar Association since 1998.
Over the past 15 years he has been responsible for representing clients in some of the most complex arbitration and litigation matters in Serbia, as well as handling hearings involving international arbitral and other disciplinary bodies such as ICSID, VIAC, ICC and the Football Association of Serbia.
Nenad regularly acts as an arbitrator and is president of the arbitral tribunal of the Permanent Arbitration service at the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia. In addition, he is one of the founding members of the Arbitration Association of Belgrade and his name appears on the list of arbitrators held by Belgrade Arbitration Centre. Nenad has also been recognised as a leading practitioner in the Legal 500 Arbitration Powerlist CEE for 2023.
At Stankovic & Partners (NSTLAW), he continues to handle some of the largest, most complex disputes in the region, either as lead counsel or as local counsel working closely with some of the best-known international law firms in the world. These range from general commercial and company litigation, through real estate, environment and construction disputes, to banking, IP and IT, employment and competition matters. NSTLAW has extensive expertise in all these areas combined with a successful track record in substantial and significant arbitrations.

Stelios Gregoriou is the Managing Partner of Gregoriou Law Firm, a Greek Law Firm established in Athens since 1992.
Stelios Gregoriou is:
Fellow CIArb
Member of the VIAC Panel of Arbitrators
WIPO Neutral
Member of the EODID (Athens Mediation and Arbitration Organization) Panel of Arbitrators
He has been the lead Counsel in many domestic and international Arbitrations and he has enforced some foreign Arbitral Awards in Greece.
He has mediated in many civil cases before the Greek Courts assigned by the Greek Ministry of Justice.
He has presented the Chapter of Arbitration in Greece edited by the ICLG many times.
He is a researcher of dispute resolution between states with regard to the Law of the Sea.
Gregoriou Law Firm is particularly specialized in providing high caliber services in Litigation, Mediation Arbitration.
The Firm, also, provide consultancy in a wide array of matters, with a special emphasis in Commercial Law, IP, Competition Law, M&A, Distribution/Franchising/Agency, Real Estate, Energy, Investment Law, Human Rights before ECHR, White Collar Crime, Penal Law.

Petr Vošahlík is a Partner with BBH focusing on representing clients in arbitration or court proceedings. Besides that, Petr is a listed arbitrator at the Arbitration Court attached to the Economic Chamber of the Czech Republic and the Agrarian Chamber of the Czech Republic, Vienna International Arbitral Center (VIAC) and is a member of the German Arbitration Institute (DIS). Petr has extensive experience in advising clients in international arbitrations under the rules of VIAC, ICC, DIS, LCIA, the Arbitration Court of the CCCR and the ACCR and other significant arbitral institutions. In particular, he deals with M&A disputes, claims for compensation, including lost profits and disputes related to development projects. Petr has significant experience with telecommunications or healthcare regulation and connected disputes and in addition to that also focuses on the area of Private International Law and deals with Criminal Law and defense. Petr is also involved as an external associate of the Faculty of Law of Charles University, where he participates in teaching arbitration and advocacy skills.

Lazar Tomov is the founding partner of Tomov&Tomov and the head of its dispute resolution practice.

He practices predominantly in the field of international arbitration. He practices both as a counsel and arbitrator.

As a counsel, Lazar Tomov represents states and private clients in domestic and international arbitration proceedings. He has experience with arbitrations conducted under the arbitration rules of the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID), the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL), and the Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI). His practice covers disputes involving various industries such as energy (oil & gas, photovoltaic, and electricity power generation and distribution), telecommunications, banking, construction, and waste management services.

Eric specialises in international arbitration, with a particular focus on investment arbitration and post-M&A commercial disputes. He has represented clients in proceedings under various procedural rules, most often in the energy, finance and technology sectors. Eric is also experienced in US civil litigation and cross-border compliance investigations, particularly in the former Soviet Union.

Before joining Freshfields in 2015, Eric worked for several years with another leading international law firm in Washington DC and clerked on the Constitutional Court of South Africa under Justice Madlanga. Eric is admitted to practice and is a member of the bar in New York and Washington DC (attorney-at-law). He speaks English, as well as intermediate German and Russian.

Pencho Stanchev is a partner at DPC, Bulgaria, and head of the dispute resolution team. His current practice is predominantly focused on dispute resolution, arbitration, and administrative litigation.
He represents market players from various industries in complex disputes and commercial lawsuits and oversees firm’s highest-value cases. His expertise also includes specialization in banking and energy law.
Mr. Stanchev advised Astaldi in an ICC arbitration with respect to a large-scale dispute related to a railway project. He represented a leading international electricity company in the preliminary proceedings and took part in the oral hearing before CJEU in Luxembourg.
He is often invited as a speaker at industry leading seminars. Pencho was elected as a VIAC Community Ambassador for Bulgaria and spoke at the First VIAC CAN Congress in Vienna in February 2023. He has been elected as a member of VIAC Energy Disputes Committee.
Pencho is also a member of the International Association of Young Lawyers (AIJA) and its litigation and international arbitration commissions. He is a Recommended Lawyer by The Legal 500 and a Rising Star according to IFLR1000.