Workshop 3: The Inter-relationship of African Countries’ State Law with ICSID Jurisprudence

Speakers

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  Trainer - Mr Michael Sullivan KC Barrister at One Essex Court Temple, United Kingdom.
  

  Trainer - Mr Michael Sullivan KC

  Barrister at One Essex Court Temple, United Kingdom.

  Michael Sullivan Q.C. has a particular expertise in very substantial cases involving energy and natural resources, banking and finance, corruption, commercial fraud and asset tracing. He has a substantial practice in international commercial arbitration, covering a wide variety of rules as well as investment treaty arbitrations at ICSID. In addition to major international law firms, he provides advice directly to multinational corporations, state entities and overseas governments, often working directly with in-house lawyers in state attorney offices. He has also appeared or is presently appearing before overseas courts, including in Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia and Uganda, and many of his cases involve knowledge and understanding of foreign laws. Mr Sullivan has strong connections in Africa having represented parastatial bodies and organisations in litigation and arbitration. He has also been honoured by the Republic of Kenya with the award of the Order of the Grand Warrior (O.G.W.) for his work representing the state in major arbitration disputes, including investment treaty proceedings.

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  Trainer - Mr Emmanuel Bitta Chief State Counsel of the Republic of Kenya.
  

  Trainer - Mr Emmanuel Bitta

  Chief State Counsel of the Republic of Kenya.

  Deputy Chief
  State Counsel Attorney-General
  Attorney General’s Office
  Department of Justice, Kenya

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  Trainer - Ms Sheila Mammet Senior State Counsel in the Chambers of the Attorney General of the Republic of Kenya.
  

  Trainer - Ms Sheila Mammet

  Senior State Counsel in the Chambers of the Attorney General of the Republic of Kenya.

  Sheila has over seven years of demonstrated experience working in alternative dispute resolution having been involved in international commercial and investment arbitrations administered by LCIA, ICC and ICSID . She has also acted as counsel in several domestic construction arbitrations as well as commercial litigation before National courts.

  Her current areas of practice are; International Commercial and Investment arbitration, Public International law, Trade law and International Investment law

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  Trainer - Dr Henry Forbes-Smith Counsel - One Essex Court, Temple, London and member of the Bars of England & Wales, New York and New Zealand.
  

  Trainer - Dr Henry Forbes-Smith

  Counsel - One Essex Court, Temple, London and member of the Bars of England & Wales, New York and New Zealand.

  Henry Forbes Smith has a extensive international litigation and arbitration expertise, particularly in banking, commercial, governmental, energy and technology. Henry orally argued the most challenging parts of Cortec v Kenya (Decision on Annulment, 19 March 2021) for Kenya before an ICSID annulment committee, upholding jurisdictional dismissal under international law of a €3 billion claim against Kenya for an investment made in serious breach of local environmental law. Henry played a central role for Huawei in Unwired v Huawei and Conversant v Huawei [2020] UKSC 37, establishing the right of each country contractually to price patents under the European Telecommunication Standards Institute’s patent licence. These were the top two UK patent cases that year, and among the biggest tech cases in the world. Henry played a leading role in Lomas v Firth Rixson [2012] 2 Lloyds Rep 548, a leading authority on the ISDA Master Agreement, establishing that Lehman could not recover its in-the-money positions following its bankruptcy. Henry has deep experience with parallel litigation, and local laws, including a wide range of civil law and common law jurisdictions in Asia, Europe, Africa, South America and the Pacific. Henry has a substantial arbitration practice, including under LCIA, ICC, SIAC, ICDR, UNCITRAL and ICSID rules. He also sits arbitrator and is admitted in New York and New Zealand. Prior to coming to the bar, Henry was a capital markets and M&A attorney practising New York law with Davis Polk, and New Zealand law with Chapman Tripp.

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  Moderator - Professor Muiga Professor of Public law at the School of Law, University of Nairobi and Senior Partner at the firm of Mohammed Muigai LLP
  

  Moderator - Professor Muiga

  Professor of Public law at the School of Law, University of Nairobi and Senior Partner at the firm of Mohammed Muigai LLP

  Professor Githu Muigai holds an LLB and a PhD from the University of Nairobi, an LLM from the Colombia University Law School and Diploma in law from the Kenya School of Law. He is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (FCIArb).

  He was called to the Bar in 1985. He specializes in public procurement law, corporate finance, civil and commercial litigation. He is a recognized company on bank securities. In addition to the practice of Law, he is the immediate former Attorney General of the Republic of Kenya.