Oliver Powell and Alex Haines instructed in 10-day ICSID investor-state arbitration

Oliver Powell and Alex Haines – instructed by arbitration specialists David Pusztai and Veronika Korom, adjunct professor and professor respectively – appeared in a 10-day International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) arbitration for the Shareholder Claimants in PNB Banka and others v. Republic of Latvia (ICSID Case No. ARB/17/47) pursuant to the Bilateral Investment Treaty between Latvia and the UK. The legal team was assisted by Kalman Varga, junior associate.

The merits hearing took place between Monday 26 June and 7 July 2023 at the International Dispute Resolution Centre (IDRC) in London. The arbitration involved allegations of corruption at the heart of the Latvian banking system. During the two-week hearing, Oliver and Alex conducted cross-examinations of a number of high level officials involved in banking supervision and law enforcement, as well as experts on banking regulation and law enforcement. 

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Oliver has a strong pedigree in dispute resolution, most recently: representing the Defendant in an expert determination concerning an investment fund; and acting as an overseas legal expert in a $125m arbitration in Russia. Oliver is often instructed in matters with an international element and usually cases involving allegations of dishonesty, sharp practice or breach of regulations. He is an editor of Millington and Sutherland Williams on the Proceeds of Crime, and a contributor to Lissack and Horlick on Bribery and Corruption, the seminal texts on Asset Recovery and Bribery & Corruption respectively.

Alex is a specialist in International Organisations Law (e.g, the institutional law of the World Bank Group) and Public International Law and has been instructed in several international disputes administered under LCIA and UNCITRAL arbitral rules, most recently against one of the largest international organisations in the UK and a dispute worth over £115 million between two parties in a former Soviet Republic involving high value commodities. His experience is particularly sought after for issues touching on international organisations and their immunities, international human rights law, and fraud and corruption. Alex is co-Chair of the New York State Bar Association London Chapter, and he is a Sanctions Officer of the Caribbean Development Bank. He speaks fluent French and Spanish.

To find out more on Oliver and Alex, and our international arbitration capabilities, please contact Sam Carter on +44 (0)203 989 6669 for a confidential discussion.

News 13 Jul, 2023