Cross-Examination in International Arbitration Conference – April 2, 2015

Register Now! The Cross-Examination in International Arbitration Conference is to be held at Palazzo Franchetti in Venice, Italy – April 2, 2015

Palazzo Franchetti
S. Marco, 2847
30124 Venice, Italy

Conference Downloads

Program Information

This conference will bring together a group of some of the best known and experienced practitioners in the field of international arbitration, both advocates and arbitrators, to discuss, and then demonstrate, how to cross-examine witnesses in an international arbitration. The program will make it clear that not all international arbitrations are the same.

Guidelines, tactics, techniques, ideas and advice to be followed or at least considered in conducting Cross-Examination will be Discussed, Analyzed and Demonstrated, such as:

  • Fundamentals of Cross-Examination
  • Cross-examination before International Tribunals
  • An International Arbitrator’s View of the Effectiveness of Cross-Examination
  • Cross-Examination under Tight Time Limits
  • Cross-Examination before Civil Law Arbitrators
  • Preparing for Cross-Examination without Discovery
  • Witness Preparation and the Conduct of International Arbitrations
  • Written Witness Statements and Live Witnesses – When Paper comes to Life
  • When Civil Law and Common Law Procedure Meet
  • Learn How to Influence and Persuade Arbitrators – What Works, What Doesn’t
  • Leading Arbitrators from Civil Law Jurisdictions Offer Insight and Commentary on Cross Examination Techniques
  • And More!

For the newer entrant to international arbitration, the conference will be a source of learning, for the experienced, it will serve as a refresher of advocacy skills.  Anyone who attends this conference will benefit in better understanding and appreciating the nuances and process of successful Cross Examination in International Arbitration.  It will serve to make everyone attending a more effective cross-examiner, regardless of prior experience.

Registration

Conference Fee includes: 
Written course materials, a copy of Take the Witness: Cross-Examination in International Arbitration (a $125 value), refreshments at breaks, luncheon and a drinks reception following the program. The fee does not include accommodations.

This volume is the “go to” reference for the arbitration practitioner who needs to master the art of cross-examination in the international arena.  In this concise volume international arbitrators and world-class attorneys present proven techniques for the effective cross-examination of laypersons, adverse witnesses, scientific experts, legal experts and others anywhere in the world.

Schedule

9:00 – 9:10 Welcoming Remarks and Description of Program:
Lawrence Newman

9:10 – 9:30 Remarks by:
S
tefano Azzali (Secretary General, Milan Chamber of Commerce)

9:30 – 10:00 Principles of Cross-Examination Ben H. Sheppard, Jr.

10:00 – 11:15  First Panel – Cross-Examination in International Arbitration
Sophie Nappert, David R. Haigh, Francis A. Vasquez, Jr. , George D. Ruttinger, Lawrence Newman (Chair)

11:15 – 11:45 Coffee/Tea Break

11:45 – 1:00 Second Panel – Various issues (preparation for cross examination, witness statements, redirect, cross examination in foreign languages)
James H. Carter, Tullio Treves, Carlo Santoro Hilary Heilbron, Mark Baker (Chair)

1:00 – 2:00 Luncheon

The afternoon sessions will feature two cross-examinations before a mock three-member tribunal, with other faculty members as commentators. The examinations will not be done through a script.  Rather, the same witness will be cross-examined  by two separate lawyers.. The second examiner will not have the benefit of having heard the first examination.  Both will be provided (as will other faculty members and the audience) with the same factual background, in the form primarily of correspondence and other prior statements of the witness. The examinations will be followed by comments and critiques from tribunal members, faculty commentators and members of the audience.  In advance of the event, we will circulate to all seminar participants — including, of course, the two cross-examiners —  the factual background  materials on the basis of which the examination will be conducted.

2:00 – 3:00 First Examination of Witness
Timothy G. Nelson cross examines the witness, Sophie Nappert, before the tribunal of Hilary Heilbron (Chair), George D. Ruttinger, James H. Carter

3:00 – 4:00 Second Examination of Witness
Steven A. Hammond cross examines the witness, Sophie Nappert before the tribuanl of Hilary Heilbron, George D. Ruttinger, James H. Carter

4:00 -5:00 Comments and critiques by the Tribunal and commentators
(Various Faculty Members)

5:00 – 6:00 Cocktail reception

Co-Chairs

Lawrence W. Newman conceived the idea of the book upon which the conference is based. Mr. Newman received his initial courtroom experience in his five years as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Office in the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, after which he joined the litigation department of the New York office of Baker & McKenzie. That department, under his direction, focused on international litigation and arbitration and became the leading law office in the world (in terms of number of cases) in the representation of claimants against Iran in arbitration at the Iran-United States Claims Tribunal in The Hague. Mr. Newman has represented claimants and respondents in commercial and investment arbitration proceedings in the United States, Europe and Latin America. He also sits as an arbitrator in cases involving international matters.

Ben H. Sheppard, Jr. is a Distinguished Lecturer and Director of the A.A. White Dispute Resolution Center at the University of Houston Law Center. From 1969 through 2005 he practiced at Vinson & Elkins L.L.P. where he was a Partner and Co-Chair of the firm’s international dispute resolution practice. His practice focused on litigation and arbitration, both as counsel and as arbitrator. He has served in international and domestic arbitrations as sole arbitrator, tribunal chair, party-appointed arbitrator and on tripartite tribunals selected from institutional rosters. He was chair of AAA/ICDR task force that promulgated the 2006 amendment to the ICDR International Arbitration Rules establishing a pre-arbitral emergency arbitrator procedure. He is a member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators and the London Court of International Arbitration.

Faculty (As of January 14, 2015)

Stefano Azzali is Secretary General of the Milan Chamber of Arbitration.  He also acts as Secretary General of the Italy-China Mediation Center and as Secretary Treasurer of the International Federation of Commercial Arbitration Institutions (IFCAI). He is member of the Board of Directors of the Institute for the Promotion of Arbitration and Conciliation in the Mediterranean (ISPRAMED). Since 2005, he is Visiting Professor of Arbitration Law at Bocconi University – School of Law in Milan and, in 2012, he is Fellow at the Centre for Transnational Litigation and Commercial Law, New York University, School of Law. From 2001 to 2007 he chaired the Disciplinary Commission of the Italian Football Federation (FIGC), where he is now member of its Federal Court of Justice. Author of articles and publications on arbitration, he is member of the panel of arbitrators before various arbitral institutions (ICDR, VIAC, CIETAC etc.); he acted as arbitrator in several institutional proceedings (ICDR Rules, DIS Rules, Swiss Chambers Rules etc).

Mark Baker is Global Co-Head of International Arbitration at Norton Rose Fulbright based in their Houston office.  He is a member of the Global Supervisory Board.  Mr. Baker practices in the areas of complex commercial arbitration, business litigation and alternative dispute resolution (ADR).   Mr. Baker has extensive experience with the international and domestic arbitration and litigation of banking, financial and securities transactions.  He has also represented numerous clients in matters regarding international and domestic construction contracts, power purchase and sale agreements, energy contracts, joint ventures, and project finance and development agreements.

James H. Carter is a Senior Counsel  in Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr’s New York office.  He has more than 40 years of experience as arbitrator or counsel in more than 150 international commercial and investment arbitration cases.  Mr. Carter has represented European, U.S., Asian and other companies in arbitration under leading institutional rules and in ad hoc arbitrations in all leading international seats.  He has particular experience in joint venture, investor-state disputes, mergers and acquisitions, investment banking and other financial services, project finance, licensing, insurance and energy, as well as international sports law disputes.  Mr. Carter is the co-founder of the International Arbitration Club of New York.

David R. Haigh is a Partner in Burnet, Duckworth & Palmer and is based in their Calgary office.  His practice focuses primarily on serving on international arbitration tribunals that deal with a variety of subjects, including energy, intellectual property, pharmaceutical issues, coal and potash mining.  He has been involved in a broad range of investor state investment and commercial disputes involving acting for and against national entities and sitting as an arbitrator in relation to disputes involving states.   Mr. Haigh acts as arbitrator and counsel and is associated with arbitration centres in Canada and internationally.  His other practice areas include commercial and general litigation, construction litigation and energy litigation.

Steven A. Hammond is a Partner in Hughes Hubbard & Reed’s New York office.  He specializes in international arbitration and litigation, advising and defending multinational and state enterprises in connection with a broad range of commercial activity.  He co-chairs the firm’s International Practice from it head office in New York.  Mr. Hammond has appeared as arbitrator or counsel in numerous ICC, UNCITRAL, ICSID, IACAC and AAA/ICDR arbitrations, including proceedings conducted in English, Spanish and French.  Clients laud his “remarkable insight into legal matters and superb level of knowledge, along with his strong grasp of both the larger picture and smaller details of a case”. 

Hilary Heilbron has extensive experience as counsel both in international arbitration and commercial litigation acting for a wide range of national and international clients in very substantial disputes.  She has appeared as leading counsel in the Supreme  Court, House of Lords and Privy Council  She also regularly sits as an international arbitrator and is a qualified mediator.  Ms. Heilbron has accepted many appointments as party nominated arbitrator, institution appointed and sole arbitrator.  Her appointments have been under ICC, LCIA, and ICDR as well as ad hoc appointments.

Sophie Nappert is a dual-qualified lawyer in the UK and Canada. She is an arbitrator in independent practice based in London. She is ranked in Global Arbitration Review’s Top 30 List of Female Arbitrators Worldwide. Her areas of expertise include energy and natural resources, construction, investment treaty disputes and disputes against State parties. Ms. Nappert is a member of the UNCITRAL Working Group on International Commercial Arbitration and Conciliation.

Timothy G. Nelson is a Partner in the New York office of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom. He represents clients in a variety of disputes involving cross-border and international law issues, including arbitration before international bodies such as the American Arbitration Association/International Centre for Dispute Resolution (ICDR), the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) and tribunals constituted under the Arbitration rules of the United National Commission of International Trade Law (UNCITRAL).

George D. Ruttinger is a Partner in Crowell & Moring’s Washington, D.C. office where he co-chairs the International Dispute Resolution Group and is a member of the Government Contracts Group. He has represented clients in a broad range of industries, including aerospace, technology, manufacturing and pharmaceuticals. Mr. Ruttinger has represented domestic and foreign clients in international arbitrations before tribunals of the International Chamber of Commerce, Stockholm Chamber of Commerce, Netherlands Arbitration Institute, Permanent Court of Arbitration, and International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes.

Carlo Santoro is a Partner in Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton’s Milan office.  His practice focuses on domestic and international litigation and arbitration.  Mr. Santoro regularly represents domestic and foreign clients in a wide range of disputes involving corporate, commercial, banking and financial matters, as well as bankruptcy and competition issues across numerous different industries, including energy and media.

Tullio Treves is Senior International Consultant in Curtis, Mallet-Prevost, Colt & Mosle’s International Arbitration group and is based in Milan.  Previously, Mr. Treves was a Judge of the International  Tribunal for the Law of the Sea from 1996 to 2011.  Within the Tribunal, he was the President of the Seabed Disputes Chamber.  Mr. Treves has acted as the Counsel of France in the Arbitration with Canada on the delimitation of maritime zones in the area of Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon, for Finland in the Great Belt case before the International Court of Justice, of Peru in the maritime dispute with Chile (pending).  Finally he has experience as a Consultant to various Governments and International Organizations and as Chairman of an Arbitration tribunal of the Cairo Regional Centre for International  Arbitration.

Francis A. Vasquez, Jr. is a Partner in the Washington, D.C. office of White & Case.  He practices in the area of commercial litigation and international arbitration, including antitrust, intellectual property and bankruptcy litigation.  Mr. Vasquez has appeared in many international arbitrations and U.S. court action involving foreign sovereigns, their affiliates, international organization and commercial entities.  Countires involved include the Czech Republic, Hungary, Indonesia, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Vietnam.  Legal issues have included expropriation, the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act, act of state and political questions doctriines, and bilateral investment and other treaties.  Mr. Vasquez has appeared on behalf of the prevailing party in some of the largest ICSID cases on record, including Ceskoslovenska Obchodni Banka, A.S. v. Slovak Republic, Nobles Ventures, Inc. v Romania and Giovana a Beccara and others v. Argentina Republic.

Robert Wisner is a Partner in the Litigation department of McMillan LLP and Co-Chair of its International Arbitration Group which is ranked amongst the world’s top 100 practices by Global Arbitration Review.  His practice focuses on international commercial arbitration, investment treaty arbitration and cross-border business litigation.  Mr. Wisner has argued cases involving businesses and governments from around the world before arbitral tribunals established under international commercial contracts, bilateral investment treaties and trade agreements.  He has also appeared at all levels of the Ontario and Federal courts as well as before various administrative tribunals.  These cases have involved matters of private and public international law, joint venture and shareholder disputes, complex commercial contracts and competition law or regulatory issues.

Accommodations

Rooms have been blocked for the nights of 1 April 2015, 2 April 2015 and 3 April 2015 at The Bonvecchiati Hotels (Hotel Bonvecchiati and Palace Bonvecchiati). Room rates range from Euro 220 to Euro 260 for Hotel Bonvecchiati and Euro 290 to Euro 390 for Palace Bonvecchiati. 10% Vat and Buffet Breakfast is included.

All arrangements are between the registrant and the hotels.
Please mention Juris Conferences when making your reservation.

Hotel Contact Information:
Hotel Bonvecchiati                          Palace Bonvecchiati
San Marco 4488                             San Marco 4680
I-30124 Venice                              I-30124 Venice

Tel: +39 041 5285017
Fax: +39 041 5285230
E-mail: info@hotelbonvecchiati.it
Web: www.hotelbonvecchiati.it

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