Global: The Year Ahead: Developments in Global Litigation and Arbitration in 2021

Claudia is a partner at Baker McKenzie. Since 2010, she heads the Dispute Resolution practice in Colombia. In 2018, she was appointed Chair of the Latin America DR practice and since 2019 Claudia is the Global Chair of the Firm's Dispute Resolution Group.
Claudia is also a listed arbitrator of the panel of arbitrators of the Center of Arbitration of the Chamber of Commerce of Bogotá for both, domestic and international arbitration; a listed arbitrator of the Panel of Arbitrators of the Shanghai International Economic and Trade Arbitration Commission (Shanghai International Arbitration Center); and a listed arbitrator of the Panel of Arbitrators of the Arbitration Court of Amcham Peru.
Claudia is a highly-regarded expert in transnational litigation and international arbitration. She has over 20 years of extensive experience handling complex litigations and arbitrations related to construction and infrastructure projects, post-acquisition disputes, disputes in the energy sector, distribution and supply agreements, unfair competition, product liability, insolvency and general breach of contract. She often advises investors on treaty planning, and leveraging international protections in the context of government interference. She acts for and against state entities, with particular experience in the energy sector and large infrastructure projects.
Claudia has been ranked by Chambers & Partners and Legal 500 as an expert in the field of dispute resolution. According to these publications, the group led by Claudia "'generates absolute confidence’ according to clients who highlight the team’s ‘efficiency, agility and commitment’, ‘broad market knowledge’, and ‘careful follow-up of cases", pointing that "It is led by the ‘expert’ and ‘deeply involved’ Claudia Benavides whose ‘intelligence, diligence and acuity to foresee legal risks’, make her a stand out legal adviser.” Chambers and Partners Latin America notes that "Claudia Ines Benavides Galvis is praised by interviewees for her "wide knowledge of the area, precision and in-depth background" in the field of dispute resolution." She has been ranked Band 1 in Chambers & Partners' individual ranking and in the "Leading Lawyer" listing by The Legal 500. The prestigious publication Who's Who Legal: Arbitration describes her as one of the world experts in arbitration and Benchmark Litigation featured her in the Top 25 Latam Women in Litigation listing. The team led by Claudia is ranked Tier 1 in the prestigious directory The Legal 500. In addition, she was recently awarded by Best Lawyers 2020 "Lawyer of the Year" for Litigation and recognized by such publication as a leader in Arbitration, International Arbitration and Mediation. In 2021, Claudia was named Litigation Latin American Lawyer of the Year by Euromoney's Women in Business Law Americas, and she was added to the Lawdragon Global Litigation 500 list, an accolade reserved for lawyers who "know their way around global business battlefields."
Claudia has been actively involved with academia. She regularly speaks in important national and international conferences and she is the author of several articles related to her practice.

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Ed Poulton is Managing Partner in Baker McKenzie’s London office and a member of the Dispute Resolution team. A key name in the arbitration community, Ed sits as an arbitrator in ICC and LCIA arbitrations, and is the consulting editor of a seminal text on the arbitration of M&A disputes. He also sits on the steering committee for the Firm’s Global International Arbitration Practice Group. Ed is recognised in the fields of international arbitration and public international law by Legal 500 and Chambers & Partners.

Widge Devaney is a partner in the Firm's North America Litigation group in New York, Chair of the North American Government Enforcement Practice and Co-Chair of the Global Compliance and Investigations Group. Since 2011, Mr. Devaney has been listed in New York Metro Super Lawyers in the Criminal Defense: White Collar category. Mr. Devaney is co-chair of the ABA's Transnational Crime Subcommittee, and an officer of the IBA's Business Crime Committee. He previously served on the Criminal Justice Act Panel for the Southern District of New York, representing indigent clients in federal criminal matters. Mr. Devaney served as law clerk to the Honorable Oliver Gasch on the US District Court for the District of Columbia from 1993 to 1994.

Joanna Ludlam is a partner in the Dispute Resolution team in Baker McKenzie's London office, where she leads the market-leading Regulatory, Public & Media law team and also co-leads the office's Compliance & Investigations Practice Group. At an international level, she co-chairs the Firm's Global Compliance & Investigations Steering Committee. In 2016, Joanna was named as one of The Lawyer’s “Hot 100” for her practice, and is recognised by Legal 500 and Chambers & Partners.

Nandakumar (Kumar) Ponniya heads the Dispute Resolution Practice of Baker & McKenzie in the Asia-Pacific.
Kumar is listed as a leading international arbitration lawyer in the Legal 500 Asia Pacific 2021 and was also named a Litigation Star in the Benchmark Litigation Asia Pacific 2020. Chambers Asia Pacific 2021 quotes “the ‘well respected’ Nandakumar Ponniya for having led commercial and investment arbitrations and notes that he is especially recognised for his focus on construction and contractual issues. He has also been described by clients as being “intellectually sharp and street smart” (Legal 500) and "very savvy and well connected" (Chambers Global). Further, he has been recognised for being "sensitive to commercial realities” (Chambers Asia Pacific) and providing "practical, on the ground advice that clients need” (Legal 500).
Kumar is a member of the Expert Panel of the Centre for Cross-Border Commercial Law in Asia (CEBCLA) and is also a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators. He serves on statutory tribunals such as the Income Tax Review Board and the Law Society’s Inquiry Panel. In addition, Kumar also serves as an adjunct assistant professor at the National University of Singapore and the Singapore Management University, where he conducts the International Projects Practice and Law as well as the International Construction Law course.

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Steve Abraham is a partner in the Baker McKenzie Dispute Resolution team based in London and serves as the firm's Dispute Resolution chair for the EMEA region. Steve has a particular focus on international arbitration and ADR in the energy, mining and infrastructure projects, often involving projects in Africa, the Middle East and CIS countries.
In addition to acting in commercial disputes Steve advises in relation to investment treaty issues and in relation to risk and project management issues during the course of projects.
The current edition of Chambers & Partners describes Steve as "an impressive lawyer" who is "nice to deal with". Previous editions have described him as "superb", "very knowledgeable in construction" and "really strong on large-scale infrastructure and mining work", and commented that "his teamwork is great". He is also included in Legal 500's newly published International Arbitration Powerlist and as a leading practitioner in Euromoney's Expert Guide to Commercial Arbitration.
Steve writes and speaks regularly on international arbitration and construction law issues.

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Rodrigo Díaz de Valdés heads the Dispute Resolution and Antitrust practice groups of Baker McKenzie's Santiago office. He has represented the Chilean State, as well as major transnational and local companies in a broad range of cases, from long-term energy contracts to construction, projects and investment protection matters. He is ranked among the most recommended lawyers for dispute resolution, antitrust and public law by Chambers & Partners. Rodrigo serves as arbitrator of the Center of Arbitration and the Chamber Commerce of Santiago, and is a professor of constitutional and civil law at the Catholic University’s School of Law. He has written articles for various publications, particularly on constitutional law, civil liabilities and arbitration matters.

Jennifer Ancona Semko focuses her practice on complex commercial litigation and internal investigations, with more than 20 years of experience litigating in state and federal courts across the United States. Jennifer represents clients in domestic and international disputes and has expertise in cross-border judicial processes. She also has guided clients through investigations by the US Department of Justice, SEC, EPA, NYSE, Senate Finance Committee, United Nations and other government agencies. She is currently the Chair of the Washington Office Litigation and Government Enforcement practice, as well as Co-Chair of the North American Commercial Litigation subgroup.

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Andy is a partner in the Baker McKenzie Dispute Resolution team based in London. He advises clients on international, commercial and investment treaty arbitration as well as in complex, often multijurisdictional litigation, mediations and expert determinations. He also advises clients on issues pertaining to private and public international law. Andy is recommended in Who's Who Legal: Arbitration 2018 and individually ranked in the field of International Arbitration by Chambers UK, who describe him as "a 'superb' practitioner," and "very commercial" and also recognized by Legal 500, who call him "an arbitration doyen."

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Daniela Fonseca Puggina advises multinational corporations and domestic clients on civil and regulatory enforcement matters. She has represented numerous financial institutions and other corporate entities in internal and governmental/SRO investigations as well as related enforcement proceedings, civil litigation and arbitration.

Hugh Lyons is a partner in Baker McKenzie’s Dispute Resolution department, based in London. He has extensive experience of high-profile and high-value commercial and financial disputes. His clients include major corporates, financial institutions and leading insolvency practitioners. Much of his work arises from disputed financing transactions, restructuring and insolvency, fraud and financial misconduct. He is also actively involved in the Firm's pro bono offering. Hugh is recognised for his practice by Legal 500, while Super Lawyers ranks him a “Top Rated Attorney in London” in the categories of commercial litigation, fraud and insolvency & bankruptcy. Hugh is a member of the Insolvency Lawyers Association and a fellow of the Association of Business Recovery Professionals.

Maurice A. Bellan is the Managing Partner of the Washington, DC office and a member of the Global Dispute Resolution and North America Litigation and Government Enforcement Steering Committees. He is a former trial attorney at the US Department of Justice and is experienced in a broad range of fraud and anti-corruption matters. Maurice was recently named by Savoy magazine as one of the most influential African-American lawyers in the United States.

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In a career spanning over three decades, William (Bill) Richardson has been recognized as a leader in IP litigation by his peers and numerous experts' guides and ranking services, including Chambers Global's The World's Leading Lawyers for Business and The World's Leading IP Strategists, IAM Patent 1000 - The World's Leading Patent Professionals, IAM Life Sciences 250 - World's Leading Life Sciences Patent Litigators, Global Law Experts' Patent Litigation Lawyer of the Year in Canada, Who's Who Legal: Canada 2020 for Life Sciences and Patents, and The Best Lawyers in Canada. He has been awarded Who's Who of Professionals as Patent Advisor of the Year, and has been featured in the annual editions of Who's Who Legal: Canada and Euromoney's Experts Guide to the World's Leading Patent Law Practitioners. He is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (London), and a frequent speaker, lecturer and writer on intellectual property and litigation.

Donemark Calimon is a partner and the head of Quisumbing Torres' Dispute Resolution Practice Group and the Industrials, Manufacturing & Transportation Industry Group. Donemark has 19 years of experience in dispute resolution, including civil, criminal, corporate and regulatory litigation, and commercial arbitration. He is one of the founders of the Philippine Institute of Arbitrators (PIArb) and is an accredited arbitrator of the Philippine Dispute Resolution Center, Inc. (PDRCI). He is also an accredited arbitrator of the Construction Industry Arbitration Commission (CIAC). He was appointed as Member of the Panel of Arbitrators of the Singapore International Arbitration Center (SIAC). He was also recently appointed Secretary General of the Philippine International Center for Conflict Resolution, an alternative dispute resolution (ADR) center set up by the Integrated Bar of the Philippines to provide arbitration and ADR services and facilities.

Francesca Richmond is a partner in the Baker McKenzie Dispute Resolution team based in London. Francesca joined Baker McKenzie in 2004 and was admitted as a solicitor in September 2006. She attained higher rights of audience to act as a solicitor-advocate in 2009. Francesca has been seconded to Baker McKenzie's offices in Chicago, Washington and Sydney as well as to clients Barclays Bank PLC, the BBC Trust and O2. Francesca was a marshall at the Royal Courts of Justice in 1998 and in 2000 sitting with a High Court judge.

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