“Tribunal Secretaries: How to prevent a friend from turning into a foe”, Arbitral Secretaries – Reports from the joint NAI-Cepani colloquium, Wolters Kluwer 2018, pp. 69-80.
Biography
| NATIONALITY: | Dutch |
| LANGUAGES: | Dutch, English and French |
| ADMISSION: | Amsterdam and Paris (Directive 98/5/EC) |
| OFFICE: | Paris |
Sophia von Dewall is partner at Derains & Gharavi and has acted in numerous international arbitration proceedings, as well as in legal proceedings before Netherlands state courts. She has handled arbitrations conducted under the arbitration rules of the NAI, CEPINA, ICC and ICSID. Her areas of practice include international investment disputes and international commercial disputes arising out of international contracts, joint-venture and shareholder relationships and large infrastructural projects. She is admitted to the Amsterdam and Paris Bars. She also acts as arbitrator in international arbitration proceedings.
Sophia obtained an LL.M. in Public International & European Law and an LL.M. in Dutch Law from the University of Amsterdam. She is a visiting lecturer in international arbitration and litigation at the University of Amsterdam and has been involved in the preparation of teams participating on behalf of the University of Amsterdam in the Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition. In addition, she is a lecturer at the Law Firm School – an institute set up by the major Dutch law firms for the education of young lawyers – where she teaches Dutch contract law.
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
| Since 2022 | Partner, Derains & Gharavi (Paris) |
| 2017-2021 | Counsel, Derains & Gharavi (Paris) |
| 2012 – 2016 | Associate, Derains & Gharavi (Paris) |
| 2008 – 2012 | Associate (Dispute Resolution), Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP (Amsterdam, New York and London) |
| 2005 – 2008 | Associate (Corporate), Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP (Amsterdam) |
| 2004 | Legal intern at the Legal Secretariat of the United Nations Compensation Commission (UNCC) (Geneva) |
ACADEMIC POSITION
- Guest lecturer on international investment arbitration at the University of Amsterdam (part of the LLM. International and European Law)
EDUCATION
| 2004 | LL.M in Public International & European Law, cum laude, University of Amsterdam including a semester at the University Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne (exams passed: Droit de la Concurrence (Competition Law); Droit international économique (International Economic Law); and Droit du commerce international (International Business Law) |
| 2003 | LL.M in Dutch Law, cum laude, University of Amsterdam |
MEMBERSHIPS
- Member of the Executive Board of the Dutch Arbitration Association
- Member of the Investment Arbitration Committee of the Dutch Arbitration Association
LEGAL PRACTICE AREA REGISTRATION IN THE NETHERLANDS
Sophia von Dewall has registered the following legal practice area in the Netherlands Bar’s register of legal practice areas (rechtsgebiedenregister): arbitration.
Based on this registration, she is required to obtain ten training credits per calendar year in this registered legal practice area in accordance with the standards set by the Netherlands Bar
Publications
“Does apparent bias automatically give rise to conflicts of interest?”, Opening the Black Box of Conflicts of Interest, Bruylant 2016, pp. 139-148.
"The 2015 Revision of the Ducth Arbitration Act" in Les Cahiers de l'Arbitrage - The Paris Journal of International Arbitration, 2015 n°1.