Derains & Gharavi is an industry leader in pre-, para- and post litigation in support of arbitrations in France and abroad, having acted in over 100 such proceedings.
The firm acts as counsel in proceedings pre- and para- arbitrations in aid of the constitution of tribunal (including on the basis of denial of justice and/or in aid of OIC arbitrations or pathological clauses be it in support of arbitrations seated in France or abroad) and challenges to tribunal members.
The firm acts and defends via Bertrand Derains and other partners and counsel in judicial proceedings over interim measures.
The firm regularly acts counsel in annulment proceedings for applicants and defendants and has successfully annulled (e.g., Sté Audi Volkswagen Middle East Fze LLC c/ Sté Saad Buzwair Automotive Co., n° 18-15.756, reported in Global Arbitration Review as well as in the French law review Dalloz) and defended (e.g., GE Medical Systems c/ Albanna Group, n° 12/20550 and Mr. Noureddine Tabbane c/ S.A. Colgate-Palmolive Services, reported in French International Arbitration Law Reports: 2012).
The firm obtains exequatur orders and acts as counsel in favor of award creditors or debtors in appeals over the same before the French Court of Appeal.
The firm undertakes asset tracing both internally and in collaboration with asset tracing companies and acts for the seizure of assets both in France and abroad with its foreign correspondents.
The firm has to this effect enforced awards in ad-hoc and institutional, commercial and investment arbitrations, and seized assets in France and in dozens of foreign jurisdictions, including via worldwide freezing orders, against individuals, private companies and Sovereign States.
The firm advises on Sovereign immunity matters and in relation to enforcement against sanctioned entities and States.
The firm’s founding partners regularly publish and speak at conferences on these topics, as non-exhaustively listed below: (For full list see the CVs of Yves Derains and Hamid Gharavi):
- “Paris Court of Appeal annuls OIC award for irregular tribunal constitution via MFN procedure – DS Construction FZCO v State of Libya”, Lexis Nexis UK, April 14, 2021
- “Cocorico! – French approach to the OIC Treaty gives cause to crow”, GAR, February 21, 2020