The ROAP Americas Finals brought to a close our advanced remote oral advocacy and cross-examination courses, by featuring the most persuasive and skilled participants on each course.
The inaugural edition of ROAP Americas was dedicated to Jean Kalicki.
The outcome of the finals was determined by a panel of world-class arbitrators consisting of Jean Kalicki (President) to whom the ROAP Americas 2022 edition is dedicated, Julie Bédard, and Andrés Jana.
The winners were: Minwoo Kim and expert Suzanne Thompson for the cross-examination course, and Rosario Galardi and Fiona Poon for the oral submissions course. The other finalists were: Ezequiel Vetulli and expert Heather Crosby for the cross-examination course, and Timothy Hughes and Marryum Kahloon for the oral submissions course.
You will find short bios of our finalists and tribunal members below.
TRIBUNAL FOR ROAP Americas 2022 FINALS
Jean Kalicki is an independent arbitrator in New York and Washington, DC, specializing in investor-State, international and complex commercial disputes. She is a national of the United States. Until April 2016, she was a Partner at Arnold & Porter LLP, serving as counsel in high-stakes international disputes; she thereafter transitioned exclusively to arbitrator work. In 2020, she joined Arbitration Chambers, an association of independent arbitrators with offices in Hong Kong, London and New York. Over 30 years, Ms. Kalicki has conducted arbitrations involving six continents, across many industries, addressing issues of public international law and the laws of dozens of countries. She is listed on the roster of arbitrators of institutions around the world and on two rosters for State-to-State treaty arbitrations. Ms. Kalicki is a member of the Governing Board of the International Council for Commercial Arbitration (ICCA). She previously served on the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA) (2014-2021), including as Vice President of the Court (2016-2021); as a member of the American Arbitration Association (AAA) Board of Directors and Council (2010-2021); and as a member of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) Commission on Arbitration and the Board of Directors of SICANA, Inc. (ICC North America). She is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (FCIArb) and of the College of Commercial Arbitrators (CCA) and taught arbitration and advocacy for many years as an adjunct professor at both Georgetown University Law Center and American University Washington College of Law. Ms. Kalicki is regularly ranked in Chambers’ Band 1 (“Most In-Demand” Arbitrators) for both Global Arbitration and Public International Law, and was its only “Star Arbitrator” (above Band 1) in the USA for 2019 and 2020. Best Lawyers in America has named her “Lawyer of the Year” in her jurisdiction and practice five times; Who’s Who Legal annually lists her in their “Thought Leaders: Global Elite”; and Global Arbitration Review named her the “Best Prepared/Most Responsive Arbitrator” in the world in 2017.
Julie Bédard is head of Skadden’s International Litigation and Arbitration Group for the Americas. Fluent in English, French, Spanish and Portuguese, Ms. Bédard practices in four languages in complex disputes and investigations. She is a prior member of Skadden’s Policy Committee, the firm’s governing body. Trained in both civil and common law, Ms. Bédard has a doctorate in conflicts of antitrust and securities regulation and represents clients in litigation, arbitration and regulatory proceedings throughout the world, advising on disputes, regulatory enforcement, governing law, jurisdiction, arbitration agreements, force majeure and changed circumstances, as well as extraterritoriality and international judgment enforcement. She represents clients in federal and state courts in the United States and has served as counsel in international arbitration proceedings held under the rules of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), the American Arbitration Association (AAA), the International Centre for Dispute Resolution (ICDR), the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA) and the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID). She regularly advises clients on dispute resolution and the protection of global investments under international treaties.
Andrés Jana is founding partner of Jana & Gil Dispute Resolution. He is a lawyer, arbitrator and international expert in the resolution of commercial, investment and public international law disputes before the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID), under the international arbitration rules of ICC, UNCITRAL, LCIA, AAA and SCC, among others. He has also acted in local courts in different jurisdictions, such as Chile, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, the United States and Argentina. He has represented domestic and foreign clients in various areas and sectors, including the energy, mining, construction and infrastructure industries. Andrés is currently Vice-President of the International Court of Arbitration of the International Chamber of Commerce for the period 2021-2024.
FINALISTS
Heather Crosby, forthcoming.
Rosario Galardi is an associate in Freshfields’ international arbitration group, based in Washington D.C. She specializes in international law and arbitration, and she focuses her practice on disputes in Latin America. Rosario advises and represents clients in the energy and infrastructure sectors and has acted in arbitrations under the rules of the ICSID and the ICC. In addition, she is an active member of the firm’s pro bono practice and collaborates with the Equal Representation in Arbitration pledge. She obtained her law degree at University of Buenos Aires, Argentina and her LLM at Tulane University, US. She speaks Spanish, English and French. She is licensed to practice law in Argentina and registered as a Special Legal Consultant in Washington D.C.
Timothy Hughes is an independent advocate, advisor, and arbitrator working globally from Calgary, Alberta. Qualified to practice in New York, California, Alberta, and Ontario, Tim provides counsel services to clients and law firms in all aspects of arbitration. Before moving to Canada in 2020, he practiced commercial, investor-state, and inter-state arbitration as a senior associate in the New York and Hong Kong offices of Herbert Smith Freehills LLP, and started his career as an associate in the Washington, D.C. office of Crowell & Moring LLP. Tim’s sector experience includes matters concerning public international law, oil & gas, renewable energy, infrastructure, shareholder and joint venture disputes, and luxury hotel management. He received a JD in 2010 from the University of California, Berkeley, School of Law, where he was a research assistant to the late Professor David D. Caron. Before starting his independent practice in 2022, Timothy was the full-time caregiver to his two young children.
Marryum Kahloon is an associate in the International Arbitration Practice Group of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher in the New York office. She specializes in international arbitration and public international law disputes. She has advised on cases before both the International Court Justice and the European Court of Human Rights, as well as arbitration rules including the ICSID, ICSID AF, UNCITRAL, HKIAC, SCC, and ICC Rules. She graduated with an LLM from Columbia Law School. She is admitted to practice in New York, USA and in Queensland, Australia.
Minwoo Kim is an associate in Covington & Burling LLP. As a member of the international arbitration and trade practices, Minwoo Kim counsels U.S. and global firms, industry associations, and foreign governments on complex international and cross-border legal issues. Minwoo represents sovereign states and global firms in all stages of international treaty-based and commercial disputes. He also helps U.S. and global firms, industry associations, and foreign governments interpret and assess foreign regulatory practices under international trade agreements, including the World Trade Organization (WTO) agreements, as well as preferential trade agreements. Prior to joining the firm, Minwoo was a judicial intern for Hon. Rudolph Contreras, U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, a legal intern at the Integrity Vice Presidency, the World Bank, and an intern at the National Assembly of Korea, the Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee. Minwoo also maintains an active pro bono practice.
Fiona Poon is a litigation associate at Debevoise & Plimpton LLP based in New York. Her practice focuses on international arbitration and public international law. Fiona has represented clients in international commercial and investment arbitrations administered by major arbitral institutions, including the ICC, ICSID, and LCIA, and she has particular experience with disputes in the construction and mining sectors. Before joining Debevoise in 2015, Fiona was a Legal Counsel at the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague, the Netherlands, where she assisted tribunals in inter-State and investor-State arbitrations. She also practiced in the dispute resolution group of a leading international law firm in Sydney, Australia, from 2007 to 2012. Fiona received an LL.M. from the New York University School of Law in 2013, specializing in International Legal Studies, and a B.Com/LL.B. from the University of New South Wales in 2006.
Suzanne Thompson is a Senior Director with Alvarez & Marsal in San Francisco. She specializes in providing financial and accounting expert analyses and testimony in Federal and State Courts and private arbitrations. Her primary areas of concentration include damage analyses arising from business disputes as well as general business and litigation consulting. With more than 20 years of accounting and litigation experience, Ms. Thompson has assisted counsel and corporate clients with matters arising from breach of contract, merger & acquisition disputes, intellectual property infringement and misappropriation, internal investigations, and other commercial disputes. Ms. Thompson is a Certified Public Accountant licensed in the state of California, Certified in Financial Forensics, a Certified Fraud Examiner and a Chartered Global Management Accountant.
Ezequiel Vetulli is an associate in Freshfields’ international arbitration group, based in New York. Ezequiel specializes in international law and arbitration, and he focuses his practice on disputes in Latin America. Ezequiel has acted in arbitrations under the rules of the ICC, ICSID, ICSID Additional Facility, and UNCITRAL. He has represented and advised investors in multiple jurisdictions and across a variety of sectors, including energy, telecommunications, and the agro-industry. Ezequiel joined Freshfields in 2016, spending two years in our London office. Prior to joining Freshfields, he worked in the arbitration and energy group of a GAR100 law firm, a commercial court in Buenos Aires, and a multinational chemical company. He speaks English and Spanish.
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Find out more about the ROAP programme here.
