News 24 Jun. 2021
Curtis successfully defends foreign states' procedural privileges in the UK Supreme Court
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News 23 Jun. 2021
Ibrahim Elsadig joins Curtis as Partner in Dubai
Client Alert 24 Feb. 2022
EU, UK, Japan and Australia Impose Sanctions on Russia
News 09 Aug. 2021
Curtis, Mallet-Prevost, Colt & Mosle enters into association with Chevalier Law in Singapore.
News 06 May. 2022
Curtis Advises Terna Group on the Sale of its Latin America Power Transmission Assets to CDPQ
Publications 05 May. 2022
Marie-Claire Argac, Simon Batifort, and Cyprien Mathié share highlights from “Affaires d’Etats: Practical Considerations When Defending States in International Arbitration” on Kluwer Arbitration Blog
Event 26 Apr. 2022
Claudia Frutos-Peterson Speaks at CAI Costa Rica’s 13th Congress of International Arbitration
News 21 Apr. 2022
SCOTUS Upholds U.S. Colonialism under the U.S. Constitution
Client Alert 23 Mar. 2022
The Dubai International Arbitration Centre (DIAC) has launched the DIAC Arbitration Rules 2022
Event 22 Nov. 2021
Partner Antonia Birt spoke at ADGMAC and AIAC Webinar Series: Webinar 5 - Disputes in Fintech and Complex Technology in MESEA
News 16 May. 2022
Curtis Files SCOTUS Amicus Brief for Ohio Justice & Policy Center in Prisoners’ Rights Case
News 10 May. 2022
Juan Perla’s Argument in D.C. Circuit Featured on Audio Arguendo Podcast
Client Alert 21 Apr. 2022
New Laws Targeting Assets of Russian Oligarchs: The U.S. Announces Task Force KleptoCapture and the Kleptocracy Asset Recovery Rewards Program
Client Alert 19 Apr. 2022
U.S. President Biden Expands Export Controls Imposed on Russia and Belarus
Client Alert 24 Jun. 2021
Update on Virtual Notarization (Executive Order 202.7) During the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) Pandemic (Updated: June 24, 2021) — U.S. Insight
Update on Virtual Witnessing (New York Executive Order 202.14) During The COVID-19 (Coronavirus) Pandemic (Updated: June 24, 2021) — U.S. Insight
Chairman, Partner
New York
P +1 212 696 6179
F +1 212 697 1559
One of the world’s leading international lawyers, Curtis Chairman George Kahale maintains an active practice in both international transactions and international arbitration, acting as lead counsel in some of the world’s most publicized transactions and infrastructure projects in the international petroleum industry and serving as lead counsel in several of the world’s largest international arbitrations. In that regard, his practice is distinctive in that he has maintained a reputation for excellence in both international corporate transactions and international litigation.
Mr. Kahale is the head of the firm’s renowned international arbitration practice. Recognized as a leading international arbitration lawyer by Chambers, Legal 500 and Global Arbitration Review, he has appeared in many of the most significant cases of recent years. Legal 500 USA 2020 ranks Mr. Kahale in its “Hall of Fame” for international arbitration. He appears in The American Lawyer’s last Arbitration Scorecard, which ranked Curtis as the #1 international arbitration practice based on the number of billion-dollar cases handled by the firm, and was featured on the cover of the penultimate Arbitration Scorecard.
Mr. Kahale was the subject of a feature article entitled “The Oil Baron” in the June 2008 issue of The American Lawyer magazine. In February 2009, Latin Lawyer awarded its Restructuring Deal of the Year honor to a Curtis team led by Mr. Kahale for a series of financing transactions relating to oil projects in Venezuela. In April of the same year, The American Lawyer named him as one of its “Dealmakers of the Year” for his work representing KazMunayGas, the national oil company of Kazakhstan, on agreements for the development of the giant Kashagan oil field. Mr. Kahale has acted as lead counsel in the negotiation of many multi-billion-dollar corporate transactions and agreements in various countries around the world, and has been the primary draftsman of several important model agreements in use in international business today.
Mr. Kahale has written many articles on topics of international interest, such as sovereign immunity, the act of state doctrine, international arbitration and international petroleum contracts. In 2013, he was selected by the Burton Awards as a Distinguished Legal Writing Award winner for his article entitled: “Is Investor-State Arbitration Broken?” He followed up that article in 2018 with “Rethinking ISDS,” for which he received his second Burton Award in 2019. Both articles have been the source of extensive commentary and debate. He has also appeared as a keynote speaker and lecturer at various seminars and conferences. In 2014, he delivered the keynote address at the eighth annual Juris Investment Treaty Arbitration Conference, which received a nomination by GAR for best lecture of the year. In 2015, he lectured at the Arbitration Academy in Paris. In 2018 he delivered the inaugural Brooklyn Lecture on International Business Law in New York under the title “ISDS: The Wild Wild West of International Practice,” as well as the widely reported keynote address at the 8th Investment Treaty Arbitration Conference in Prague, which was also nominated by GAR for best lecture of the year. In 2019, he addressed the International Institute of Sustainable Development’s 12th Annual Forum of Developing Country Investment Negotiators, which was held in Cartagena, Colombia. In 2020, he was a keynote speaker at the Annual Conference of the Nigerian Institute of Chartered Arbitrators and delivered an address under the title, "Damages in ISDS: Just Compensation or Highway Robbery?" at a webinar hosted by the Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment (CCSI).
Global Market Leader - Global-wide International Arbitration
Leading Individual - USA-wide International Arbitration
International Arbitration
Corporate
Electricity
Energy (Oil & Gas)
Finance
Infrastructure Development
Public International Law
Event 03 May. 2022
George Kahale Delivers Keynote Speech at “Aligning Investment and Climate Goals: Where Does the Energy Charter Treaty Modernization Stand?”
Event 23 Apr. 2022
Recording of Curtis ISDS Webinar on UNCITRAL Working Group III
Submission to the OECD's Public Consultation on Investment Treaties and Climate Change
It's Quantum! article from Columbia FDI Perspectives
Damages in ISDS: Just Compensation or Highway Robbery?
Lecture, IISD 12th Annual Forum of Developing Country Investment Negotiators, Cartagena, Colombia
Keynote Address, 8th Investment Treaty Arbitration Conference, Prague, Czech Republic
ISDS - The Wild, Wild West of International Law and Arbitration
Rethinking ISDS, article from Transnational Dispute Management
BITs: Weapons of Legal Destruction? article from AR3 Magazine
Keynote Address, 8th Annual Juris Investment Treaty Arbitration Conference
Is Investor-State Arbitration Broken? article from Transnational Dispute Management
The Uproar Surrounding Petroleum Contract Renegotiations
"His broad experience negotiating deals makes him one of the best international arbitration lawyers in the world."
Legal 500 Latin America, 2022
"excellent reputation for state-side representation in investment treaty arbitrations...He is a very well-known figure in international law."
Chambers Global, 2022
"unbeatable in both commercial and investment arbitration"
Legal 500 USA, 2020
"You will be hard pressed to find anyone with as much ability in the investment arbitration world."
Chambers Latin America, 2020
"Sources commend George Kahale's ability to 'always think two steps ahead of everyone else in the room.'"
Chambers Global, 2018
He is described as "one of the very best arbitration lawyers in the world" by clients.
Legal 500 Latin America, 2013
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