Event 14 Jun. 2022
Antonia Birt to Speak on Importance of Going Paperless in Arbitration Proceedings at Upcoming Webinar
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Event 02 Jun. 2022
Borzu Sabahi Lectures to Government Officials from Ghana and Kenya
Client Alert 29 Jun. 2022
Discovery, Jurisdiction and Service: Changes in U.S. Law and Implications for Japanese Companies
Client Alert 24 Feb. 2022
EU, UK, Japan and Australia Impose Sanctions on Russia
News 05 Jul. 2022
Sebastiano Nessi Joins Curtis’ International Disputes Practice as Partner in Geneva
Publications 30 Jun. 2022
Lise Johnson’s Submission to the OECD's Public Consultation on Investment Treaties and Climate Change
Event 08 Jun. 2022
Partner Fernando Tupa Speaks at Instituto Peruano de Arbitraje’s Second International Conference on Arbitration and Energy
Claudia Frutos-Peterson Speaks at the 13th Latin American Arbitration Conference (CLA)
Dubai Partner Antonia Birt to Moderate Panel on Hybrid Legal Cultures in International Arbitration
News 01 Jul. 2022
Partner Charles Howland Quoted in Spotlight PA Article on PFAS Groundwater Contamination
Client Alert 30 Jun. 2022
U.S. President Biden Issues Eighth Tranche of Economic Sanctions
Client Alert 28 Jun. 2022
U.S. President Biden Raises Tariffs on Russian Imports
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
Partner, Brussels Managing Partner
Brussels
P +32 2 313 37 31
F +1 212 697 1559
New York
P +1 212 696 8867
Paris
P +33 1 42 68 72 00
F +33 1 42 66 39 62
Simon Batifort's practice focuses on investment treaty arbitration, international commercial arbitration, and public international law. He joined Curtis' New York office in 2011 and became a partner in 2019. He divides his time between New York, Paris, and Brussels, where he relocated in 2021 to establish a new office for the firm.
Mr. Batifort has extensive experience representing sovereign states, state-owned entities and private companies in arbitrations conducted under various rules, including those of the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID), the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL), and the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC). His cases have involved a wide range of sectors, including oil & gas, mining, telecommunications, construction, joint ventures, real estate and taxation. He has also served as an arbitrator.
He acted for the winning parties in many high-profile disputes, including Venezuela Holdings v. Venezuela, in which Curtis secured the largest annulment in ICSID history. He is currently representing clients in Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America and the Middle East in arbitrations arising under bilateral and multilateral investment treaties and cross-border contracts.
He has been recognized as a Rising Star in International Arbitration by Law360 and as a Rising Star in Commercial Arbitration by Euromoney Legal Media Group's Expert Guides. He is ranked as a Key Lawyer by Legal 500 USA, and Legal 500 Latin America praises his "encyclopedic knowledge of international arbitration cases and great advocacy skills." Who's Who Legal – Arbitration: Future Leaders has recognized him as one of the Most Highly Regarded arbitration attorneys under 45, highlighting his "first-rate strategy and legal expertise" as well as his "'exceptional diplomatic skills and cultural understanding' in high-stakes international investor-state disputes." Clients and peers refer to him as a "household name" and a "formidable practitioner when it comes to investment treaty arbitration."
Mr. Batifort publishes and speaks regularly on issues of international arbitration and public international law. He was awarded the 2019 Smit-Lowenfeld Prize for Best Article in International Arbitration for "The New Debate on the Interpretation of MFN Clauses in Investment Treaties: Putting the Brakes on Multilateralization," which was published in the American Journal of International Law and was the subject of an AJIL Unbound symposium.
He is a member of the Executive Council of the American Society of International Law (ASIL), a co-chair of ASIL's Dispute Resolution Interest Group, and served as co-chair of ASIL's 2021 Annual Meeting Committee. He is also a co-chair of the International Bar Association Arbitration Committee's Insolvency and Arbitration Working Group. He is a member of the International Council for Commercial Arbitration (ICCA), the European Society of International Law (ESIL), the International Law Association (ILA), the Society of International Economic Law (SIEL), and sits on the Arbitration Committee of the New York City Bar Association. He is also an Adjunct Professor at Brooklyn Law School, where he created and has taught an advanced course on investment treaty arbitration since 2018.
Admitted to the bar in New York, Paris and Brussels (E-list), Mr. Batifort holds degrees in public and private international law, civil law, common law and comparative law from Université Panthéon-Assas (Paris II), Université de Montpellier and NYU School of Law, where he served as a research assistant to Professor José E. Alvarez and as a graduate editor for the Journal of International Law and Politics. Prior to joining Curtis, he worked as in-house counsel for one of the world's largest construction companies and interned at both the ICC International Court of Arbitration and the International Court of Justice.
Affaires d'Etats: Practical Considerations When Defending States In International Arbitration, Kluwer Arbitration Blog (May 2022) (co-author)
Unearthing FET: What Did States Intend, and Does It Matter? Kluwer Arbitration Blog (May 2022) (co-author)
5 Coming Trends to Watch For in Intra-EU Investment Claims, Law360 (February 2022) (co-author)
Psychology in Oral Advocacy: Using Science to Persuade International Tribunals, Kluwer Arbitration Blog (September 6, 2021) (co-author)
The Future of Investor-State Dispute Settlement under the Energy Charter Treaty, Kluwer Arbitration Blog (March 29, 2021) (co-author)
The Right to Raise New Arguments on Jurisdiction in Annulment Proceedings, 1 ICC Dispute Resolution Bulletin 29 (February 2021) (co-author)
Commentary of Articles 56-58 of the ICSID Convention (Replacement and Disqualification of Conciliators and Arbitrators), in The ICSID Convention, Rules and Regulations: A Commentary (Elgar Publishing, December 2019) (co-author)
The Once and Future Law of Non-Discrimination: Revisiting Most Favored Nation and National Treatment, ASIL Proceedings (March 2019)
Third-Party Funding in Investment Disputes, Chapter 16, Business Guide to Trade and Investment, Vol 2 (October 2018) (co-author)
The New Debate on the Interpretation of MFN Clauses in Investment Treaties: Putting the Brakes on Multilateralization, 111(4) American Journal of International Law 873 (2018) (co-author)
Third-Party Funding: Security for Costs and Other Key Issues, in The Investment Treaty Arbitration Review (Bart Legum ed., 2nd Edition, 2017) (co-author)
Third-Party Funding: Security for Costs and Other Key Issues, in The Investment Treaty Arbitration Review 97 (Bart Legum ed., 1st Edition, 2016) (co-author)
Investment Arbitration: Jurisdiction and Procedure, in The International Arbitration Review 1 (James H. Carter ed., 6th Edition, 2015) (co-author)
Jurisdiction and Procedure in Investment Arbitration – New Developments, in The International Arbitration Review 1 (James H. Carter ed., 5th Edition, 2014) (co-author)
Recent Trends in Investment Arbitration, in The International Arbitration Review 1 (James H. Carter ed., 4th Edition, 2013) (co-author)
English
French
Spanish
International Arbitration
Commercial Disputes - Arbitration
Public International Law
Event 03 Jun. 2022
Recording of Curtis ISDS Webinar on UNCITRAL Working Group III in French
Event 31 May. 2022
Partner Simon Batifort speaks at IISD Webinar on “Comparing Approaches to Calculating Compensation: Lessons for Investment Arbitration Reform”
Legal 500: USA 2022 International Arbitration
Legal 500 Latin America 2022 International Arbitration
Law360, 2020
Legal 500 USA, 2020
Who's Who Legal - Arbitration: Future Leaders, 2017-2020
Who's Who Legal - Arbitration: Future Leaders
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