Experience

Ole has acted as counsel, arbitrator and tribunal secretary in international commercial arbitrations, both ad hoc and under various institutional rules (ICC, DIS, LCIA, SCC, SIAC and UNCITRAL). Ole’s matters cover range of sectors, including aerospace, consumer goods, construction, education, energy, financial services, healthcare, hydropower, IP, mining, oil and gas, and pharmaceuticals. They relate to shareholder agreements, share purchase agreements (post-M&A), joint venture agreements, license agreements, long-term supply contracts, sale of goods and other commercial contracts. Ole’s experience also includes court litigation related to the challenge and enforcement of arbitral awards.

Selected Experience

Counsel
  • Representing a high net worth individual in an ICC arbitration concerning a contested division of complex assets (seat Switzerland, law of a Middle Eastern State, amount in dispute USD 1.2 billion)
  • Representing a Latin American mining conglomerate in two ICC arbitrations against a Middle Eastern steel company relating to long-term iron ore supply contracts (seat London, English law)
  • Representing a US mining consortium in an ICC arbitration against an African company and its US parent company relating to shipping rights allegedly assigned to the former by a West African State (seat Switzerland, law of a West African State, amount in dispute USD 400 million)
  • Representing a European pharmaceutical company in an ICC arbitration against a Japanese pharmaceutical company relating to the payment of royalties under a license agreement after the relevant patents expired (seat London, US, EU and Japanese law, amount in dispute USD 2.7 billion)
  • Representing the German branch of a global oil and gas service company in a DIS arbitration and setting aside proceedings against an oil and gas storage company relating to alleged defects in subsurface equipment (seat Germany, German law, amount in dispute EUR 120 million)

Arbitrator and Tribunal Secretary
  • Sole arbitrator in a DIS arbitration in the financial services sector between German parties (seat Germany, German law)
  • Tribunal secretary in an LCIA arbitration in the logistics sector between Middle Eastern and East African parties (seat London, Djiboutian law, amount in dispute USD 830 million)
    • Tribunal secretary in an SIAC arbitration in the healthcare sector between East Asian parties (seat Singapore, Filipino law, amount in dispute USD 35 million)
  • Tribunal secretary in an ad-hoc UNCITRAL arbitration in the railway sector between an African investor and two East African States (seat London, amount in dispute USD 1.1 billion)
    • Tribunal secretary in an ICC arbitration in the consumer goods sector between Middle Eastern and European parties (seat Paris, German law, amount in dispute USD 29 million)
  • Tribunal secretary in an ICC arbitration in the pharmaceutical sector between East Asian and European parties (seat Germany, German law, amount in dispute USD 9.4 billion)
  • Tribunal secretary in an LCIA arbitration in the oil industry between African parties (seat London, English law)
  • Tribunal secretary in an ICC arbitration in the aerospace sector between European parties (seat Belgium, Belgian law)
  • Tribunal secretary in an LCIA arbitration in the educational sector between European and Middle Eastern parties (seat London, English law, amount in dispute USD 40 million)
  • Tribunal secretary in an ICC arbitration in the aerospace sector between Eastern European parties (seat Bulgaria, Bulgarian law)
Recognition
  • Recognised by Best Lawyers and Handelsblatt as “One to Watch” in International Arbitration (2024, 2025)
  • ICC YAAF Representative for Europe & Central Asia (2024-2026)
  • International Panel of the Arbitration Foundation of Southern Africa (AFSA)
  • Dispute Resolution for Riot Games’ Esports (EMEA) Arbitrator Roster
  • Blockchain Lawyers Forum (BLF) Arbitrator List
  • Journal of International Arbitration: Assistant Editor (since 2021)
  • Honored with the 2019/2020 DIS Sponsorship Award for his book on “Tribunal Secretaries in International Arbitration”
Education
  • Second State Exam, Higher Regional Court of Berlin (2019)
  • Dr. iur., summa cum laude, University of Cologne (2018)
  • First State Exam, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (2015)

Professional Background
    • Managing Counsel, ArbBoutique, Berlin (since 2024)
    • Senior Associate, Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr LLP, London/Berlin (2019-2024)
Academic Positions
  • Member of the Faculty of the LLM in International Dispute Resolution, Humboldt University of Berlin, Berlin (since 2022)
  • Guest Lecturer, University of Chile (since 2022)
  • Guest Lecturer, Hague University of Applied Sciences (since 2022) 
  • Visiting Scholar, Columbia Law School (2016)
Publications
Book
  • Tribunal Secretaries International Arbitration, Oxford University Press, 2019, Link
  • – Awarded the 2019/2020 DIS Sponsorship Award  
  • – “[S]trongly recommended for all members of the arbitration community” – J.   Fellenbaum, Asian Dispute Review  
  • – “[C]ontributes to much-needed honesty about secretaries and lays the basis for significant improvements in addressing this subject” – J. Menz, Arbitration International
  • – “[P]ivotal for defining the limits and informing the broader arbitration community of the current state of practice” – M. Polkinghorne, Journal of International Arbitration  
  • – “[T]rue treasure trove for all those who deal with questions concerning secretaries in international arbitration” – R. Wolff, SchiedsVZ
Articles, Book Contributions
  • Regulating the Use of Artificial Intelligence in International Arbitration: The EU AI Act and Beyond’ (with M. Scherer, R. Childree), Cahiers de l’arbitrage, 2024, forthcoming
  • Kartellrecht und Schiedsverfahren’ (with F. Schwarz), in H.-G. Kamann, S. Ohlhoff and S. Völcker (eds), Kartellverfahren und Kartellprozess, C.H. Beck (2nd ed) 2024, 1545-1570
  • Tribunal Secretary’, in F. Ferrari, F. Rosenfeld and F. Ragno (eds), Elgar Concise Encyclopedia of International Commercial Arbitration, Edward Elgar, 2024, forthcoming
  • Forced Joinder: Arbitration Without Privity or Consent in Disguise?’ (with M. Scherer), in S. Brekoulakis and R. Weeramantry (eds), Achieving the Arbitration Dream: Liber Amicorum for Professor Julian D.M. Lew KC, Kluwer, 2023, 207-218
  • Die Digitalisierung der Schiedsgerichtsbarkeit’ (with M. Scherer), in T. Riehm and S. Dörr (eds), Handbuch Digitalisierung und Zivilverfahren, De Gruyter, 2023, 549-625
  • Zuspruch von Bitcoin in einem Schiedsspruch als Ordre public-Verstoß?’ (with D. Böckenförde), Recht der Internationalen Wirtschaft, 2022, RIW 793-796
  • Consolidation, Joinder and Intervention in International Arbitration: A Comparative Analysis of Contemporary Approaches’ (with M. Scherer), 26 ZZPInt, Zeitschrift für Zivilprozess International, 2021, 173-202
  • Neues zum Sekretär des Schiedsgerichts – Entwicklungen in Rechtsprechung und schiedsinstitutioneller Regulierung im Laufe des Yukos Aufhebungsverfahrens‘, SchiedsVZ, German Arbitration Journal, 2022, 275-286
  • Empirical Research on the Alleged Invalidity of Arbitration Agreements: Success Rates and Applicable in Setting Aside and Enforcement Proceedings’ (with M. Scherer), 39 Journal of International Arbitration, 2022, 331-350
  • Of Implied Choices and Close Connections: Two Pervasive Issues Concerning the Law Governing the Arbitration Agreement’ (with M. Scherer), in J. Bedard and P. Pearsall (eds), State of Arbitration: Essays in Honour of Professor George Bermann, Juris, 2022, 667-680
  • Towards a Harmonized Theory of the Law Governing the Arbitration Agreement’ (with M. Scherer), Indian Journal of Arbitration Law, 2021, 1-16
  • The Law Governing the Arbitration Agreement: A Comparative Analysis of the United Kingdom Supreme Court’s Decision in Enka v Chubb’ (with M. Scherer), IPRax, 2021, 177-187
  • Aligning Arbitrator Assistance with the Parties' Legitimate Expectations’, 38 ASA Bulletin, 2020, 375-395
  • The Arbitrator’s Mandate to Facilitate Settlement’ (with K. P. Berger), 40 Fordham International Law Journal, 2017, 887-917, Link
  • Due Process Paranoia and the Procedural Judgment Rule: A Safe Harbour for Procedural Management Decisions by International Arbitrators’ (with K. P. Berger), 32 Arbitration International, 2016, 415-435, Link
  • Die Auslegung von Investitionsschutzabkommen am Beispiel der „umbrella clause“: Rechtssicherheit durch höhere Präzision’, RIW, Recht der Internationalen Wirtschaft, 2016, 277-286
  • Setting Aside Arbitral Awards in Model Law Jurisdictions: The Singapore Approach from a German Perspective’, 4 European International Arbitration Review, 2015, 55-80
Blogs, Notes and Reviews
  • In a “First” Worldwide, Austrian Supreme Court Confirms Arbitral Tribunal’s Power to Hold Remote Hearings Over One Party’s Objection and Rejects Due Process Concerns’ (with M. Scherer, F. Schwarz, H. Ortner), Kluwer Arbitration Blog, 24 October 2020, Link
  • CETA’s Dispute Settlement Mechanism Compatible with EU Law – A Closer Look at the CJEU’s Opinion’ (with G. Adler), Lexis PSL, 7 June 2019
  • DIS Autumn Conference 2018: Art-Related Dispute Resolution’ SchiedsVZ, German Arbitration Journal, 2019, 89-92
  • Law, Practice, and Procedure of Arbitration by Sundra Rajoo (2nd edn, LexisNexis 2017) – Book Review’ TDM, Transnational Dispute Management, 2018, 1-15
  • It Takes Pressure to Form Diamonds: The Changing Landscape of Dispute Resolution and Its Implications for International Arbitration’ (with K. P. Berger), Kluwer Arbitration Blog, 23 May 2016, Link
  • The Swiss Federal Tribunal Addresses the Role of Secretaries and “Legal Consultants” to an Arbitral Tribunal’, 33 IBA Arbitration News, 2016, 66-69
Speaking Engagements  (Selected)
    • 'Special Rules Agreed by the Parties in Arbitration: Limits and Potential Issues', Panel, 68th Congress of the Union Internationale des Avocats, Paris, November 2024
    • ‘Navigating Artificial Intelligence in Dispute Resolution: Innovation vs Ethics’, Oxford-style debate, ICC YAAF Global Conference, New York, September 2024
    Tales of Tribunal Secretaries and the Journey to First Appointments as Arbitrator’, Panel, ICC YAAF, Prague, May 2024
  • From Novice to Expert: Career Dos and Don'ts in International Arbitration’, Humboldt Advocacy Workshops and Panel Discussion, Berlin, March 2024
  • Vollstreckungsfragen und -praktiken im deutschsprachigen Raum: Ein Austausch zum New Yorker Übereinkommen in der Praxis’, Below 40 Event at Vierländer Konferenz, Vienna, November 2023
  • 1,000 Paths to a Career in Arbitration’, Webinar (episode 4), October 2023
  • SCC Express – On Time, on Track’, Roundtable discussion, Berlin, September 2023
  • Das anwendbare Recht auf die Schiedsvereinbarung’, Podcast #zukunft – Podcast zur Schiedsgerichtsbarkeit, Episode 19, Spotify, July 2023, Link
  • Tribunal Secretaries Demystified’, Singapore Very Young Arbitration Practitioners (SG VYAP) and International Arbitration and Mediation Centre (IAMC), webinar, June 2023
  • Digitalisierung in der Schiedsgerichtsbarkeit’, Online lecture, University of Passau, Germany, January 2023
  • Tribunal Secretaries in International Arbitration’, Panel, Queen Mary University of London, October 2022
  • Climate Change Disputes – Is the Future Already Here?’, AIJA Double Seminar: Arbitration in Times of Change—New Lands and Frontiers in Arbitration, Berlin, October 2022
  • Document Production in International Arbitration’, Africa Arbitration Academy’s Flagship Training Program, Online module, November 2021
  • Secretaries to Arbitral Tribunals – A Burden or Opportunity?’, AFM Below 40, Court of Arbitration at the Polish Chamber of Commerce in Warsaw, webinar, May 2021
  • Tribunal Secretaries in International Arbitration’, Kovise Foundation Conflict Resolution International (KFCRI), webinar, July 2020

Personal Details

People

Prof Dr Maxi Scherer

Niuscha Bassiri

Dr Ole Jensen

Emily Hay

Pierre Nosewicz