International Arbitration in Ghana: Trends and Opportunities

The Ghana Chapter and the London Branch Committee of the Ciarb are pleased to invite you to a joint event focusing on International Arbitration in Ghana. This in person and online seminar, generously hosted by Mayer Brown, will consider current business trends and key developments in Ghana, identifying areas where disputes are arising. Attendees will hear from leading international arbitrators and members of the business community on how arbitral practitioners can leverage the business developments in Ghana to grow their practices through collaboration. A keynote address will be provided by H.E. Papa Owusu-Ankomah, Ghana High Commissioner to UK and Northern Ireland.

In person registration will take place between 16:30 – 17:00

Agenda and Speakers

Opening Remarks
Karina Albers, Chair, London Branch Committee

Keynote Address: The Current Business Landscape in Ghana
H.E Papa Owusu-Ankomah, Ghana High Commissioner to UK and Northern Ireland

Panel One: Leveraging emerging business trends for practice growth
The panel will be moderated by Paul Kinninmont, Partner, Freeths

• Steven Finizio, Partner, WilmerHale
• Nania Owusu-Ankomah Sackey, Partner, Bentsi-Enchill, Letsa & Ankomah
• Dipen Sabharwal KC, Managing Partner, White & Case, London
• Andrew Skipper MBE, Former Head of Africa Practice at Hogan Lovells and former
Co-Chair of UK Government Africa Investors Group (AIG).

Panel Two: How Practitioners in Ghana and internationally can effectively collaborate
The panel will be moderated by Kamal Shah, Partner & Head of Africa and India Group,
Stephenson Harwood

• Tope Adeyemi, Barrister, 33 Bedford Row Chambers
• Kwadwo Ntrakwah, Partner, Ntrakwah & Co
• David Ofosu-Dorte, Senior Partner, AB & David Africa
• Kwadwo Sarkodie, Partner, Mayer Brown

Closing remarks
Naa Amorkor, Amarteifio, Senior Associate, AB & David Africa

Drinks, canapés and networking from 20:00 onwards

Registration:
There will be no charge to attend this event, but prior registration is required and limited
in-person spaces are available. Please confirm by contacting Elinor Pritchard by email
(see details below).

Contact:
Elinor Pritchard, Administrator, Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, London Branch:
Tel: 00 44 (0)208 546 2613
Mob: 00 44 (0)7780 676976
Email: elinor@thevirtualpartnership.co.uk

Speakers Bios:

Tope Adeyemi

Tope Adeyemi is a Barrister and Arbitrator practising from 33 Bedford Row Chambers in London. Dual qualified in England & Wales and Nigeria, her practice focuses on regulation, commercial law and alternative dispute resolution. Tope has appeared before a wide range of courts and tribunals and acts as Counsel and Arbitrator in institutional and ad hoc arbitrations. Additionally, she undertakes adjudications as a member of the Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution’s Consumer Panel (CEDR). Tope is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators and is an elected member of its London Branch Committee. Between 2009 and 2016 she was an Associate Lecturer in Law with the Open University.

Naa Amorkor Amarteifio

Naa Amorkor has extensive experience in commercial litigation, international construction disputes and arbitration involving complex financial and construction issues. Amorkor is an alumnus of the Slaughter & May Explore programme and the Africa Arbitration Academy. She recently completed her International Lawyers for Africa (ILFA) secondment programme with Hogan Lovells International LLP in London. While there, she was involved in disputes in the finance sector, hospitality and entertainment among other areas of law. She has held leadership positions in her arbitration career and currently serves as the Secretary to the Executive Council of the Lagos Court of Arbitration Young Arbitrators Network (LCA-YAN). She is also a Steering Committee member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (CIArb), Ghana Chapter as well as the Secretary of the Chapter. She is also a Delos Guide to Arbitration Places (GAP) reviewer for Ghana. Amorkor holds an LLM from Queen Mary University of London, UK, an LLB and a combined degree in Applied Chemistry & Environmental Science. One of her passions is supporting SMEs and start-ups to manage their disputes to remain sustainable and profitable.

Steven Finizio

Steven Finizio is a partner in Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr LLP. He has acted as counsel and arbitrator in commercial and treaty arbitrations in matters involving the laws of jurisdictions in Europe, Asia, Africa, South America, and the US. He is a member of the LCIA Court and the GIAC Advisory Council. He has also assisted in drafting new arbitration legislation and was part of the team that won a landmark decision in the first freedom of expression case in the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights. He is Professor of Practice at SOAS University London, and writes frequently on arbitration issues, including “A Practical Guide to International Commercial Arbitration: Assessment, Planning and Strategy” and “International Commercial Arbitration,” in The Law of Transnational Business Transactions.

Paul Kinninmont

Paul is an effective and commercially minded disputes lawyer and arbitrator. His extensive experience includes full trials, appeals, injunctions, interim applications, jurisdictional battles and enforcement proceedings across several sectors and jurisdictions. Paul often helps sophisticated clients to realise business objectives through mediation and negotiation. He also helps multinationals to navigate risks arising from international treaties, international sanctions and bribery issues.

Paul was called to the English Bar by Middle Temple. He is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators ("CIArb") and a Liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Arbitrators. Paul serves on the Committees of the CIArb London Branch and the Energy Arbitration Club, proactively representing members and stakeholders on behalf of the profession. He has co-authored successive editions of “Dispute Resolution in Project Finance Transactions”, International Project Finance – Law and Practice, Oxford University Press (2015, 2019), as well as the CIArb Framework Guideline on the Use of Technology in International Arbitration (2021). Other recent articles include “The Inevitability of Predictive Coding in International Arbitration”, in the Young Arbitration Review and “US Sanctions and the EU Blocking Regulation: ‘Catch 22’” on Lexology.

Paul volunteers at legal clinics and as arbitrator at several moots, including the Vis Moot. Paul accepts appointments as arbitrator and has rendered 13 New York Convention awards through various arbitral institutions. He has four further arbitrations currently underway.

Kwadwo Ntrakwah

Kwadwo, is a Partner at a Ghanaian law firm, Ntrakwah & Co. A dual qualified lawyer, having been called to the bar of England and Wales and Ghana, Kwadwo specializes in Arbitration and Corporate and Commercial law. His additional areas of practice include Construction Law and Maritime Law. He thoroughly enjoys handling complex, cross border transactions on behalf of his clientele. Over the years, Kwadwo has provided invaluable practical advice and legal guidance to various foreign companies that have invested in Ghana.

He has represented multinationals conducting business in Ghana by resolving some of their most complex disputes. Kwadwo has also been involved in institutional arbitrations before SIAC, LCIA, CAS, Ghana Arbitration Center, Swiss Arbitration Centre and the ICC’s (International Court of Arbitration). In addition, he is a certified Insolvency Practitioner and a lecturer in Company and Commercial Practice at the Ghana School of Law.

David Ofosu – Dorte

David Ofosu-Dorte is the founder and Senior Partner of AB & David Africa, a pan-Africa business law firm with offices in six (6) countries and a network of firms in 24 other African countries. His experience cuts across about three (3) decades of lead advisory role in construction contracts advice, infrastructure deal structuring, public policy development and implementation advice, public-private partnerships (PPPs), project finance and the power sector. He has been described as “highly regarded” (IFLR 1000, 2020) and “…exceptionally strong in ensuring that client requirements are delivered. He always brings innovation to issues due to his wide experience internationally” (Chambers Global 2022).

David has also acted as counsel for various respondents and claimants in international arbitration matters including representing a sovereign entity in four (4) ICC international arbitration cases. He also leads AB & David Africa’s strategy and implementation which has led to the growth of the firm and the winning of several awards including the African Law Firm of the Year (Large Practice), 2021 and ranking in Africa Top 50 law firm list.

Nania Owusu – Ankomah Sackey

Nania is a litigation and arbitration practitioner and regularly advises and represents clients in a range of high value litigation and arbitration disputes. She also sits as an arbitrator.

She is a Court member of the LCIA and an officer of the LCIA Africa Users’ Council. She is Co-Chair of the Africa Arbitration Group of the IBA Arbitration Committee, after previously serving as Editor of the IBA Arbitration Committee Newsletter. She is a member of the ICC Commission on Arbitration & ADR and is Chair of the Ghana Chapter of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators. Nania has been recognised by Who's Who Legal as a Future Leader - Arbitration 2023 in its global guide. She has also been recognized as one of Africa’s 30 Most Promising Arbitration Practitioners (2022) by the Africa Arbitration Academy. She is a lecturer in ADR at the Ghana School of Law and is called to the bar in England and Wales and in Ghana.

Dipen Sabharwal KC

Dipen Sabharwal KC is the head of White & Case’s London office. He also leads the firm’s India group. Dipen advises clients on cross-border disputes and acts as an advocate in international arbitrations including several with an Africa-nexus. He is qualified to practice across three continents, in England and Wales, New York and India.

Kwadwo Sarkodie

Kwadwo Sarkodie is a partner in the International Arbitration group of the London office. He has wide-ranging international experience, having advised in relation to projects and disputes in Sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America, India, Russia and the Middle East. He regularly advises in relation to international arbitrations, including under the ICC, UNCITRAL and LCIA rules. Kwadwo has written extensively regarding dispute resolution and arbitration in Sub-Saharan Africa.

In addition, Kwadwo has a well-developed practice in the construction and engineering field. He regularly advises employers, insurers, contractors, subcontractors and consultants in relation to disputes under a variety of forms of construction contract (both standard form and bespoke). He has extensive experience with regard to litigation, mediation and adjudication.

Kwadwo is a member of the LCIA African Users' Council, the African Arbitration Association and the International Bar Association, and has spoken at numerous conferences in Europe and Africa on international arbitration and investment disputes.

Kamal Shah

Kamal is the head of Stephenson Harwood's Africa and India groups. He specialises in complex, cross-border international arbitration, litigation and fraud and asset recovery. Kamal is highly regarded by his peers and clients for his Africa and India experience, as well as in his abilities in multi-jurisdictional disputes. He acts for governments, government entities, banks, private corporations and high net worth individuals in a range of matters including those relating to projects and infrastructure, joint ventures, banking and finance, shareholder arrangements, energy and a range of schemes commonly used to defraud individuals and corporations.

Kamal is highly ranked in the legal directories including Chambers & Partners (UK, Global and Asia-Pacific), The Legal 500 (UK and Asia-Pacific), and IFLR1000. Kamal is one of only four lawyers ranked in Band 1 for Africa-wide dispute resolution in Chambers Global 2023. He was named as a leading international arbitration practitioner in Who's Who Legal: Future Leaders 2017 - 2022 for arbitration and has been recognised in Africa’s 30 Arbitration Powerlist 2020 and The Legal 500's GC Private Practice Powerlist for arbitration and Africa in 2022. Kamal is also recognised in the Lawdragon Global Litigation 500 list that features attorneys who specialise in international arbitration.

In addition to being a LCIA Court Member, Kamal is currently the president of the LCIA African Users Council. Kamal co-published the text of the ‘African Promise’, which seeks to tackle the under-representation of Africans on international arbitration tribunals. He is also the co-author of the leading text "Arbitration in Africa: A Review of Key Jurisdictions". Kamal was named joint winner of 'Mentor of the Year' at the African Arbitration Association Awards 2020.

Andrew Skipper MBE

Andrew is the founder and CEO of Polymetis Professional Solutions a consultancy which advises businesses in a range of sectors by brining experienced and connected networks together and delivering solutions effectively and in collaboration. Andrew is a commercial lawyer of more than 35 years standing having been on the global Management Committee and being the head of corporate globally for Hogan Lovells and subsequently Head of their Africa Practice. Andrew is on various boards in the business and cultural space with a focus on Africa, including recently as co-chair of the UK Government’s Africa Investor Group, as council member of the Royal Africa Society, being on the Board of the SA chamber of commerce and the legal group of the UK Nigeria EDF.