Herbert Smith Freehills boost arbitration practice with openings in South Africa and Dusseldorf

Herbert Smith Freehills is pleased to announce that it will be adding to its global practice with the opening of offices in Johannesburg and Dusseldorf and the hire of three new partners, including two experienced arbitration practitioners.  The global footprint of the arbitration practice is already unrivalled, with arbitration specialists in 16 offices across the world. The new officess – and associated partner hires – will enhance this position by offering specialist arbitration advice on the ground in South Africa and further arbitration capability in Germany. 

Brigette Baillie and Peter Leon, leaders within their respective fields domestically and internationally, join the Johannesburg office from South African firm Webber Wentzel where Brigette was head of the Energy & Infrastructure Sector Group, and Peter head of Mining Regulation.  Brigette has exceptional experience in non-recourse and limited-recourse financing, project structuring and corporate and equity finance and she is named as a leading lawyer in South Africa by Chambers Global.  Peter's areas of expertise include mineral and petroleum regulation in developing countries, black economic empowerment and indigenisation law, international investment law, prevention and crisis management as well as financial services regulation.  Peter's experience also includes acting as co-counsel to the claimants in an ICSID claim against South Africa and sitting as an arbitrator.  Peter will become global co-chair of the firm's Africa practice, alongside Stéphane Brabant.  

Thomas Weimann will head the Dusseldorf office when it opens early next year and will work out of the Frankfurt office in the meantime.  Thomas has a leading arbitration practice involving M&A, construction and engineering disputes, having acted as counsel and arbitrator in proceedings under a number of different institutional rules, including the ICC, DIS and CIETAC.

Head of the Global Arbitration Practice Paula Hodges QC comments:

"I'm delighted to welcome our new partners to the firm. All three come with stellar experience in their respective fields.  Peter and Thomas will strengthen our arbitration team considerably. Thomas will enhance our pan-European arbitration practice as a whole as well as adding to our arbitration capability in Germany.  Peter's experience of advising mining and energy clients, as well as his in-depth knowledge of the African market, will also be invaluable to our arbitration practice.  We look forward to working with Peter, Thomas, and Brigette".

Johannesburg

The Johannesburg office is a significant commitment to Herbert Smith Freehills' firm-wide Africa practice.  The two new leading South African partners - Brigette and Peter – who will be joined by a number of partners from the Africa practice including Ed Baring, Head of the firm's Banking & Finance practice in Moscow, Bertrand Montembault, Head of the Paris Energy & Infrastructure practice, as well as Yann Alix, a dual English and French qualified senior associate.  The combined strength of the Johannesburg partners will enable the firm to provide a pan-African offering, including francophone Africa, and they will be fully integrated with the firm's Africa specialists located across the international platform.

Peter Leon is one of the top twenty mining lawyers in the world and has significant experience of international arbitration.  Peter acted as co-counsel to the claimants in the ICSID claim by three Italian mining companies against  South Africa.   Peter has written and spoken extensively on bilateral investment treaties and South African legal and policy developments in relation to investment protection, and other international investment law issues.  He has advised major multinational mining and oil and gas companies on the domestic and international law implications of the mineral and petroleum regulation (in both South Africa and developing countries) and is an expert on the legal implications of South Africa's Black Empowerment Policy (BEE) and indigenisation law.  He also advises on prevention and crisis management as well as financial services regulation.

Dusseldorf

The opening in Düsseldorf will be the firm's third in Germany.  Thomas Weimann was previously a partner and head of the Düsseldorf arbitration and litigation practice at Clifford Chance. He enjoys a practice that spans a wide range of disputes work, local, domestic and international, with a special focus on post M&A arbitrations and disputes concerning plant construction, industrial engineering and civil construction projects. As president of the Chinese European Legal Association and board member of the Hamburg-based Chinese European Arbitration Centre, he also has extensive experience of advising in Sino-European disputes. Thomas also sits as an arbitrator in proceedings under the auspices of the ICC, DIS, CIETAC and PCA and other arbitral institutions. 

Thomas will work closely with Frankfurt arbitration partner, Mathias Wittinghofer, as well as our other Europe-based partners,  Paula Hodges QC, Craig Tevendale, Nick Peacock, Chris Parker in London, Isabelle Michou, Emmanuelle Cabrol and Andrew Cannon in Paris, Eduardo Soler Tappa and Manuel Rivero in Madrid, and Lode Van Den Hende in Brussels.

For further information, please contact Paula Hodges QC, Head of the Global Arbitration Practice, or your usual Herbert Smith Freehills contact.