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GAR 100 is Global Arbitration Review’s guide to specialist international arbitration practices. The guide only includes firms that can demonstrate a consistent stream of international arbitration hearings before credible arbitrators.
Chapman Tripp is the only New Zealand Law Firm to be ranked in the guide, recognising the firm’s dedicated international arbitration practice, led by partner Nicola Swan. The firm has long been acknowledged internationally as having one of New Zealand’s most distinguished litigation and dispute resolution practices. Chambers Global, Chambers Asia Pacific and Legal 500 APAC all rank Chapman Tripp as a ‘Band One’ firm in dispute resolution and four partners were recognised in the 2022 edition The Legal 500’s inaugural Arbitration Powerlist - Australasia Region.
The firm acts in proceedings seated in New Zealand and internationally, with a focus on the Asia-Pacific region. Chapman Tripp’s dispute resolution and international arbitration partners have represented a range of multinationals and international investors on a variety of commercial disputes spanning international trade, foreign investment, financial services, competition, intellectual property, insurance, maritime and tax law.
Chapman Tripp has recently successfully represented clients in significant international arbitration matters before the New Zealand courts. Together with barrister Daniel Kalderimis, Chapman Tripp (Swan) represented LMCH Limited in a major international commercial arbitration, recently resisting an attempt to have the award set aside in the High Court. Chapman Tripp (Swan, with Kalderimis) also represented a French investor in the first application to the New Zealand High Court for recognition of an ICSID arbitral award given by the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) its favour against the State of Hungary, worth over €100m.
In recent years Chapman Tripp also defended a multinational corporation in what is believed to have been New Zealand’s largest international arbitration to date – an UNCITRAL claim reported to be in the region of €1 billion in relation to product liability and trade practices.
Practice lead, Nicola Swan is recognised as a Future Leader by Who’s Who Legal: Arbitration 2024. She is presently appointed as an expert on the International Council for Commercial Arbitration (ICCA) Expert Panel on Conciliation under the Paris Agreement. As an advisor to Legal Response International, she also provides pro bono support to developing country state parties to the UNFCCC and Paris Agreement, as well as acting for the Commission of Small Island States in its intervention before the Inter-America Court of Human Rights advisory proceedings in relation to climate change.
Nicola works with construction arbitration specialist partner Sam Holden, as well as with senior associate arbitration specialists Sarah Kuper, Emma Peart, Will Cheyne and Liora Bercovitch.
