Professor Gabrielle Kaufmann-Kohler

Practices in international commercial and investment arbitration. Acted in over 240 international arbitrations, mainly as arbitrator. Appears on numerous institutional arbitration panels (including ICC, ICSID, AAA, LCIA, SIAC, CIETAC) and conducts arbitrations under the rules of all major institutions. Chaired the ad hoc Division at the Olympic Games from 1996 until 2000. Regularly ranked among the top ten arbitrators worldwide. Currently teaches classes on arbitration at the MIDS (from 2018), National University of Singapore (from 2019); Tsinghua University, Beijing (2019 and from 2024); Georgetown University (2019-2021); Sciences Po Paris (from 2019). Previously taught classes in international commercial, investment, and sports arbitration as well as private international law (until 2018). Among other leadership and expert roles, Honorary President of ICCA and Member of the Advisory Board (from 2020) (President from 2018 to 2020 and Member of the Board from 1998 to 2020); Honorary President of the Swiss Arbitration Association (ASA) (President from 2001 to 2005); Chair of the Advisory Board of the Foundation for International Arbitration Advocacy (FIAA) (from 2016); Chair of the Board of Trustees (until 2016) and co-founder of FIAA; Member of the Swiss delegation to the UNCITRAL Working Group II on transparency (2012-2014), Working Group III on the reform of investor-state arbitration (from 2017), and UNCITRAL Commission (2016, 2017, 2018).

Numerous publications in the area of her specialization (full list available on www.lk-k.com). Selected recent writings include (full list on https://lk-k.com/?year=&lawyer=gabrielle-kaufmann-kohler&expertise=&s=&post_type=publication ):

• International Arbitration Law is Like a Layer Cake - and Why it Matters, Brazilian Arbitration Review, publication forthcoming 2023

• Indépendance et impartialité du juge et de l'arbitre dans le règlement des différends entre investisseurs et Etats, Recueil, Hague Academy of International Law, The Hague, 2022, pp. 9-50

• Gabrielle Kaufmann-Kohler, Michele Potestà, "Investor-State Dispute Settlement and National Courts. Current Framework and Reform Options", Springer, New York, 2020, 117 pp., available in open access

• Supplemental CIDS Report for UNCITRAL entitled "The Composition of a Multilateral Investment Court and of an Appeal Mechanism for Investment Awards", November 2017, (co-author Michele Potestà), available on the UNCITRAL website at http://www.uncitral.org/pdf/english/ workinggroups/wg_3/CIDS_Supplemental_Report.pdf

• CIDS Report for UNCITRAL entitled "Can the Mauritius Convention serve as a model for the reform of investor-State arbitration in connection with the introduction of a permanent investment tribunal or an appeal mechanism?", 3 June 2016, (co-author Michele Potestà), available at http://www.uncitral.org/pdf/english/commissionsessions/unc/unc-49/CIDS_ Research_Paper_-_Can_the_Mauritius_Convention_serve_as_a_model.pdf

• International Arbitration: Law and Practice in Switzerland, Oxford University Press, 2015 (co-author Antonio Rigozzi), 577 pp.  

Nationality

Switzerland

Working languages

English
French
German
Spanish

Areas of Expertise

International Arbitration