First Kazakhstani lawyers join the IAC panel of arbitrators and mediators
Ms. Aigoul Kenjebayeva, Managing Partner of Dentons, Europe, Almaty and Astana, and Chairman of the Management Council of the Kazakhstan Bar Association (KazBar), has been appointed to the IAC Arbitrator and Mediator Panel by the IAC Chairman, Ms Barbara Dohmann QC.
Ms. Kenjebayeva has more than 35 years’ experience as a practicing lawyer and arbitrator. Her areas of specialist expertise include arbitration and dispute resolution, corporate, M&A, energy/natural resources, PPP/infrastructure projects, IP, and competition law. She is consistently named as an expert on Kazakhstani law by leading legal directories including Chambers Global and Legal 500.
Ms. Kenjebayeva stated:
“The IAC is an important building block for the establishment of the rule of law in Kazakhstan. It is a great honour for me to be invited to the IAC panel of arbitrators and mediators where my experience as a Kazakhstani lawyer and as an arbitrator for leading international arbitration institutions could be useful.”
The IAC Chairman also appointed Mr. Alexander Korobeinikov, Counsel, Baker & McKenzie – CIS Limited in the Republic of Kazakhstan, to the IAC Arbitrator and Mediator Panel. Mr. Korobeinikov has great international arbitration and commercial litigation experience in Kazakhstan and the Eurasia region.
Mr Korobeinikov commented:
“Foreign investors highly welcome the initiative of President Nursultan Nazarbayev to establish the Astana International Financial Centre. These investors have great expectations about opportunities provided by the AIFC, including new options for the settlement of disputes in line with international standards in the AIFC Court and the International Arbitration Centre.
The IAC team has adopted party-friendly arbitration rules and its Chairman has appointed experienced and high-profile arbitration practitioners to the IAC Arbitrator and Mediator Panel. I am so proud to be among these arbitration practitioners and I promise to exert every effort to provide first-rate services to parties that use the IAC’s services.”
The IAC Chairman stated:
“I am delighted to welcome Ms. Kenjebayeva and Mr. Korobeinikov to the IAC Arbitrator and Mediator Panel. This is a clear sign that the Kazakhstan legal community welcomes the establishment of a new International Arbitration Centre which seeks to provide leading international arbitration and mediation services to resolve commercial disputes in Astana. Our two new arbitrators will bring invaluable expertise as we continue to develop the IAC.”
The IAC currently has 28 independent, highly qualified and respected international arbitrators and mediators from a variety of jurisdictions and its Panel now includes representation from Kazakhstan.
Reference:
AIFC. The AIFC was established on the initiative of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev. In December 2015 President Nazarbayev approved the Constitutional Statute “On the Astana International Financial Centre” (AIFC). The aim of the AIFC is to establish a leading international centre for financial services. The objectives of the AIFC are to attract investment into the economy through the establishment of an attractive environment for investment in financial services, develop local capital markets, ensuring their integration with the international capital markets. www.aifc.kz
AIFC Court. The AIFC Court is an independent legal entity. It has its own procedural rules modelled on English common law procedures and leading international practice. The AIFC Court is separate and independent from the courts of the Republic of Kazakhstan. It consists of two tiers: a Court of First Instance, which includes a specialist division known as the Small Claims Court; and a Court of Appeal. It has exclusive jurisdiction over disputes arising out of the activities and operations of the AIFC and jurisdiction in the case of other disputes in which all parties agree in writing to give the AIFC Court jurisdiction. It does not have jurisdiction in relation to any disputes that are of a criminal or administrative nature. It applies the most up to date and efficient case management practices.
IAC. The AIFC International Arbitration Centre (IAC) is an independent legal entity. It has its own procedural rules modelled on best international practice. It has its own panel of leading international arbitrators and mediators having many years of arbitration and mediation experience in commercial law, including oil and gas, trade, construction, energy, financial services, banking, Islamic finance, insurance and copy right. IAC arbitration awards are recognised and enforceable in Kazakhstan and internationally.
