About us

 Fatma Amira Abdallah 

Fatma Abdallah, member of the International Court of Arbitration (ICC), Arbitration counsel and University lecturer specializing in alternative dispute resolution methods.

Fatma is a lawyer registered with the Tunis Bar. She acts as counsel in commercial and investment arbitrations. Fatma has advised States and investors in several complex ICC arbitrations, involving disputes in the mining, oil and gas, industry, infrastructure and corporate law sectors. Her areas of expertise are arbitration, mediation, contract law, investment law, corporate law, international trade law and business litigation. In 2022, she was distinguished by Africa Business+ in partnership with Jeune Afrique as one of the “100 Most Influential Business Lawyers in the French-speaking World”. Fatma is also a university lecturer who teaches Arbitration Law, Corporate Law and Civil Law. She supervises master’s theses at the University of Carthage (IHEC). Fatma is also a trainer at the Higher Institute of Lawyers where she teaches Alternative Dispute Resolution Methods.

Guillaume Aréou

Guillaume Aréou, founding member of AfricArb, is a senior associate at Reed Smith, based in Paris.

Guillaume holds a Ph.D. in International Investment Law from the University of Nice. He advises clients on commercial and investment arbitration matters, with a particular focus on Africa related disputes. He assists both investors and States alike in complex arbitration proceedings under a variety of seats and arbitration rules, spanning various industry sectors (including, but not limited to, the construction, energy and food sectors). Guillaume regularly speaks at events, and also regularly gives lectures on international arbitration at French universities. Finally, Guillaume is a member of the Comité Français de l’Arbitrage, the Swiss Arbitration Association, the Société Française pour le Droit International and the ICC Young Arbitrators Forum.

Alex Bado

Alex, law student, is an associate of AfricArb since 2022, based in Boston.

Sylvie Bebohi Ebongo

Sylvie, founding member of AfricArb, is co-founder and partner at HBE Avocats, based in Yaoundé and in Paris.

Sylvie sits as Arbitrator (institutional and ad hoc arbitrations) and is member of many arbitrators’ panels and arbitration and ADR associations.
She also acts as counsel and advises clients in a variety of domains, sectors, and industries both in African and European related matters. She regularly speaks, teaches, and provides training and translation services in Arbitration and ADR.

Bernd Ehle

Bernd, a partner at LALIVE, based in Geneva, focuses on dispute resolution and related capacity building, with a special focus on Africa.

Bernd is a partner at LALIVE in Geneva specializing in international arbitration. He is dual qualified in Switzerland and Germany. Bernd has extensive experience as both counsel and arbitrator in over 100 high-stakes disputes conducted under various arbitration rules and governed by civil and common law. His practice focuses on complex disputes involving in particular construction, infrastructure and mining projects. Bernd is committed to dispute resolution and related capacity building, in particular in Africa, to which a significant portion of his work is related. He is also a member of the Arbitration Court of the Swiss Arbitration Centre and of the Advisory Board of Africa Construction Law (ACL).

Sally El Sawah

Dr. Sally El Sawah is the Co-Founder and Head of Arbitration & Litigation of Junction (Paris) and the Founder of El Sawah Law (Cairo)

Dr. Sally El Sawah is the Co-Founder and Head of Arbitration & Litigation of Junction (Paris) and the Founder of El Sawah Law (Cairo). She is Egyptian and French qualified and Registered Foreign Lawyer with the SRA in England & Wales, acting as Arbitrator, Counsel, Consultant and Legal Expert both in ad hoc and institutional arbitrations such as ICC, CRCICA, KIAC, NAC and ICSID.  She has been involved in more than 100 high-profile cases and projects in Egypt and the “Europe, Middle East and Africa” region (EMEA) during a career spanning over eighteen years in Paris, London, and Cairo, both in reputable law firms and as an independent practitioner.

Aboubacar Fall 

Aboubacar  FALL,  member of Africarb Board is a founder and Senior Partner at AF Legal Law Firm based in Dakar (Senegal).

Aboubacar is a member of the Senegal Bar and a former member of the Paris Bar. He holds a PhD from University of Rouen (France) and a LLM from University of Washington in Seattle (USA). He has served as Principal Legal Counsel at the African Development Bank (AfDB) Group as well as President of the Management Board of the African Legal Support Facility (ALSF).  His abitration practice and teaching include, among other areas, international maritime trade, international investment, energy, mining, as well as oil & gas related disputes.

For three years he has served as member of the Users Council of the Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC). He has published extensively on international commercial and investment arbitration related topics.

Clément Fouchard

Clément, founding member of AfricArb, is a partner at Reed Smith, based in Paris.

Clément, with over fifteen years of experience, he acts for French and international clients, particularly in the mining, construction, energy and infrastructure and defence sectors.

Clément is a member of the Bureau of the Comité Français de l’Arbitrage, a co-founder of the AfricArb association and was a founder of the Paris Arbitration Week (PAW) and a member of the PAW organising committee from its inception in 2017 until 2022.

Over the years, Clément has acquired a significant experience in disputes related to the African continent.

Clément also acts as an arbitrator in domestic and international, ad hoc and institutional (ICC) arbitrations.

Athina Fouchard Papaefstratiou

Athina, founding member and former co-head of AfricArb, is an independent arbitrator based in Paris.

Athina has worked for 15 years in two of the most renowned international arbitration groups globally and in a boutique firm specialised in Africa-related dispute resolution, before establishing her own practice in 2022.

Athina has significant experience in Africa-related arbitration, as well as in arbitration involving States and State entities.

She is a founding member (and former co-head) of AfricArb, a member of the ICC Commission on Arbitration and ADR and a Board member of the Arbitration Committee of ICC Greece. She is a CIArb Fellow, a member of the Executive Committee of the CIArb European Branch, and she served in 2020 as the Head of the CIArb YMG.

Orphée Haddad

Orphée, who joined AfricArb in 2024, is the Head of Disputes at ADNA, a pan-African law firm with offices in Abidjan, Algiers, Casablanca, and Conakry

Orphée is an attorney admitted to the Paris Bar with experience in international dispute resolution, including litigation and arbitration, particularly in the Central and Western Africa region (OHADA zone), as well as in Northern Africa and the Middle East. He has represented international clients in complex cases involving international trade, public entities, debt collection, foreign judgment enforcement, and multiparty and multijurisdictional proceedings. Fluent in English, French, Arabic, and Italian, Orphée holds a Master’s degree in Private International Law and International Trade Law from Sorbonne Law School in France.

Thomas Kendra

Thomas, founding member of AfricArb and co-head since 2021, is a partner at Kennedys, based in Paris.

Co-President of AfricArb, Thomas is a partner in Kennedy’s commercial and investment arbitration practice, representing companies and States in disputes globally and in particular across Africa where he has worked on cases in virtually every country on the continent. His passion for encouraging the growth of alternative dispute resolution led him to collaborate in establishing the Kigali International Arbitration Centre (KIAC) in Rwanda in 2012, subsequently working as a board member in its ensuing development. He is ranked amongst the most influential lawyers in francophone Africa. Thomas is also a regular contributor to publications and conferences on the topic of international arbitration, whilst teaching at both Sciences Po (Paris Institute of Political Studies) and Paris-Saclay University.

Mahutodji Jimmy Vital Kodo

Dr. Mahutodji Jimmy Vital Kodo, Beninese and French citizen, is a licensed attorney and an active member of the Bar Associations of Hauts-de-Seine (France) and Kinshasa (Democratic Republic of Congo).

From 2021 to 2023, he was a Member of the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA – The Hague, Netherlands). Since January 2023, he is a Member of the Court of Arbitration of the Casablanca International Mediation and Arbitration Centre (CIMAC).

Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (FCIArb – United Kingdom), he has been appointed to the panel of arbitrators of various arbitral institutions including, inter alia: the ICC Arbitration Court, the MIAC, the KIAC, the IAI, the SIAC, SHAC, the AALCO.

Dr. Kodo regularly acts, in French and English, as a co-arbitrator, sole arbitrator and president of arbitral tribunals in commercial and investment arbitrations in various sectors (mining/energy, construction, corporations, banking/finance, etc.). He also represents parties in arbitral proceedings.

In 2021, as a Consultant for the Investment Climate Reform (ICR) Facility (co-funded by the European Union and other donors and implemented by the German Cooperation Agency (GIZ) and the British Council), Dr. Kodo revised the Arbitration Rules of the National Centre for Arbitration, Conciliation and Mediation (CENACOM) of Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo; and trained more than eighty arbitrators of the centre.

Former Technical Advisor to the President of the Common Court of Justice and Arbitration (CCJA) of the Organization for the Harmonization of Business Law in Africa, he is the only attorney to have held such a position.

Inès Kouevi

Inès, trainee lawyer, is an associate of AfricArb since 2022, based in Washington, DC.

Paul-Jean Le Cannu

Paul-Jean Le Cannu, founding member of AfricArb and co-head since 2021, is a senior counsel and team leader at ICSID, based in Washington DC.

As Team Leader, Paul Jean supervises around sixty-five cases under the ICSID and UNCITRAL Arbitration Rules. He also serves as Secretary of Tribunals and Annulment Committees. Paul Jean regularly writes and presents about international arbitration, including in the context of the joint program organized by the Georgetown University Law Center, the International Law Institute – African Centre for Legal Excellence, and ICSID. He is also a co-founder and currently co-president of AfricArb and a member of the Advisory Council of the Africa Arbitration Academy.

Julie Carla Mbakop 

Julie, member of Africarb since 2024, is an associate at Fidal, based in Casablanca and in Paris.

Obioma Ofoego

Obioma, member of Africarb since 2024, is a Senior associate at Quinn Emanuel, based in Paris.

Obioma Ofeogo is a Senior Associate in Quinn Emanuel’s Paris office. He joined the firm in 2020. He specializes in international commercial arbitration, investment arbitration and public international law. Prior to joining the firm, Obioma worked as a barrister in independent practice in London, as an assistant legal adviser at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and at another leading international law firm in Paris. He has acted in arbitrations conducted under the auspices of various major institutions (such as ICSID, ICC and SCC), as well as in ad hoc arbitrations conducted under the UNCITRAL Rules and has appeared as an advocate before international tribunals and the English courts.

Before coming to the Bar, Obioma worked at UNESCO (Paris) in the filed of education and cultural policy and as an academic in African literature and has authored a number of books. Obioma is fluent in Spanish and Italian.

Capucine du Pac de Marsoulies

Capucine, founding member and former co-head of AfricArb, is a counsel at De Gaulle Fleurance & Associés, based in Paris.

Capucine regularly acts as counsel and arbitrator in commercial and investment arbitration proceedings (ICC, ICSID, CCJA, PCA, OHADA, etc.), mainly related to projects developed on the African continent in the natural resources (mining, oil & gas), energy and construction sectors.
Capucine has developed a thorough knowledge of French-speaking African countries, as well as OHADA and regional business law and has practised in Dakar.

Baptiste Rigaudeau

Baptiste is a partner at Lead up law, based in Paris and Geneva.

Baptiste Rigaudeau specialises in dispute avoidance and dispute resolution, with a particular focus on arbitration, both commercial and between foreign investors and States. He has significant experience in the mining, banking, pharmaceuticals, hotels, energy, construction and telecommunications sectors. He has been involved, as counsel, tribunal secretary, or arbitrator in ad hoc (notably under UNCITRAL rules) and institutional arbitration (governed by ICC, ADCCAC, HKIAC, LCIA, SIAC, SCC, CIETAC, CMAP, Swiss Arbitration Centre and ICSID rules), governed by diverse procedural and substantive laws. In addition, Baptiste has experience advising clients on settlement negotiations and on multi-jurisdictional disputes relating to asset tracing and recovery.

Isabelle Rouche 

Isabelle, member of AfricArb, is a partner at Asafo & Co., based in Paris.

Isabelle specializes in international litigation and assists public and private entities before national and international arbitral tribunals in all types of pre-litigation and litigation matters involving international issues. She has represented a number of African states and parastatals before international arbitral tribunals.

She is also specialized in public international law particularly in relation to delimitation of land and maritime boundaries, State action at sea, management of offshore resources within and beyond areas of national jurisdiction and delineation of the outer continental shelf.

Isabelle is considered a “specialist in advising sovereigns” and is ranked among the Top Public International Law Lawyers by Legal 500.

Lédéa Sawadogo-Lewis

Lédéa is a managing associate in Linklaters’ international arbitration team, based in Paris

Her focus is on legal research and business development, and she is particularly interested in arbitration in Africa, having developed significant expertise in this field. Lédéa is a member of Africarb’s board of directors, having joined the association in 2021.

Essowèdeou Signan

Essowèdeou, member of AfricArb since 2024, is a legal assistant at Centre International d’Arbitrage et de Médiation, based in Lomé.

Julie Spinelli

Julie, founding member of AfricArb, is a partner at Le 16 Law, based in Paris.

Julie acts as counsel in domestic or international arbitration proceedings, ad hoc or institutional (ICC, LCIA, ICSID, SCC, CMAP and UNCITRAL), for States as well as French and foreign companies in disputes in the sectors of energy, construction and engineering, aeronautical, chemicals, pharmaceuticals and hospitality.

She also represents clients in annulment, enforcement and arbitration-related court proceedings before French courts.

Julie regularly acts as an arbitrator.

Martin Tavaut

Martin, founding member of AfricArb, is a counsel at Jeantet, based in Paris.

Martin assists clients with their projects in Africa and in France in the energy (renewables, power) and mining sectors as well as with matters related to the energy transition.

Martin has acquired significant experience in these different fields in large-scale projects, from their inception to their implementation, acquisition or disposal (due diligences, regulatory, environmental law, OHADA law).

He is a lecturer at the Université Paris II Panthéon-Assas, as part of the University Diploma in International Economic Law in Africa, since 2015.

He is also a facilitator of the Climate Desk, which he deploys at Jeantet.

Gregory Travaini

Gregory, founding member of AfricArb, is a Legal Manager at Engie, based in Paris.

Dr. Gregory Travaini is partnering with ENGIE Global Energy Management and Sales business re a breadth of legal matters globally incl. disputes, M&A, corporate, market data, market conduct, financial regulation, data privacy and ethics matters. Before joining ENGIE, he was supporting Amazon Retail Consumable Business re strategic expansion and evolving operations across Europe. Prior to joining Amazon, he was an attorney at Herbert Smith Freehills for almost a decade, regularly advising clients in cross-border investment, construction, price review, contractual, post M&A and jurisdictional matters, acting for both private investors and State entities. He also acted as arbitrator. Before that, he was Deputy Counsel at the ICC International Court of Arbitration where he was directly in charge of more than 150 cases mostly in Africa and Middle East. He was awarded the King’s College London Principal’s Award and recognized several times by Who’s Who Legal.