Sylvia Tonova is an associate at White & Case LLP and practices with the International Arbitration and Litigation Groups. She concentrates her practice on the representation of sovereign States and private clients in investment treaty and commercial arbitration matters.

Ms. Tonova's recent experience includes:

• In Plama Consortium Limited v. Republic of Bulgaria (ICSID Case No. ARB/03/24), representation of the Republic of Bulgaria before the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) in an arbitration of a dispute arising under the Energy Charter Treaty involving the operation of an oil refinery in which claims of the investor were dismissed in their entirety and Bulgaria obtained a sizable cost award;
• In EDF (Services) Limited v. Romania (ICSID Case No. ARB/05/13), representation of Romania in an ICSID arbitration of a dispute arising under a bilateral investment treaty concerning duty free services at Romanian airports in which claims of the investor were dismissed in their entirety and Romania obtained a sizable cost award;
• In S&T Oil Equipment & Machinery Ltd. v. Romania (ICSID Case No. ARB/07/13), representation of Romania in an ICSID arbitration of claims arising under a bilateral investment treaty relating to the privatization of an ammonia plant in which the arbitration proceeding was discontinued due to the investor's failure to pay the costs of the arbitration;
• In Accession Eastern Europe Capital AB and Mezzanine Management Sweden AB v. Republic of Bulgaria (ICSID Case No. ARB/11/3), representation of the Republic of Bulgaria in an arbitration of a dispute arising under a bilateral investment treaty relating to the termination of the concession for waste collection and street cleaning by the municipality of Sofia;
• In Gold Reserve Inc. v. Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela (ICSID Case No. ARB(AF)/09/1), representation of Gold Reserve Inc. in an ICSID Additional Facility arbitration of claims arising under a bilateral investment treaty relating to one of the world's largest undeveloped gold/copper deposits;
• Representation of a sovereign State in an arbitration against multiple respondents before the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) in connection with the privatization of a telecommunications company;
• Representation of a bank in an UNCITRAL arbitration of a dispute arising under a bilateral investment treaty in connection with an investment in the banking sector of a Central Asian State;
• Representation of a company before the International Arbitral Centre of the Austrian Federal Economic Chamber and U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia in a dispute relating to an investment in a joint venture in Central Asia; and
• Representation of a company in an ad hoc arbitration of a dispute relating to the formation, existence and validity of a settlement agreement.

Bars and Courts
New York State Bar, 2006
District of Columbia Bar, 2007

Education
JD, Georgetown University Law Center, cum laude, 2005
BA, Bradford College, summa cum laude, 2000
School of International Training, Geneva, Switzerland (Program), 2000

Professional Associations and Memberships
World Arbitration & Mediation Review, Executive Editor
ICSID Review—Foreign Investment Law Journal, Peer Review Board
American Society of International Law
American Bar Association, International Law and Practice Section
District of Columbia Bar Association, International Law Section
LCIA Young International Arbitration Group (YIAG)
ICC Young Arbitrators Forum
United States Council for International Business
U.S.-Russia Business Council

Publications
Investment Arbitration under the Energy Charter Treaty: The Novel Case of Plama Consortium Limited v. Republic of Bulgaria, in ENERGY DISPUTE RESOLUTION: INVESTMENT PROTECTION, TRANSIT AND THE ENERGY CHARTER TREATY (Graham Coop ed., 2011) (co-authored with Jonathan C. Hamilton and Petr Polášek)
Compliance and Enforcement of Awards: Is There a Practical Difference between ICSID and Non-ICSID Awards? (forthcoming)
Analytical headnotes for InvestmentClaims.com, Oxford University Press's online research tool for international investment law and arbitration

Speaking Engagements
"Compliance and Enforcement of Awards—Is There a Practical Difference between ICSID and Non-ICSID Awards?", Fifth Annual Investment Arbitration Conference: The Future of ICSID, Washington, DC, April 5, 2011

Languages
English
Bulgarian
Russian
Spanish

Citizenship
United States
Bulgaria