Andrea Menaker

Partner, London

Biography

Andrea has been described in Chambers USA as “a very impressive, poised and excellent speaker” who “is hailed for her flawless presentation skills” and in Global Arbitration Review’s Who’s Who as “spectacular” and “tremendously skilled and highly effective.” Chambers Global notes her “reasoned, clear, and fast responses” and The Legal 500 describes her as “magnificent” and “very conscientious.”

Overview

Andrea Menaker is Head of the Firm's Public International Law Group and specializes in investment arbitration, where she has represented respondent States and claimant investors in equal measure in some of the most ground-breaking investment arbitration cases. Andrea also has an active practice in relation to enforcement of arbitral awards and has coordinated such actions worldwide for clients, in addition to serving as arbitrator and expert witness on investor-State issues. After more than a decade in the Firm's Washington, DC office, Andrea transferred to London in 2019 to grow and co-lead the Firm's investment arbitration practice there.

Andrea has been described in Chambers USA as "a very impressive, poised and excellent speaker" who "is hailed for her flawless presentation skills," and in Global Arbitration Review's Who's Who as "spectacular" and "tremendously skilled and highly effective." Chambers Global notes that she is "excellent" and "very capable of moving with the punches and dealing with difficult counterparties," and The Legal 500 describes her as "magnificent" and "very conscientious." In 2011, Andrea was ranked by Global Arbitration Review as one of the top 45 international arbitration practitioners worldwide under the age of 45.

Prior to joining White & Case, Andrea was Chief of the NAFTA Arbitration Division for the US State Department where she was lead counsel for the United States in investor-State arbitrations under the investment chapter of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), and participated in the drafting of investment and dispute resolution provisions in United States' bilateral investment treaties and investment chapters of free trade agreements.

Andrea is an Executive Committee member of the Swedish Arbitration Association, a Council Member of the Hong Kong International Arbitration Centre (HKIAC) and an elected member of the American Law Institute. She is a former Board Member of the Arbitration Institute of the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce and the Association Suisse de l'Arbitrage, a former member of the Executive Council of the American Law and served as Chair of the Programme Committee for ICCA's 2016 Congress in Mauritius. She has been appointed to the ICDR Panel of Arbitrators and the P.R.I.M.E. Finance panel of experts.

Andrea received a White & Case Pro Bono Award for conducting a workshop with the UNRCCA on State-to-State dispute resolution for Central Asian States, and for preparing comparative law analyses for the Government of Nepal to assist in its drafting of a new constitution.

Andrea is frequently called upon to speak on international arbitration and investor-State dispute resolution issues. She has served as an adjunct professor at Georgetown University Law Centre, where she taught international commercial arbitration for several years, and has lectured at several other universities.

Bars and Courts
New York State Bar
District of Columbia Bar
US District Court for the District of Columbia
US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
Education
JD
University of Washington School of Law
BS
Georgetown University
Languages
English

Experience

Andrea has served as counsel in numerous significant international arbitrations and related proceedings including :

Tethyan Copper Company Pty Ltd. v. Islamic Republic of Pakistan: represented Pakistan in an ICSID revision proceeding in connection with an arbitration under the Australia-Pakistan BIT arising out of a dispute concerning the world's largest undeveloped copper mining project that had resulted in an award in excess of US$ 6 billion.  Represented Pakistan in the successful settlement of the case, which will result in the development of the project and will bring innumerable benefits to Pakistan and, particularly, the Province of Balochistan.

Oxus Gold PLC v. Republic of Uzbekistan: represented the Republic of Uzbekistan in an UNCITRAL arbitration under the UK-Uzbekistan BIT in a dispute concerning mines containing gold, silver, and other metals. Successfully defeated more than 99% of the claimant's $1.3 billion claim.

Metal Tech, Ltd. v. Republic of Uzbekistan: successfully represented the Republic of Uzbekistan in an ICSID arbitration under the Israel- Uzbekistan BIT in a dispute arising from a joint venture engaged in mineral processing, obtaining dismissal of all claims by proving corruption in the making of the investment.

The Renco Group, Inc. v. Republic of Peru: successfully represented the Republic of Peru in an UNCITRAL arbitration brought under the US-Peru FTA in a dispute concerning a metallurgical complex, obtaining dismissal of all claims.

Glamis Gold Ltd. v. United States of America: successfully represented the United States in an UNCITRAL arbitration under the NAFTA in a dispute concerning federal and state actions taken with respect to the claimant's mining claims, obtaining dismissal of all claims and an award of costs.

Daniel W. Kappes and Kappes, Cassiday & Associates v. Guatemala: representing claimants in an ICSID arbitration under the DR-CAFTA arising from their gold mining investments. Successfully defeated respondent's preliminary objections and awaiting a ruling on the merits.

Kornikom EOOD v. Republic of Serbia: representing the claimant in a pending ICSID arbitration under a BIT in a dispute concerning an underground coal mining operation.

Gramercy Funds Management LLC and Gramercy Peru Holdings LLC v. Republic of Peru: represented Peru in defending against a $ 1.9 billion claim alleging treaty breaches arising from Peru's issuance of 1969-era Agrarian Reform bonds. Claimants were awarded only sunk costs.

Cairn Energy Plc v. Republic of India: defended India across multiple jurisdictions in which Cairn Energy PLC and Cairn UK Holdings Ltd. sought to enforce a $1.4 billion investment treaty arbitral award  arising out of a dispute in connection with imposition of a tax.

JSC BTA Bank v. Kyrgyz Republic: represented JSC BTA Bank in an UNCITRAL arbitration under the Kazakhstan-Kyrgyzstan BIT in a dispute arising out of an investment in a bank. 

Abaclat and others v. Argentine Republic: represented tens of thousands of Italian bondholders of Argentine sovereign bonds in an ICSID arbitration under the Italy-Argentina BIT.

Devas v. Republic of India: defending India across multiple jurisdictions (U.S., U.K., France, Australia and Canada) in which the claimants have been pursuing enforcement of an approximate $150 million award against India issued by a Netherlands-seated Permanent Court of Arbitration tribunal in an arbitration arising under the Mauritius-India BIT.

Deutsche Telekom AG v. Republic of India: defending India across multiple jurisdictions (U.S., Singapore, Germany) against enforcement of a $132 million award pursued by Deutsche Telekom issued by a Swiss-seated tribunal in an arbitration arising under the Germany-India BIT.

Federal Elektrik Yatirim ve Ticaret A.Ş. and others v. Republic of Uzbekistan: represented the Republic of Uzbekistan in an ICSID arbitration under the Turkey-Uzbekistan BIT and the ECT in a dispute concerning the natural gas industry.

Vladislav Kim and others v. Republic of Uzbekistan: represented the Republic of Uzbekistan under the Kazakhstan-Uzbekistan BIT in a dispute concerning two cement plants.

Fraport AG Frankfurt Airport Services Worldwide v. Republic of the Philippines: represented the Republic of the Philippines in an ICSID annulment proceeding defending an award dismissing the claimant's claims in respect of a dispute concerning an airport terminal.

Philippine International Air Terminals Co., Inc. v. Republic of the Philippines: successfully represented the Republic of the Philippines in an ICC arbitration seated in Singapore in a dispute concerning an airport terminal, obtaining dismissal of all claims and an award of costs.

JSC Mechanical Plant and Others v. The Kyrgyz Republic: represented the claimants in an ICSID Additional Facility arbitration under the Uzbekistan-Kyrgyzstan BIT and Kyrgyz Foreign Investment Law in a dispute concerning the expropriation of their hotel properties.

TECO Guatemala Holdings, LLC v. Guatemala: successfully represented TECO, a US electricity company, in an ICSID arbitration under the DR-CAFTA arising from its investment in an electricity distribution company, obtaining an award for violation of the treaty and for costs, and successfully represented TECO in ICSID annulment proceedings, defending the award and allowing TECO to pursue further damages and interest claims. Subsequently, obtained a significant award in the resubmission proceeding and represented TECO in another annulment proceeding brought by Guatemala.

WorleyParsons International v. Republic of Ecuador: representing claimant in an investment arbitration under the Ecuador-US BIT in a dispute arising out of project management contracts for large oil and gas projects.

Orascom TMT Investments S.à r.l. v. People's Democratic Republic of Algeria: represented OTMTI in an ICSID arbitration under the Belgo-Luxembourg-Algeria BIT in a dispute arising out of an investment in the telecom industry and represented OTMTI in the ensuing ICSID annulment proceeding.

Methanex Corp. v. United States of America: successfully represented the United States in an UNCITRAL arbitration under the NAFTA concerning a dispute challenging California's regulations banning the use of a gasoline additive, obtaining dismissal of all claims and an award of costs.

Hanocal Holding B.V. and IPIC International B.V. v. Republic of Korea: represented the claimants in an ICSID arbitration under the Netherlands-Korea BIT.

X v. Y State: advised the investors on the feasibility of bringing annulment proceedings after an adverse award in an ICSID arbitration involving a Central European State.

Roz Trading Ltd. v. Coca-Cola Export Corp., Republic of Uzbekistan and OziqOvqatSanoat: represented the Republic of Uzbekistan and OziqOvqatSanoat in a Vienna Centre arbitration in a dispute arising out of a joint venture agreement to bottle and distribute Coca-Cola products.

In re Consolidated Softwood Lumber Proceedings: successfully represented the United States in a consolidated UNCITRAL arbitration under the NAFTA brought by three Canadian softwood lumber companies in a dispute involving challenges to US antidumping and countervailing duties imposed on Canadian softwood lumber and the Byrd Amendment, obtaining dismissal or withdrawal of all claims and an award of costs against one of the claimants, and successfully represented the US in related set-aside proceedings.

In re NAFTA Chapter Eleven/UNCITRAL Cattle Cases: successfully represented the United States in an UNCITRAL consolidated arbitration under the NAFTA involving more than 100 claimants in a dispute challenging the United States' closure of the border to imports of Canadian cattle, obtaining dismissal of all claims.

Grand River Enterprises Six Nations, Ltd. and others v. United States of America: successfully represented the United States in the jurisdictional phase of this UNCITRAL dispute under the NAFTA concerning action taken in connection with the 1998 Master Settlement Agreement between various state attorneys general and the major tobacco companies, obtaining dismissal of significant portions of the claim.

ADF Group, Inc. v. United States of America: successfully represented the United States in an ICSID Additional Facility arbitration under the NAFTA in a dispute concerning federally funded state highway procurement practices, obtaining dismissal of all claims.

The Loewen Group, Inc. and others v. United States of America: successfully represented the United States in an ICSID Additional Facility arbitration under the NAFTA in a dispute concerning litigation in Mississippi state courts and subsequent actions in federal court seeking to set aside the award.

Mondev Int'l Ltd. v. United States of America: successfully represented the United States in an ICSID Additional Facility arbitration under the NAFTA in a dispute concerning litigation in Massachusetts state courts, obtaining dismissal of all claims.

United States of America v. India: represented the United States in an arbitration arising under the Investment Incentive Agreement for losses sustained by US investors and lenders to an energy project, obtaining a favourable settlement.

Represented the United States in several arbitrations under NAFTA Chapter Eleven to which the Governments of Canada and Mexico were parties, such as S.D. Myers Inc. v. Canada, Pope & Talbot v. Canada, UPS, Inc. v. Canada, Fireman's Fund Ins. Co. v. United Mexican States, GAMI Investments, Inc. v. United Mexican States, Marvin Roy Feldman Karpa v. United Mexican States, International Thunderbird Gaming Corp. v. United Mexican States, and Bayview Irrigation District, et al. v. United Mexican States, where the United States invoked its right to make submissions on issues of treaty interpretation.

Speaking Engagements

Panelist, "McNair Annual Legal Review", Ashworth Centre, London, January 2024

13th Investment Treaty Arbitration Conference, "Judicial Expropriation", Prague, October 2023

London Int'l Disputes Week, "Disputes Involving States Arising out of War", London, May 2023 

GAR Live: BITs 2023, "What Would You Do?", London, May 2023

Paris Arbitration Week, Swedish Arbitration Association, "Highlights of the Past Year in Int'l Arb", Paris, March 2023

Panelist, "Commercial Arbitration Developments in the United States", UNCITRAL - MEA South Asia Conference, September 2023, New Delhi

ICSID & ADGM: Investment Treaty Arbitration in the Middle East, State-Owned Enterprises in Investment Arbitration, Abu Dhabi, March 2022

Workshop on Investment Treaty Arbitration for Polish Government Officials, April 2021

Workshop on Investment Treaty Arbitration for Japanese Government Officials, March 2021

Mumbai Center for International Arbitration & FTI webinar: "The FET & Expropriation Protections in Investment Treaties," October 2020

ADR in Asia Conference: Debate on Arbitrators as Settlement Facilitators, Hong Kong, October 2020

Workshop on Investment Treaty and Commercial Arbitration for Egyptian Government Officials, November 2019

"ITF Debate on Regulatory Freedom and Indirect Expropriation in Investment Arbitration", June 2019: BIICL, London

"A Roundtable on Iberian and Latin American Arbitration", March 2019: White & Case LLP, Washington, DC

"Differences Between Commercial And Investment Arbitration In the Context of Corruption Defenses", February 2019: ASA Annual Meeting, Geneva

"Recent Developments in Transparency in Investment Arbitration," December 2018: Book Launch for Second Edition of Arbitration Under International Investment Agreements, London

"Women in International Arbitration," November 2018: Freshfields Breakfast Seminar, Vienna

"Comments on Queen Mary Survey for International Arbitration," November 2018, Cairo

"The Concept and Defense of Abuse of Right In Investment Treaty Arbitration," October 2018: Capacity Building Workshop, New Delhi

"Expedited Dismissal of Claims," October 2018: PCA-India Conference, New Delhi

"ICSID Annulment Review and Trends," October 2018: Eighth Annual Investment Treaty Conference, Prague

"How Best to Use Witness Testimony in International Arbitration," September 2018: Swedish Arbitration Days, Stockholm

"ISDS at a Crossroads: How the settlement of investor-state disputes is being transformed", April 2018: ASIL Annual Meeting, Washington, DC., Moderator

"Effect of State Prosecution on a Finding of Bribery in International Arbitration" , November 2017: ICC Annual Conference: Russia as a Place of Dispute Resolution, Moscow

"Contracts v. Treaties: What are the Risks of Umbrella Clauses", October 2017: Seventh Annual Investment Treaty Conference, Prague

"The Arbitral Process and Arbitral Institutions", October 2017: Workshop on Capacity Building, New Delhi

"Stabilization Clauses in Contracts: The Current State of Play", October 2017: PCA India Conference, New Delhi

"The Treatment of Corruption in Investment Treaty Arbitration", August 2017: Colombia Arbitration Committee Annual Conference, Bogota

"How Political Tensions are Shaping Energy Disputes", April 2017: ICDR Oil & Gas Arbitration Conference, Houston, Moderator

"Making Good What Should Have Happened: 'But-For' Claims", February 2017: Swiss Arbitration Association Conference, Geneva

"Use of Expert Evidence", January 2017: FIAA-MIDS Tenth Anniversary Conference, Geneva

"P.R.I.M.E. Finance Annual Conference on the role of international arbitration in sovereign finance disputes", January 2017: The Hague

"SCC/SWAN/ArbitralWomen/Roschier panel on Unconscious Bias", January 2017: Stockholm

"Has International Investor Arbitration Become Another Forum For Review Of Administrative Agency Action?", December 2016: ABA-Administrative Law Conference, Washington, DC

Lecture "Scope & Coverage of Investment Treaties", December 2016: Tashkent State University of Law, Uzbekistan

"Debate: Contrasting Perspectives between External and In-house Counsel on the Practice of International Arbitration", November 2016: 14th ICC Miami Conference on International Arbitration in Latin America, Miami

"Solutions to Closing the Gender Gap in Law Firms", October 2016: DC Women in Int'l Arbitration, Washington, DC

"BCDR-AAA and its New Draft Arbitration Rules", September 2016: Washington, DC

Debate on the European Commission's Proposal for an Investment Court, June 2016: ABA-ASIL-Sidley Austin, Washington, DC

Lecture on Investor-State Arbitration, June 2016: Columbia Law School/Chartered Institute of Arbitrators Course on International Arbitration, New York

"Year in Review: ICSID Annulments", April 2016: GAR LIVE, Washington, DC

"The Politics of Investment Treaties in Developing Countries", April 2016: The CATO Institute, Washington, DC

"Is it Déjà vu or Something New? Will the EU’s Proposal for an International Investment Court Fare Better Than the United States' Pursuit of an Appellate Mechanism?", March 2016: Harvard Law School International Arbitration Conference, Keynote Speech, Cambridge 

"Towards Institutionalisation and Judicialisation: The Proposal for a Permanent Court", February 2016: Second Annual European Federation for Investment Law & Arbitration Conference, Paris

"Tax Disputes in Investment Treaty Arbitration", December 2015: Bilateral Investment Treaty Awards: The Indian Context, Indian Council of Arbitration, New Delhi

"Lectures on cost awards in investment arbitrations, outcomes in investment arbitrations, and challenges to ICSID awards in U.S. courts", December 2015: Intensive Course of International Investment Arbitration in the MENA Region, Bahrain

"Doing the Math: Understanding How to Calculate Damages in International Investment Treaty Disputes", October 2015: ABA Section on International Law, Fall Meeting, New York

"Burden & Standard of Proof in Corruption Cases", April 2015: ITA-ASIL 12th Annual Conference, Corruption in International Arbitration: Evidence & Remedies, Washington, DC 

"Conflicts & Challenges in Investor-State Arbitration: What the Future Holds", March 2015: 18th Annual IBA International Arbitration Day, ICSID's 50th Anniversary, Washington, DC

"The Burden and Standard of Proof for Corruption in International Arbitration", November 2014: ICC Institute Annual Meeting, Paris

"International Arbitration and the Rule of Law", October 2014: International Law Weekend, New York

"Investment Arbitration of Natural Resource Disputes in Africa" , April 2014: ABA Int’l Section Spring Meeting, New York

"The Objective Nature of Legitimate Expectations", March 2014: BIICL Investment Treaty Forum, Paris

"Sovereign Crises: The Relevance of P.R.I.M.E. Finance in Financial Services Disputes Under FTAs and BITs", January 2014: P.R.I.M.E. Finance Annual Conference, The Hague

Lectures and workshops on investor-State arbitration, November 2013: Singapore International Arbitration Academy, Singapore

"The Current State of Transparency in Investment Arbitration", October 2013: IBA Annual Conference, Boston

"Confidential and Restricted Information in International Arbitration in the investor-State context", October 2013: ASA (Association Suisse de l'Arbitrage) Conference, Bern, Switzerland

"Dispute Resolution", June 2013: Inter-American Development Bank Ministerial Meeting on Electricity Integration in MesoAmerica, Washington, DC

"The Fair and Equitable Treatment Debate: More Theoretical Than Practical?", February 2013: Vale Columbia Center on Sustainable Int’l Investment, New York

"Discovery & Privilege in Global Disputes: Navigating Issues of Jurisdiction, Ethics, and Choice of Law", October 2012: ABA Section of International Law, Fall Meeting, Miami

"The Future of ICSID, Ad Hoc Committees, Appellate Tribunals, and Investment Arbitration", June 2012: 21st ICCA Conference, Singapore

"Investment, Trade, Health & Environment: Is NAFTA/CAFTA More Than A Trade Agreement?", March 2012: Juris Conferences, Washington, DC

"State Succession and Regime Change and Their Effects on Contractual and International Legal Obligations", February 2012: Institute for Energy Law, 63rd Annual Oil & Gas Law Conference, Houston

Publications

Article 52(1)(C): Corruption on the part of a Member of the Tribunal and Article 52(1)(D): Serious Departure from a Fundamental Rule of Procedure and Article, ICSID Practical Commentary (2019) (with Harpreet Dhillon)

Piercing the Veil of Confidentiality: The Recent Trend Towards Greater Public Participation and Transparency in Investor-State Arbitration, Arbitration Under International Investment Agreements: A Guide to the Key Issues (Oxford Press, 2nd ed. 2018) (with Eckhard Hellbeck)

The Trail Smelter Dispute in Arbitrating For Peace: How Arbitration Made A Difference, Ulf Franke, Annette Magnusson, Joel Dahlquist eds., Kluwer, 2016 

The Consequences of Corruption in Investor-State Arbitration, Building International Investment Law: The First 50 Years of ICSID (eds. Meg Kinnear et al., Kluwer), 2015, (with Carolyn Lamm) 

Proving Corruption in International Arbitration: Who Has the Burden and How Can It Be Met, ICC Dossier XIII, Ch. 5, 2015, (with Brody Greenwald) 

The Direct Examination of Witnesses and Experts Not Called for Cross-Examination: Balancing Efficiency and Fairness, BCDR Int'l Arb. Rev., Vol. 2, No. 1, 2015, (with Noor Davies) 

Remedies – Damages: International Financial Disputes, Arbitration & Mediation (eds. J. Golden & C. Lamm, Oxford Press), 2015, (with Suyash Paliwal) 

The Effects of Regime Change and State Succession on Contractual and International Legal Obligations, Proceedings of the Sixty-third Annual Institute on Oil & Gas Law (IEL, CAIL), 2012 

Courts Of Other Economic Communities: NAFTA, The Rules, Practice, and Jurisprudence of International Courts and Tribunals (Martinus Nijhoff), 2012, (with Brody Greenwald) 

Rethinking the Negotiation of Investment Treaties, The Mauritius International Arbitration Conference 2010: Flaws and Presumptions: Rethinking Arbitration law and Practice in a new Arbitral Seat (Mauritius Gov’t printing, PCA, ed.), 2011 

The Determinative Impact of Fraud and Corruption on Investment Arbitrations, 25 ICSID For. Inv. L.J. 67, Spring 2010 

US Model Bilateral Investment Treaty (2004), World Arbitration Reporter (2nd ed.), 2010, (with Nicole Thornton) 

Piercing the Veil of Confidentiality: The Recent Trend Towards Greater Public Participation and Transparency in Investor-State Arbitration, Arbitration Under International Investment Agreements: A Guide to the Key Issues (Oxford Press), 2010 

What the Explosion of Investor-State Arbitrations May Portend for the Future of BITs, The Future of Investment Arbitration (ITA-ASIL, Oxford Press), 2009 

Treatment of Non-Disputing State Party Views in Investor-State Arbitrations, Contemporary Issues in International Arbitration and Mediation: The Fordham Papers, Vol. 2, 2008 

The Energy Charter Treaty and US Investment Treaties: An Overview of Key Contrasts, Investment Protection and the Energy Charter Treaty, 2008, (with Heather Walsh) 

The Enduring Relevance of Iran-US Claims Jurisprudence in Investor-State Arbitration, The Iran-US Claims Tribunal at 25: The Cases Everyone Needs To Know for Investor-State and International Arbitration, 2007 

Benefiting From Experience: Developments in the United States' Most Recent Investment Agreements, UC Davis Journal of Int'l Law & Policy, Vol. 21, No. 1,121, Fall 2005

Awards and Recognition

International Arbitration, Chambers UK, 2020-2024

Top 10 Most Influential Lawyers in Europe's International Arbitration Landscape, Business Today Lawyer Awards, 2023

"Thought Leader: Arbitration" Who's Who Legal, 2021

Public International Law, Chambers Global, 2012-present

45 Under 45, Global Arbitration Review, 2011
(list of the 45 leading global international arbitration practitioners under 45 years of age)

International Who's Who of Commercial Arbitration, 2009-present

The Best Lawyers in America, 2012-present

International Arbitration-Commercial & International Arbitration – Governmental

International Arbitration National Star and DC Local Star, Benchmark Litigation, 2009-present

Top 250 Women in Litigation, Benchmark Litigation, 2012-present

Commercial Arbitration, Expert Guides, 2009-present

Women in Business Law, Expert Guides, 2011-present

Latin Lawyer, 2014-present

Latin American Arbitration, The Legal 500, 2014-present

Pro Bono Award, White & Case, 2011