CEPANI ARBITRATION ACADEMY - ADVANCED LEVEL

The bigger picture

It is a well-known truism of arbitration that the quality of arbitration proceedings is only as good as the quality of the arbitrators conducting them. When it comes to our Arbitration Academy, we could flip the phrase to explain that CEPANI is its own first stakeholder: for the quality of an arbitration institution is only as good as the quality of the arbitrators it appoints.

The world of arbitration is fuelled not only by theoretical knowledge but by the ability to turn said knowledge into outstanding practice in the field. CEPANI wishes not only to enforce the skills and qualities of arbitrators and experts in general, but enforce the arbitration pool from which the centre could call upon in the future. As the main centre for arbitration in Belgium, CEPANI understands the need for a high standard training.

Through tailored courses enhanced by case studies and interactive discussions, the CEPANI Arbitration Academy offers you both the knowledge and the practical skills needed for a career in arbitration.

The curriculum of the CEPANI Arbitration Academy has been conceived by renowned arbitration practitioners and academics and aims to cover all aspects of national and international arbitration. The courses are taught by several of the most renowned belgian and international experts in the different fields of arbitration.

This Autumn

Just like the first edition, the second series of CEPANI Arbitration classes will be an excellent opportunity for both starting and experienced practitioners (counsels as well as arbitrators) to improve their knowledge and enhance their practical skills in national and international arbitration.

Reasons to join

•  Participants receive unique materials from real (fully anonymised) procedures, provided by several expert arbitrators

•  Thought-provoking testimonials from internationally renowned arbitration experts

• Learn from 6 different teachers in this edition alone, each and every one of them among the very best in belgian and international arbitration

•  Interactive classes based on an exchange of practical experiences and know-how

•  Challenging discussions with experts and co-participants alike

Speakers

Prof. Olivier Caprasse, Caprasse Arbitration. For over twenty years, Olivier Caprasse (born 1972, Belgium) has been actively involved in arbitration as arbitrator, counsel and academic. He has seated as party-appointed arbitrator, chairman or sole arbitrator, in various part of the world under various set of rules.

Olivier Caprasse has been a member of the ICC Court (2016-2024), and of the ICC Commission on Arbitration and ADR for numerous years. He has been one of the experts for Belgium in the UNCITRAL working group II on arbitration and conciliation. He served as expert to the Minister of Justice before the Belgian Parliament in the 2013 reform of Belgian arbitration law. He was also a member of the working group to establish the 2020 CEPANI arbitration rules.

A member of the Brussels bar, he is also Professor at the Universities of Liège (ULiege) and Brussels (ULB), where he teaches arbitration, ADR and corporate law.

Ms. Valentine Chessa is a founding Partner of Mourre Chessa Le Lay Arbitration.

She has extensive experience as counsel and arbitrator in international dispute resolution. Her expertise encompasses complex arbitration cases conducted in English, French and Italian across multiple jurisdictions as well as arbitration-related judicial proceedings before French courts.

Valentine’s career includes a significant tenure at the ICC International Court of Arbitration, where she supervised hundreds of arbitration proceedings with parties from all over the world in virtually all commercial sectors.

She is ranked by WWL as a Global Elite Thought Leader.

Ms. Vanessa Foncke is a partner in the Global Disputes practice of Jones Day.  She practices in all aspects of dispute resolution and contract negotiations and has extensive experience in domestic and international commercial arbitration both as counsel and arbitrator.  Vanessa’s experience spans a wide variety of disputes and industries, notably including construction, corporate (post M&A), complex contractual, regulatory, distribution, and telecommunications.  For the past years she has been consistently ranked by Chambers Global, Chambers Europe, Who’s Who Legal: Arbitration, and The Legal 500 EMEA.

Vanessa is a member of the board of administration of CEPANI and participates in that capacity to the bi-annual meetings of UNCITRAL Working Group II.  She is also a member of the ADR Committee at the Flemish Bars Association and is admitted to the list of third-party deciders of the Dutch-speaking Brussels Bar.

Mr. Giulio Palermo is an arbitration specialist qualified in Switzerland, Italy and Spain. Over the past 20 years, he has been involved in over 60 international arbitrations (out of which more than 25 as arbitrator and more than 35 as counsel) international arbitrations in English, Spanish, Italian and French administered by all major institutions.

In 2023, he has been ranked among the 40 best lawyers (worldwide) in the category Global Elite Thought Leader – Under 45 by Who’s Who Legal. In 2020, he was voted as the most highly regarded arbitration practitioner in Europe by Who’s Who Future Leaders. Clients and peers single him out as “an excellent lawyer with unquestionable advocacy skills” who “has a sharp intellect and is incredibly quick at resolving issues as they arise”.

He is also deeply involved in sports disputes. In particular, he is a CAS arbitrator and, in his role as UEFA Ethics and Disciplinary Inspector, he represents UEFA in proceedings before the latter’s internal disciplinary and appeal bodies.

Mr. Jean-François Tossens, Tossens Goldman Gonne, has a longstanding experience of national and international arbitration, as counsel and arbitrator, in various sectors such as post-acquisition disputes, commercial contracts, construction cases, distribution law or aeronautics. He has also been involved in numerous arbitration related court proceedings (enforcement and annulment proceedings).

A member of the Brussels bar, Jean-François Tossens teaches arbitration and ADR law at the University of Louvain. He is a member of the board of directors of ICC Belgium and has been a member of the board of CEPANI until this year. He was co-editor in chief of the Belgian Review for Arbitration b-Arbitra from 2013 to 2020 and he has been chairing the arbitration association Francarbi since 2022.

Ms. Coralie Darrigade is a founding partner of Gaillard Banifatemi Shelbaya Disputes and is recognized as “a great name in the market”. Prior to founding Gaillard Banifatemi Shelbaya Disputes she was a partner at Shearman & Sterling LLP where she practiced for more than twenty years.

She has represented companies, States and State-owned entities in numerous investor-State and commercial arbitrations, under the Rules of the ICC, SCC, ICSID, and UNCITRAL Rules, among others. Her commercial arbitration experience includes multiple arbitrations arising from construction projects, energy and oil and gas arbitrations, disputes arising from M&A transactions and joint ventures, as well as commercial disputes related to sales, supply and other agreements.

Coralie’s industry experience includes arbitrations in the oil and gas, energy (nuclear and renewable), chemicals, medias, retail and defense sectors.

She consistently features in Who’s Who Legal – Arbitration, where she is described as “a leading figure in the international arbitration market”, with ‘impeccable work ethic”, an “excellent strategic thinker”, and an “exceptionally talented lawyer”. Clients and peers have also described her as “a brilliant and hands-on lawyer”, who “provides great strategic inputs in complex procedural and substantive issues”, and “an outstanding lawyer whose knowledge spans commercial and investor-state arbitration”. Coralie is recognized as a “leading individual” in The Legal 500 EMEA (Algeria – Foreign Firms).