Abby Cohen Smutny is Global Head of White & Case's International Arbitration Practice. She handles matters in a wide range of industries including banking & financial services, oil & gas, mining & metals, power, real estate development, water supply, retail, pharmaceuticals, construction, tobacco, railroads, telecommunications and manufacturing.
Abby's experience includes managing claims arising out of project financing, privatizations, natural resource concessions, contracts with States and State-entities and political risk insurance.
Abby serves as counsel in arbitrations before all major arbitral fora including ICSID, ICC, VIAC, LCIA, ICDR, SIAC, PCA, and SCC, as well as in UNCITRAL ad hoc arbitrations. She handles both commercial and in investment treaty cases, including those arising under bilateral investment treaties (BITs), the Energy Charter Treaty, NAFTA, DR-CAFTA and the ASEAN treaty.
Abby's leadership positions have included: Chair of the Institute of Transnational Arbitration (ITA); Vice President of the American Society of International Law; President of LCIA North American Users Council; AAA Advisory Board Member; IBA Arbitration Committee Vice Chair and Chair of IBA Investment Treaty Sub Committee; ALI Adviser on US Restatement on International Arbitration; Chair International Law Section of Washington DC Bar. Abby is currently a member of the Singapore International Arbitration Centre Court and co-Chair of the ICCA Task Force on Standards of Practice in International Arbitration.
Abby is an alumna of the University of Chicago Law School, Vassar College, the London School of Economic, and the University of Grenoble.
Recent representations include:
- Gabriel Resources Ltd. in an ICSID arbitration of investment treaty claims against Romania relating to one of the largest undeveloped gold mine projects in the world.
- ICL Europe in an UNCITRAL rules arbitration of investment treaty claims against Ethiopia relating to investment in a potash mine project.
- The Republic of Bulgaria in numerous arbitrations over a range of industries including power (electricity and renewables) and real estate (commercial and residential).
- The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in two ICSID arbitrations, one arising out of a construction project and the other arising out of a dispute involving luxury retail stores.
- Gold Reserve Inc. in an ICSID arbitration relating to one of the largest undeveloped gold/copper deposits in the world, in which Gold Reserve was awarded US$740 million.
- Leading Czech bank Ceskoslovenská obchodní banka, a. s. in an ICSID arbitration with the Slovak Republic, in which the bank was awarded US$877 million.
