Volterra Fietta > London, England > Firm Profile
Volterra Fietta Offices
8 MORTIMER STREET, FITZROY PLACE
LONDON
W1T 3JJ
England
Volterra Fietta > The Legal 500 Rankings
Dispute resolution > Public international law Tier 1
'Able to draw on a range of backgrounds, language skills and cultures', Volterra Fietta is consistently mandated by states, international organisations and private parties across the gamut of PIL issues. The team's representative expertise covers including ICJ claims, maritime boundary disputes, investment treaty arbitration (including ICSID matters), and state immunity issues. The recent track record of Robert Volterra
includes high-profile PIL matters at global levels; Peter Flint represents both investors and states in disputes that arise under investment treaties and host state investment protection legislation. Also integral to the group, PIL and international dispute resolution specialist Gunjan Sharma is at partner level since May 2022; energy and natural resources disputes expert Ahmed Abdel Hakam is a March 2023 recruit from Eversheds Sutherland (International) LLP; and Angela Ha is a recently-elevated counsel. Jehad Mustafa and Magdalena Kowalczuk Asher are the associates to note. Former partner Graham Coop left for Pinsent Masons LLP in March 2023. Practice head(s):
Robert Volterra; Peter Flint; Gunjan Sharma; Ahmed Abdel Hakam
Other key lawyers:
Testimonials
‘Volterra Fietta is a market-leading arbitration boutique firm.’
‘Its reputation precedes it, and it regularly handles the most complex and high-value investor-state arbitrations.’
‘The team is particularly international, and able to draw on a range of backgrounds, language skills and cultures.’
‘Ahmed Abdel Hakam is an exciting new partner appointment at Volterra Fietta, and he has an excellent profile within public international law.’
‘Ahmed Abdel Hakam brings almost two decades of experience to the role, having previously worked in Geneva and Paris. He is also very personable and nice to work with.’
Key clients
Barbados, Ministry of Finance, Economic Affairs and Investment
Barbados, Office of Tourism and International Transport
Needham Point
United States of America
Republic of the Union of Myanmar (the democratically-elected Government)
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Ministry of Tourism
Kingdom of Bahrain
Republic of Kenya
KN-Holding
Severgroup
Grenada
Koch Industries
Koch Minerals
Koch Nitrogen International
Barbados, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade
Barbados, Prime Minister’s Office
Barbados, Ministry of Energy and Business Development
Barbados, Office of the Attorney General
Owens – Illinois Inc
Arab Republic of Egypt
Republic of Croatia
Work highlights
- Representing the Kingdom of Bahrain against Saeed Shehabi and Moosa Mohammed, in relation to state immunity issues before the English courts.
- Acting for the Republic of the Union of Myanmar (the democratically-elected Government) in international legal proceedings against the military leaders responsible for violent armed aggression against the people of Myanmar and its legitimate democratic representatives.
- Representing the Republic of Croatia against Société Générale in a high-profile investment treaty arbitration, which concerns the intersection between the Fair and Equitable Treatment standard and the imperatives of consumer protection and financial regulation during times of economic turmoil.
Dispute resolution > International arbitration Tier 4
Volterra Fietta represents states and foreign investors in arbitrations before ad hoc tribunals, the PCA, ICSID, and the SCC. The practice is also constantly involved in commercial arbitrations. Robert Volterra ‘has excellent judgement‘, and Peter Flint focuses on international arbitration, cross-border litigation and ADR. Gunjan Sharma and Angela Ha were recently raised to partner and counsel, respectively; and in March 2023, Ahmed Abdel Hakam arrived as partner from Eversheds Sutherland (International) LLP, while former partner Graham Coop joined Pinsent Masons LLP.
Practice head(s):
Robert Volterra; Peter Flint; Gunjan Sharma; Ahmed Abdel Hakam
Other key lawyers:
Angela Ha; Jehad Mustafa; Florentine Vos; Magdalena Kowalczuk Asher
Testimonials
‘A great team staffed by dedicated public international lawyers.’
‘Robert Volterra, the founding partner, is very experienced and knowledgeable, and has excellent judgement.
‘Ahmed Abdel Hakam is a fantastic lawyer – a real brain when it comes to public international law. He has a lot of experience as counsel in large arbitrations, and his ability is second to none.’
‘Ahmed Abdel-Hakam is an exciting new partner appointment at Volterra Fietta.’
‘Volterra Fietta is a market-leading arbitration boutique firm.’
‘Its reputation precedes it, and it regularly handles the most complex and high-value investor-state and commercial arbitrations.’
‘The team is particularly international, and able to draw on a range of backgrounds, language skills and cultures.’
‘Gunjan Sharma is very able.‘
Key clients
Barbados, Ministry of Finance, Economic Affairs and Investment
Barbados, Office of Tourism and International Transport
Needham Point
KN-Holding
Severgroup
Grenada
Koch Industries Inc.
Koch Minerals
Koch Nitrogen International
Barbados , Prime Minister’s Office
Barbados, Ministry of Energy and Business Development
Barbados, Office of the Attorney General
Owens-Illinois
Arab Republic of Egypt
Republic of Croatia
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Ministry of Tourism
Republic of Kenya
Work highlights
- Representing KN-Holding and Severgroup in an ad hoc arbitration against the French Republic, under the France-Russia bilateral investment treaty.
- Successfully represented Koch Minerals and Koch Nitrogen International in proceedings brought by the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela to annul an award of approximately $400m.
- Representing Grenada in a case that raises novel issues of jurisdiction, treaty interpretation and substantive investment protection standards, in the context of a major hospitality sector development and Grenada’s Citizenship by Investment Scheme.
Latin America: International firms > International arbitration Tier 5
Volterra Fietta is at the forefront of public international law and investment treaty arbitration cases. It is also recognised for its expertise in the broader international arbitration sphere, where it represents a balanced mix of sovereign states and foreign investors. The firm has helped a number of foreign investors to land significant ICSID awards over recent years. In public international law, it has also represented Latin American states in International Court of Justice cases against other Latin American nations. ‘Outstanding’ founding partner Robert Volterra has true stature in the public international law and investment treaty arbitration spheres. Peter Flint and Gunjan Sharma provide additional senior-level expertise. However, Graham Coop joined Pinsent Masons LLP as co-head of investor-state arbitration in March 2023. Practice head(s):
Robert Volterra; Gunjan Sharma; Peter Flint
Testimonials
‘This is the leading boutique law firm specialising in public international law. It competes very well with larger law firms which do international law as well as other subjects. The partners, especially the founding partner Robert Volterra, made considerable and successful efforts to attract high-flying talent from around the world.’
‘Robert Volterra, the founding partner, is really top-class. He is extremely well informed, intelligent, practical. I have worked with him in the past cases, would be happy to do so again.’
‘Excellent team, led by Robert Volterra.’
‘Robert Volterra is outstanding.’
Key clients
KN-Holding
Severgroup
Grenada
Koch Industries
Koch Minerals
Koch Nitrogen International
Barbados
Owens-Illinois
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Republic of Kenya
Work highlights
- Represented Grenada in the ICSID case: True Blue Development and others v Grenada.
- Represented KN-Holding and Severgroup in an investment treaty arbitration against the French Republic in relation to a gold mine in French Guiana.
- Represented Koch Minerals and Koch Nitrogen International in an ICSID annulment proceeding initiated by Venezuela to annul an ICSID award worth approximately $400m.
Volterra Fietta > Firm Profile
Volterra Fietta is an elite global law firm. The firm is the only law firm in the world that is specialised solely in public international law.
The firm is routinely hired by the world’s States, largest multinational companies and international organisations to advise them on their most important legal matters.
Volterra Fietta has the largest team of dedicated public international law lawyers in the world. The firm’s lawyers are world leaders in their field. Each Volterra Fietta lawyer has at least one degree in public international law. They all have significant practical experience that clients find invaluable. The firm’s senior lawyers are globally recognised as thought-leaders and the firm practices, teaches and writes at the highest level.
Based on its unequalled track record of success, leading global legal directories routinely rank Volterra Fietta in the top tier of this legal field.
The firm has one of the world’s largest and most active investor-State arbitration practices. The firm’s lawyers have successfully brought cases for investors for tens of billions of dollars – and in equal measure have successfully defended States from claims for billions of dollars as well. The firm has defended its State clients from over US$11 billion in claims. The firm’s track record obtaining of billions of dollars in compensation for investors is similarly impressive.
The firm also has one of the world’s most active practices in State-to-State disputes. It is regularly counsel to States before the International Court of Justice. It also serves as counsel in cases before other international courts and tribunals, such as those constituted under the aegis of the PCA and the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
The firm also represents States and private entities on the application of public international law by the domestic courts of the United Kingdom and other jurisdictions. This includes cases involving the law of sovereign or State immunity.
Other prominent areas of the firm’s practice include: bilateral and multilateral investment treaties; land and maritime territorial and boundary disputes; the law of treaties and treaty interpretation; property rights and expropriation; the Energy Charter Treaty; oil concessions; air and water rights; treaty negotiations and accession; State responsibility; choice of law, jurisdiction and enforcement proceedings; international maritime law; sovereign and diplomatic privilege and immunity; project-specific international agreements between host States; offshore oil and gas (and other resources); straddling resources; trans-boundary pipelines; international human rights law (including its relevance to transnational business enterprises and transnational litigation); State succession issues; international environmental law; sovereign debt; energy, mining and infrastructure projects; international trade law; foreign corrupt practices; the laws of war and economic sanctions.
Much of the firm’s work remains highly confidential. However, recent engagements include:
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- Serving as global legal counsel and legal spokesperson to Malaysia in its defence against a fraudulently obtained US$15bn arbitration award (the so-called Sulu arbitration fraud);
- Filing a multibillion-dollar investor-State arbitration in a dispute involving a nuclear energy company;
- Representing Barbados as paid counsel in the climate change advisory proceedings before the International Court of Justice;
- Successfully presenting the winning arguments to the International Court of Justice in a maritime delimitation dispute on behalf of the Republic of Kenya;
- Representing the United Arab Emirates and the Democratic Republic of Congo in two other proceedings before the International Court of Justice;
- Representing mining investors in an expropriation claim against the French Republic, which has been publicly reported to include claims of over EUR9bn;
- Acting as counsel to the Kingdom of Bahrain in a sovereign immunities claim in the English High Court; and
- Defending the Arab Republic of Egypt in a politically sensitive claim for US$150m brought by Al Jazeera Media Network.
Main Contacts
| Department | Name | Telephone | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Managing Partner | Robert Volterra | Robert.Volterra@volterrafietta.com | +44 207 380 3898 |
Lawyer Profiles
| Photo | Name | Position | Profile |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Mr Ahmed Abdel Hakam | Partner at Volterra Fietta | View Profile |
|
Mr Ben Burnham | Associate at Volterra Fietta | View Profile |
|
Mr Peter Flint | Partner at Volterra Fietta | View Profile |
|
Ms Angela Ha | Counsel at Volterra Fietta | View Profile |
|
Mrs Magdalena Kowalczuk Asher | Associate at Volterra Fietta | View Profile |
|
Mr Jehad Mustafa | Associate at Volterra Fietta | View Profile |
|
Mr Gunjan Sharma | Partner at Volterra Fietta | View Profile |
|
Mr Robert Volterra | Partner at Volterra Fietta | View Profile |
Staff Figures
Number of UK partners : 4 Number of other UK fee-earners : 20Languages
English Spanish French German Russian Dutch Cantonese Chinese ArabicClient Testimonials
CLIENT: David J. Bertoch
COMPANY/FIRM: Executive Counsel (retired), ExxonMobil
TESTIMONIAL: Gunjan Sharma excels in the depth of his knowledge and ability to provide superior legal advice fit for the specific business context. I have found no one better to advise on investment protection for complex international business transactions with an eye for achieving the paramount business objectives in the transactions. Highly recommend his services.
CLIENT: Muin Malik
COMPANY/FIRM: External Advisor, Cabinet of the President of Kenya
TESTIMONIAL: The VF team was brought in to replace our prior team of law professors in the Somalia v Kenya case at the ICJ. Their approach was impressive, to say the least. Within days, VF’s experience as professional international law litigators had enabled them to identify facts and legal arguments that our previous team had entirely missed. Robert Volterra explained this to us, including a number of relevant ministers, in clear and succinct ways and we rapidly agreed to the proposed comprehensive course of action.
CLIENT: Chambers of the Attorney General of the Republic of Kenya
COMPANY/FIRM: Republic of Kenya
TESTIMONIAL: After Volterra Fietta replaced our prior legal team, they completely changed our case theory and used unprecedented procedural tactics to enable Kenya to resubmit a revised set of pleadings and evidence, on which the ICJ ultimately based its judgment. At all times, the VF team kept us informed and responded to queries in a timely manner. The VF team are in a league of their own in the area of public international law.
CLIENT: Office of the Solicitor General of the Republic of Kenya
COMPANY/FIRM: Republic of Kenya
TESTIMONIAL: Robert Volterra is the most comprehensive and versatile lawyer I have had the pleasure to work with. His knowledge of Public International Law is second to no one. He also has the rare ability to comprehend the wider geopolitical and diplomatic issues in disputes involving sovereign states. This understanding led to us being advised on different aspects, both legal and diplomatic, which was highly appreciated. Without doubt, Mr. Volterra is an exceptional lawyer who is at the top of his profession.
CLIENT: André Kalenga-ka-Ngoyi
COMPANY/FIRM: Deputy Director of the Cabinet of the Ministry of Justice of the Democratic Republic of the Congo
TESTIMONIAL: Luckily, we realised before it was too late that our legal team required highly experienced professional international law litigators. We replaced our previous legal team with Volterra Fietta and others. Finally, using the Volterra Fietta team, we analysed forensically the hundreds of thousands of pieces of evidence and prepared practical arguments that effectively refuted our adversary’s attempts to confuse the International Court of Justice. We won an unprecedented compensation from the International Court of Justice – almost half a billion dollars – due to the professional case-management skills of Robert Volterra and his team.
CLIENT: Federico Alberto Cuello Camilo
COMPANY/FIRM: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Dominican Republic, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Dominican Republic
TESTIMONIAL: We repeatedly turn to Volterra Fietta for SWAT-team support on urgent inter-State issues. They have a deep bench that lets them respond immediately when new matters arise. Partners respond personally to our messages without delay and we receive fast, effective and reliable support in emergency situations without sacrificing quality.
CLIENT: Pierre Ebbe
COMPANY/FIRM: Head of Human Rights and International Law Department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Democratic Republic of Congo
TESTIMONIAL: Volterra Fietta: when you cannot afford to lose.
CLIENT: Anonymous
COMPANY/FIRM: General Counsel, A Major Global Mining Company
TESTIMONIAL: I would like to express my personal appreciation for the support and assistance of, and professionalism displayed at all times by, [Robert Volterra], Peter [Flint] and the Volterra Fietta team.
CLIENT: Godfred Yeboah Dame
COMPANY/FIRM: Attorney-General and Minister for Justice, Republic of Ghana
TESTIMONIAL: I am impressed by the VF team’s industry and adroit reasoning. Ghana appreciates your services.
CLIENT: Dr Sasa
COMPANY/FIRM: Minister of the National Unity Government (democratically-elected civilian government) of Myanmar
TESTIMONIAL: Robert Volterra is one of the world’s most respected public international law specialists. Volterra Fietta supports Myanmar’s efforts using the largest team of public international law experts in any firm in the world.
CLIENT: Kristina Hartman
COMPANY/FIRM: Head of the Legal Division, INA Industrija Nafte
TESTIMONIAL: Robert Volterra is the most devastating cross-examiner and effective advocate that we have ever worked with or against. We are repeat users of Volterra Fietta. Robert, Graham and the VF team know the oil business inside and out. They provide strategic advice that takes holistic account of our wider business interests.
CLIENT: Polina Galperina
COMPANY/FIRM: Head of International Projects Department, Nord Gold
TESTIMONIAL: Robert Volterra and Gunjan Sharma are consummate professionals. They uphold the strongest ethical values. They are also highly experienced arbitration lawyers, whose knowledge of the field and relationships provide invaluable value to clients.
CLIENT: Chris Bogart
COMPANY/FIRM: Chief Executive Officer, Burford Capital
TESTIMONIAL: The Volterra Fietta team has the best combination of public international law expertise and international litigation skills in the world. They are the top in their field globally.
CLIENT: His Excellency Ambassador Maan al Hafez
COMPANY/FIRM: Legal Adviser, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
TESTIMONIAL: No other public international law practice in the world comes close to matching the depth and expertise of Volterra Fietta.
CLIENT: Tim Schwarz
COMPANY/FIRM: General Counsel, ZHRH Corporation
TESTIMONIAL: Having spent 22 years at two Magic Circle firms, I have a very high standard of performance from the law firms that I instruct. ZHRH Corporation required complex and mission-critical advice on Bilateral Investment Treaties. Robert Volterra and Volterra Fietta were nothing less than fantastic: we honestly do not believe that there is another public international law lawyer in the UK (and possibly the world) who can match Mr Volterra for intellectual brilliance, knowledge, creativity and responsiveness. Despite a heavy workload, Mr Volterra was also always prepared to go the extra mile. For example, by volunteering to assist us in explaining the complexities and importance of Bilateral Investment Treaties during presentations to potential investors and joint venture partners. We could not recommend him more highly.
CLIENT: Dr Saud al Ammari
COMPANY/FIRM: External Legal Counsel, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Bahrain
TESTIMONIAL: I have worked over the years with many law firms. Volterra Fietta is among the few top tier law firms anywhere. It consistently delivers cogent advice and robust and timely solutions. It is truly a unique public international law firm that handles the most complex legal challenges. VF is the go-to firm for litigation in the English courts involving States, without peer, and for other international litigations. The VF team are highly available, dedicated and passionate counsel. They make sure their clients get the best experience and insight, in an efficient and client-friendly manner. Robert Volterra is definitely among the best global public international law counsel in the world. He is a brilliant trusted adviser and also easy to work with.
CLIENT: Her Excellency Prime Minister Mia Mottley of Barbados
COMPANY/FIRM:
TESTIMONIAL: We have worked with Volterra Fietta, and in particular Robert Volterra, for over 20 years. His advice, his availability and the strategic and ethical manner in which he acts has always inured to our benefit. Barbados considers Volterra Fietta a critical part of our team in all initiatives it undertakes internationally – before we act and not just for litigation.
Diversity
Volterra Fietta is a global firm, with staff and clients from around the world. Diversity has thus always been a core value at the firm. It is a source of strength for the firm and its clients.
Our lawyers come from every inhabited continent and bring a significant understanding of virtually every legal, business and socio-cultural background.
The firm has a mandatory diversity policy and requires regular diversity training for all of its staff and partners. The firm is committed to ensuring that everyone at the firm is treated fairly and with dignity and respect, in accordance with the principles of equality and diversity. The firm observes all legal requirements relating to unlawful discrimination, victimisation and harassment, including non-discrimination on the basis of actual or perceived sex, marriage and civil partnership, gender reassignment, pregnancy and maternity, race (including colour, nationality and ethnic or national origins), religion or belief, sexual orientation, age or disability.
The firm’s senior lawyers, and its recruitment and human resources committees, are fully committed to diversity as part its recruitment, retention and promotion of staff. Volterra Fietta’s commitment to diversity led the firm to receive Gamechangers Progress Champions Awards in 2023.
- Dispute resolution > Public international law
Top Tier Firm Rankings
- Dispute resolution > International arbitration