Three Crowns LLP > Washington, United States > Firm Profile
Three Crowns LLP Offices
Washington Harbour
3000 K Street NW Suite 101
Washington, DC 20007-5109
United States
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Dispute resolution > International arbitration Tier 2
Three Crowns LLP focuses exclusively on international arbitration and international law, where it represents multinational corporates and sovereign states in high-stakes disputes. The team’s US offering, which in centered in Washington DC, has extensive expertise across a mix of commercial, investor-state and state-to-state cases and it further benefits from its ability to draw on its international lawyers for additional cross-border firepower. A co-founding partner of the firm, Luke Sobota enjoys a prominent reputation globally for his activity in headline-grabbing cases, with a focus on the energy, financial and technology spheres. Another seasoned specialist, Liz Snodgrass contributes deep experience in acting on commercial and investor-state cases and recently represented Burford Capital in a $140m arbitration brought against Sysco Corporation. Rounding out the partners is Scott Vesel, who brings to bear significant international prowess following stints in London and Bahrain. Vesel acted alongside the London office to represent the Sultanate of Oman in ICSID arbitration and annulment proceedings concerning a $180m claim brought by Turkish construction company, Atilla Dogan. The group also leans on a strong second line of non-partners, including Buenos Aires-qualified special legal consultant, Agustin Sanz; associate Simon Consedine; and English-qualified special legal consultant, Nicola Peart.Practice head(s):
Luke Sobota; Liz Snodgrass; Scott Vesel
Other key lawyers:
Testimonials
‘A strong international arbitration practice providing robust strategic and detailed advice.’
‘Liz Snodgrass provides excellent strategic legal advice and is very responsive.’
‘Three Crowns is active in some of the largest cases globally, few firms would have the critical mass to handle those cases—this team certainly has the capacity.’
Key clients
ExxonMobil
ConocoPhillips
Sultanate of Oman
Chevron Corporation
Elliott Associates
Boeing
Rio Tinto
Burford Capital
Viorel Micula
Eni
Vitol
Work highlights
- Represented Elliott Associates in bringing an investment-treaty claim against the Republic of Korea, securing a more-than-$100m award.
- Represented the Sultanate of Oman in defending a $180m award following a BIT arbitration against Turkish construction company, Atilla Dogan, concerning a contract for the construction of an oil and gas pipeline.
- Successfully acted for ContourGlobal Kosovo against the Government of the Republic of Kosovo, and various publicly owned enterprises of Kosovo, in an ICC arbitration seated in London.
Latin America: International firms > International arbitration
Three Crowns LLP is the largest specialist international arbitration firm in the world and has an outstanding record in Latin America. In April it announced the launch of a Madrid office (in autumn 2023) to further expand its handling of Spanish (and more generally European) clients. Leading Latin America international arbitration expert, the tri-qualified (England & Wales; New York and Spain) Carmen Martinez Lopez, is relocating from London, as is prominent Argentine-qualified special legal consultant, Agustin Sanz, from Washington DC. The firm has deep civil law credentials, language capabilities and cultural links to the region, which provide the basis for a thriving practice in both investor-state and commercial cases. Clients note that the team ‘understands the reality of the market’ and has a ‘pedigree that is second to none’. Indeed, Martínez is currently representing Chile in a $200m+ ICSID case filed by ISA under the Chile-Colombia FTA (related to the construction of the Cardones-Polpaico electricity transmission line in Chile); and co-leading advice to Sacyr on its $1bn+ investment treaty claim against Panama relating to the expansion of the Panama Canal, alongside the London-based Gaëtan Verhoosel KC (and Singapore's Simon Elliot). Verhoosel is a leading arbitral practitioner with a first class track record in the region, a standing reflected by his selection as chair in a $500m ICSID case brought by B-Mex (and others) against the United Mexican States. Tri-qualified (California, New York & Washington DC) Luke Sobota, a founding partner of the firm, is currently handling Chevron's long-running $9.5bn Permanent Court of Arbitration case against Ecuador, which as of late 2022 had reached the quantification of damages stage; and is also co-lead on the defence of ConocoPhillips' $8bn ICSID award against Venezuela in the face of the latter's attempts to annul or otherwise stay the decision. As the foregoing suggests, the firm has represented various oil and gas majors in headline cases against Latin American states, and has also been engaged by sovereign entities themselves. It is now experiencing further growth in intra-regional cases and disputes conducted solely in Spanish, and is also gaining prominence in environmental disputes and cases related to sovereign states’ efforts to capture windfall profits from the mining sector. Multilingual and dual-qualified (Brazil/New York) special legal consultant Laura França Pereira (Washington DC) is also noted.Practice head(s):
Gaëtan Verhoosel KC; Carmen Martinez Lopez
Testimonials
‘There is no better quality in the market. Three Crowns has a pedigree that is second to none.’
‘The team that covers the Latin American practice is diverse and understands the reality of the market. The origin of the people that make up the team allows them to perfectly combine the knowledge and practice of common law with the needs of civil law jurisdictions where investor-state disputes arise.’
‘It is a fantastic team with acute knowledge in LatAm; Gaetan Verhoosel, Luke Sobota, Carmen Martinez Lopez and Agustin Sanz All of them are great.’
‘This is probably the best international litigation firm, especially in the field of both commercial and investment arbitration. What characterizes their lawyers is their dedication to the case, their imagination and their good organisation. The memorials that they prepare in this firm are very thoughtful and timely. I have the best impression of the Three Crowns way of working.’
‘The lawyers are very understanding of the needs of the clients, they propose alternative solutions and, above all, they are very hard-working. I have observed that there is a good atmosphere of cordiality among the lawyers of this firm and good distribution of the workload.’
‘The firm is very proactive, it not only responds to the requests that are made to it, but also offers creative alternatives. The team has a great strength in international arbitration knowledge and their communication skills are excellent. In relation to other offices, it is undoubtedly very good, the response to concerns is fast and precise. A novelty that stands out is the diversity and collaboration of its members.’
‘In the personalised attention and adjusted to the needs of the client, this makes them stand out above other offices. We have received excellent advice from Agustín Sanz and the support given by Macarena Bahamonde is worth highlighting.’
Key clients
The Republic of Chile
ExxonMobil
ConocoPhillips
Boeing
TotalEnergies
Chevron
Sacyr
British Petroleum
Trafigura
Webuild
Jan de Nul
Petroquímica Comodoro Rivadavia
Work highlights
- Represented the Republic of Chile in a $200m+ ICSID claim filed under the Chile-Colombia FTA and concerning the largest electricity transmission project in Chile’s history.
- Represented Sacyr in a $1bn+ treaty claim against Panama under the Spain-Panama BIT in connection with the expansion of the Panama Canal.
- Acted for Chevron in its investment treaty arbitration against Ecuador before an arbitral tribunal under the auspices of the Permanent Court of Arbitration.
Lawyer Profiles
Photo | Name | Position | Profile |
---|---|---|---|
Donald (Trey) Childress III | Trey is Of Counsel based in the firm’s Washington, D.C. office. His… | View Profile | |
Simon Consedine | Simon is a partner in the Washington, DC office. He has significant… | View Profile | |
Liz Snodgrass | Liz, a partner in the Washington, DC office, has twenty-five years of… | View Profile | |
Luke Sobota | A founding partner of Three Crowns, Luke represents private and sovereign clients… | View Profile | |
Scott Vesel | Scott, a partner in the Washington, DC office, has a decade and… | View Profile |
- Dispute resolution > International arbitration