People

Ali Al-Khasawneh Of Counsel

Geneva; London

Ali has acted as counsel in arbitration proceedings under the ICC, UNCITRAL, LCIA, Swiss, ICSID and DIAC rules in arbitrations seated in London, Paris, The Hague, Dubai, Madrid, Geneva, Zurich and Muscat, and governed by English, UAE, German, New York, Omani, Swiss, Saudi and Libyan laws. 

Ali serves as a member of the ICC's Commission on Arbitration & ADR and acts as arbitrator. Ali has also acted as tribunal secretary in arbitral proceedings under the ICC rules and Permanent Court of Arbitration administered arbitrations under the UNCITRAL rules.

Prior to joining Orrick, Ali was previously legal counsel at the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague. Ali also worked at an investment treaty arbitration specialist law firm in Paris and at the Dubai office of a leading international law firm.

James Hargrove Partner

Geneva; London

James has a particular specialization in arbitrations relating to energy, commodities, trading, finance and technology (he is particularly active in thought leadership on tech and arbitration issues).

Prior to joining Orrick, James practiced international arbitration and litigation at several international law firms in Geneva and London. James was, among other things, head of the Russia and CIS dispute resolution practice and has deep proficiency in Russia related-disputes and investigations and associated offshore litigation, applications and asset identification, tracing and enforcement.

Vanessa Liborio Partner

Geneva

Vanessa is “a leading arbitration practitioner…well known for her consistently excellent dispute resolution work” (Who’s Who Legal: Arbitration), and acts as counsel in international arbitration proceedings before the ICC, LCIA, the Swiss Arbitration Centre and other international fora and subject to a variety of procedural and substantive laws (including English, French, Italian, Qatari, New York, Mexican, Swiss and Tunisian law). Vanessa's experience spans a variety of industries including construction, life sciences, food and beverages, financial services, insurance and aviation. Most recently, Vanessa has conducted an arbitration on behalf of a sub-contractor involved in the construction of part of an international airport and was successful in representing a Swiss not-for-profit foundation supporting advanced clinical research in rare pediatric diseases. 

Described by clients as an "excellent" lawyer who delivers "very high-quality legal services" (Legal 500), Vanessa has also represented parties in setting aside proceedings before the Swiss Supreme Court and regularly acts as party-appointed arbitrator, sole arbitrator of chair in arbitrations worldwide.

Vanessa serves as a member of the ICC's Commission on Arbitration & ADR and in addition to her activities in the field of arbitration, Vanessa advises on export control regulations and economic sanctions administered by the U.S., the European Union and Switzerland, including matters relating to customs regulations, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, anti-money laundering rules and anti-boycott requirements and regularly provides advice to clients on Swiss substantive law, particularly in contract law.

Prior to joining Orrick, Vanessa practiced for Swiss and international firms based in Geneva and Miami.

Hervé Touraine Partner

Geneva; Paris

Hervé represents French and international financial institutions, corporates, sponsors, investors, insurance companies, asset managers and alternative capital providers on French and cross border transactions. He advises on banking, structured finance, securitization, and capital markets transactions.

Hervé has worked on numerous complex, strategic and/or innovative transactions (including many firsts in France and Europe) such as international securitization transactions, covered bonds, corporate structured bonds, project bonds, debt funds and the establishment of dedicated origination and refinancing platforms. He also acted on transactions for financing or refinancing purposes (including liquidity), and for off-balance sheet or regulatory capital purposes. As such, he has developed particular skills in handling multi-jurisdictions and multi-practices transactions.

He has developed a substantial experience in the energy and infrastructure sector in the context of financing and refinancing transactions, using classical bank structures as well as Euro PP, bond and project bond structures, specialized credit institutions and dedicated debt funds.

Hervé is described by his clients as a “key person” for structured finance deals, noting: “when we've got a problem, he's there. We know we can count on him”. Clients further comment: “He is dedicated and innovative, and an expert in is field. We see him as a business partner of ours, rather than a lawyer”.

Hervé is an active participant in drafting securitization and structured finance legislation and regulations in France. Hervé regularly publishes and speaks in relation to structure finance markets and related points of interest and deals.

Before joining Orrick in 2016, Hervé was a partner at Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP where he worked for 20 years, including 18 years as a partner.