Mohamed S. Abdel Wahab

Mohamed S. Abdel Wahab

Founding Partner & Head of International Arbitration, Construction, and Energy Groups

Prof. Dr. Mohamed Abdel Wahab, C. Arb, FCIArb

Professor of International Arbitration, Private International Law and English Contract Law at Cairo University; Founding Partner and Head of International Arbitration, Construction and Energy Groups at Zulficar & Partners Law Firm (Egypt); ICCA Treasurer & Member of the Governing Board; Dean of the Africa Arbitration Academy; Vice-Chair of the ICC Governing Body for Dispute Resolution Services; Vice President Global of the CIArb; President Elect of the CIArb (2025); Chair of the International Expert Committee of the Permanent Forum for China Construction Law; Co- Chair, IBA Arab Regional Forum; Vice-Chair of the Advisory Committee of the CRCICA; Member of the  Advisory  Board  of  the  MIAC; Member of the LACIAC Court of Arbitration; Member of the ITA Academic Council; Member of the Advisory Board, Indonesian Arbitration Centre; Member of the Academic Council, Thailand Arbitration Centre’s Academy (THACA); Member of the Court, PCA, and Member of the Board of Trustees of the CIArb. He is a fellow of the National Centre for Technology and Dispute Resolution at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, USA; former Chair of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrator’s Technology Sub-Committee; and associate fellow of the Centre for Private International Law and Centre for Commercial Law at Aberdeen University (UK).

Prof. Dr. Mohamed S. Abdel Wahab is also Former Vice President of the ICC International Court of Arbitration (2015 – 2021); former Court Member of the LCIA (2014-2019); former Member of the CIMAC Court of Arbitration (2017 – 2022); former Member of the Governing Board of ICODR; former Vice Chair, Academic Forum for Investor-State Dispute Settlement (2018 -2020); former President of LCIA’s Arab Users’ Council (2016-2018); former Vice President of the IBA Arbitration Committee (2015-2018); former President of the Egypt Branch, Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (CIArb) (2018); former Member of the CIArb’s Board of Management (2018); former Chair of the CIArb’s Technology Sub- Committee (2012–2014); former Member of the CIArb’s Practice and Standards Committee (2012–2018); former Committee Member of the IBA Investment Arbitration Sub-Committee (2016–2017). He is Member of the Advisory Council of Africa Arbitration Blog and Accredited Mediator of the Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution (“CEDR”). He is a Fellow of the National Centre for Technology and Dispute Resolution at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, USA, and a former Chair of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrator’s Technology Sub-Committee.

He served as ‘Arbitrator’, ‘Legal Expert’ and ‘Counsel’ in more than 245 cases, involving parties from the Africa, Asia, Canada, Europe, the Middle East and the United States. He featured in cases under the auspices of the AAA, BCDR (Bahrain), ADCCAC (UAE), CRCICA (Egypt), DIAC (UAE), DIFC-LCIA (UAE), ICC (France), ICSID (USA), KIAC (Rwanda), LCIA (UK), LMAA (UK), QICCA (Qatar), RCICAL

(Nigeria), SCC (Sweden), SIAC (Singapore), TIAC (Uzbekistan), as well as ad hoc UNCITRAL proceedings, involving mega multi-hundred million dollars disputes involving private parties, investors, States and State-owned entities.

 As ‘Legal Expert’, he opined on Bahraini, Egyptian, Emirati, English, Jordanian, Kuwaiti, Libyan, Omani, Qatari, and Saudi laws in relation to issues of conflict of laws, contract law, international jurisdiction, construction law & practice, telecommunications law, hotel management agreements, Islamic Shari’a, project finance, administrative law, commercial and civil laws, and insurance law & practice).

Prof. Dr. Abdel Wahab’s expertise in cross border multi-jurisdictional and highly complex transactions and disputes is broad. He featured in proceedings governed by Afghani, Angolan, Bahraini, Californian, Egyptian, English, French, Ghanaian, Iraqi, Italian, Japanese, Jordanian, Kenyan, Kuwaiti, Libyan, Moroccan, New York, Nigerian, Omani, Pakistani, Qatari, Russian, Rwandan, Saudi, Spanish, Swiss, Syrian, United Arab Emirates law(s) and Uzbekistani as well as the general principles of law.

He isrecognized as a world-leading arbitrator and arbitration practitioner on international investment and international commercial arbitration, construction law & practice, Energy law and infrastructure disputes, Egyptian, Arab and African Laws, Islamic Shari’a, private international law and online dispute resolution. He is recognized as a world-renowned authority on ODR and a visionary on the role of technology in law and dispute resolution, and regularly publishes and speaks at international conferences on Online Dispute Resolution, E-Commerce and IT laws since 2001. Prof. Dr. Abdel Wahab also organized the Fourth International Forum on ODR in Egypt in 2006.

Prof. Dr. Abdel Wahab is listed on the rosters of many institutions including the ADCCAC (Abu Dhabi), ADGMAC  (UAE),  AIAC  (Malaysia),  BCDR  (Bahrain),  CIETAC (China), CRCICA (Egypt),  DIAC

(Dubai), EDAC (Turkey), EMAC (Dubai); EODID (Athens Mediation and Arbitration Organization), Asia International Arbitration Centre (AIAC), KCAB (South Korea), LACIAC (Nigeria), OAC (Oman), SCIA (Shenzhen Court of International Arbitration); SHIAC (China), China Guangzhou Arbitration Commission (CGAC), the Arbitration Center of the Russian Institute of Modern Arbitration (Russia); TIAC (Uzbekistan); European Court of Arbitration (CEA), MARC (Mauritius), and VIAC (Vienna).

 He received the LAW Magazine 2022 Most Influential Legal Academic Award, the 2021 and 2020 Client Choice International Award, the 2019 AYA Hall-of-Fame African Arbitrator Award, the 2018 ASA International Arbitration Advocacy Prize, and the LAW Magazine 2017 Best Legal Practitioner Award. He is listed in Who’s Who Global Elite Thought Leaders: International Arbitration (2021 and 2022); selected among the Legal500 Africa Powerlist (2021) and the AYA’s Africa’s Top 30 Powerlist (2021). He is the coeditor (with Prof Maxi Scherer and Ms. Niuscha Bassiri) of the first ever book on COVID-19 and international arbitration under the title “International Arbitration and the COVID-19 Revolution” (2020). He is also the coeditor (with Prof Ethan Katsh and Mr. Daniel Rainey) of “Online Dispute Resolution: Theory and Practice” (2011 and 2021). He is the author of the Abdel Wahab Pandemic Pathway to Virtual/Remote Hearings (2020); Co-author (with Dr. Kabir Duggal) of the first book dedicated to comparing the OIC and UAIA Treaties under the title “The Resurgence of the Unified Arab Investment Agreement and the Organisation for Islamic Cooperation Investment Agreement” Brill (2022).

He is listed as a world leading international arbitration thought leader and practitioner in all leading directories, including WWL: Arbitration, WWL: Construction, Legal500, Chambers & Partners Global, etc. WWL: Arbitration & Global Elite Thought Leaders 2023 says “ ‘Mohamed is a highly regarded commercial arbitrator and a civil law specialist’ ‘He is an amazing practitioner and one of the hardest working people’ ‘His sharp mind never ceases to amaze’ ‘He is one of a kind!’.” Chambers & Partners Global (2022) says: “Mohamed Abdel Wahab is one of the best-known arbitration practitioners […].” “He is the perfect mix of legal expertise and strategic intuition, backed up by years of hard-earned experience and advocacy. He is very responsive […].” “Mohamed Abdel Wahab is very highly respected for his international commercial and investment treaty practice. As an arbitrator, he frequently presides over disputes concerning construction, energy and infrastructure issues”. “Mohamed is a very well-known arbitrator who is very much involved in African work. He’s a very impressive guy.” Who’s Who Legal: Construction (2022) says: “Peers and clients say: “Mohamed is an all time great of construction arbitration” “Mohamed is a very smooth operator who makes arbitration process work very well”.  Who’s Who Legal: Arbitration (2022) says: “His intellectual rigour and well-rounded experience make him a natural choice as an arbitrator”, “He is academically brilliant”, “One of the best minds on arbitration issues” and “Extremely impressive”. Chambers & Partners Global (2021) says “Peers regard Mohamed Abdel Wahab as “an absolute star in arbitration”, “He is always on top of the work and has an excellent knowledge of the market and the law”. Legal 500 (2021) says: ‘Mohamed Abdel Wahab is a brilliant practitioner who is at the top of the international arbitration field globally. His understanding of and experience in international arbitration are matched by few’; ‘Very knowledgeable, responsive, brilliant and accurate. Mohamed Abdel Wahab is a very strong litigator and legal strategist’; ‘one of the best litigators and arbitration experts I have met. He is extremely efficient, reliable and is able to go the extra mile, while being innovative and brilliant’; and ‘Importantly, he is one of the most hardworking individuals in the field. His working ethos and common sense approach to complex legal problems are outstanding’. Who’s Who Legal: Arbitration (2021) says: “Mohamed is knowledgeable and qualified with extensive experience in the field”, “He is at the top of the market”, “Outstanding engagement and pleasant to work with”, “He is a top-tier thought leader and in  a  league  of  his  own”  and “a very well-prepared and exceptional arbitrator”.  Legal 500 (2019) says Mohamed Abdel Wahab is ‘one of  the best in the world’.

 Prof. Dr. Abdel Wahab was nominated four times in (2013), (2014), (2018) and (2019) for the Global Arbitration Review Award for the Best Arbitration Lecture/Speech, and was also nominated in (2020) for the GAR COVID-19 Pandemic Response Award, and was shortlisted among the top five arbitrators for the GAR award for the best prepared and responsive arbitrator in (2021).

Prof. Dr. Abdel Wahab read law in Egypt and in the UK, and speaks Arabic (mother tongue), English (fluent) and French (very good working knowledge).

E-Mail:                msw@zulficarpartners.com

Telephone:          +2 02 24612-147