Nearly 200 professionals attended a seminar sponsored by BakerHostetler’s International Disputes practice team on October 29 in Houston in person and via webinar. The program, “Planning and Protecting Your Projects Through International Contracts – Beyond the Boilerplate,” was the inaugural presentation in the International Arbitration Boot Camp Series. Partner Sashe Dimitroff presented and Partner Lisa Pennington made the opening remarks and introductions.
Dimitroff spoke on the legal and commercial issues to customize contracts and use or avoid traps of boilerplate provisions in international contracts. Topics included:
- The choice of law – avoiding unintended consequences
- The choice of forum – choosing between arbitration or litigation in a foreign land
- Comparison of international arbitration forums – the difference between various international arbitration tribunals
- How to limit the length, scope, and cost of proceedings
- Currency repatriation – how do you make sure you can get paid or return the money home?
- Enforceability or avoidance of an award or judgment
Many attendees provided feedback indicating that they found the presentation valuable and that Dimitroff “quickly got to the meat of the subject,” and provided “good coverage of points often overlooked.” Other comments indicated, “There was a lot if information packed into this presentation and it was at the right level,” and one attendee said it was “one of the best CLEs I've ever attended.”
BakerHostetler’s International Arbitration Boot Camp Series is designed to provide in-depth presentations and discussions that explore key legal and commercial issues unique to these considerations. Each presentation is taught by professionals from the legal and commercial sectors. The team will host the second program in this series, “Third-Party Funding of International Disputes,” on January 14, 2016.