PROFILE
Karim Hafez is widely recognized by peers as a leading independent arbitrator and distinguished figure in the field of international dispute settlement (a representative list of accolades is available here). In a career spanning three decades, he has served in more than three hundred cases across the three principal areas of arbitral practice — commercial, construction, and investment. His sectoral expertise is both extensive and deep (as detailed here). His practice is global in scope, with a particular emphasis on disputes connected to Africa and the Middle East. He handles cases in Arabic, English, and French. Formerly, he founded and led a prominent arbitration practice. He was educated in Cairo, Cambridge, and Harvard, and holds a PhD from the University of Cambridge awarded for a dissertation entitled Complex Arbitration. He is a national of Egypt (only). His biography is available here.
Dr Hafez has handled some of the most complex cases in the Middle East. He treats arbitrations as projects to control as to duration, cost, and quality. He emphasises case management techniques that lead to early identification of issues, effective pleading, and efficient marshalling and testing of the evidence. He prioritizes engagement with counsel to build and sustain consensus around a fair and efficient process.
Beyond credentials and capability, Dr Hafez’s approach to arbitral office emphasises cultural fluency: culture not as display but as respect for alternative social, political, and economic arrangements. Born of early and sustained encounter, this respect informs Dr Hafez’s approach to process and substance in arbitration. On process, he does not default to a single procedural tradition; in consultation with counsel, he selects which to adopt and adapt with due regard to context. On substance, he rejects the model of awards that plod through pleadings and yield perfunctory, often reflexively metropolitan analysis; instead, he delivers decisions marked by clarity, economy, and cultural literacy.
PROFILE
Karim Hafez is widely recognized by peers as a leading independent arbitrator and distinguished figure in the field of international dispute settlement (a representative list of accolades is available here). In a career spanning three decades, he has served in more than three hundred cases across the three principal areas of arbitral practice — commercial, construction, and investment. His sectoral expertise is both extensive and deep (as detailed here). His practice is global in scope, with a particular emphasis on disputes connected to Africa and the Middle East. He handles cases in Arabic, English, and French. Formerly, he founded and led a prominent arbitration practice. He was educated in Cairo, Cambridge, and Harvard, and holds a PhD from the University of Cambridge awarded for a dissertation entitled Complex Arbitration. He is a national of Egypt (only). His biography is available here.
Dr Hafez has handled some of the most complex cases in the Middle East. He treats arbitrations as projects to control as to duration, cost, and quality. He emphasises case management techniques that lead to early identification of issues, effective pleading, and efficient marshalling and testing of the evidence. He prioritizes engagement with counsel to build and sustain consensus around a fair and efficient process.
Beyond credentials and capability, Dr Hafez’s approach to arbitral office emphasises cultural fluency: culture not as display but as respect for alternative social, political, and economic arrangements. Born of early and sustained encounter, this respect informs Dr Hafez’s approach to process and substance in arbitration. On process, he does not default to a single procedural tradition; in consultation with counsel, he selects which to adopt and adapt with due regard to context. On substance, he rejects the model of awards that plod through pleadings and yield perfunctory, often reflexively metropolitan analysis; instead, he delivers decisions marked by clarity, economy, and cultural literacy.
PROFILE
Karim Hafez is widely recognized by peers as a leading independent arbitrator and distinguished figure in the field of international dispute settlement (a representative list of accolades is available here). In a career spanning three decades, he has served in more than three hundred cases across the three principal areas of arbitral practice — commercial, construction, and investment. His sectoral expertise is both extensive and deep (as detailed here). His practice is global in scope, with a particular emphasis on disputes connected to Africa and the Middle East. He handles cases in Arabic, English, and French. Formerly, he founded and led a prominent arbitration practice. He was educated in Cairo, Cambridge, and Harvard, and holds a PhD from the University of Cambridge awarded for a dissertation entitled Complex Arbitration. He is a national of Egypt (only). His biography is available here.
Dr Hafez has handled some of the most complex cases in the Middle East. He treats arbitrations as projects to control as to duration, cost, and quality. He emphasises case management techniques that lead to early identification of issues, effective pleading, and efficient marshalling and testing of the evidence. He prioritizes engagement with counsel to build and sustain consensus around a fair and efficient process.
Beyond credentials and capability, Dr Hafez’s approach to arbitral office emphasises cultural fluency: culture not as display but as respect for alternative social, political, and economic arrangements. Born of early and sustained encounter, this respect informs Dr Hafez’s approach to process and substance in arbitration. On process, he does not default to a single procedural tradition; in consultation with counsel, he selects which to adopt and adapt with due regard to context. On substance, he rejects the model of awards that plod through pleadings and yield perfunctory, often reflexively metropolitan analysis; instead, he delivers decisions marked by clarity, economy, and cultural literacy.