Benjamin Garel, Associate

Benjamin Garel is an associate in the firm’s Geneva office. He specializes in international arbitration, with a focus on both commercial and investment disputes. He has experience of arbitral proceedings conducted under the auspices of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), the Swiss Chambers of Commerce (SCC – Swiss Rules), the International Center for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID), the Energy Charter Treaty (ECT), as well as ad hoc arbitrations.

Mr. Garel has advised clients from a number of cultural and geographic backgrounds (U.S., Middle-East, Africa, Western and Eastern Europe), on disputes involving both civil and common law and arising out various type of contracts including pharmaceutical license agreements, metals barter agreements, minerals off-take agreements, and distribution agreements. He also advised clients in potential treaty-based investment claims involving expropriation, fair and equitable treatment, and most-favored-nation treatment issues.

His recent experience includes advising:

• A U.S. pharmaceutical laboratory in an ICC arbitration against the holder of trademark and licensing rights arising out the sale of a license agreement.
• A BVI joint venture in a Zurich Chamber of Commerce (Swiss Rules) arbitration against a Tajikistan company arising out of barter agreements for the financing of an aluminium smelting factory.
• A Congolese minerals trading company in a Zurich Chamber of Commerce (Swiss Rules) arbitration against a major mineral trade financing company arising out the termination of an off-take agreement.
• A U.S. pharmaceutical company in a Zurich Chamber of Commerce (Swiss Rules) arbitration against a Middle-East/African distributor arising out of a contract for the distribution of infant nutritional products.
• A Swiss tobacco manufacturing company in two potential treaty-based ICSID claims for expropriation and unfair/inequitable treatment against a Latin American government and a Middle-East government.
• A Saudi distributor in an ICC arbitration against an Austrian drinks manufacturer arising out of the abusive termination of a distribution agreement. 

Education