NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sidley Austin LLP is pleased to announce that Tai-Heng Cheng and Simon Navarro have joined the firm as partner and counsel, respectively, in its New York office. They join from Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, LLP, where Dr. Cheng chaired the New York International Arbitration practice. As a leading arbitration practitioner, Dr. Cheng will help direct the growth and development of Sidley’s global arbitration practice. He was previously a tenured professor of law at New York Law School and served as co-director of the Institute for Global Law, Justice and Policy. While Dr. Cheng is based in New York, he will also be spending time in Asia and Europe, given the international scope of his practice.
“Tai is a powerhouse arbitration practitioner and litigator with a cross-border and cross-disciplinary practice who, with Simon, will add to our team’s deep well of knowledge as we help our clients navigate the intricate web of rules and contracts that govern commerce,” said Yvette Ostolaza, global co-leader of Sidley’s Litigation practice and member of the firm’s Management and Executive Committees. “At a time when companies are increasingly turning to arbitration to settle disputes, we’re particularly pleased to see our global litigation capabilities further expand in New York, a major center of international arbitration.”
Fluent in both English and Mandarin, Dr. Cheng focuses his practice on international commercial and investor-state arbitration, having achieved nine-figure victories in high-profile matters in Asia, New York and Europe. As an example, and as reported in The Wall Street Journal, Dr. Cheng enjoyed a prominent win in Vantage v. Petrobras, an arbitration under the International Centre for Dispute Resolution, which resulted in an award of $622 million plus 15.2 percent compound interest for the client. An accomplished litigator and respected adviser, Dr. Cheng has also represented his clients in litigation, investigations and government enforcement matters across the globe.
Mr. Navarro is an experienced arbitration and litigation lawyer who focuses his practice on representing clients in high-stakes, complex commercial and investment treaty arbitrations. He has significant experience working in Latin America and Spain and is licensed to practice law in the U.S. and Spain. Mr. Navarro works in a wide range of industries, including energy, insurance, banking, mergers and acquisitions, construction and infrastructure. He is fluent in Spanish.
“Tai is well-known as a trusted advisor with a global network of relationships and a successful win record,” said Sam Gandhi, managing partner of Sidley’s New York office and member of the firm’s Executive Committee. Tai and Simon are experienced counselors whose knowledge of international legal systems is unparalleled. Their arrival builds on the tremendous momentum we’re experiencing in our New York office in practice areas that are critical and valuable to our clients.”
Dr. Cheng’s clients span many industries, including energy and infrastructure, pharmaceuticals, real estate, manufacturing and financial services, as he provides counsel on activities and projects ranging from trade and purchasing agreements to intellectual property licensing, regulatory investigations, white collar crime, bankruptcy and real estate development.
Dr. Cheng has also served as tribunal chair or co-arbitrator in more than a dozen arbitrations before major international arbitral institutions across multiple continents, and is a member of the arbitration panels of arbitration institutions in North America, Europe and Asia.
With 2,000 lawyers in 20 offices around the globe, Sidley is a premier legal adviser for clients across the spectrum of industries. Follow Sidley on Twitter @SidleyLaw.
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