Diversity and Inclusion in International Arbitration: Reality or Mere Rhetoric

This panel shall explore whether the widely proclaimed commitment to diversity and inclusion in international arbitration reflects genuine transformation or remains largely rhetorical. It considers how diversity is understood in practice, including gender, geography, race, language, age, professional background, and legal tradition, and why these dimensions matter for legitimacy, user confidence, and the perceived neutrality of tribunals. The discussion will examine the current landscape of arbitral appointments and institutional practices, asking whether recent initiatives, pledges and policy statements have led to a broader and more inclusive pool of arbitrators, or whether appointments continue to be concentrated among a relatively narrow, familiar group. The panel will also address how party autonomy, counsel preferences, and market dynamics interact with diversity goals, and whether there is a tension between “merit” and representativeness or whether these concepts are, in fact, mutually reinforcing. Ultimately, the session aims to move beyond slogans to assess what concrete progress has been made, what obstacles persist, and what additional measures may be needed for diversity and inclusion to become an integral, everyday reality in international arbitration rather than a recurring theme confined to speeches and mission statements.

Presenters

Naresh Thacker

Counsel, Chambers of Naresh Thacker

Naresh Thacker is an independent counsel with over 25 years of experience specializing in litigation and international arbitration, with a particular focus on corporate commercial and construction, infrastructure, and energy sector disputes. He regularly appears before the Supreme Court of India as well as the Bombay and Delhi High Courts, and has acted in complex matters arising out of major infrastructure projects, including roads, railways, ports, airports, SEZ terminals, and industrial plants, often governed by EPC and FIDIC contracts. His broad practice spans oil and gas disputes, post-M&A and joint venture conflicts, distribution arrangements, and a range of regulatory and tax matters covering central excise, customs, service tax, VAT, GST, and sectoral regulations. A Solicitor (non-practising) of England & Wales, Mr. Thacker has extensive experience acting as counsel and as arbitrator under various international and domestic arbitral rules, including ICC, LCIA, SIAC, MCIA, UNCITRAL, and ad hoc arbitrations, as well as in related enforcement and challenge proceedings. He is a prolific author and active member of leading professional bodies such as The Law Society (UK), LCIA, IBA, and AIFTP, and has held notable leadership positions including Vice Chair of the ABA South Asia/Oceania & India Committee and Joint Secretary of the Arbitration Bar of India – Western Region. His work has attracted recognition and commendations in leading legal directories, including Chambers & Partners, Asialaw Profiles, and the RSG India Report, making him a highly regarded practitioner for sophisticated disputes in India and beyond.

Ravi Aswani

Barrister, 36 Stone

London

Dawn Tan

Founding and Managing Director, Ashurst Adtlaw

Singapore

Dawn Tan is the Founding Director of established commercial firm ADTLaw LLC and head of the disputes practice. She is also the Managing Director of Ashurst ADTLaw, a registered joint venture between ADTLaw LLC and Ashurst LLP. She is tri-qualified in Singapore, England & Wales, and New York State and is an experienced arbitration and litigation practitioner who has represented leading corporates at all levels of the Singapore courts in complex multijurisdictional disputes in various sectors, including energy and resources, joint venture, shareholder and M&A disputes. Most recently, she advised a Korean construction conglomerate on the management of a multi-jurisdictional joint venture dispute in relation to the termination of a joint venture concerning a clean fuels refinery project in Thailand by the project owner, where the dispute between the project owner and the joint venture partners involved sums in excess of US$4.5 billion. She also sits as an arbitrator in institutional arbitrations. In addition to her practice, Dawn is Co-Chair of the Law Society Civil Practice Committee, a Member of the Selection Panel of the Singapore Law Reports (Supreme Court) under the Council of Law Reporting, and the immediate past Chairman of the Singapore International Chamber of Commerce and member of the governing Council of the Singapore Business Federation, Singapore’s apex business chamber. She has published academic papers on a range of subjects including the choice of Singapore jurisdiction and governing law in cross-border transactions in Asia. Outside practice, she is an accomplished practitioner of Sogetsu Ikebana currently holding the rank of First Grade Somu.

Ricky Sabornay

Registered Foreign Attorney, SABORNAY Law: Member Firm of Uryu & Itoga, Tokyo, Japan

Tokyo

Ricky Aringo Sabornay is a Philippine and New York Attorney, Solicitor of the Senior Courts of England & Wales, a Registered Foreign Attorney in Japan, and a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators. He is the Managing Attorney of Sabornay Law, a Member Firm of Uryu & Itoga (U&I), and focuses on international commercial transactions, international commercial arbitration, and real estate. Prior to establishing Sabornay Law, he was a Senior Law Associate at a leading Philippine law firm and later practiced with U&I, advising on cross-border transactions and disputes involving Japanese companies. He has trained with law firms in Japan, the UK, and New York. Mr. Sabornay holds degrees from the University of the Philippines and Kyushu University as a Japanese Government Young Leaders Program Scholar, as well as an MBA in Design and Leadership for Societal Innovation from Shizenkan University. An IPBA Young Lawyer Scholar in 2023, he is currently the Vice-Chair of the IPBA Scholarship Committee.