Lucas De Ferrari
Biography
Overview
Lucas De Ferrari is a partner in the International Arbitration Group in Paris. Lucas specializes in commercial and investment arbitration, with a focus on disputes in the construction, infrastructure and energy sectors. A dual-citizen of Argentina and France, Lucas is fluent in English, French and Spanish.
Lucas' practice focuses primarily on construction disputes involving multiple and complex claims, including delay-related and disruption claims, and has significant experience of representing both employers and contractors in a variety of civil and common law jurisdictions.
Lucas is experienced with multiple forms of dispute resolution, including international arbitration (including under the ICC, SCC, LCIA, SIAC and UNCITRAL rules), adjudication / DABs / DAABs, mediation and expert determination.
In addition to his construction practice, Lucas has significant experience of annulment proceedings before French courts, and of disputes before French courts more generally (in particular, in relation to the enforcement and freezing of performance bonds / guarantees). Lucas is a lecturer on French arbitration law at the Paris-Est University and University of Montpellier.
Prior to joining White & Case, Lucas worked in the arbitration departments of several international law firms in Paris and was an intern at the Secretariat of the Court of Arbitration of the ICC.
Experience
Lucas' recent experience includes representing:
- A West European engineering company in a dispute arising from an EPC contract concerning a combined-cycle power plant in Africa;
- A Turkish main contractor in a dispute concerning delay and disruption claims in the context of the construction of a combined-cycle power plant in Western Asia;
- A consortium of international construction companies in arbitration proceedings concerning a major infrastructure project in Africa, involving numerous claims for direct and indirect costs;
- An international oil & gas company, acting as the employer, in a multi-billion USD arbitration and numerous adjudications, relating to delay, disruption for defective and/or damaged works, and pricing disputes in respect of the construction of an LNG processing facility;
- A consortium of international contractors in an arbitration concerning the construction of a hydroelectric plant in South America;
- An employer in a dispute against an EPC contractor, concerning a first-of-a-kind nuclear project, involving complex delay-related and direct cost claims;
- An Asian contractor in an arbitration concerning defective works in the construction of a coal-fired power plant in South-East Asia;
- An American petroleum and natural gas production company, in a dispute concerning delay-related claims arising out of the construction of a hydrocarbons processing facility in North Africa;
- An international telecommunications company in arbitration proceedings regarding a shareholders' dispute arising out of a joint-venture project in Southern Africa;
- A European contractor in an arbitration concerning the construction of an oil refinery in Europe, involving significant issues related to the enforceability of liquidated damages provisions ;
- A European contractor in two arbitrations related to BOT infrastructure projects, involving claims for extensions of time, and financing costs;
- A Canadian mining company in annulment proceedings before French courts, in relation to an ICSID arbitration under the Canada – Venezuela BIT; and
- An East European State in the context of ICC proceedings against an international chemical corporation, and in subsequent annulment proceedings before French courts.
"Arbitration in France," Practical Law UK Practice Note, 2023
Commentary on Gabon v. Santullo Sericom - Judgment of the Paris Court of Appeal dated 5 April 2022, Jus Mundi, 2022
Paris Court of Appeals upholds awards in Tatneft v Ukraine arbitration, PLC Arbitration, 2017
"ICC Commission on Arbitration and ADR Report on Construction Industry Arbitrations" (with Nicolas Bouchardie, Christopher Seppälä and Elina Aleynikova), 2016
French courts should do full review of arbitral tribunals' decisions regarding jurisdiction, PLC Arbitration, 2014
J&P AVAX v Tecnimont SpA: third time's the charm, PLC Arbitration, 2013
The battle of the seats: Paris, London or New York? (with Christophe Seraglini, Damien Nyer, Paul Brumpton and John Templeman), 2011
