Managing partner

Tel:      +38 044 498 7383
Fax:     +38 044 498 7385
Email:  irina.nazarova@engarde-attorneys.com

Overview:

Irina has more than 20 years’ experience in dispute resolution, including commercial litigation, cross-border litigation, international arbitration and mediation.

Mrs. Nazarova is regularly engaged as counsel, arbitrator and expert in arbitral proceedings under various arbitral rules. Irina moves easily between traditional litigation, international arbitration, and ADR matching her professional courtroom and arbitration skills.

Honours and awards:

Irina is ranked as a leading lawyer in dispute resolution in Ukraine: 

  • Chamber Global (Tier 1);
  • Chambers Europe (Tier 1);
  • Legal 500 (Tier 1);
  • Who’s Who Legal (Thought Leader in Arbitration; Recommended to Global Leader Arbitration 2020);
  • Best Lawyers (Best Lawyer in Arbitration and Mediation).

Representative experience:

  • Acting as Counsel in a multi-million dispute against the State of Ukraine before the ICSID (amount in dispute approx. USD 1200 million);
  • Advised in $2 billion dispute proceedings over metallurgical assets (amount in dispute approx. USD 2 billion) before the Cypriot court;
  • Represented interests of the Client in arbitration under the ICC Arbitration Rules in multijurisdictional post-M&A dispute as to recognizing the underlying agreement void (amount in dispute approx. USD 400 million);
  • Represented a Ukrainian oil and gas company in an SCC arbitration dispute arising out of the annexation of Crimea due to non-performance of a natural gas exploration project (amount in dispute approx. USD 12 million);
  • Represented a US investor in the proceedings for the enforcement of an ICC arbitral award against a Ukrainian company (USD 145 million)
  • Served as an arbitrator under the SCC Rules of Arbitration in a case arising out of Joint Venture in the oil and gas sector (amount in dispute approx. USD 500 million);
  • Served as an arbitrator under the ICC Rules of Arbitration in a case arising out of a complex infrastructure construction project in Ukraine involving a foreign counterparty (amount in dispute approx. USD 100 million);
  • Served as an arbitrator under the ICC Rules of Arbitration in a case arising out repair works at nuclear plants in Ukraine;
  • Served as a sole arbitrator under the ICC Rules of Arbitration in a case arising out of the construction of a highway project in Kazakhstan;
  • Appeared as an Expert on Ukrainian law in major arbitration proceedings before the LCIA concerning a shareholder dispute within a major Ukrainian airline (a sector maker);
  • Advised in the dispute of renationalization of Kryvorizhstal, Ukraine’s largest integrated steel company, and represented clients’ interests on all stages of the dispute before Ukrainian courts (the asset was re-privatized for USD 4.8 billion);
  • Advised in the dispute of improper privatization of Nikopol Ferroalloy Works, a major ferroalloy producer; represented clients’ interests on all stages of the dispute before Ukrainian courts (valued more than USD 100 million);
  • Defended interests of an owner of a Ukrainian TV channel Studio 1+1 in a case regarding the ownership of the company;
  • Represented Telenor before Ukrainian courts in connection with the shareholder dispute between Telenor and the other major shareholder of Ukrainian mobile operator Kyivstar S.M. – Storm. Coordinated international arbitration related to the dispute in foreign jurisdictions.

Specialization:

Professional associations and memberships:

  • Representative from Ukraine in the Commission on Arbitration of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC);
  • Member of the International Advisory Board at the Vienna International Arbitral Centre;
  • Chair of the Alternative Dispute Resolution Committee at the Ukrainian Bar Association;
  • Initiator and program coordinator of the first independent Ukrainian International Arbitration Conference “Kyiv Arbitration Days: Think Big!” (2011 – up to now);
  • Served as a Member of the ICC International Court of Arbitration for two consecutive terms;
  • Was a member of the Council for Judicial Reform at the Presidential Administration of Ukraine that implemented arbitration reform in Ukraine;
  • Served as a Counsel to the Head of the State Property Fund of Ukraine;
  • Kyiv Region Bar Association.

Education:

  • Kyiv National Taras Shevchenko University, Institute of International Relations, School of Private International Law (Ukraine, 2000)

Languages:

  • Ukrainian;
  • English;
  • Russian;

Admitted to bar:

  • Ukraine, 2002

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