Legal Awards 2017

26 APAC / Legal Awards 2017 , Drawing on his vast experience, Geoff Sharp is a commercial mediator working in New Zealand, United Kingdom and the Asia Pacific. He is a member of both Clifton Chambers, Wellington and Brick Court Chambers in London, one of the leading sets of chambers in London. As such, Geoff divides his time between his London and New Zealand mediation practices as well as mediating in Asia. He explains his work in more detail. “Through my role as mediator, I am increasingly specialising LG170027 Asia Pacific Mediator of the Year Brick Court is home to some of the world’s leading commercial mediators and in 2017 four of our mediators are included in theWho’sWho Legal ‘Top 10 Global Mediation Thought Leaders’. These include AwardWinner Geoff Sharp, who discusses howhe works to ensure that he provides the very highest standard of support and service to his clients. in commercial disputes that have a transnational flavour. Usually I am engaged by law firms involved in cross-border litigation or arbitration and I have mediated a range of fascinating cases involving commercial parties from a variety of cultures. Much of my work involves construction and infrastructure mediation, especially in growth areas such as Asia and the Middle East. London mediation, on the other hand, often involves financial matters.” Known as a mediator who can connect with parties in conflict, Geoff has been engaged by many of the world’s leading law firms dealing with contentious matters as well as government agencies, including the UK and NZ Governments in 2016. Prior to committing to a full-time mediation practice a decade ago, Geoff was a litigation partner at Bell Gully, one of New Zealand’s largest national commercial law firms. Before that his early career was at Mallesons, a major Australian commercial law firm. Alongside this, Geoff works to support the wider legal industry, and has been a member of ICC’s Mediation Rules Task Force and for many years on the faculty of the ICC International Commercial Mediation Competition devoted to international commercial mediation and held in Paris every year. He is also appointed to CEDR’s International Mediator Panel as well as Singapore Mediation Centre’s International Panel of Mediators and is a member of the National Electricity Market of Singapore Dispute Resolution and Compensation Panel. Thanks to this wealth of experience, he mediates across a range of commercial conflicts including infrastructure, construction, intellectual property, technology/telecom/energy sectors, financial, insurance, contractual, shareholder, joint-venture and public sector/ governmental matters. Geoff explores the reasons he enjoys this role and why he is so committed to his clients. “One of the most rewarding aspects of my role as a commercial mediator is the diversity of disputes and people I get involved with – one day it can be an infrastructure project gone wrong in the Philippines, the next day it might be a rights (share) issue or an international licensing agreement in the Middle East involving interesting legal and cross-cultural aspects.” Over the past year, Geoff has mediated a number of high-profile London matters including a multibillion-pound class-action and one of the most significant pieces of litigation in the UK for 2016; a five party country to country commercial dispute of political and historical significance, co-mediated with a retired UK Court of Appeal judge; a multimillion pound insolvency litigation; a large fraud case between 13 parties and a Southeast Asian energy infrastructure claim set against a backdrop of litigation and arbitration in Manila, Singapore and London. Ultimately, as well as being named APAC Insider’s ‘Best Commercial Mediator in the Asia- Pacific’ for 2016 and 2017, he is one of New Zealand’s leading commercial mediators being voted by the legal profession New Zealand Mediator of the Year in the New Zealand Law Awards. Moving forward, Geoff will be looking to continue to succeed and support his clients.