Catherine Amirfar is a litigation partner based in New York in Debevoise &
Plimpton LLP’s International Dispute Resolution Group. Her practice focuses on
international commercial and treaty arbitration, and international and complex
commercial litigation. She routinely acts as counsel in arbitration cases arising
under the rules of the major arbitral institutions, and in a wide variety of
subjects, including investment treaties, gas and energy and financial industry
sectors. Her recent representations include disputes involving Brazil and disputes
arising under bilateral investment treaties in Europe and East Asia. Ms. Amirfar
also has acted as counsel in transnational commercial litigation in U.S. courts,
with a focus on international disputes and intellectual property.
Based on surveys of other practitioners, Ms. Amirfar is ranked among the leading
international arbitration practitioners by Chambers Global (2012), which
describes her as a “highly regarded young international lawyer,” and by
Chambers USA (2010), which said that she is “viewed as ‘an emerging star in
international arbitration’,” and “plays a key role” in the firm’s public international
law practice. She is described in the Legal 500 US (2011) as “highly regarded by
clients and peers alike,” in Chambers Latin America (2013) as “one of the leading
figures of the next generation” and in Legal 500 Latin America as being “very
hands on,” and “always pay[ing] great attention to the client.” Chambers Latin
America noted that she “impresses” with her “natural, educated and sophisticated
arguments.” She was also selected as a “Future Star” in Benchmark Litigation
(2012, 2013).
In 2011, Ms. Amirfar was recognized by the Global Arbitration Review in its “45
under 45,” a selection of the 45 leading figures of the international arbitration bar
under the age of 45.
Ms. Amirfar joined the firm in 2002 and became a partner in 2008. From 2000 to
2002, she clerked for the Hon. D.A. Batts, Federal Judge, Southern District of
New York. Ms. Amirfar received a J.D. cum laude from New York University Law
School in 2000, where she was a Root-Tilden-Snow scholar. She served as an
Editor for the NYU Law Review and was awarded top honors in the NYU Orison S.
Marden Moot Court Competition. She received a B.A, with honors, from Stanford
University in 1995.
Ms. Amirfar is the author or co-author of several publications, including: “The
Current Status of NAFTA Chapter 11 Arbitration” in New York International Law
Review (Winter 2007), “How Summary Adjudication Can Promote Fairness and
Efficiency in International Arbitration,” in International Bar Association Arbitration
Newsletter, September 2010, “Obtaining Evidence for Use in International
Arbitrations Through United States Courts,” in Global Arbitration Review (2011),
and “Current Challenges to Consumer Arbitration in the United States: Much Ado
About Nothing for International Arbitration?” in The Arbitration Review of the
Americas 2012. She is currently authoring, with Donald Donovan, a book to be
published by Cambridge University Press entitled From the World Court to the
United States Supreme Court: The Vienna Convention Litigation and Its Impact
on International Law. She is a frequent lecturer on international law and has
guest lectured at Yale Law School, NYU Law, Washington University in St. Louis
Law School, and Seton Hall Law School.
Ms. Amirfar has served on the Executive Committee of the American Society of
International Law (ASIL) (2009 – 2012) and was a member of the Council on
Foreign Relations. She currently serves on the Executive Council of the American
Branch of the International Law Association (ILA), as a director and Chair of the
Program Committee for the New York International Arbitration Center (NYIAC),
and the Steering Committee of the Young Arbitrators Forum. She was recently
elected as a Vice President of the ILA American Branch.