June.02.2015
Orrick announces the expansion of its international arbitration practice with the opening of an office in Geneva, Switzerland, and the addition of Vanessa Liborio Garrido de Sousa as partner.
Liborio has built a reputation as a rising star in Europe representing companies in high-stakes arbitration proceedings. She joins Orrick’s growing European arbitration team, which includes Jean-Pierre Martel, Charles Kaplan, Laurent Jaeger and Laurie Craig in Paris and Co-Practice Group Leader Siegfried Elsing in Dusseldorf -- all practitioners who are top-ranked by Chambers.
“Our new Geneva office and the addition of Vanessa position us ideally to meet the increasing demand for international arbitration support among Orrick’s clients,” noted Jaeger.
“We are delighted to expand our international arbitration footprint to Geneva, one of the world’s most important centers for this practice due to its political neutrality and arbitration friendliness, and to add a partner of Vanessa’s caliber,” added Stephen Foresta, global head of Orrick’s Litigation Practice.
Liborio focuses on commercial arbitrations involving infrastructure projects, energy investments, manufacturing and other sectors. She has tried cases under the rules of the leading arbitral institutions, including the International Chamber of Commerce, the Swiss Chambers of Commerce and the London Court of International Arbitration. She has also served as the sole neutral arbitrator in international commercial disputes and has successfully resolved cases before the Swiss Supreme Court.
For virtually all of her career, Liborio has worked alongside Charles Adams Jr., an internationally recognized authority on international arbitration. Adams recently resigned from Akin Gump, where he and Liborio were partners in that firm’s Geneva office, because he had been nominated by U.S. President Barack Obama as U.S. Ambassador to Finland. A vote before the U.S. Senate to consider his nomination is expected shortly.
"I was drawn by Orrick's global commitment to dispute resolution," Liborio said. "The firm's focus on energy & infrastructure and finance, its role in some of the most important cross-border matters in France and across Europe, and the integrated nature of its practice all make it a very attractive platform for international arbitration."
Liborio obtained her JD from University of Geneva and an LLM from New York University. She speaks five languages: English, French, German, Italian and Spanish. Her writing has been published in Journal du Droit International and the International Comparative Legal Guide to Product Liability.