Epaminontas Triantafilou's broad experience in international arbitration includes roles as arbitrator, counsel to private corporations and sovereign governments, as well as Legal Counsel at the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague.
Mr. Triantafilou has been involved as counsel in dozens of arbitrations arising from government contracts and concessions, joint ventures, shareholder agreements, patent licensing disputes and construction/EPC contracts. He has also advised in arbitrations involving intellectual property, shipping, media and advertising. Mr. Triantafilou’s experience encompasses proceedings under all major arbitral rules, including LCIA, ICC, UNCITRAL, SCC and ICSID, often involving multiple parties. As arbitrator he has acted as chair and sole arbitrator in multimillion-dollar disputes.
Mr. Triantafilou is consistently highly rated in the most prominent legal directories in the areas of international commercial arbitration and investment treaty arbitration:
Legal 500 UK has described Mr. Triantafilou as possessing a “remarkable intellect” (2015), while being “highly creative” (2016) “highly professional” (2017) “widely respected” (2018) and “particularly astute and meticulous” (2023). The publication has included him among the “Next Generation Partners” in public international law and recommended him for international arbitration and public international law since 2013. He is also recommended for international tax-related disputes.
Chambers and Partners describes him as “exceptionally bright” with an “impressive reputation among clients and peers alike” (2016), and “deeply familiar with LCIA proceedings and equally experienced in handling BIT claims” (2021). Clients have noted in particular “the patient and measured manner in which he explains extraordinarily complex matters” (2015) and that “he perfectly understands the concerns of his clients and is unbelievably committed to doing the best job for them.” (2017). Others remark that “in disputes with a number of moving parts, he sees simply from the top down how to achieve the client's goals” (2020). He has also been cited for his “fantastic advocacy” (2018). He has been characterised as being “very capable and hard-working” (2019), a “very sharp and effective lawyer” and a “very talented and client-oriented person” (2022),“an excellent litigator with strong commercial awareness” (2024) as well as “an excellent advocate – very measured and extremely bright.” (2023).
Who’s Who Legal has recognised Mr. Triantafilou for having “a strategic and analytical way of thinking” combined with “masterful skills in arbitration” (2022). He has been described as “absolutely a star of investor-State arbitration” and “an excellent legal mind who thinks clearly about complex issues” (2019). He has been cited as “an excellent advocate who is quick on his feet” (2017), with peers lauding his “superb handling of complex cases” (2018), and the "great command of the file of his case" (2020). Peers also referred to him as “one of the most effective cross-examiners I have ever witnessed” (2019).
- JSC Oschadbank
- Viohalco
- Helleniq Energy
- Cystic Fibrosis Foundation
- Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals
- Sony
- Tidal
- JSC CB Privatbank
- Acacia Mining
- Elliott Advisors
- State of Ukraine
- Counsel to a major pharmaceutical company in a dispute with a drug manufacturer
- Counsel to a Middle Eastern investment group in a shareholders’ dispute
- Counsel to a major mining company in tax-related disputes
- Counsel to an aviation business in an investment treaty claim against a Middle Eastern state
- Counsel to a major corporate group in a share purchase dispute with a major bank
- Counsel to two major state-owned banks in landmark investment treaty claims
- Counsel to a construction contractor in a claim against a Central Asian state
- Counsel to a technology conglomerate in a patent licensing arbitration
- Counsel to an individual director in a compliance review and associated disputes with major media companies
- Counsel to an EPC contractor in an investment treaty claim against a Central European state
- Counsel to a money transfer services company in an agency and franchising dispute
- Counsel to two mining companies in connection with claims against a Southeast Asian state regarding a coal mining concession
- The University of Chicago Law School
(J.D., 2005)- Chicago Journal of International Law:
- Comments and Developments Editor
- Alexander S. Onassis Scholar
- Victor McQuistion Scholar
- Chicago Journal of International Law:
- Brandeis University
(M.A., Comparative Politics, 2002)
(B.A., Politics, 2000)
- Barrister, England and Wales
- The State Bar of New York
- The District of Columbia Bar
- English
- Greek
- German
- Spanish
- Permanent Court of Arbitration:
- Legal Counsel, 2011-2012
- Legal Counsel, 2011-2012
- The Hon. Charles N. Brower, Independent Arbitrator and Judge, Iran-United States Claims Tribunal:
- Legal Assistant, 2010-2011
- Legal Assistant, 2010-2011
- White & Case LLP:
- Associate, 2005-2010
- Global Arbitration Review “45 under 45” (2023) (a list of the top arbitration practitioners under 45 years old worldwide)
- Legal 500 International Arbitration Powerlist UK (2022-present)
- Named among Lawdragon’s 500 Global Litigation Lawyers (2021-present))
- Named a “Global Leader” by Who’s Who Legal: Arbitration (2019-present)
- Named a “Future Leader” by Who’s Who Legal: Arbitration (2017-2018)
- Named a “Rising Star” among litigators in London by Legal Week (2016)
- Gillis Wetter Memorial Prize for Essays in the Field of International Arbitration (2008)
Publications
- Chapter, “Achmea, Investment Treaty Arbitration, Public International Law and EU Law: The Way Forward” in Crina Baltag and Ana Stanic (eds.), “The Future of Investment Treaty Arbitration in the EU” (2020) (with David Pusztai)
- Contributor, Julien Fouret et al., “The ICSID Convention, Regulations and Rules: A Practical Commentary” (2019)
- Article, “The Other Side of the Coin: India's 2015 Model BIT and Indian Investors Abroad”, Transnational Dispute Management (2018) (with J. Menezes)
- Article, “Specific Performance Under Commercial Contracts with Sovereign States”, 34(5) Journal of International Arbitration (2017) (with Anthony Sinclair)
- Article, “Contemporaneity and Evolutive Interpretation under the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties”, 32(1) ICSID Rev. 138 (2017)
- Article, “Non-lawyer arbitrators and the deliberative balance of international tribunals”, Transnational Dispute Management (2016)
- Co-editor, Practicing Virtue: Inside International Arbitration (Oxford 2015)
- Co-Editor, Getting the Deal Through: Investment Treaty Arbitration (2013-present)
- Chapter, “England and Wales as the Venue of Arbitration” in Claudia T. Solomon and Michael Ostrove (eds.), Choice of Venue in International Arbitration (2014) (with Stephen Jagusch)
- Chapter, “Three Cautionary Notes for Investor State Arbitrators on the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties”, in C. Bao and F. Lautenschlager (eds.) Liber Amicorum Neil Kaplan (2012) (with Charles N. Brower)
- Invited contributor on behalf of LCIA Young International Arbitrator Group, Kluwer Arbitration Blog (2008-present)
- Article, The Public Interest And Third Party Participation In Investment Arbitration, 5 Berkeley J. Int’l L. Publicist 39 (2010)
- Article, Amicus Briefs In Investor-State Arbitration After Suez v. Argentina, 24(4) Arbitration Int’l 571 (2008)
- Article, Taxation as Expropriation: Some Observations on EnCana v. Ecuador, Transnat’l Dispute Mgmt. (2006)
- Comment, Appealing Arbitral Awards: Some Insights from Behavioral Law & Economics, 21(8) Int’l Arb. Rep. 39 (2006)
- Comment, Eroding Norms of Revenge in Countries with Weak State Authority, 10 UCLA J. Int’l L. & Foreign Aff. (2006)
- President, Hellenic Law Association of the United Kingdom (www.helleniclawassociation.com)
- Chair, Advisory Board, European Federation for Investment Law and Arbitration (2024-present)
- Chair, UNCITRAL Task Force, Institute for Transnational Arbitration (2018-2020)
- Co-Managing Editor, World Arbitration & Mediation Review (2012-2017)
- Member, Executive Committee, Institute for Transnational Arbitration (2012-2020)
- Member, American Society of International Law
- Member, Young International Arbitration Group, London Court of International Arbitration
- Member, ICDR Young & International
- Member, American Bar Association