Robert Reyes Landicho
Gate Village 10, Office 211
P.O. Box 504945
Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC)
Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Texas Tower
845 Texas Avenue
Suite 4700
Houston, Texas 77002
Robert Reyes Landicho is Counsel in Vinson & Elkins’ Dubai office. He focuses on international energy and infrastructure disputes, including commercial arbitration, inter-state arbitration, investor-state arbitration and national court litigation.
Rob has represented clients or assisted in investor-state disputes at ICSID and under the UNCITRAL rules, as well as in commercial arbitrations under all of the major institutional rules. In US courts, Rob has experience with the US Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act, act of state doctrine, admiralty and maritime disputes, and questions of jurisdiction over non-US domiciled parties. Rob also provides counselling on foreign investment planning, and the drafting of dispute resolution clauses and procedures in foreign and domestic agreements. Rob is the Strategic Planning Co-Chair of the Institute for Transnational Arbitration (ITA), and previously served as Programs Co-Chair and Young ITA Chair. He is admitted in Texas, and has full rights of audience before the Dubai International Financial Centre Courts (Part I & II).
Prior to practising law, Rob worked for the International Organization for Migration – Iraq Mission (a UN-affiliate organisation), managing community assistance programmes and development projects in Iraq. Rob was also a Fulbright Scholar in Amman, Jordan where he studied Arabic and researched foreign assistance projects in the Middle East. He has been named as a 2023 Law360 Rising Star in International Arbitration, a Future Leader in Who’s Who Legal: Arbitration (2022, 2023) and Who’s Who Legal: Construction (2023) (Law Business Research) and as a Rising Star in Super Lawyers, Texas – International (2020-2023) (Thomson Reuters).
Rob also serves on the firm’s Pro Bono Committee.
Representing an American company and its Latin American subsidiary in a multimillion dollar arbitration under New York law related to the construction of five power plants in South America
Representing a Middle Eastern state-owned entity in the Dubai International Financial Centre Courts against a private company involving applications and cross-applications for enforcement and set-aside of an arbitral award
Advising a Middle Eastern state-owned entity regarding commercial resolution of disputes and project restart strategies for a project involving the reconstruction of two oil terminals
Representing a Middle Eastern state in an ICC arbitration against another state involving breaches of contract and breaches of a treaty between the two states; the case also involves ancillary proceedings in different jurisdictions
Represented Mobil in ICSID annulment proceedings against the Argentine Republic, where an ICSID ad hoc Committee rejected Argentina’s application to annul the ICSID award in favor of Mobil. The Committee upheld a US$ 266.9 (net) million award in favor of Mobil. (Mobil Exploration and Development Argentina, Inc. Suc Argentina and Mobil Argentina S.A. v. The Argentine Republic)
Represented Goldman Sachs Bank USA in an admiralty proceeding in U.S. Federal District Court (S.D. Fl.) regarding the enforcement and foreclosure of a ship mortgage
Advising a Texas limited liability company in a dispute with a German limited liability company involving the international sale of goods
Represented the Ministry of Oil of the Republic of Iraq in a proceeding in U.S. Federal District Court (S.D. Tex.) regarding the export of cargoes of oil from the Kurdistan Region of Iraq to the United States
Represented an international fashion house in lawsuit against the International Finance Corporation (World Bank Group) in New York State Courts, for breaches of contract related to an investment in Tajikistan. Resulted in a judgment in favor of the international fashion house dismissing the International Finance Corporation’s breach of contract claim
Represented two individual investors in related investor-state arbitrations brought against the Republic of Indonesia, in relation to the aftermath of the collapse of a bank in 2008 (Al-Warraq v. Indonesia)
Represented Master Sub-Franchisee in an ICDR arbitration regarding breaches of a Sub-Franchise Agreement to be performed in the United Arab Emirates. Resulted in an award in favor of our client, along with interest and costs
Represented a Yemeni limited corporation company in a New York State temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction against a Maltese company and Delaware limited liability company, in a dispute arising out of the purchase and fabrication of custom built Heavy Fuel Oil generators
Credentials
- University of California, Berkeley, School of Law, J.D., 2013 (Development Editor, Berkeley Business Law Journal; Clinic Director, Iraqi Refugee Assistance Project; Jurisprudence Award, Appellate Advocacy; Prosser Prize, European Union Law)
- The College of William & Mary, B.A., Government with honors, 2008
- The Best Lawyers in America© (BL Rankings, LLC), “Ones to Watch,” Commercial Litigation (Houston), 2024
- Who’s Who Legal, “Future Leader”, 2023
- Law360, Rising Star, International Arbitration, 2023
- Who’s Who Legal (Law Business Research Ltd.), Arbitration, 2022; Arbitration, “Future Leaders (Non Partner),” 2023
- Selected to the Texas Rising Stars list, Super Lawyers (Thomson Reuters), 2020–2023
- Board Member: Institute for Transnational Arbitration (ITA) – Strategic Planning Co-Chair, Executive Committee of the ITA Advisory Board, Past Chair of Young ITA; American Constitution Society – Houston Lawyer Chapter; Texas Filipino American Bar (TFAB); Board of Directors – Asian American Bar Association of Houston
- Member: Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (FCIArb), UAE Branch; National Asian Pacific American Bar Association (NAPABA); Houston International Arbitration Club (HIAC); ICC Young Arbitrators Forum (YAF); LCIA Young International Arbitration Group (YIAG); ICDR Young & International (Y&I); Young ICSID; Young ICCA; The Pro Bono College of the State of Texas; National Filipino American Lawyers Association (NFALA); ADR Center – IMI Accredited Mediator
- Texas
- U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
- Dubai International Financial Centre (Part I & Part II with full rights of audience)
- Proficient in Arabic and French
- InsightNovember 8, 2023
Published by Lexology: Getting The Deal Through (GTDT) Mining Practice Guide
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- Press ReleaseMarch 30, 2022
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- InsightFebruary 28, 2022
V&E International Dispute Resolution Update
- Rankings & AwardsJanuary 27, 2022
- Press ReleaseJanuary 11, 2022
- Rankings & AwardsMarch 25, 2021
- InsightFebruary 4, 2019
- “A Case In Time – A discussion of the Paris Court of Appeal Decision: Dow Chemical on extension of the arbitration agreement and its legacy on arbitrability and arbitration agreements’” Delos ADR – GAP Journal Series, April 25, 2023 (Speaker)
- “Energy Transition in the UK, Europe, and Beyond – horizon scanning for potential disputes,” #YoungITATalks UK, July 14, 2022 (panelist)
- “Social License, CSR, and the Arbitration of Controversial Mining Disputes,” Center for International Legal Studies – International Arbitration Symposium (Salzburg, Austria), June 3, 2022 (panelist)
- “Key Procedural Issues in International Arbitration,” Young ITA Global Forum, February 22, 2022 (moderator)
- Lexis® PSL Practice Notes, ICDR (2021)—Introduction to the ICDR—commencing arbitration—responding to arbitration; The tribunal—appointment, challenges and powers; Multi-party arbitration, joinder and consolidation; Evidence; Procedure; Interim and emergency relief; and Costs and security for costs
- “International Arbitration,” 31st Annual International Law Institute, March 28, 2019 (panelist)
- “Enforcing a State’s International IP Obligations through Investment Law Standards of Protection – An Ill-Fated Romance,” Juris Investment Treaty Arbitration Vol. 11 Ch. 5, April 2018
- “Arbitrator Selection,” 5th ITA-IEL-ICC Joint Conference on International Energy Arbitration, January 18, 2018 (panelist)
- “Witness Examination in International Arbitration Post Event Report,” Young ICCA Skills Training Workshop, June 16, 2015
- “Technology, IP and Investor-State Arbitration,” Eleventh Annual Investment Treaty Arbitration Conference, April 25, 2017 (speaker)
- “GAR Know-How Investment Treaty Arbitration 2016 – Iraq,” March 31, 2015 (co-author)
- “Defences to Enforcement of an Arbitral Award in the USA Under the New York Convention,” Lexis Nexis’ Lexis PSLArbitration, March 2014 (co-author)
- “Enforcing a New York Convention Award in the USA,” Lexis Nexis’ Lexis PSLArbitration, March 2014 (co-author)
News & Insights
Published by Lexology: Getting The Deal Through (GTDT) Mining Practice Guide