AFB Seminar: How to deal with Common Jurisdiction and Enforcement Issues Arising in Cross-Border Banking Disputes

You are invited to attend an in-person seminar on jurisdictional and enforcement issues in cross-border disputes hosted by Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner LLP (BCLP). The session will focus on recent legislative developments in the UK, and in particular the practical implications of the UK Arbitration Act 2025 and the 2019 Hague Judgments Convention (Hague 19), both of which came into force in summer 2025. 

Why attend?

The session will look at practical considerations arising out of the changes for complex multi-jurisdictional deals, including:

• an overview of the new legislation and its impact on jurisdiction clauses (both litigation and arbitration)
• insights into enforcement challenges post-Brexit and, specifically, in the context of international sanctions
• guidance for legal teams navigating multi-jurisdictional deals and choices of litigation or arbitration clauses

Who should attend?

This session is aimed at the legal teams of AFB member banks and other professionals involved in contract negotiation and dispute resolution.

It will be of particular relevance for those responsible for seeking to enforce judgments on a cross-border basis, those seeing an increase in proposals from international counterparts to include arbitration as a dispute resolution mechanism, or those who regularly contract with counterparts from emerging markets or sectors where use of arbitration is more frequent.

Speakers

Oran Gelb (Partner and Co-Global Practice Group Leader – Business and Commercial Disputes)

Oran Gelb is BCLP’s Co-Global Practice Group Leader for Business and Commercial Disputes, and the UK Head of Banking Litigation. He has acted on high profile litigation and investigations for some of the largest global financial institutions as well as clients in a range of other sectors, including technology, telecoms, retail and transport. He has represented clients in the High Court, Court of Appeal and Supreme Court. He has also represented firms and individuals in front of regulators and competition authorities in the UK, Europe, the US and Asia.

Oran has detailed insight into how global institutions operate. He has spent time working in-house on client secondments at Morgan Stanley, Barclays and The Royal Bank of Scotland.

Oran is recognised in Chambers and Legal 500 as a Leading Individual for Banking Litigation and Commercial Litigation.

Examples of recent work include: internal and regulatory investigations for global investment banks relating to a variety of matters including foreign exchange sales and trading, alleged mismarking, transaction reporting and competition breaches in bond markets.

Siobhan Abraham – Senior Associate (International Arbitration)

Siobhan is a Senior Associate in the International Arbitration team in London.

She has extensive experience in complex cross-border commercial and treaty arbitrations, both in ad hoc proceedings and under a range of arbitration rules, with particular experience in LCIA, ICC and ICSID cases. She has advised clients across a broad range of sectors, including in technology, shareholder / joint venture disputes, banking and finance, pharmaceuticals, fashion and licensing amongst others. She advises clients across multiple jurisdictions and has acted in disputes applying a variety of governing laws, including the laws of Mexico, Romania, Cyprus and Malta as well as in multiple disputes under English and international law.

Please note you will receive a confirmation of your booking via email within 24 hours. Should you not receive a confirmation, please contact AFB to double check if your booking was successful.

Logistics

Fee:          Included in AFB membership

Date:        Thursday 16 October 2025

Time:        15:45 – 17:30 (registration & refreshments from 15:45 – 16.15)

Location:   BCLP, Governors House, 5 Laurence Pountney Hill, London EC4R 0BR

BCLP will kindly be hosting drinks from 17:30

There will be ample opportunity for questions throughout the seminar. However, if you would like to submit a question in advance or have any specific questions or areas that you would like the session to address, please send them to AFB at secretariat@foreignbanks.org.uk as soon as practicable. You will receive details on how to join this in-person session a week before the event.