Country Conditions Experts
PhD or research degree in African Studies, Political Science, International Relations, Anthropology, or Law. Field research in relevant African countries. Language skills including French, Swahili, Arabic, Amharic, Hausa, and Somali. Tribunal acceptance history and rigorous citation standards.
African Law Experts
Qualified in relevant African jurisdiction(s). Knowledge of OHADA, ECOWAS, and SADC legal frameworks. Experience with BIT obligations. Independent, court-facing reporting standards.
Investment Arbitration Experts
ICSID, UNCITRAL, ICC, and LCIA experience. Sector expertise in mining, energy, and infrastructure. African country and law knowledge.
LGBTQI+ Specialists
Human rights advocacy and research background. Country-specific expertise. Training in sexuality and gender identity evidence standards.
Independence and objectivity
An expert's primary duty is to the court or tribunal - not to the instructing solicitor or client. Experts must provide independent, objective analysis and must not act as advocates.
Reports must state the substance of all material instructions, distinguish fact from opinion, and not omit material facts. Africa country evidence is subject to the same rigorous standards as any court-appointed expert evidence.
Where parties agree a Single Joint Expert (SJE), one expert is jointly instructed on defined issues while retaining the same overriding duty to the court. SJE appointments are frequently used in contested country conditions and official COI rebuttal cases.
Publicly funded instructions
Experts on our panel support publicly funded and privately funded cases. See our Legal Aid instruction guide for the prior authority process where it applies.