Wouter de Clerck

The disputes in which Wouter assists his clients often involve commercial contracts for the supply of services or goods (including energy, oil and natural gas), share purchase agreements, or joint venture agreements. Wouter has experience of arbitrations under international arbitration rules (NAI, ICC, PCA, LCIA and SIAC) as well as ad hoc arbitrations (UNCITRAL). In addition, Wouter regularly conducts proceedings before the Dutch courts in matters related to arbitration such as international jurisdiction or recognition and enforcement of arbitration decisions. Wouter also sits as arbitrator.

Wouter started his career as a lawyer in 2006 at Houthoff, following which he worked in the international arbitration practice of DLA Piper from 2012 to 2019. In 2020, he joined Legaltree. Wouter regularly writes and lectures on arbitration law, procedural law and of private international law. He is also a guest lecturer at Leiden University and at Erasmus University Rotterdam.

Below are some of the cases in which Wouter has recently been involved:

• Co-counsel in EUR 1 billion enforcement proceedings pertaining to the nationalisation of an Eastern European bank;
• Acting for the former CEO of an energy company in a USD 590 million cross-border fraud dispute situated in Eastern-Europe and the Netherlands;
• Dutch counsel for Nigerian energy company in international joint venture dispute with a value of EUR 410 million;
• Dutch law expert in foreign proceedings concerning a global accounting fraud of EUR 2.6 billion;
• Lead counsel in the Dutch leg of a cross-border fraud dispute over a USD 31.5m SIAC arbitral award

• Guest lecturer Arbitration law – Leiden University, 2016-present
• Lecturer of arbitration law – Law Firm School, 2014-present
• Member – Dutch Arbitration Association (DAA)

• Bond University Australia – LLM International dispute resolution, 2005
• Leiden University – Civil law (with honours), 2004