Georg SCHERPF
Georg Scherpf is partner at Luther’s Complex Disputes Group advising private and state parties on commercial and investment arbitrations. He also sits as arbitrator and on Dispute Adjudication Boards. He advises both under German and English law and has represented clients in over 40 arbitrations and acted in over 25 arbitrator appointments.
His commercial arbitration track-record covers a range of legal issues and sectors including international trade (CISG), distribution law, insurance and re-insurance, corporate disputes (Post M&A), and energy. In the energy sector, Georg has considerable experience in handling large-scale arbitrations involving renewable energy sources (PV, CSP, hydropower, off- and onshore wind) as well as conventional sources such as nuclear, coal, oil & gas. He has most recently represented clients in arbitrations involving several large-scale offshore construction projects. Moreover, he represented clients in several high profile post M&A arbitrations under the ICC, DIS and SCC-Rules, relating to material adverse change situations (MAC) between signing and closing, financial carve-outs, earn-out provisions, and the enforcement for closing in the form of specific performance. In these arbitrations, he also dealt extensively with regulatory approvals .
Georg has a regional focus on disputes relating to investments and business transactions in Scandinavia, the Baltics, the wider CIS region, and the Western Balkans. Besides, he works closely with the Luther offices in Asia on arbitrations involving German parties. He has also represented clients in several setting-aside proceedings and jurisdictional challenges before German and English courts (Higher Regional Courts, High Court London etc.).
His public international law experience includes advising clients in relation to bilateral investment treaties (BITs) and multilateral investment treaties including the Energy Charter Treaty (ECT). He has acted for investors in several treaty cases (ICSID, PCA, UNCITRAL and ad hoc) relating to infrastructure and energy investments in Spain, Czech Republic, Mexico, Albania, Ukraine, and Germany. Closely related to his investment arbitration work, albeit of a commercial nature, is his work in the field of political risk insurance as well as climate change litigation.
Georg Scherpf studied law and philosophy at Humboldt University Berlin (1st State Exam), completed his legal training and bar admission also in Berlin (2nd State Exam) and studied law at King’s College London (LL.B.). He advises clients also as a solicitor under English law in arbitrations.
Georg regularly publishes academic articles, contributes to legal commentaries, and speaks on international dispute resolution. He is co-author of the ICSID Rules and Regulations 2022: Article-by-Article Commentary (Editors Happ/Wilske) and also of the commentary on the 2018 DIS Arbitration Rules (Editors Hennecke/Menz), which is the most extensive and up-to-date commentary of the DIS-Arbitration Rules.
