Mariel DIMSEY
Dr Dimsey is an independent arbitrator based in Hong Kong. She has over 20 years’ experience acting as advisor, advocate, and arbitrator in numerous international arbitrations covering a wide range of legal systems and industries. She is a past Secretary-General of the Hong Kong International Arbitration Centre (“HKIAC”) and was Managing Partner of CMS Hong Kong and Head of the CMS APAC Arbitration team.
Dr Dimsey’s experience in international arbitration spans three continents. She is an Australian-qualified lawyer who then went on to develop a solid academic foundation in Europe (LL.M. in Cologne, Germany and PhD in Basel, Switzerland) before commencing practice in Germany. Dr Dimsey practised international arbitration in the German offices of large international law firms for 10 years before moving to Hong Kong, a major arbitral seat, in 2016.
Dr Dimsey worked in international law firms in Hong Kong and was Co-Head of CMS International Arbitration before she became Secretary-General of the HKIAC. In her role as Secretary-General of HKIAC, Dr Dimsey was responsible for a caseload of over 600 ongoing arbitrations and a staff of 40 people, and for all operational aspects of the centre. Dr Dimsey uses her experience as the chief operating officer of one of the world’s leading arbitral institutions to bring a unique perspective to her work as arbitrator.
Over the years, Dr Dimsey has developed a cross-jurisdictional and international arbitration practice spanning a wide range of industry sectors. Her sectoral experience includes banking and finance, corporate/M&A, construction/infrastructure, crypto and fintech, pharmaceuticals, IP and licensing, international sales of goods, insurance, aircraft, real estate, renewable energy, maritime, and trade. Dr Dimsey also has extensive experience in investment arbitration and is one of the few practitioners based in Asia to offer this expertise.
As a result of her international background, Dr Dimsey has extensive experience in both common law and civil law disputes, including substantial experience in disputes involving Chinese and South-East Asian parties, particularly in disputes involving European counterparties. Dr Dimsey is a native English speaker, and has full professional fluency in German.
Dr Dimsey has been sitting as arbitrator since 2008 and has experience as arbitrator under the HKIAC, ICC, KCAB, and DIS Rules, and in ad hoc disputes. She is on the arbitrator panels of several institutions.
Dr Dimsey has always been heavily engaged in initiatives to support the arbitration community. She is a past co-chair of the HK45 Committee, a past ICC YAAF (then YAF) regional coordinator, and a Council member of the Asian Domain Name Dispute Resolution Centre (ADNDRC). She is currently an office-holder of the Inter-Pacific Bar Association (IPBA) and a rapporteur for the International Law Association (ILA) Committee on Conflict-of-Laws Issues in International Arbitration.
Dr Dimsey is also committed to raising the profile of women and to diversity topics. She is a Member of the Advisory Board of Women in Law Hong Kong (WILHK) and a founding member of the ERA Pledge APAC Subcommittee.
Dr Dimsey speaks regularly on panels around the world (including over 80 speaking engagements during her term as Secretary-General at HKIAC). She has also published extensively on commercial and investment arbitration topics.
Dr Dimsey also consults, offering strategic advice on international projects and dispute management.
