Churchill appoints new counsel in lawsuit against RI
Wednesday, February 4 2015 - 12:50 AM WIB
UK-based mining firm Churchill Mining plc said it has resolved to replace existing counsel Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan and appoint the international law firm of Clifford Chance as the company's counsel in the ICSID arbitration proceedings against the Republic of Indonesia (RI).
The company said in a statement Tuesday that Clifford Chance has also been appointed as counsel for Planet Mining Pty Ltd, the Churchill subsidiary which also has ongoing ICSID arbitration proceedings against the RI. (These Planet Mining proceedings are being dealt with on a consolidated basis with the Churchill claim.)
The Clifford Chance team will be led by the London based head of its International Arbitration Group, Audley Sheppard QC, who will be joined by Clifford Chance partners from the firm's offices in Asia, including Nish Shetty in Singapore, as well as Counsel from Hong Kong, Indonesia and importantly from the firm's office in Perth, Western Australia. Perth based Clifford Chance Counsel Sam Luttrell will provide the Clifford Chance team's case management leadership for the Churchill /Planet Mining cases.
Churchill Chairman of Directors, David Quinlivan said: "The Churchill (and Planet Mining) ICSID arbitration cases have continued to attract significant global attention since last year's dismissal by the Arbitral Tribunal of the RoI objections to jurisdiction. We are delighted to be able to turn to Clifford Chance, a global "magic circle" law firm, to represent us in this dispute. Given their international arbitration law expertise and strong presence in many jurisdictions throughout the Asia Pacific region, we look forward to having our case determined as soon as possible with guidance of one of the world's leading arbitration firms."
Churchill and Planet Mining filed last year a lawsuit with the tribunal against the Indonesian government following the revocation of the mining licenses of the East Kutai coal project in East Kalimantan, in which Churchill and Planet held a 75 percent interest.
Editing by Reiner Simanjuntak