Committee

Victoria Russell

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Victoria Russell LLB FCIArb FCIOB FFB is a solicitor with over 40 years’ experience of resolving construction and engineering disputes on a wide variety of projects through litigation, arbitration, adjudication and all forms of ADR, most recently at Fenwick Elliott LLP. She is a practising arbitrator, adjudicator and mediator. Victoria is a former Chair of the Society of Construction Law and former President of the European Society for Construction Law. In 2018 she was the first female, and first solicitor, recipient of the Society of Construction Law’s President’s medal.

Susan Francombe

Chair

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Susan Francombe has worked in the construction industry for over 30 years on a variety of construction projects including drainage, hospitals, roads, bridges and tunnels. She is a dual-qualified Civil Engineer and registered Barrister and has a keen interest in adjudication, both as an adjudicator and consultant. Susan is also actively involved in the Institution of Civil Engineers, sitting on a number of committees and helping steer the ICE Law & Contract Management Examinations.

Sean Gibbs

Senior Vice-Chair

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Sean is a director with Hanscomb Intercontinental and provides expert advisory and expert witness services to the UK and global construction, engineering and shipbuilding industries. He has worked on project & programme values up to $24 bn though is equally at home on much smaller sized projects. His primary profession is Chartered Quantity Surveyor and he holds Fellowships with the RICS, CIARB, CIOB, CICES and is also a non-practising barrister. Sean’s primary expertise as an expert witness is quantum, and he has given evidence before a variety of tribunals around the globe. Sean also acts as a third party neutral sitting as adjudicator, arbitrator, expert determiner and dispute board member. Sean is a keen supporter of the use of adjudication and founded the Adjudicator Nominating Body, UK Adjudicators and regularly speaks about its benefits to global audiences.

Arran Dowling-Hussey

Junior Vice-Chair

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Arran is a Barrister, Adjudicator, Arbitrator and Mediator at 4-5 Gray’s Inn Square London and Law Library, Dublin. CIArb Trustee (2017-2023) and former CIArb Board of Management member. Co-Editor Construction, Engineering and Energy Law Journal of Ireland (2015 to date). Associate law lecturer at Robert Gordon University working on LL.M in construction law and arbitration.

Martin Ewen

Honorary Treasurer

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Martin qualified and practised as a Chartered Quantity Surveyor for several years before qualifying as a solicitor in 2006. Since qualification, Martin has practised solely in contentious construction and engineering matters, with a significant part of his practice comprising adjudication. Martin is a Partner in Fenwick Elliott LLP.

Dean Sayers

Regional Coordinator

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Dean has a keen interest in adjudication and is a registered adjudicator on the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators’ (CIArb) Presidential Panel of Adjudicators, the Construction Industry Council’s (CIC) Register of Adjudicators and UK Adjudicators’ (UKA) Adjudicator Panel. Dean is also a regular user of adjudication when acting as advocate on behalf of his employer, contractor and sub-contractor clients.

Morwenna Crichton

Honorary Secretary

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Morwenna is a founder and director of Yelland Savage Limited. She is an experienced adjudication practitioner having acted for clients in hundreds of adjudications over more than 2 decades. Morwenna has sat on multiple committees for professional bodies and has guest lectured at several universities.

Donny Mackinnon

Conference Organiser

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Donny is an experienced and multi-disciplined construction professional: a Chartered Construction Manager, a Chartered Quantity Surveyor and a Chartered Arbitrator (qualified in both domestic and international commercial arbitration). He is a Fellow of the Institution of Civil Engineers and of the Chartered Institute of Civil Engineering Surveyors and is a Member of the Academy of Experts.

Bernadette Barker

General member

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Bernadette Barker BA (Hons) Dip Arch RIBA MSc (Construction Law & Arbitration) FCIArb DipICArb C.Arb MIFireE MAE is a Chartered Architect, Chartered Arbitrator, Adjudicator and Expert Witness and has over 35 years’, across the board experience, in the construction industry. She has been running her consultancy practice since 1993. Bernadette is a panel member of the CIC, the CIArb, the UKA, and is registered with the ICC. She has been acting as an adjudicator since 1998.

Amy Bonczyk

General member

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Amy is a chartered quantity surveyor, quantum expert witness and adjudicator and has over 15 years’ experience in the industry. She is regularly involved in dispute resolution processes for both contractors and client organisations. Amy has experience across a wide range of sectors providing claims analysis and expert evidence and has considerable experience of Adjudication, from both an expert witness and adjudicator’s perspective. Amy is also passionate about ED&I and strives to continually contribute towards positive change.

Nicholas Gould

General member

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Nicholas Gould is a partner in the specialist construction, engineering and energy lawyers Fenwick Elliott LLP, where he conducts a mix of international dispute resolution and non-contentious work. He is a solicitor-advocate, chartered surveyor, accredited adjudicator and CEDR lead mediator. He sits as arbitrator and on dispute boards. He acts for contractors, employers and governments in the building, construction, engineering, infrastructure, transport, energy, oil and gas, and process engineering sectors. Nicholas is a Visiting Professor at King’s College London and Vice President of the ICC’s Arbitration Commission. He is President of the DRBF and past Chairman of the Society of Construction Law.

Hamish Lal

General member

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Hamish Lal is ranked Band 1 in Construction and Band 1 in International Construction Arbitration in Chambers & Partners, and in the Top-Tier in The Legal 500 UK. Hamish is a Solicitor-Advocate (All Higher Courts) and admitted to Part II of the DIFC Courts Register of Legal Practitioners. Hamish is also an Adjunct Professor of Law - University College Dublin (UCD) Sutherland School of Law; A Fulbright Scholar; and Author, `Manual of Construction Agreements' published by LexisNexis.

Suryen Nullatamby

General member

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Suryen is the Head of Construction at Birkett Long Solicitors in London and Essex. He is an accredited Adjudicator, an Arbitrator and a Solicitor-Advocate with over 18 years’ experience in construction law and dispute resolution including adjudication. He acts for main contractors, sub-contractors, employers, construction professionals, public bodies and developers on both contentious and non-contentious matters. Suryen is a Fellow of the CIARB and sits on the ICE Dispute Resolution Committee and the King’s College Construction Law Association committee.

James O'Donoghue

General member

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Personal ADR Practice: ADJUDICATOR (Minister’s Panel appointee CCA 2013 Ireland) Chartered ARBITRATOR Accredited MEDIATOR (CEDR, CIArb) CONCILIATOR. Partner BLUETT & O’DONOGHUE Built Environment Consultancy. Former CIArb: Ireland Branch Chair, CIArb Faculty Member for Adjudication Courses (1996 Act) and Arbitration. Former Chair Liaison Committee of Construction Industry Ireland. Member ICC Commission on Arbitration & ADR. Member of the RIAI Contracts Drafting Group responsible for the RIAI suite of Construction Contracts and related documentation.

James Pickavance

General member

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James leads the construction and infrastructure disputes practice at Jones Day in London. He has experience of all major forms of dispute resolution, advising public bodies, international corporations and private clients on domestic and international, single or multi-jurisdictional disputes across a range of industry sectors, in particular energy, major infrastructure and commercial development. He is a Visiting Fellow at Kings College London University and teaches on the Construction Masters Degree Course. He is a board member of the International Construction Law Association. He has authored over 40 articles in various publications. He is author of the 768 page leading text "A Practical Guide to Construction Adjudication", published by Wiley Blackwell.

Carly Thorpe

General member

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Carly Thorpe is a Partner in the Construction & Engineering team at Walker Morris LLP in Leeds. With a reputation for focusing on pragmatic commercial solutions and extensive knowledge of construction case law, Carly was named as a Next Generation Partner by Legal 500, who refer to her “exceptional ability to analyse the options available and find a way through difficult negotiations”. Carly authors a monthly legal update Walker Morris Adjudication Matters.