Philip J. Devenish

Philip Devenish is a Partner in the Dubai office of Jones Day, where he dedicates his practice to resolving the most difficult, complex, and high-value international disputes. In recent years he has won billions of dollars for clients in cases around the world.

Philip has acted for and against commercial and State parties from more than 50 countries in some of the largest and most important cross-border disputes of the past decade, as ranked by The American Lawyer and Global Arbitration Review.

He has managed arbitrations under every major institution (including ICC, LCIA, HKIAC, SIAC, SCC, DIAC, AAA, and ICSID) spanning all the leading global arbitration hubs (London, Paris, Singapore, Hong Kong, Geneva, Zurich, The Hague, Stockholm, Dubai, New York, and Washington D.C.). He has also appeared before trial and appellate courts in England, Australia, the European Union, and Dubai.

Among other successes, Philip served on the legal team that obtained a US$1.1 billion damages award for a major bank in a landmark arbitration arising out of the expropriation of investments in Eastern Europe. He recently settled a US$2 billion dispute for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia during the Qatar diplomatic crisis. According to Jus Mundi, his team has one of the world’s busiest mining arbitration practices.

Philip holds law degrees from the Universities of Oxford and Sydney, where he was the recipient of multiple prizes and scholarships.  He is qualified to practise law in England & Wales and Australia, and has full rights of audience in the DIFC (Dubai) and ADGM (Abu Dhabi) courts.

Honours & Distinctions:

• Ranked annually in The Legal 500 UK, Chambers UK, Who’s Who Legal, Expert Guides, and The Best Lawyers in the United Kingdom for international arbitration and public international law
• Law360, ranked one of the top five arbitration lawyers globally under 40 years of age (2022)
• International Financial Law Review, Europe Award for Commercial Arbitration (2020) in recognition of his “lead role in some of the world’s largest international arbitrations”

He is named in The Legal 500 UK‘s Arbitration Powerlist of leading arbitrators who are “deemed the gold standard by businesses.” Legal directories describe him as an “exceptionally talented professional” (Chambers UK) who is “widely praised by peers and clients” (Expert Guides) and has “practiced at the very top for many years” (The Legal 500 UK).