Alastair Henderson

Alastair has more than 20 years' experience handling major disputes across many sectors and industries, concerning a wide variety of trade, commercial and financial activities, with particular experience of oil, gas and power, construction and engineering, infrastructure and projects, and major foreign investment. He is very familiar with disputes in or concerning the countries of Southeast Asia, as well as international cases outside the region. His clients include governments and public bodies, state-owned and independent companies, international banks, and other multinational and leading regional companies.

Alastair has served numerous times as sole arbitrator, co-arbitrator and presiding arbitrator and has handled many cases as counsel under the rules of the ICC, LCIA, SIAC, HKIAC, KLRCA, SIArb, CIETAC, Thai Arbitration Institute and Indonesian National Arbitration Institute (BANI) as well as UNCITRAL rules and pure ad hoc cases. He is a Fellow of the Singapore Institute of Arbitrators; a national committee member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators; and a former member of ICC Thailand national arbitration commission.

Alastair's experience includes advising:

• a Japanese trading house in Singapore-seated arbitration (SIAC rules) concerning joint venture liabilities for Indian sales tax and litigation costs arising under a contract to supply rolling stock to a mass transit rail project in India
• a major global bank in a Bangkok-seated arbitration (ICC rules) concerning fraud and forgery in the operation of the international payment system for air ticket sales in Cambodia and Thailand
• an Asian energy company in claims and potential arbitration arising under a contract for design, procurement, construction and installation of a processing and living quarters platform in waters offshore Myanmar
• a Chinese EPC contractor in Singapore-seated arbitration (ICC rules) concerning design and construction of a major coal-fired power plant in central America
• an Asian state-owned company in relation to claims against the Republic of India under applicable state-to-state investment protection agreements, concerning major investment in an Indian infrastructure concession

Accolades

• Listed as one of the world’s leading specialists in commercial arbitration International Who's Who of Business Lawyers 2005 through 2015
• "One of the leading names on the Asia-Pacific arbitration scene, offering clients extensive knowledge of South-East Asian matters from his Singapore base. Sources particularly appreciate his 'in-depth experience and good judgment'  when acting for major arbitration clients across such industries as oil and gas, banking and manufacturing"  Chambers Asia 2014: Asia-Wide – International Arbitration

​Publications

• Part K, Thailand  in Arbitration in Asia (Michael Moser ed, 2nd Ed, 2008, updated 2014), Juris Publishing
• Interlocutory Applications in Arbitration in Singapore: A Practical Guide (2014), Sweet & Maxwell
• Lex Arbitri, Procedural Law and the Seat of Arbitration: Unravelling the Laws of the Arbitration Process, Singapore Academy of Law Journal, Special Edition, Conflicts of Laws in Arbitration (2014) 886

Background

He graduated in law from Oxford University and worked for 5 years in London before moving to Asia in 1993. After several years each in Hong Kong and Bangkok, he is now based in Singapore from where he works on cases across the region and beyond as managing partner for Southeast Asia.