Sarah Ellington
Watson Farley & Williams LLP
United Kingdom (UK), United Kingdom
I am a dispute resolution lawyer, and have spent my career helping clients to manage and resolve crises. These often arise where there is not sufficient dialogue and engagement at the outset of a relationship, recognising the different interests of various stakeholders and the need to find a common way forwards. I am interested in bringing more “pre-emptive remedy” to investment planning and implementation, and using collaborative dialogue to expand value for all parties.
I have experience of resolving disputes across sectors and geographies, using many different mechanisms, including court and arbitration proceedings, OECD National Contact Point specific instance procedure, UN complaints procedures and mediation. I am also a CEDR accredited mediator, and have participated in consultations on CEDR’s proposed framework for mediating ESG disputes. I have also consulted on and drafted private grievance mechanisms, and advised on the resolution of complaints under them.
I am increasingly asked to put all of this experience to use in front-end advisory, in particular for large infrastructure projects and renewable energy and other impact funds. I have drafted policies and procedures as well as providing strategic advisory and advice on implementation, including through contractual provisions.
As a member of the IBA Human Rights Committee, a member of the Society for Computers and Law ESG Committee, and a co-founder and co-creator with the Legal Innovation for Sustainable Investments (LISI) Foundation – working to create a specialised Impact Term Sheet template – I bring many different experiences and perspectives to GAIL, and look forward to continuing to work with, explore opportunities with, and learn from my fellow GAIL members.