Skip to content
7KBW Barristers Chambers - Commercial Barristers Chambers
Background

Alice Osman 

Call: 2024 (New Zealand, 2014)

+44 (0)20 7910 8300
seniorclerks@7kbw.co.uk
Download CV (PDF)
Download vCard
Print
Privacy Policy

Alice Osman accepts instructions across all areas of commercial law. She joined 7KBW in September 2025 following the successful completion of her pupillage.

Alice is an experienced commercial disputes lawyer.  Before joining Chambers, she worked as a Senior Associate in the international arbitration team of a leading US law firm (London office). In that role, she represented corporations and sovereign States in investment treaty and commercial arbitrations relating to oil and gas, energy, mining, pharmaceuticals and shipping. Her experience includes conducting oral advocacy and cross-examining fact and expert witnesses in hearings of high-value arbitral proceedings.

Alice also previously practised at a leading commercial and competition law set in New Zealand, and worked as a judges’ clerk (judicial assistant) at the High Court of New Zealand. She holds an LLB (First Class Honours) and BA (Politics major) from the University of Otago and an LLM from Harvard Law School.

In addition to her commercial law practice, Alice has experience in public international law and accepts instructions in this area.

Expertise

Expand all
  • Assisted (as a pupil) in obtaining permission to serve out of jurisdiction as a precursor to committal proceedings for breach of an anti-suit injunction.
  • Assisted (as a pupil) with the war risk insurers’ defence in the Russian Aircraft Lessor Policy Claims case.
  • Acted (as a barrister in New Zealand) for a group of companies bringing claims under contract, negligence and fair-trading legislation against a bank relating to the sale of interest rate swaps (led by a KC).
  • As a judges’ clerk in the High Court of New Zealand, worked on numerous commercial cases involving contract law, banking and finance law, company law and insolvency law issues.

Commercial Arbitration

  • Assisted (as a pupil) in an LCIA arbitration concerning alleged non-delivery under diesel contracts.
  • Represented (as a foreign-qualified solicitor) a European State in an ICC arbitration under a concession agreement involving English contract law and EU competition law issues.
  • Represented (as a foreign-qualified solicitor) a pharmaceutical company in an LCIA arbitration under a sales and supply agreement governed by English law.
  • Represented (as a foreign-qualified solicitor) a shipbuilder in an ad hoc, London-seated arbitration against a BVI company concerning the sale and charter of a deep-sea drill ship and involving fraud claims.

Investment treaty arbitration

Alice’s investment treaty arbitration experience includes representing (as a foreign-qualified solicitor):

  • The Republic of Bulgaria in defending claims of more than €1 billion in an Energy Charter Treaty arbitration under ICSID rules in the electricity sector.
  • The Republic of Turkey in an arbitration under ICSID rules involving claims of over USD 1 billion in relation to a natural gas distribution business.
  • The Kingdom of Thailand in an arbitration under UNCITRAL rules relating to a gold mining project.
  • The Kyrgyz Republic and a state-owned enterprise in five connected Swedish-seated arbitrations under the UNCITRAL rules in relation to disputes under contracts with a Canadian mining company.

In 2023 and 2024, Alice co-taught a course on International Investment Disputes at the London campus of Pepperdine University.

  • Assisted (as a pupil) with the defence of a liability insurance claim in the Bermuda court concerning the settlement of shareholder claims.
  • Assisted (as a pupil) with the war risk insurers’ defence in the Russian Aircraft Lessor Policy Claims case.
  • Assisted (as a pupil) in advising on potential claims under a professional indemnity policy.
  • Assisted (as a pupil) in advising insurers on notification and attachment issues arising from mis-sold pension claims.
  • Represented (as a foreign-qualified solicitor) a European State in an ICC arbitration under a concession agreement involving defences under TFEU Articles 101, 102 and 106.
  • Assisted (as a barrister in New Zealand) in advising on price-fixing risks of a proposed joint venture between companies involved in generating and distributing electricity.
  • Assisted (as a barrister in New Zealand) in advising the national competition agency in its pricing review determination of services offered by the country’s largest telecommunications infrastructure provider.

In addition to her experience in investment treaty disputes, Alice has broad experience in public international law, with a particular focus on international human rights and international humanitarian law. As a foreign-qualified solicitor, she:

  • Advised a State in relation to potential claims under the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.
  • Advised an NGO on the application of international human rights law during armed conflicts.
  • Advised low-income developing countries on the assessment of National Determined Contributions (NDCs) submitted under the Paris Agreement on climate change.

Alice also previously worked as a consultant researcher for the International Service for Human Rights and for the Armed Conflict Civilian Protection Initiative at Harvard Law School. As an intern advisor to the New Zealand Mission to the United Nations in New York, she worked as part of New Zealand’s delegation to the General Assembly (UNGA) Committee on disarmament and international security.

What the directories say

Lexology Index

“Future Leader” – International Arbitration (2024-2026)

Legal 500

“Key lawyer” – International Arbitration (2022-2023)

“Key lawyer” – Public International Law (2021-2023)

Related content

+44 (0)20 7910 8300
seniorclerks@7kbw.co.uk
Download CV (PDF)
Download vCard
Print
Privacy Policy

For more information
Contact our clerks for assistance with choosing the right barrister for your matter.

  • “Summary and digest, Kardassopoulos and Fuchs v. Republic of Georgia ICSID Case Nos. ARB/05/18 and ARB/07/15” (2022) 20 ICSID Reports 141.
  • “Demanding Attention: The Roles of Unincorporated International Instruments in Judicial Reasoning” (2013) New Zealand Journal of Public and International Law vol. 12 no. 2, pp. 345-378
  • LLM, Harvard Law School (2017)
  • LLB (First Class Honours), University of Otago, New Zealand (2013)
  • BA (Politics major), University of Otago, New Zealand (2013)
  • Landon H Gammon Fellowship (Harvard Law School)
  • William Georgetti Scholarship (for NZ postgraduate candidates)
  • Yvonne AM Smith Scholarship (for NZ postgraduate candidates)
  • University of Otago Scholarship in Law
  • First in class: Competition Law; International Law; Legal Theory; several Politics courses (University of Otago)
  • Anna P Stout Scholarship (University of Otago)
  • First Place mooting prizes: NZ Bar Association Young Lawyers’ Moot (2015); Australian Law Students’ Association (ALSA) Championship Moot, Sydney (2011); University of Otago Senior Moot (2010 & 2011)

Get in touch

For more information please contact our clerks on +44 (0)20 7910 8300 or [email protected]

Portfolio Builder

Select the expertise that you would like to download or add to the portfolio

Download    Add to portfolio   
Portfolio
Title Type CV Email

Remove All

Download

Click here to share this shortlist.
(It will expire after 30 days.)