About

Who writes Arb Law?

My name is Aleksandra Zanowska.

I am a dual-qualified attorney in New York and Poland. I hold an LL.M. degree from Harvard Law School, as well as a Master’s degree in law from Poland’s top law school, Jagiellonian University in Cracow.

I have eight years of experience in resolving disputes, in particular through international arbitration. In my practice, I focused on representing clients in international commercial and investment arbitrations. I have experience with proceedings conducted under the ICC Arbitration Rules, UNCITRAL Arbitration Rules, ICSID Arbitration Rules, JAMS Arbitration Rules, PCC Arbitration Rules, and DIFC-LCIA Arbitration Rules.

International arbitration

  • Co-chair counsel for Polish entrepreneurs successfully defeating claims of a Finnish company pertaining to a contractual penalty for termination of negotiations of a share purchase agreement in arbitration proceedings held under the Arbitration Rules of the Polish Chamber of Commerce
  • Co-chair counsel for an Italian company in successful post-M&A arbitration proceedings held under the ICC Arbitration Rules regarding the transfer of shares against a Polish former shareholder
  • Co-chair counsel for an Austrian company in settled post-M&A arbitration proceedings held under the Arbitration Rules of the Polish Chamber of Commerce concerning price adjustment
  • Co-chair counsel for a Czech mining company in a set of interconnected post-M&A arbitration proceedings held under the ICC Arbitration Rules
  • Second-chair counsel for a Polish videogaming company successfully defeating on jurisdiction claims of a Texas advisor in JAMS arbitration proceedings seated in Texas
  • Second-chair counsel in successful expert proceedings held under the ICC Rules for the Administration of Expert Proceedings relating to a dispute between shareholders
  • Third-chair counsel for an investor in successful ad hoc investment arbitration proceedings under the UNCITRAL Arbitration Rules administered by the PCA
  • Member of the team representing a Dutch investor in ICSID investment arbitration proceedings
  • Member of the team representing a Middle Eastern company in DIFC-LCIA commercial arbitration proceedings
  • Acted as counsel for clients in proceedings for the enforcement of arbitral awards in Poland
Litigation
  • Co-chair counsel for a subcontractor in over 15 interconnected commercial and criminal proceedings concerning an infrastructure project from the TMT sector in Poland
  • Co-chair counsel for a European bank before the Supreme Court in Poland in proceedings pertaining to the interpretation and application of certain provisions of the Polish civil code and civil procedure code in consumer disputes
  • Author of a successful cassation appeal to the Supreme Court in Poland on behalf of a German pharmaceutical company in proceedings concerning trademark protection in case of parallel import in the EU
  • Co-chair counsel defending an international FMCG company in a trademark infringement dispute in Poland
  • Co-chair counsel defending a company from the insulation market in a case concerning unfair competition claims
  • Co-chair counsel defending multiple banks in mass claims concerning consumer claims as to the validity of mortgage loan agreements
  • Author of motion to the Supreme Court of Poland on behalf of an insurer in proceedings for clarification of the statute of limitation on claims under the unit-linked life insurance plans
  • Member of the team representing amici curiae in a case heard by the Supreme Court of Florida (pro bono)

Admissions

  • New York
  • Poland
Education
  • Harvard Law School, LL.M.
  • Jagiellonian University, Master in Law
Languages
  • Polish
  • English
  • French
  • Spanish
  • Beyond Delays: Practical Techniques to Improve Efficiency in Arbitration, HIALSA Arbitration Review 2025 Edition, 2025
  • The Advocate General calls for additional requirements to be satisfied in order for an individual arbitration agreement in intra-EU investment arbitration to be compatible with EU law, Global Arbitration News, 2021
  • Energy Charter Treaty and EU law – the Advocate General’s opinion calling for broadening the reasoning from Achmea Judgment to ECT and CJEU’s jurisdiction over a case concerning non-EU Members, Global Arbitration News, 2021
  • CAS arbitration clause improper under EU law? The General Court of the EU disagrees, Global Arbitration News, 2021
  • EU law, Polish public policy? Polish court’s views on taking into account EU laws on state aid in setting aside proceedings, Global Arbitration News, 2020
  • Setting-off or setting aside? Polish court holds that tribunal’s refusal to consider set-off violates Polish public policy, Global Arbitration News, 2020
  • New Agreement Between EU Member States: Is This the (Definite) End of Intra-EU Investment Arbitration?, co-author, Global Arbitration News, 2020
  • Polish Appellate Court set aside ICC award for violating basic principles of public policy, co-author, Global Arbitration News, 2019
  • Poland: The autonomy of the arbitration proceedings and the limited scope of the public policy objection, co-author, Global Arbitration News, 2018
  • Poland: How far can an arbitral tribunal go if they consider the contract inequitable?, co-author, Global Arbitration News, 2018
  • Arbitration in Poland after the 2015 amendments of the Code of Civil Procedure and the Bankruptcy Law, co-author, Global Arbitration News, 2016
  • Speaker at the 5th FDI Budapest Pre-moot Conference, ‘Compensability in investment arbitration. Injuries’ types and applicable standards‘, Budapest, October 2019
  • Speaker at the UNCITRAL-UM Joint Conference 2018, ‘Reform to the ISDS mechanisms – Barking up the wrong tree or the right tree but with different game in mind’, Macao SAR of the People’s Republic of China, December 2018
  • Lecturer at the Jagiellonian University in Cracow (2016 – 2018), “International Investment Arbitration–FDI Moot Court–Workshop”
  • Annual Willem C. Vis International Commercial Arbitration Moot, Arbitrator (since 2016)
  • Foreign Direct Investment International Arbitration Moot (Coach, 2016-2020; Arbitrator since 2017)
  • Remote Oral Advocacy Programme—Americas 2024/2025, organized by DELOS Dispute Resolution (2024-2025)
  • Young ICCA Skills Training Workshop on Cross-examination in International Arbitration, organized by Young ICCA (2018 and 2019)
  • Singapore International Arbitration Academy, organized by the Centre for International Law at the National University of Singapore (2016)
  • The Advocacy Academy, organized by the Institute of Advanced Legal Skills in cooperation with the Warsaw University and Iain Morley QC (2016)
  • The ICC Arbitration and ADR Training Programme, organized by the ICC, ICC Poland and the Jagiellonian University, (2014-2015)