Catherine Amirfar is a litigation partner at Debevoise & Plimpton LLP. She is in the firm’s International Dispute Resolution Group and Co-Chair of the firm’s Public International Law Group. Her practice focuses on public international law, international commercial and treaty arbitration, and international and complex commercial litigation. She recently joined the firm’s Management Committee.
Ms. Amirfar has been ranked among the leading international arbitration practitioners by Chambers Global, which has described her as “very composed, intelligent and a master of investment arbitration.”
Prior to rejoining Debevoise in 2016, Ms. Amirfar spent two years as the Counselor on International Law to the Legal Adviser at the U.S. Department of State during the Obama Administration. During her tenure as Counselor, Ms. Amirfar advised the State Department on its most significant litigation matters involving international law and foreign relations. She received the Superior Honor Award for her service to the Department.
Ms. Amirfar has recently become the President of the American Society of International Law, for which she has been co-hosting a podcast called “International Law Behind the Headlines.” She is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, the American Law Institute, and the Advisory Committee on International Law for the U.S. Department of State. She has written extensively on international arbitration, the relationship between international law and U.S. domestic law, international human rights and humanitarian law, investor-state disputes, and the law of consular and diplomatic immunities.
