Shaistah Akhtar, a Partner in Mishcon de Reya's Dispute Resolution department, spoke to Legal Business about her team's significant win in Nigeria v P&ID, which earned them the Legal Business Commercial Litigation Team of the Year award.
The firm represented Nigeria in challenging a £6.6 billion arbitral award (amounting to £11 billion with accruing interest) made in favour of Process & Industrial Developments Limited (P&ID), on the grounds of fraud.
Reflecting on the case, Shaistah said: "I never saw this as impossible. In this case, there was clear evidence that bribes had been paid and that a massive fraud had been practised on the client."
The team's success hinged on obtaining an unprecedented extension of time to challenge the award, nearly three years past the statutory deadline of 28 days, a move that Akhtar describes as a massive step forward and one that had never been done before.
The case's outcome not only relieved Nigeria of a substantial financial burden but also set an important precedent for other developing countries in the fight against corruption.
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