Photo, Dr. Ragnar Harbst LL.M.

Dr. Ragnar Harbst LL.M.

Partner
Baker McKenzie Rechtsanwaltsgesellschaft mbH von Rechtsanwälten und Steuerberatern

Biography

Dr. Ragnar Harbst is a member of Baker McKenzie’s Dispute Resolution team. He is qualified as a solicitor of England & Wales and is a member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators. In 2012 and 2013, he won the ILO Client Choice Award for the leading arbitration lawyer in Germany, based on a survey of in-house counsel. He lectures on legal writing at the University of Frankfurt and regularly teaches legal writing to clients and students. He is a co-chair of the current ICC Task Force on Maximizing the Probative Value of Witness Evidence, which deals with psychological influences on witness evidence in arbitration. The German JUVE Handbook, Who is Who Legal, Legal 500 and Best Lawyers recommend Ragnar as an arbitration practitioner in Germany.

Practice Focus

Ragnar's practice is devoted to international arbitration and adjudication proceedings, particularly in large infrastructure and construction projects, with a special focus on the railway industry. Ragnar is also increasingly sought as an arbitrator in ICC and DIS arbitrations in construction and commercial matters.

Representative Legal Matters

  • Defended client in ICC arbitration concerning implementation railway project in Asia related to public bidding law and final accounting (amount in dispute of USD 300 million).
  • Represented client in arbitration proceedings concerning tunneling construction project in South-East Asia (amount in dispute over USD 100 million).
  • Represented an international engineering company in dispute concerning construction of nuclear power plant (amount in dispute over EUR 2 billion).
  • Sole arbitrator in an international ICC arbitration concerning competition law.
  • Advises a client on a dispute, worth over USD 500 million, concerning a large railway project in the Middle East.
  • Represented a multinational company in parallel arbitration proceedings concerning intra-joint venture disputes in the energy sector.
  • Represented manufacturer of rolling stock on dispute about allegedly defective components for bogies (amount in dispute EUR 300 million).
  • Sole arbitrator in ICC arbitration concerning on commercial dispute about allocation of costs for TV advertising.

Professional Honors

  • National Leader Arbitration 2020, Who's Who Legal, 2020
  • The Best Lawyers in Germany 2022 edition for Arbitration and Mediation, Construction Law and International Arbitration

Professional Associations and Memberships

  • ICC Commission on Arbitration and ADR Germany - Member
  • German Institution of Arbitration (DIS) - Member

Admissions

  • England & Wales~United Kingdom (2005)
  • Germany (2003)

Education

  • University of Cologne (Ph.D. International Commercial Arbitration) (2003)
  • University of Hamburg (Second State Exam) (2002)
  • University of London (LL.M. International Arbitration) (1998)
  • University of Muenster (Assessor Exam) (1998)

Languages

  • English
  • German

Presentations

Speaker, "Vienna Arbitration Days 2018 on the probative value of Witness Evidence in International Arbitration, " 19 January 2018

Speaker, "IBA Annual Conference in Sydney on the usefulness and reliability of witness evidence in arbitration," 11 October 2017

Speaker, "The current status of the ICC Task Force on Maximizing the Probative Value of Witness Evidence in International Arbitration on occasion of the ICC Commission Meeting," Sydney, 6 October 2017

Publications

Author, "The (In) accuracy of Witness Memory," in "Tahkim Duruşmasının Psikolojisi / The Psychology of Arbitration Hearing," editors Ziya Akinci, Umuf Tuga und Seref Can Arat - Istanbul Arbitration Centre (ISTAC) Publications, 25. 2. 2022

Author, "Adjudication in Germany, Chapter 9 in Burr (ed.), International Contractual and Statutory Adjudication, " Routledge, 2017

Author, "A Counsel’s Guide to Examining and Preparing Witnesses in International Arbitration," WoltersKluwer, 2015