European Advisory Board
Co-Chair: Vanessa Alarcon Duvanel, Counsel, King & Spalding
Co-Chair: Torsten Bartsch, Associate General Counsel, Caterpillar
Secretary: Patrycja Kolwas, Senior Disputes Counsel, at COFCO International
Co-Chair: Torsten Bartsch, Associate General Counsel, Caterpillar
Secretary: Patrycja Kolwas, Senior Disputes Counsel, at COFCO International
CPR’s European presence dates from the early 1990s when a group of corporate and legal leaders from Europe was convened to form the CPR European Advisory Committee. Under the leadership of Hans Peter Frick, former General Counsel of Nestlé, the group organized the First European Congress on ADR in 2004, followed by four annual conferences around Europe. The European Advisory Committee worked on a number of other initiatives including building CPR’s Panel of Neutrals in Europe; advising the European Commission on its Directive on Mediation and its Code of Ethics for Mediators; and drafting the CPR Reinsurance Industry Protocol.
Today, CPR continues to serve as a leading independent resource in Europe helping businesses and their legal advisers, whether in-house or external counsel, prevent and resolve commercial disputes more efficiently and cost-effectively.
CPR carries out its mission in Europe with the help of its European Advisory Board (EAB), a body composed of CPR member representatives based throughout Europe who are invited to serve on the EAB. Within the EAB, representatives from leading European law firms work collaboratively with senior representatives from the following corporations: Akzo Nobel, Amgen, Anheuser-Busch InBev, BP, Capgemini, Deutsche Bank, DuPont, Fluor Corporation, GE Power, HP, Koncar, Mastercard, Orange, PMI, Shell, Swiss Re, Wärtsilä Corporation, and others.
European Advisory Board Members
The EAB provides strategic direction to CPR’s activities in the region and works on a number of initiatives of interest to corporations and law firms in Europe. The EAB develops resources, shares knowledge and best practices, and networks with respect to dispute prevention and resolution, including the European Mediation & ADR Guide.
The EAB also organizes regular events throughout Europe, such as the 2017 European Congress on Business Dispute Management it held at the offices of Mastercard in London on March 28, 2017, the 2018 European Congress on Business Dispute Management hosted by SwissRe in London on May 31, 2018, the 2019 European Conference hosted by SwissRe in London on May 15, 2019, the 2020 CPR European Conference, hosted virtually by Arbitration Place on September 15 and 16, 2020, and presents panels for CPR's annual Global Conference.
The EAB convenes regular meetings of its members, most recently holding meetings in Paris (June 2022), Geneva (December 2022), and London (April 2023).
CPR Institute
CPR's Diversity Commitment
