Mevelyn Ong

Special Counsel (Admitted in Australia and New York)
Norton Rose Fulbright Australia

Melbourne
T:+61 3 8686 6087
Melbourne
T:+61 3 8686 6087
Mevelyn Ong

Mevelyn Ong

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Biography

Mevelyn Ong has an international dispute resolution practice focused on international arbitration and cross-border anti-corruption investigations.

Having lived in Australia, East Asia, the U.K and the U.S., Mevelyn represents clients around the world from diverse industry sectors in the management of international arbitrations conducted on an ad hoc basis as well as administered under the major arbitral rules (including the ICC, LCIA, ICSID, UNCITRAL, PCA and AAA Rules). She also advises on the drafting of dispute resolution clauses in complex multi-party and multi-contract situations, and on the structuring of investments under international investment treaties.  Mevelyn has additionally represented multinational companies and financial institutions in conducting internal investigations and defending against multi-jurisdictional regulatory investigations brought by U.S., U.K. and other governmental authorities on matters related to alleged sanctions violations, money laundering, bribery, corruption and other forms of alleged corporate misconduct.

Prior to joining the firm, Mevelyn was a senior associate at a leading law firm in New York. She also previously worked in Australia and East Asia, including as Deputy Counsel to the Secretariat of the ICC International Court of Arbitration.

The totality of Mevelyn's global experiences – as advisor to companies and states, counsel to a leading international arbitral institution, and as a judicial associate – have afforded her a distinguishing ability to view a dispute from various angles, and to formulate dispute pre-emption, mitigation and resolution strategies accordingly. Additionally, Mevelyn has particular experience and interest in advising on and managing international disputes and crises that implicate issues of political risk, ESG/BHR considerations, corruption/transnational criminality, and international law. She is an active member of a number of international law committees, including the International Bar Association's Investment Arbitration Committee and the New York City Bar's Business & Human Rights Working Group.

 

 

Professional experience

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  • LLM, Columbia University, USA, 2016
  • Certificate in Global Arbitration Law and Practice, Queen Mary University of London, UK, 2013
  • LLB (First Class Honours), University of Melbourne, Australia, 2010
  • BA (International Relations and French), University of Melbourne, Australia, 2010
  • Supreme Court of Victoria 2012
  • High Court of Australia 2012
  • New York 2017

Select international arbitrations

  • A North American-headquartered mining company - in international investment agreement disputes over a gold mine, against a Central Asian state and its state-owned entity proceeding through PCA / UNCITRAL arbitrations seated in Sweden (New York and English law).
  • A North American-headquartered mining company - in the negotiation and settlement of international investment disputes concerning copper mines and other investment projects, against a Central African state proceeding through an ICSID arbitration.
  • A Swedish-headquartered multinational telecommunications company - in post-merger disputes with Kazakh and Turkish telecommunications companies proceeding through LCIA arbitrations seated in London, and a parallel mediation (English law).
  • A former Caribbean subsidiary of a multinational hotel chain - in post-merger disputes against another multinational hotel chain proceeding through expert determination (English law).
  • A Dutch conglomerate - against a South Korean conglomerate regarding the arbitrability of a dispute related to liability for European Commission antitrust fines to be administered under the ICC Rules, as opposed to and in defence of concurrent Korean and New York court litigation (New York law).
  • A multinational conglomerate - in long-running intellectual property patent disputes that proceeded to mediations then respectively, to AAA arbitration seated in New York (New York law) and UNCITRAL arbitration seated in New York (English law).
  • Various companies in international dispute prevention, mitigation and settlement initiatives, including advising on investment structuring under investment treaties and multi-tiered dispute resolution frameworks in complex multi-party and/or multi-contract international investment and project finance contractual arrangements.

Select international sanctions/anti-corruption investigations

  • An NYSE-listed American investment management/private equity firm with respect to compliance with U.S. sanctions regimes related to Russia and China.
  • A global bank in defence of an OFAC investigation into alleged violations of U.S.-Iran sanctions law by the bank’s Asia-Pacific operations.
  • A global bank in defence of U.S. and U.K. regulatory investigations concerning compliance with U.S. sanctions, anti-money laundering, terrorism financing and other applicable laws by the bank's operations in the Middle East.
  • A Middle Eastern-Swiss bank in defence of U.S. and Swiss regulatory investigations regarding alleged involvement in the FIFA bribery scandal.
  • An English-Greek shipping company group regarding alleged involvement in the Petrobras Operation Car Wash corruption scandal.
  • A global bank regarding allegations of bribery of a foreign official with respect to sustainable finance projects in Western Europe.

Select academic papers

  • "From Aspiration to Public Policy: Imprinting UNGP-Aligned Footprints of Corporate Responsibility and Accountability into the Shifting Sands of International Arbitration Practice" (ICSID Review Journal, 2024)
  • "Navigating the U.S. Sanctions Regime as International Arbitration Counsel” (OGEMID-Transnational Dispute Management Journal, 2023-2024)
  • "Reconceptualizing the International Legal Personality and Responsibility of Foreign Investors in the Post Pandemic World” (Kluwer Arbitration Blog; republished in the ACICA Review, 2022)
  • “The Interplay of Sovereignty, Personality and Consent in the Execution of Arbitral Award Debts Against Non-Party State-Owned Enterprises” (McGill Journal of Dispute Resolution, 2018, in English and French)
  • "The Rise of Self-Judging Essential Security Interest Clauses in International Investment” (Columbia FDI Perspectives, 2016, co-authored)

Select engagements

  • Young ITA (in partnership with the Singapore Ministry of Law), "Navigating Cultural Dynamics in International Dispute Resolution: Perspectives from the Asia Pacific Region" (Moderator)
  • British Institute of International and Comparative Law/Society for Legal Scholars, “Non-State Actors International Law Responsibilities in International Arbitration” (Panelist)
  • Practising Law Institute, “Investor State Disputes & Emergent ESG Issues” (Panelist)
  • ICC YAAF, “Contracting for the Future – Managing ESG/BHR Risks” (Moderator)
  • AtLAS, “Key Issues in the Ethics of International Arbitration Practice” (Panelist)
  • NYIAC, “Navigating U.S. Sanctions for International Arbitration Practitioners” (Moderator)
  • ACICA/CIArb Future Frontiers Conference, “International ESG/BHR Obligations of Investors” (Panelist)
  • New York City Bar, “The Impact of Covid-19 on Business & Human Rights” (Moderator)
  • ICC-USCIB, “Resolving Business Disputes in Asia” (Panelist)
  • International Bar Association (IBA), Investment Arbitration Sub-committee
  • New York International Arbitration Centre (NYIAC), Program Committee
  • New York City Bar (NYCBA), Business & Human Rights Working Group
  • New York City Bar (NYCBA), International Law Committee

  • Institute for Transnational Arbitration (ITA), Thought Leadership Co-Chair

     

 

  • English

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