SPEAKERS / MODERATORS

Nikolaos Th. Konstantinidis, was born in Piraeus. He graduated from  the  Law School  of Athens University. Ηe  acquired  a  postgraduate  diploma  in  private  law «Dea  de  droit  privé»  and  prepared  a  Doctorat  at the University of  Poitiers, in France, 1994, with  degree  «cum  laude» - «très honorable» : « L’ intervention  du  secteur  public  dans  les  entreprises  privées en  difficulté», published  by  A. Sakkoulas - Bruylant 1996, with  introduction  of  Prof. Thanassis  Liakopoulos.

Chris Davis is the current President of Comité Maritime International (CMI), shareholder in the New Orleans, Louisiana, office of Baker Donelson law firm and the contact for the Firm's Admiralty and Maritime Practice Group and International Arbitration Practice Group. He has represented marine, energy and insurance clients in arbitration and litigation matters for more than 30 years. Mr. Davis has been listed in The Best Lawyers in America© since 2007 in the areas of Admiralty & Maritime Law and Transportation Law, and has also been named to Louisiana Super Lawyers since 2007. He has been recognized twice as a "Top Lawyer" by New Orleans Magazine in Maritime Law, was named to the Lawdragon 3000 in 2010, and served as the 2011 John W. Sims Distinguished Admiralty Practitioner in Residence at the Tulane University School of Law.

Sir Bernard retired in 2013 as a Lord Justice of Appeal with 20 years’ experience in the Commercial Court and the Court of Appeal. In particular, in 1993 Sir Bernard was appointed to the High Court and sat predominantly in the Commercial Court, of which he was judge in charge from 1998 to 1999. From 2000 until 2013, he was appointed to the Court of Appeal where he delivered a wide range of judgments on commercial and maritime law. Since 2013 he has accepted appointments as an arbitrator and mediator in a wide variety of settings, including oil and gas, shipping, insurance, sale of goods, and share purchase transactions. He has acted as an expert witness, mock arbitrator and special master in the US federal courts.

He has experience of arbitrations under the rules of, amongst others, the LCIA, ICC, SIAC, HKIAC, JCAA and LMAA.

He is an International Judge of the Singapore International Commercial Court and a member of the Cayman Islands Court of Appeal. He is also Professor of International Commercial Law at The Centre of Commercial Law Studies at Queen Mary, University of London.

As a barrister, Sir Bernard practised in commercial chambers at 3 Essex Court (now Twenty Essex). He specialised in international commercial and arbitral disputes (as both barrister and arbitrator) and also appeared in the courts of Singapore and Hong Kong. He was Chairman of the Commercial Bar Association in 1992–1993

Dieter Schwampe is Professor of Law at the University of Hamburg in the field of maritime insurance law and transport law. He studied in Konstanz, Bonn and Hamburg, had legal clerkship in Hamburg (1981-1984) and obtained his PhD in law in 1984. He was admitted to the German Bar in 1985 and joined Arnecke Sibeth Dabelstein law firm in 1985.

Vassilis Vernicos is a practicing maritime lawyer since 1987, member of Piraeus Bar Association and partner with KALOGEROGIANNIS & VERNICOS LAW. 

After having experienced working at a London based maritime law firm for few years, he has been a marine litigation lawyer acting for shipowners, P&I Clubs, charterers, hull and cargo underwriters, salvors and others who provide services to shipping industry, as well as for foreign professional clients, in connection with any shipping related matter and dispute. His experience extends, among other, from charterparty, bills of lading, collision, salvage, marine insurance, general average and oil pollution claims to ship sale and finance litigation, shiprepairs, arrest, ships’ foreclosure, maritime bankruptcy and intra-company shareholders’ disputes. With regard to shipowner’s limitation of liability, he is currently the administrator of the limitation funds set up in relation to the oil pollution caused by AGIA ZONI II in 2017, and the collision between MAERSK LAUNCESTON and the warship KALLISTO in 2020. 

Professor Philippe Delebecque is a graduate from the University of Aix-Marseille (France) where he obtained his PhD in 1981 for his Doctoral thesis on Exemption clauses in civil and commercial contracts. Since 1992, he was appointed Professor of private law at Paris-I (Pantheon-Sorbonne) Sorbonne law school, where he was also the director of the Contracts and Real Estate Master for 10 years. Professor Delebecque teaches courses in civil law and commercial Law and has been visiting professor at the several Universities.

Christos Tzanerrikos is the Vice-President of the Supreme Court (Areios Pagos). He graduated Athens Law School of National Kapodistrian University of Athens. For ten years he served as a Judge in the Department of Maritime Law in the Piraeus Court of Appeal, while he also served for a year as President of Piraeus Court of Appeal. Justice Christos Tzanerrikos is member of the Society of Judicial Studies and has served as Board Member of the Association of Judges and Prosecutors of Greece.

Kyriakos Oikonomou is a Former Judge of the Supreme Court (Areios Pagos). He studied Law and Political Sciences at the University of Athens. He attended the LL.M. in Maritime Law in QMWC (QMUL), UCL. He practiced law in Athens for about five years. He is Judge since 1983. For many years he served as a Judge in the Department of Maritime Law in the Court of First Instance and the Court of Appeal in Piraeus. 

Dr Nikolaos Μ. Katiforis is an Associate Professor at the Law Faculty of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens. He was awarded the Doctor iur. degree by the abovementioned University in 1993. N. Katiforis was awarded scholarships for his postgraduate studies, by the Greek Foundation for Scholarships (1990-1993), for postdoctoral research in Greece, by the Greek Foundation for Scholarships (1998- 2000) and for postdoctoral research in Germany (University of Cologne), by the German Humboldt Foundation (2005). He was elected as Lecturer, in Civil Procedural Law, at the University of Athens in 2007. In 2014 he was promoted to the degree of the Assistant Professor. N. Katiforis is also Attorney at Law at the Supreme Court (Arios Pagos) since 1998.

Dimitrios Tsikrikas is Professor of Athens Law School. He is a graduate of Athens Law School (with distinction) and PhD holder from University of Konstanz, where he studied as fellow of the German State Scholarship Organization.