Arbitration 2035: Charting the Future

Overview

This forward-looking conversation brings together legal counsel and expert practitioners from across the international arbitration community to consider the most pressing and exciting developments shaping the future of the field. Topics will include the increasing use of AI and legal technology in arbitration, developments in procedure aimed at enhancing efficiency and accessibility, and broader shifts in the types of disputes and industries shaping the arbitration landscape.

This event welcomes all who are interested in where international arbitration is heading, and is designed especially with junior practitioners in mind.

#YoungITATalks is a series of virtual events presented around the world, featuring talks, workshops or interviews that cover a wide range of subjects relating to arbitration. The #YoungITATalks series is designed for education, conversation and sharing knowledge and experiences among young practitioners.

Thanks to the generosity of our sponsor, this event is tuition-free and includes drinks and hors d’oeuvres.

Schedule and Speakers

5pm – 5:30pm Eastern - Registration

6:00pm -  Roundtable Discussion

Moderator: Candace Barfield, Young ITA North America Co-Chair, FTI Consulting, New York, NY

Speakers:

• Brandon Chaney, Senior Managing Director and Head of Spain and Latin America Construction, Projects & Assets, FTI Consulting
• Denis Serkin, Partner and Chair of International Practice, Peckar & Abramson
• Jesse Sherrett, Partner, Sterlington
• Brandt Roessler, Senior Associate, Baker Botts
• Pablo Valenzuela, Managing Director, FTI Consulting

7:00 pm - Networking Reception

Speakers

Brandon Chaney
Senior Managing Director and Head of Spain and Latin America Construction, Projects & Assets
FTI Consulting

Brandon Chaney is a Senior Managing Director, Head of Spain and Latin America Construction, Projects & Assets and is based in Madrid.

Mr. Chaney has over 18 years of engineering and construction management experience within the mining, liquefied gas, infrastructure and defense industries. Prior to joining FTI Consulting, Mr. Chaney worked with Bechtel and the Gilbane Building on complex construction projects throughout the world. He has strong exposure in cost control, quantity surveying, pricing of variations, cost savings, cost estimating, client relations, project management and project/resource planning. He is experienced in worldwide projects having worked and lived in Spain, Chile, Peru, Brazil, Angola, UAE, Afghanistan, USA and Mozambique.

Mr. Chaney has broad experience performing cost overrun claims, damages analysis, contract audits, cost analysis, fraud investigations, project monitoring and providing dispute resolution assistance to construction industry clients. He is appointed as a quantum expert on litigation and commercial dispute matters related to the pricing of variation work on numerous complex construction projects in Latin America, Europe and the Middle East. Mr. Chaney has provided expert quantum and delay reports for numerous arbitrations in multiple forums such as the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (“ICSID”), the International Chamber of Commerce (“ICC”), and The Paris International Court of Arbitration (“CAIP”).

Mr. Chaney is fluent in Spanish and Portuguese and has served on several engagements throughout Latin America and Spain, including complex International Chamber of Commerce (“ICC”) arbitrations testifying in Spanish and Portuguese.

Denis Serkin
Partner and Chair of International Practice
Peckar & Abramson

Denis Serkin, a partner and chair of the International practice at Peckar & Abramson, advises clients on complex construction matters spanning power and energy generation (including solar and other renewables), infrastructure, and commercial, industrial, and manufacturing facilities.

Before beginning his legal career, Denis served as a project engineer at a government agency, managing projects from design and procurement through construction—experience that gives him practical insight into the business and technical challenges his clients face. Denis represents clients in both international and domestic disputes through arbitration and in U.S. federal and state courts. He also provides strategic counsel during projects, helping clients manage risk and draft and negotiate construction agreements using both bespoke and industry-standard forms.

In addition to his practice, Denis serves as an Adjunct Associate Professor at Columbia University’s Department of Civil Engineering and Engineering Mechanics, where he teaches a course on the prevention and resolution of construction disputes.

Jesse Sherrett
Partner
Sterlington

Jesse Sherrett is a partner in Sterlington’s litigation and arbitration practice. He is a highly regarded international disputes lawyer with over 15 years of experience representing clients in some of the world’s most complex commercial disputes. Prior to Sterlington, Jesse was a partner at A&O Shearman and trained as an associate at Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton.

Jesse specializes in ‘bet the company’ multinational disputes, particularly those arising from major development projects, investments, M&A transactions, and joint ventures. His clients include multinational corporations, governments, sovereign wealth funds, institutional investors, global energy companies, and private equity firms. His practice spans a broad array of industries, including capital markets, engineering, energy, construction, mining, telecoms, and private equity. Jesse has appeared in several significant court proceedings, including cases before the U.S. Supreme Court and U.K. Supreme Court. He has extensive experience litigating foreign judgment and award enforcement claims before federal courts in the U.S.

Jesse has been named a 2025 Arbitration Future Leader by Lexology and as a Future Leader in international arbitration by Who’s Who Legal. He was also praised in Global Arbitration Review for his “prodigious mastery of massive files.” Jesse holds a B.A. from the University of Toronto, an M.A. from King's College London, and a J.D. from York University, Osgoode Hall Law School.

Brandt Roessler
Partner
Sterlington

Brandt Roessler's practice focuses on white collar defense, corporate investigations, and international arbitration. Brandt has been involved in a wide variety of complex matters, ranging from the investigation of corruption and money laundering in South America, to an international arbitration arising out of a subsea gas pipeline rupture.

Brandt also represents clients pro bono in LGBTQ civil rights cases, including challenges to discriminatory state laws, and oppositions to harmful proposed regulations. As an extension of his advocacy, Brandt formerly served as Co-Chair of the NY Emerging Leaders Committee of Lambda Legal, the nation's oldest and largest legal organization dedicated to the full recognition of civil rights for LGBTQ persons and individuals living with HIV.

While in law school, Brandt interned for Justice Kerry P. FitzGerald of the Court of Appeals for the Fifth District of Texas, won the Duberstein Bankruptcy Moot Court Competition in 2015, also receiving an award for writing the best brief, and served as President of his law school's LGBTQ student organization for two years.

Pablo Valenzuela
Managing Director
FTI Consulting

Pablo Valenzuela Silva, a Managing Director at FTI Consulting, is a forensic and litigation consulting expert with more than 18 years of professional experience within the mining, transmission lines, telecommunications, oil and gas, property and manufacturing industries. Mr. Valenzuela Silva collaborates with clients across North and South America, assisting with projects in progress, as well as those in final stages of completion.

Prior to joining FTI Consulting, Mr. Valenzuela Silva was a senior project controls manager at various construction consultancy firms in New York City, where he worked in both owner and contractor capacities. Preceding this role, he worked internationally in one of the most respected engineering, construction and project management companies and gained field experience in major mining and transmission lines projects. He has expertise in developing engineering, procurement and construction (“EPC”) baseline schedules for all project phases, from design through procurement, manufacturing, construction, commissioning and turnover, ensuring adherence to schedule and industry standards. He has managed and carried out all scheduling functions for major construction contractors and sub‐contractors, including schedule development, maintenance and analysis, as well as contract administration and performance control, claim preparation, project costs and risk management.

Currently, Mr. Valenzuela Silva supports clients during the complete lifecycle of the project. He works with clients to prepare assessments on active projects in order to identify risks and potential delays. He supports contractual management proposing mitigation measures through critical path analysis, productivity analyses, cash flow projections, monthly financial reporting and change order control. Additionally, Mr. Valenzuela Silva is experienced in developing weekly work plans to coordinate and facilitate management reports to improve
overall client coordination efforts.

Candace Barfield
Young ITA North America Co-Chair
FTI Consulting
New York, NY

Candace Barfield is a Senior Director at FTI Consulting based in New York City and a member of the Construction, Projects & Advisory practice within the Forensic and Litigation Consulting segment. As a member of this practice, she specializes in the resolution of claims and disputes on construction projects, including analysis of schedule delays, change orders, productivity and labor, and the quantification of the effects of delays, disruptions and cost overruns.

Ms. Barfield has extensive experience advising contractors and stakeholders on the execution and contract management of projects, including analyzing change orders and providing cost control, risk and project management services. She works with contractors, owners and other stakeholders to resolve disputes in mediation, arbitration and trial venues. Ms. Barfield gained first-hand experience with construction projects through her past roles, including at a residential home builder, a general contractor and a Fortune 500 commercial real estate firm.

In 2025, Ms. Barfield was recognized as a top 20 under 40 young professional by Engineering News-Record (ENR) East.

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