In a press release issued today, the Hong Kong International Arbitration Centre (“HKIAC”) has officially announced the appointment of Joanne Lau as its new Secretary General with effect from 26 February 2024. Joanne Lau, an accomplished legal professional with over a decade of experience, will succeed Dr. Mariel Dimsey in this pivotal role.
Having served as Co-Chair of the HK45 committee from 2020 to 2022 and as a member of the HKIAC Proceedings Committee, Joanne has a long-standing association with HKIAC.
Expressing gratitude to the outgoing Secretary General, Dr. Mariel Dimsey, Rimsky Yuen, Co-Chair of HKIAC, stated: “We thank Mariel for her commitment, dedication and contribution during her tenure as the Secretary General. Whilst we know that Mariel will continue to support HKIAC, we wish her every success in her new chapter of life. We welcome Joanne Lau as the new Secretary General. With her experience and leadership, I am confident HKIAC will continue to set new benchmarks for excellence and innovation.”
David W. Rivkin, Co-Chair of HKIAC, echoed these sentiments, commending Dr. Mariel Dimsey for her leadership and expressing optimism about Joanne Lau’s future contributions. “The combination of her extensive experience leading a major international arbitration practice, her close ties to the Hong Kong community, her intellectual ability, and her language skills make her uniquely qualified to lead HKIAC. I have no doubt that Joanne will further strengthen HKIAC as one of the preeminent arbitration institutions in the world” he remarked.
In response to her appointment, Joanne Lau expressed her honour at taking on the role of Secretary General “As a practitioner, I have benefited from the excellent services of HKIAC for many years under the leadership of my predecessors, so I am honoured to have the opportunity to take the baton. I look forward to working with the HKIAC team, and our Council and committee members. We will continuously strive for improvement in delivering top quality services to our users.”
Lau joins the HKIAC after over a decade with Allen & Overy, where she became a partner in 2021 and played a key role in establishing and managing a successful international arbitration practice. She graduated from Oxford with a first-class honours degree in law and is dual-qualified in Hong Kong and England & Wales. Lau is widely recognised as a seasoned arbitration specialist and has a comprehensive background in handling a diverse range of cases, including both commercial and investor-state arbitrations across various sectors, jurisdictions, and arbitral rules.