President of Ciarb

Mohamed is recognised as a world leader in dispute resolution and is an international arbitrator and arbitration practitioner with considerable expertise and experience in international investment and international commercial arbitration, Islamic Shari’a, construction, energy, telecommunications, finance and online dispute resolution.

He is a Founding Partner & Head of International Arbitration, Construction and Energy, Zulficar & Partners, Egypt; Professor of International Arbitration, Private International Law and English Contract Law, Cairo University. He is also a Member of the ICCA Governing Board; Chair of the ICC Governing Body for Dispute Resolution Services; Dean of the Africa Arbitration Academy; Member of the Curatorium of the Hague Academy of International Law; Member of the Court, PCA; Member of the LACIAC Court of Arbitration; and Member of the ITA Academic Council. He is also Member of the International Commercial Expert Committee, China International Commercial Court; Fellow of the National Centre for Technology and Dispute Resolution at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, USA; Member of the Hong Kong International Legal Talents Expert Committee; and Associate Fellow of the Centre for Private International Law and Centre for Commercial Law at Aberdeen University (UK). He was also Chair of the Expert Advisory Committee of the Permanent Forum of China Construction Law (PFCCL) (2020- 2023); Vice-President of the ICC International Court of Arbitration (2015 – 2021); Co-Chair, IBA Arab Regional Forum. (2020 – 2023); Member of the Court, LCIA (2014-2019); Member of the Governing Board, International Council on Online Dispute Resolution (ICODR) – (2017 – 2021); Vice Chair, IBA Arbitration Committee (2015 – 2018).

He served as ‘Arbitrator’, ‘Legal Expert’ and ‘Counsel’ in more than 265 cases, involving parties from the Africa, Asia, Canada, Europe, the Middle East the United States and Latin America, and is recognised as a world-leading arbitrator and arbitration practitioner in international investment and international commercial arbitration, construction law and practice, energy law and infrastructure disputes, African and Arab Laws, Islamic Shari’a, private international law and online dispute resolution. 

He was shortlisted among the top five arbitrators for the GAR award for the best prepared and responsive arbitrator (2021). He received the Law Magazine 2023 Regional Lawyer of the Year, the LAW Magazine 2022 Most Influential Legal Academic Award, the 2021 and 2020 Client Choice International Award, the 2019 AYA Hall-of-Fame African Arbitrator Award, the 2018 ASA International Arbitration Advocacy Prize, and the LAW Magazine 2017 Best Legal Practitioner Award. He is listed in Who’s Who Global Elite Thought Leaders: International Arbitration; selected among the Legal500 Africa Powerlist and the AYA’s Africa's Top 30 Powerlist. In September 2024, Prof. Dr. Abdel Wahab was the first Arab and African to deliver the UNIDROIT Annual International Arbitration Lecture in Rome under the title “From Pathogenesis to Salutogenesis in International Arbitration: The Unidroit Principles Imperium?” In November 2024, Prof. Dr. Abdel Wahab was the first African to deliver the Freshfields-QMUL Annual Lecture in London under the title “Iura Novit Arbiter: A Practicum - Beyond Cultural Considerations and Legal Desperation”.

Legal 500 (2024) says: “Mohamed Abdel Wahab is a true expert in every aspect of commercial disputes, highly insightful and imaginative and extremely personable to work with”, “Mohamed Abdel Wahab is very highly regarded by peers in the international arbitration community. He knows arbitration inside and out. He is smart, experienced, has great communication skills. His professionalism, integrity, moral values and work ethics are exceptional”. In Client Choice International – WWL: Thought Leaders Global Elite (2024) – Arbitration by Lexology, peers and clients say: “Mohamed is razor sharp and hugely experienced in arbitration matters”, “He is globally recognized as one of the leading arbitrators in practice”. WWL: Arbitration & Global Elite Thought Leaders (2023) says “‘He is an amazing practitioner and one of the hardest working people’, ‘His sharp mind never ceases to amaze’, ‘He is one of a kind!’”. Chambers and Partners (2023)-Africa-wide says: “Mohamed Abdel Wahab is a leading arbitrator and arbitration counsel. He is very highly respected for his international commercial and investment treaty practice. As an arbitrator, he frequently presides over disputes concerning construction, energy and infrastructure issues”; “Mohamed Abdel Wahab is someone who is very brilliant and technically capable. He is very smart on the law, but also emotionally intelligent as well”. Chambers and Partners (2023)-Dispute Resolution: Most in Demand Arbitrators says: “Mohamed Abdel Wahab is one of the best-known arbitration lawyers and his practice combines expert witness and arbitrator appointments with regular roles as counsel on significant and high-profile cases, and he receives especially high praise for his expertise in oil and gas and construction disputes”. Legal 500 (2023) – Dispute Resolution: Arbitration says: “Mohamed Abdel Wahab – very prepared arbitrator; deep experience in international arbitration; very thoughtful in his comments; collegial; engaged; insightful and sharp questions”, “Mohamed Abdel Wahab: Highly respected, very experienced arbitrator, exhibiting highest standard of integrity and ethics” and “He has the quality of being knowledgeable in several system of laws: common law, civil law and sharia law”.

Prof. Dr. Abdel Wahab was recently designated by the President of the World Bank Group, Mr. Ajay Banga, in his capacity as ex officio Chairman of the Administrative Council of the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID), to serve on the Panel of Arbitrators maintained by the ICSID (2024 – 2030).