Personal bio
Dawn Yamane Hewett is a Partner in Quinn Emanuel’s Global International Arbitration and Investigations Practices and Washington, DC office. Dawn draws on decades of experience in policy and international affairs, including 15 years of experience in complex investment treaty and commercial arbitrations, multi-jurisdiction litigations, and high-stakes government investigations. She regularly represents clients with disputes from around the world, maintaining a particular focus on U.S., Latin American, and Asian disputes. Dawn has extensive experience in investment treaty and commercial arbitrations, including those administered by the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) and under other arbitral rules. Her clients and matters span a broad range of industries, including renewable energy, natural resources, transportation, infrastructure, hospitality, manufacturing, consumer goods, and financial services. Prior to joining Quinn Emanuel, Dawn was the Deputy General Counsel for Strategic Initiatives at the U.S. Department of Commerce, where she helped to lead a 400+ person legal department and handled a broad range of legal issues for the Department, including anti-corruption, commercial rule of law, and international trade and investment issues, among others. She also served as a law clerk for the Honorable M. Margaret McKeown on the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Dawn holds advanced degrees from Yale Law School, Princeton University’s School of Public and International Affairs, and Trinity College Dublin, and undergraduate degrees from the University of Washington. She is fluent in English, Japanese, Spanish, and Portuguese, with reading ability in French. Dawn was recognized as one of the Top 50 Women Leaders in Law for 2022 and was named to Lawdragon Leading U.S. Energy Lawyers 2023, Legal 500 for International Arbitration 2022, Lawdragon 500 Global Litigation 2021, and Washington DC Super Lawyers for International Law in 2020.