Katie McDougall

Partner
Norton Rose Fulbright LLP

London
United Kingdom
T:+44 (20) 74443344
London
United Kingdom
T:+44 (20) 74443344
Katie McDougall

Katie McDougall

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Biography

Katie McDougall is a lawyer based in London, advising on risk, including dispute resolution and sanctions.   

Her sanctions practice involves advising clients across all sectors, but particularly in energy, natural resources, financial institutions and transport. Katie assists clients with financial and trade sanctions for all major regimes, including compliance procedures, due diligence, specific transactions and investigations. 

She has extensive knowledge of advising on the sanctions aspects of various energy and natural resource projects (and related industries, including financing, transport and insurance), for joint venture partners, lenders and contractors, and has dealt with both OFSI and OFAC with such projects. Katie also advises various shipping and aviation businesses, and their banks or relevant export credit agencies, on trade and financing for sanctioned jurisdictions and/or sanctioned parties. She has specific experience of drafting and advising on sanctions provisions, as well as providing advice in relation to risk, compliance and strategy.

Katie's disputes practice covers domestic and international disputes across the energy sector, and in particular oil and gas, power and renewables.  She has handled energy disputes across the supply chain, including upstream, downstream, wholesale, retail and services, and power and renewables projects.

Katie's experience covers both court litigation and international arbitration. She advises mainly on complex, high-value disputes in international arbitrations conducted under institutional bodies such as the ICC, LCIA and SCC. Katie was part of the team that successfully advised Israel Electric Corporation in obtaining an ICC award of over US$2bn in damages following the lack of gas supply from Egypt in the aftermath of the Arab Spring (including defending the Swiss appeal).

She is qualified to practice in the UK, and is also admitted to practice in the courts of Western Australia and the High Court of Australia.


Professional experience

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  • qualified in England & Wales

Advising:

  • A multilateral development bank on all the sanctions and related provisions for each document comprising its trade facilitation program, including interaction between the clauses of the various documents and taking into account current market position.
  • A major oil major on EU and US sanctions in respect of its involvement in oil projects in Russia, including liaising with the UK authorities, preparing export licencing applications and advising on transaction structures.
  • A major airline on the potential impact of current and future US/China-related sanctions, including the risk for foreign financial institutions under the Hong Kong Autonomy Act.
  • Three major shipping operators (separately) on the EU sanctions aspects of the provision of specialized ice class LNG carriers and conventional ships to an Arctic Russia oil and gas project.
  • A European-headquartered global financial institution in connection with economic sanctions issues arising out of recent developments in Russia and Ukraine, including the application of sanctions to complex financial instruments and the potential exposure of various UK businesses and across multiple jurisdictions in Europe, involving engagement with US regulators.
  • ECAs and ECA lenders on sanctions aspects of multiple aviation operation lease finance restructurings involving sanctioned entities.
  • On drafting an EU company's sanctions compliance policy to ensure that matters engaged in are both legal and permitted, in numerous jurisdictions, fit the firm's risk policy and satisfy banks of the legality and acceptability of payments.
  • A global charity organisation on sanctions aspects of the provision of services to countries subject to EU and US sanctions and assisting the organization to mitigate issues, including liaising with OFAC.
  • A national electricity company in the Middle-East in multi-billion dollar ICC arbitration proceedings, and Swiss Court appeal proceedings, against national state companies of Egypt over a long-term gas supply and purchase agreement and various guarantees of supply.
  • A non-operator in a North Sea joint venture on obtaining a High Court injunction to stop unilateral drilling action by operator.
  • A wind farm operator on a nuisance dispute in relation to a UK wind farm.
  • Against a Russian oil major in contemporaneous LCIA and SCC arbitrations in relation to oil field services in West Qurna, Iraq.
  • On a dispute between an investor and State in disputed recognition and enforcement proceedings relating to an ICSID Additional Facility Rules arbitration award in the Commercial Court, involving a dispute between an investor and State under BIT.
  • A Middle Eastern power company on a dispute, including alternative dispute resolution, with a state owned electricity company.