Michael Lennon

Michael P. Lennon Jr. is a partner in Mayer Brown’s Litigation & Dispute Resolution and International Arbitration practices. He is an experienced arbitration and trial lawyer with an outstanding track record for handling a wide variety of arbitration and litigation matters, particularly in the energy, natural resources and construction sectors. Mike also has substantial experience handling patent, trademark, copyright and other commercial disputes.

Mike acts on behalf of clients before the leading international arbitral institutions, including ICSID, ICC, ICDR, LCIA and the Dubai International Arbitration Centre, as well as national courts. He has tried numerous cases before arbitral tribunals, courts, and juries, as well as enforcement, annulment and appellate proceedings arising from his matters. He also acts as an arbitrator and is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators.

Mike’s energy and natural resources experience covers a wide range of arbitrated and litigated matters, including disputes involving production sharing agreements, licenses, concessions and other host state agreements, oil and gas royalty disputes, pricing and other disputes under short and long-term commodity agreements, disputes arising out of joint operating and joint venture agreements, disputes concerning the design, operation and management of drilling rigs, disputes involving nuclear and conventional power plant design, construction and operation, and other arbitration and litigation matters arising out of commercial disputes in the energy and natural resources sectors.

Recent examples of his work in the energy and natural resource areas include representing LUKOIL Pan Americas, LLC in the bribery, corruption and antitrust action filed by the PDVSA US Litigation Trust in the Southern District of Florida, advising an Asian state-owned oil and gas company in a $1.6 billion ad hoc arbitration arising from a coal bed methane production sharing contract, representing an E&P company in an LCIA arbitration arising out of a services agreement; advising a crude trading company in disputes with buyer and seller under back-to-back crude oil contracts, advising a Brazilian bio-ethanol company in a dispute arising from technology and equipment contracts, advising a South American state-owned oil and gas company in a post-M&A representation, warranty and indemnification dispute, advising a Middle Eastern gas company in LNG price review arbitrations involving Southern and Western European buyers, advising an international oil company on contractual and international law issues arising out of the Middle East, North Africa and South America, and advising a major international engineering and construction company on a dispute arising from a mining project in Africa.

Education :

• University of Iowa College of Law, JD, with high distinction
• University of Iowa, BS, with honors

Admissions :

• Texas
• Iowa
• US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
• US District Court for the Northern District of Iowa
• US District Court for the Northern District of Texas
• US District Court for the Eastern District of Texas
• US District Court for the Southern District of Texas

Activities :

• Member of the advisory board of the Institute for Transnational Arbitration
• Member of the advisory board of the Institute for Energy Law (IEL) of The Center for American and International Law
• Co-chair of IEL’s 2015 Oil & Gas Energy Conference
• International Bar Association
• Bar Association of the Fifth Federal Circuit
• Houston Intellectual Property Law Association

Experience :

• Representing LUKOIL Pan Americas, LLC in the bribery, corruption and antitrust action filed by the PDVSA US Litigation Trust in the Southern District of Florida.
• Representing an Asian state-owned oil and gas company in a $1.6 billion UNCITRAL ad hoc arbitration arising from termination of a coal bed methane productions sharing contract.
• Advised a Brazilian bio-ethanol company in a dispute arising from technology transfer and equipment supply contracts with Southern European supplier.
• Represented Korean steel manafucturer in federal court litigation arising from alleged breach of a distributorship agreement for oilfiled tubular.
• Advised international oil and gas company on variety of issues under Gulf of Mexico leases, unit agreements, operating agreements and AMI agreements in anticipation of potential disputes.
• Represented PT KaltimPrima Coal, Sangatta Holdings Limited, and Kalimantan Coal Limited in an ICSID arbitration brought by the Provincial Government of East Kalimantan claiming entitlement to interest in a coal mining operation in the eastern coastal area of the province.
• Represented an international engineering and construction company in a dispute arising from termination of an engineering and construction contract involving an iron ore mine in West Africa.
• Represented Middle Eastern and Norwegian oil companies in LCIA arbitrations arising out of the termination of interests in oil production sharing arrangements in Kurdistan.
• Represented Swiss and Middle Eastern claimants in a Dubai International Arbitration Centre arbitration concerning a share sale under put option in a shareholders’ agreement governed by UAE law.
• Represented Belgian and American diary companies in ICC arbitration and Dutch enforcement proceedings concerning a post-acquisition claim for breach of reps and warranties.
• Represented Ulterra Drilling Technologies LP in defense of a trade secret claim involving drill bit technology and prosecution of a post-closing adjustment claim against former owners.
• Representing Honduran and Guatemalan minors in pro bono SIJS proceedings.