Patrick M Dransfield was appointed as Chief Representative for UAE and the Middle East for Shenzhen Court of International Arbitration (SCIA) on Saturday, March 21st 2026, at The 14th South China Business & Law Forum: APEC’ in Shenzhen.
Patrick says:
“My introduction to International Arbitration started when I joined Shearman & Sterling in Asia in 2000 and worked closely with the late Emmanuel Gaillard and partner John Savage to establish the firm’s International Arbitration practice in Singapore. My interest and engagement with the International Arbitration community continues and it will be both my duty and my pleasure to work to promote the global development of SCIA’s arbitration services.”
About Patrick M Dransfield MA, BA (Joint Hons.) OL
Patrick M Dransfield is the Chief Representative of SCIA in UAE and the Middle East: he is a senior business executive in the field of Legal Business Development. Patrick is currently based in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. He is the co-founder of the Managing Partners’ Club – an international, by invitation, group of senior lawyers across Asia, Middle East and Europe. He is a Certified NLP Practitioner (August 2024), Cognitive Behavior Therapy Practioner and Licensed Emotional Intelligence Coach Practitioner (CCE – ICF continuing coach education approved).
Patrick’s experience of living and working as both a teacher and photographer in China from 1985 to 1986 was transformative and set him on a mission to connect talented, professional people together, especially in Asia, the Middle East and United Kingdom. He bases his training and coaching methods on the experience of meeting professionals throughout the world. His career includes being Marketing Director for Asia for international law firms Shearman & Sterling, White & Case and MIS Legal Consultants; Managing Director of Asia Law & Practice, Asia Publisher of IFLR, and board member of the Hong Kong based subsidiary Euromoney (Jersey) Limited. He produced the first ever international legal awards – the annual IFLR Deals of the Year Awards (Hong Kong, 1998) – and was the architect behind the creation of Pacific Business Press (P B Press)’ In-House Community – which was an active community of in-house professionals which numbered ove 21,000 across Asia, the Middle East, Africa and United Kingdom until P B Press folded in 2020.Patrick’s publishing career began with Haymarket Publishing in the United Kingdom. He majored in English and History of Art at Leeds University, and he holds a Masters in Chinese History, Politics and Anthropology from SOAS, University of London
