Tara Plochocki 360x360

Tara J. Plochocki

Ms. Plochocki is an experienced advocate who focuses her practice on complex transnational disputes, both at the trial and appellate levels. Her matters have included high-profile, multi-jurisdictional financial frauds and insolvencies, in which she has represented investors, individual executives, and corporations. Ms. Plochocki has a proven track record in international judgment enforcement and asset recovery. She has prevailed in contested applications for evidence for use in foreign proceedings pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1782 and won recognition of disputed international arbitral awards and regularly speaks on US asset recovery tools and strategies.

Ms. Plochocki also has expertise in the extraterritorial application of U.S. law and jurisdiction and regularly counsels and represents international clients on civil and criminal liability in US courts. She has successfully defended clients from allegations of material support for terrorism and achieved favorable resolutions for clients facing exposure to liability for business and financial activities conducted abroad. In recognition of her excellence in the field of International Law, Ms. Plochocki was selected as a Washington DC “Rising Star” by Super Lawyers in 2017 and 2018.

Ms. Plochocki graduated with honors from the University of Michigan Law School and Barnard College of Columbia University. She is admitted to practice in the state and federal courts of Washington D.C., New York, and California.

William Fotherby 360x360

William Fotherby

William is a litigation partner at New Zealand’s largest litigation firm, Meredith Connell. He specialises in cases involving suspected corporate fraud, investment disputes, professional negligence, and other white-collar matters.

He has made hundreds of appearances at every level of the New Zealand courts, for public- and private-sector clients. He conducts jury trials on behalf of the New Zealand state.

In 2015, William graduated Master of Laws from the University of Cambridge, with first-class honours and a Leonard Coling scholarship.

Between 2015 and 2019, he worked as an attorney in the London office of an American law firm, in one of the world’s top white-collar-crime practices.

In 2017, he was admitted to the English Bar and is a member of Middle Temple. In 2023, he was admitted to the Bar of the Pitcairn Islands.

William is a former editor-in-chief of the Auckland University Law Review. He is the current author of the New Zealand chapter in J. Seddon et al (eds), The Practitioner’s Guide to Global Investigations (GIR, Sixth ed. 2022). His published articles have appeared in the Oxford University Commonwealth Law Journal (UK), the New Zealand Business Law Quarterly, the New Zealand Law Journal, the Supreme Court Law Review (Canada), the Journal of Civil Litigation and Practice (Aus) and the Journal of Banking and Finance Law and Practice (Aus).

Examples of past cases are:

Counsel for one of New Zealand’s largest construction companies in investigating and freezing the assets of past employees and contractors suspected of a long-running, multi-million-dollar invoicing fraud (see e.g. THL (2005) v JDR Ltd [2022] NZHC 3627).

Advisor and counsel for the New Zealand subsidiaries of a large multinational company through a major internal investigation and subsequent high-profile litigation against its former directors and auditor in one of the largest alleged revenue frauds in New Zealand history (see e.g. Fujifilm Business Innovation New Zealand Limited v Whittaker [2021] NZHC 3292).

Overseeing the successful application to the English High Court to release two high-net-worth individuals from a world-wide-freezing order because of non-disclosure, with indemnity costs obtained (see Banca Turco Romana SA v Cortuk [2018] EWHC 662 (Comm) (28 March 2018)).

Advising a state government on a multi-jurisdiction investigation of historic fraud and corruption involving alleged losses of over US$1 billion, including regulatory and asset-recovery advice and engagement with US and Swiss law-enforcement agencies.

Representing a high-frequency trading firm facing charges of market manipulation in China following the 2015 Chinese futures crash, in a high-profile and politically significant case.

Advising and representing an international financial institution in litigation involving allegations of suspected money-laundering by its customers.

Hazim Rizkana

Hazim has over thirty years of experience as counsel in high profile, multi-million-dollar dispute resolution litigations and international commercial and investor state arbitrations, including appearances before the CRCICA, ICC and ICSID. Hazim is also a recognized arbitrator by the Egyptian Ministry of Justice.

He has extensive experience as an arbitrator and in advising and representing states, banks, and companies in international commercial and investment disputes covering a wide range of industries including, among others; construction, telecommunications, oil and gas, hotel management, waste management, tenders and capital markets.

He has also represented clients in the setting aside, as well as, the enforcement of numerous, high profile, arbitral awards.

In addition to his work in arbitration and litigation, Hazim is an accredited mediator by the Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution (“CEDR”) in London and has represented clients in several mediations.

Karel Frielink

Karel Frielink is the managing partner of BZSE Attorneys at Law Curaçao. He has been an attorney as from 1989. Karel is admitted to the Dutch Caribbean bar and thus licensed to practice in Aruba, Bonaire, Curaçao, St. Maarten, St. Eustatius and Saba.

Karel is an experienced litigator, specializing in finance law, corporate law and corporate governance. He is very knowledgeable in the areas proving fraud, asset location and recovery techniques. Karel not only dealt with highly complicated, multi-jurisdictional fraud cases, he also lectured on fraud, bribery and corruption at training seminars organized by the Dutch Institute of Chartered Accountants (NIVRA-VERA).

As of its incorporation, BZSE Attorneys at Law and Tax Advisers has been active throughout the Dutch Caribbean. Independence and integrity are paramount to the lawyers of BZSE. They operate and litigate in an open, transparent and independent manner in order to represent the best interests of their clients. This has provided the lawyers of the firm with a strong reputation, notably among local and international corporate clients.

Karel has co-authored over a hundred seventy books and articles on various aspects of Dutch and Dutch Caribbean law. He is the author of the leading textbook on Dutch Caribbean law ‘A concise understanding of Dutch Caribbean corporate law’, and his Legal Blog can be found here: www.curacao-law.com

Michael-James Currie

Michael-James Currie is a Director of Primerio and co-founder of the Primerio South African practice. His regulatory and commercial law practice is pan-African and he has practiced across several countries and regional blocs including Botswana, Egypt, Kenya, Mauritius, Namibia, Nigeria, South Africa, Eswatini, Tanzania, COMESA and CEMAC. Key areas of practice include commercial and corporate law, competition law and complex commercial litigation.

Mike has consistently been recognised as a “Best Lawyer in South Africa” and also serves as the “Global Law Expert for Competition Law in Nigeria.” In addition to his practice areas, Mike is a regular speaker and author who has published several articles, papers and opinion pieces. Mike currently serves as the African Regional Representative for the International Bar Association’s Anti-Corruption Committee.

Professional Associations:
– Board Advisor to the International Bar Association African Regional Forum.
– African Regional Representative of the International Bar Association’s Anti-Corruption Committee.
– Member of the American Bar Association.
– Member of the International Bar Association’s Antitrust Committee; Anti-corruption Committee; and the African Regional Forum Committee.
– Member of the ICN Advocacy Strategy Project on ‘Planning an effective advocacy strategy’ (2016-2018) and is part of the drafting team for the ICN’s Advocacy Working Group’s ‘Competition Benefits Project’ (2015-2016).

Tomislav Sunjka

Mr. Tomislav Sunjka established Law office of ŠunjkaLaw in 2000 as a self-governing legal entity. Regarding the specific position of Serbia, being on the crossroad of the East and the West and influenced by many phenomena from both sides, Mr.Tomislav Sunjka has developed a specific range of legal services.

Having experienced that problems may derive from all sorts of business relationships, he also gained vast experience in the following areas: corporate law and M&A, international and domestic commercial and trade law, energy law, carriage transport insurance and insurance law, contract law, foreign commercial law, forwarding law, banking law, financial and securities law, privatization law, foreign investments law, concession law, the law of international donations, arbitration, labor law and media law.

Because of this background, Mr. Tomislav Sunjka understands very well the nature of the transactions, bank transfers, financial arrangements, and he uses that knowledge as tools and instruments in practice of asset tracking and asset recovery.

Mr. Tomislav Sunjka represents victims white collar crime: frauds committed by business and government professionals, bankruptcy and bankruptcy fraud, bribery, insider trading, embezzlement, computer crime, public corruption, copyright infringement, money laundering, identity theft, corrupt organizations crimes, consumer fraud, securities fraud, financial fraud, forgery etc.

He practices nationally, nationally with cross border elements and internationally.

He is a member of several legal organizations and winner of several legal awards. He has published professional articles in legal journals. He is a member of Vojvodina and Serbia Bar and International Bar Association.