29 May 2026
Stephenson Harwood reinforces international arbitration with arrival of Romain Dethomas
"Stephenson Harwood in Paris appoints Romain Dethomas as of counsel to develop its international arbitration practice within the litigation and arbitration team."
Admitted to the Paris and New York bars, Romain Dethomas holds degrees from Sciences Po, Université Panthéon-Assas and Harvard Law School and works in French, English, Spanish and Portuguese. He began his career as an associate in the International Arbitration and Litigation team at Bredin Prat, where he worked for eight years. In 2022 he was appointed Director of Development and became a member of the Executive Committee of the group Chargeurs. In 2024 he joined Derains & Gharavi as Counsel. He has taught international trade law, arbitration law and civil procedure at Sciences Po Paris and Université Panthéon-Assas and was an editor of the Harvard International Law Journal.
Romain Dethomas acts as counsel in commercial arbitrations, institutional arbitrations (CCI, LCIA, DIAC, SIAC, etc.), ad hoc proceedings and investment arbitrations, notably in the energy, construction, telecommunications, aviation and automotive sectors. He has also developed a recognised practice before the French courts on annulment and enforcement of arbitral awards.
At Stephenson Harwood, alongside Nicolas Demigneux and the litigation and arbitration lawyers, Dethomas will have primary responsibility for developing the firm’s international arbitration offering and will be integrated as an executive member of the firm’s International Arbitration Group. He said joining the firm is a significant opportunity to build an ambitious international arbitration practice anchored in the firm’s global strategy. Nicolas Demigneux welcomed his arrival, noting Dethomas’s prominent recent involvement on major international arbitration matters and describing him as one of the most talented arbitration specialists of his generation; his appointment supports the firm’s aim to strengthen its capacity on strategic disputes and to expand its international arbitration offering in Paris and across the firm.