Sarah Forshaw Associate

Sarah is a South African qualified attorney and notary public, having qualified in 2019. She joined Burges Salmon as an associate in the construction and engineering team.

Sarah has experience in dispute resolution and arbitrations, as well as specialised experience in construction related disputes and adjudications. She has been involved in large scale disputes relating to renewable energy projects (both wind and solar) and has worked with the associated contracts including EPC contracts, O&M contracts, power purchase agreements and bespoke construction contracts. Sarah has been involved in NEC and FIDIC related disputes (both adjudications and arbitrations). She has also arbitrated in terms of both South African specific rules and the international ICC rules for arbitration.

As well as more general construction law work, Sarah has experience advising clients on disputes relating to NEC, FIDIC and bespoke construction contracts.

Before joining the construction and engineering team at Burges Salmon, Sarah previously worked as part of the construction law teams at the South African office of a global firm, and thereafter at a boutique construction, mining and environmental law firm also based in South Africa.

Sarah’s experience includes:

• Acting for an international developer, investor, co-owner and operator of power generation and desalination water production plants in a large scale international ICC arbitration against the EPC Contractor in respect of a CSP power plant in South Africa
• Acting for the owner and operator of solar power plants against the EPC Contractor in respect of managing and resolving several defect claims in collaboration with the EPC Contractor
• Working for an Indian multinational mining company in a large-scale document review as part of an international arbitration
• Acting for the owner and operator of a wind farm against the South African electricity power utility in a South African arbitration in connect with a 134MW wind farm
• Defending a management, engineering and development consultancy in an international ICC Arbitration against an industrial water process treatment supplier in relation to a dispute concerning the supply and commissioning support of water treating and process equipment at a power station in South Africa
• Acting for an integrated oil and gas company in ongoing litigation against the South African rail, port and pipeline state owned company relating to the transportation of crude oil in South Africa
• Acting for a British multinational oil and gas company in an urgent application for an interdict relating to serious health and safety concerns
• Advising management and engineering consultancy in respect of several debt recovery matters and contractual disputes
• Representing a South Africa holding company that own several companies which operate mines that produce platinum and platinum group metals in various urgent court applications