- Dr. Jur. (Dr. Habil.Dr. Nauk//LLD)
- Master of Laws, University of Copenhagen
- Qualified Lawyers Transfer Scheme (QLTS1)
- FCIArb, Chartered Arbitrator (C.Arb), Chatered Institute of Arbitrators
- Member of a number of panels of arbitrators in Europe, Asia, Africa and the Middle East
- Certified arbitrator
- Certified mediator
He specialises in contract law, i.e. the formation, construction/interpretation, adaption, performance, termination and breach of contract, including the principles for calculation and determination of damages, with a wide application with regard to industries and sectors and in both a common law and a civil law context.
- England and Wales
- Denmark
- Member of Arbitration Chambers (2017 – present)
- Member of Copenhagen Chambers (2015 – 2017)
- Equity partner, various Danish law firm (1996 – 2014)
- Associate, various Danish law firms (1985 – 1995)
Dr Schiersing has been appointed as arbitrator, often sole arbitrator or presiding arbitrator/chairperson, as well as emergency arbitrator, by e.g. the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA) (including under the LCIA India Rules), the Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC), the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce (SCC), the Dubai International Arbitration Centre (DIAC), the Korean Commercial Arbitration Board (KCAB), the Hong Kong International Arbitration Centre (HKIAC), the Arbitration Foundation of Southern Africa (AFSA), the Finland Arbitration Institute (FAI), the DIFC-LCIA Arbitration Centre (DIFC-LCIA), The Court of Arbitration at the Polish Chamber of Commerce in Warsaw (Sakig/PCC) and the Danish Institute of Arbitration (DIA). Also, he is sitting arbitrator in various ad hoc arbitrations, including under the UNCITRAL Arbitration Rules.
He has sat as arbitrator in more than 100 arbitrations.
Prior to becoming a full-time arbitrator (and part-time scholar, vide below), he acted as counsel in approx. 150 arbitrations and litigations, including a broad variety of commercial, commercial chancery and construction & engineering disputes, as well as investment arbitration.
Dr Schiersing has been instructed as counsel or appointed as arbitrator in matters involving the substantive and curial laws of e.g. England & Wales, United States (New York, Delaware and California), Singapore, China (PRC), Hong Kong SAR, Japan, Korea, India, Indonesia, Abu Dhabi/Dubai/United Arab Emirates, Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), Qatar, Egypt, Iraq, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Oman, South Africa, Russian Federation, Kazakhstan, France, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Iceland, Italy, Switzerland, Austria, The Netherlands, Poland, Estonia, Lithuania, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Guernsey and British Virgin Islands.
He accepts select appointments as a mediator in commercial disputes where his command of international legal principles and understanding of different legal cultures can be of service to the parties.
Who’s Who Legal (Arbitration 2019) states: Niels Schiersing is a stand-out name in global dispute resolution who is widely endorsed as "an excellent arbitrator". He excels in complex contractual matters in commercial and investment arbitrations.
Prior to becoming a full-time arbitrator, he has acted as counsel in approx. 150 arbitrations, including a broad variety of commercial, commercial chancery and construction arbitrations as well as investment arbitration.
Dr Schiersing has been instructed as counsel or appointed as arbitrator in matters involving the laws of e.g. England & Wales, United States (New York, Delaware and California), Singapore, China (PRC), Hong Kong SAR, Japan, Korea, India, Indonesia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Egypt, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Russian Federation, France, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Iceland, Italy, Switzerland, Austria, The Netherlands, Poland, Estonia, Lithuania, Bulgaria and Cyprus.
He is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators in London (FCIArb) and a Chartered Arbitrator (C. Arb). Also, Dr Schiersing is a Supporting Member of the London Maritime Arbitrators Association (LMAA). He is on several panels of arbitrators across the continents.
Dr Schiersing conducts extensive legal research.
His research focuses on (comparative) contract law, particularly in the areas of commercial contracts (general principles), M&A contracts, construction and engineering contracts, energy contracts, banking and finance contracts, as well as reinsurance contracts. Also, his research includes international arbitration law.
His latest treatise concerns “Disruption Claims in Construction and Engineering Contracts” and was published in 2024.
In June 2020, Dr Schiersing published Earn-Out Disputes, which is the first volume of a larger treatise on substantive and procedural issues relating to post-M&A disputes. The book is the first of its kind worldwide. He is currently working on the volume related to MAC and MAE disputes.
In 2016, he published the first and only commentary on the Danish Arbitration Act of 2005 (which, in turn, is based on the UNCITRAL Model Law of 1985). The commentary contains a comprehensive analysis of the sections of the act and refers extensively to not least Danish, Swedish, Norwegian and English case law and serves as a Scandinavian commentary on the model law. He is one of the leading authorities on comparative Scandinavian arbitration law.
In 2013, Dr Schiersing published the first book in Scandinavia on reinsurance law, and he is one of the leading Scandinavian authorities within this area of law as well as insurance coverage disputes.
Furthermore, Dr Schiersing has published a substantial number of articles on arbitration law, insurance and reinsurance law, energy law, international construction law, general contract law, investment protection and tax law.
Books:
- Disruption Claims - Reduced Productivity as a Basis for Monetary Claims in Construction and Engineering Contracts (2024)
- Earn-Out Disputes – Post-M&A Disputes Vol. 1 (2020) (available here)
- The Danish Arbitration Act – A Commentary (2016)
- Reinsurance – Selected Legal Topics (2013)
Articles (selected):
- On Make-Whole Provisions in Financial Agreements (2025 – forthcoming)
- Security for Costs (2025)
- ”When in Stockholm, …”: Interpretation, Gap-Filling and Modification of Commercial Contracts under Swedish Law – Some Comparative Reflections for Arbitrators and Counsel (2024)
- On Presiding Arbitrator, Umpire and Referee – What’s in a Name (2018) (In Essays in honour of Mads Bryde Andersen)
- On Construction Contracts under English law, part 1 (2016)
- On the IBA Guidelines on Conflicts of Interest in Recent Court Decisions (2016)
- On Mock-Trials (2015)
- On Arbitration in England (2015)
- On Price and Volume Risk in Long-Term Energy Contracts (2014)
- On Reinsurance and the Pro-Rata Rule (2013)
- On “Validity” and “Existence” of an Arbitration Agreement (2011)
- On the Advance of Cost in Arbitration (2011)
- On “Full” Versus “Reasonable” Possibility to Present Your Case in Arbitration (2011)
- On Interim Measures in Arbitration – Time for Revising the Rules (2010)
- On the Concept of “Investment” in the Danish Bilateral Investment Treaties (2010)
- On the Legal Protection of Investments in Foreign Countries (2009)
- Advokat (Denmark)
- Solicitor (England & Wales)
- Fellow, Chartered Institute of Arbitrators and Chartered Arbitrator
- English
- German
- Danish
- Swedish
- Norwegian
- French (reading and oral)
- Basic Russian
- Basic Turkish
Danish