Maria Fogdestam Agius
Leaders in Law endorses Maria Fogdestam Agius as our exclusively recommended expert in Sweden. If you wish to get in touch with Maria, please use the contact information provided above.
Maria Fogdestam Agius practice as part of the firm’s Dispute Resolution Group focuses on international dispute settlement. In particular, she advises and represent States and private entities in matters pertaining to public international law, treaty-based dispute settlement and international human rights.
Maria has expertise on a wide range of public international law topics, including inter alia the law of treaties, the law on State responsibility, the law on State and diplomatic immunity, international investment law, the law of the sea and Business & Human Rights. Maria Fogdestam Agius has experience of protecting foreign investments through international arbitration, advising individuals and companies on claims against governments and on the enforcement of awards against sovereign entities. She has equally assisted States defending against claims before international courts and tribunals and safeguarding sovereign and diplomatic immunities before national courts. Maria has represented corporate as well as sovereign clients in international arbitration and litigation and have appeared as an advocate before the International Court of Justice in The Hague and the Swedish Supreme Court. She also practices in human rights, advising in particular on Business and Human Rights regulatory and guidance frameworks, corporate ESG responsibilities and human rights due diligence.
Maria holds a Master of Laws in Public International Law and Procedural Law and a Doctor of Laws in Public International Law, both from Uppsala University.
Prior to joining Westerberg & Partners in 2020, she practiced for six years at the public international law firm Volterra Fietta in London, where she primarily worked on State-to-State disputes and high-profile investor-State arbitration cases. Notable representations in the public domain include acting for the United Arab Emirates in Qatar v. United Arab Emirates (International Court of Justice), acting for the Federal Republic of Nigeria in Nigeria v. Interocean (ICSID), acting for the Arab Republic of Egypt in Al Jazeera v. Egypt (ICSID) and acting for Owens-Illinois EG on annulment in OIEG v. Venezuela (ICSID). Maria also provided advice to a number of governments on public international law matters, including inter alia the legality of military intervention and the use of force, international humanitarian law, international human rights, reservations to treaties and State and diplomatic immunities. She furthermore advised private parties on investor claims and Business and Human Rights issues.
Before entering into practice, Maria taught public international law at Uppsala University, acted as a clerk and junior judge at a Swedish district court and conducted an internship with the International Criminal Court.
Maria regularly speaks and publishes on public international law issues in various venues.
- International Arbitration Law
- International Litigation Law
- Dispute Resolution
- Public International Law
- International Human Rights
- International Investment Law
- Procedural Law
- Business Law
Firm Description:
Westerberg & Partners is a Swedish boutique law firm. We focus on what we do best. We assist our clients in identifying, analyzing, strengthening and protecting their rights – whether based on intellectual property (IP), contracts, treaties or regulatory frameworks. Our specialization and considerable experience in our focus areas also make us particularly well-suited to advise on transactions within these areas. Over the years, we have worked with everything from small start-ups to major multi-national companies and states, in virtually all industries.
We want to be a partner to our clients and the client’s business goals are always at the forefront of what we do. We offer our clients advisers who are truly interested in and knowledgeable of our clients’ industries.
Whenever appropriate, we seek to resolve conflicts without taking legal action, but we also take pride in our ability to manage legal proceedings, be it litigation or arbitration, efficiently and robustly. Our client base is largely international, and we work with many of the most discerning clients and law firms in the world.
For us, the client and its goals and needs are always at the forefront of our minds. Open mindedness, focus and flexibility, are three of our core values. This makes us well-suited to provide the best possible service for clients.
What brings us together at Westerberg are a few simple facts. We are top-ranked in intellectual property, and dispute resolution. We enjoy the work, and we like each other and our clients. We are friends sharing the same vision, and together, we aim to be the best at what we do.
To make this true today and in the long run, we believe that everyone at Westerberg must be given the opportunity to excel in an open and supportive environment. We believe that engaged and dedicated professionals that form a true team will always out perform a group of individuals.
We work with long-term plans to ensure that our co-workers and the firm develop in the right direction. By mixing senior and junior co-workers in our teams, we gain new insights and learn from each other.
Consequently, Westerberg is a true partnership. This ensures that clients always receive advice from the most qualified person. Our goal is to continue advising our clients on the most challenging legal issues, and always excelling at what we do. If we cannot validly claim to be one of the best choices for any given matter, we will not work on that matter, although we are always happy to recommend a better-suited colleague.