Georgina has significant experience and expertise in civil fraud disputes. She is recommended as a civil fraud junior in both Chambers & Partners and Legal 500. Examples of her recent civil fraud instructions include:

• Al Futtaim and others v Willis Limited and others: acting for global insurance company Willis Towers Watson in a dispute with its co-venturers in the Middle East in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) Courts, involving claims contract and conspiracy claims under UAE law (led by Roger Masefield KC)
• Thurrock Borough Council v Kavanagh and another: advising and acting for Thurrock Borough Council in its claims arising out of the complex alleged fraud by Liam Kavanagh, widely reported by the press including by BBC Panorama, the FT and Guardian, which left the Council insolvent (led by Craig Morrison KC). The Council’s claims include High Court fraud claims against Mr Kavanagh and his company, Rockfire Capital Limited, and negligence claims against the Association for Public Service Excellent (APSE).
• PJSC National Bank “Trust” v. Soloshanskiy et al: acting as sole counsel in an application for the discharge of a freezing injunction made in support of civil proceedings in Cyprus relating to claims for conspiracy under Russian and Cypriot law. The claimant, a Russian state bank and one of Russia’s largest banks, alleged that the defendants, together with others, had conspired to wrongfully procure an injunction from the Cypriot courts so as to prohibit the Claimant’s sale at auction of a Russian company. On that basis, it claimed a loss of £24.8 million in damages. The injunction application raised important and novel issues including as to the scope of the inexpediency exception under section 25(2) of the Civil Jurisdiction and Judgments Act 1982.
• NMC v. Manghat and others: acting for the joint administrators of NMC Healthcare Ltd before the Abu Dhabi Commercial Court resisting third-party disclosure orders relating to an alleged multi-billion fraud (led by James McClelland KC).
• Bourlakova v Bourlakov and others: acting for Loudmila Bourlakova, wife of deceased oligarch Oleg Bourlakov, against her deceased husband’s relatives and associates in claims arising from a conspiracy to defraud Mrs Bourlakova and her daughters of their rightful share of the family’s assets. Georgina acted (led by Helen Davies KC) for the claimant in successfully resisting multiple challenges to the English Court’s jurisdiction. Trower J’s judgment is available here: [2022] EWHC 1269 (Ch).
• The Federal Republic of Nigeria v Royal Dutch Shell plc and others [2020] EWHC 1315 (Comm): acting for the Shell defendants in multi-billion dollar High Court proceedings commenced by Nigeria and involving allegations of fraud and bribery of senior public officials including four former Nigerian presidents in relation to the grant of a prospecting licence over one of Africa’s largest oil deposits (led by Lord Goldsmith KC and James Willan KC). The Shell defendants successfully challenged the English Court’s jurisdiction. Butcher J’s judgment is available here [2020] EWHC 1315 (Comm).
• Hinduja v Hinduja: acting for the Hinduja brothers in a multi-billion dollar dispute, involving allegations of fraud and dishonesty, in relation to the family’s assets (led by Lord Goldsmith KC).
• United Company Rusal Plc v Crispian Investments Ltd and Whiteleave Holdings Ltd [2018] EWHC 2415 (Comm): acting for Vladimir Potanin’s company, Whiteleave, in a five-day High Court trial of a shareholders’ dispute involving Rusal and Roman Abramovich’s company, Crispian, over shares in Norilsk Nickel, the world’s largest producer of palladium and one of the largest producers of nickel, platinum and copper (led by Lord Goldsmith KC and Daniel Toledano KC). The dispute related to the construction of a Right of First Refusal contained in a shareholders’ agreement and also involved allegations of conspiracy.

Georgina’s arbitration practice includes disputes under all major institutional rules (including LCIA, ICC, SCC, SIAC, HKIAC and ICSID) and ad hoc, as well as related court proceedings in England and abroad. She has acted for multinational companies and high net-worth individuals, as well as for and against states and state-owned enterprises. Much of her work is multi-jurisdictional, involving parallel proceedings and advising on global strategy.

Georgina has acted in arbitrations under a range of foreign laws, including those of Switzerland, Sweden, Cyprus and Nigeria, including:

• for the Russian Federation in a claim brought by a former Yukos Oil subsidiary under the Energy Charter Treaty alleging expropriation and other treaty breaches.
• for a publicly traded mining company in two London-seated UNCITRAL arbitrations against an African state.
• for a publicly traded oil & gas company in a Lagos-seated ad hoc arbitration against the Nigerian National Petroleum Company involving a dispute over lifting entitlements and fiscal stabilisation provisions.
• for a Cypriot oil & gas company in a two-week commercial arbitration (and related set-aside proceedings) in Stockholm under the SCC Rules, involving issues of illegality and civil fraud under German, Cypriot and Swedish law.
• for a Middle Eastern sovereign state in an ad hoc arbitration against another Middle Eastern sovereign state and state-owned enterprise, involving issues of contract and public international law.

In the context of arbitral proceedings, Georgina has also recently advised:

• a multi-national mining and commodities trading company on a contractual dispute involving allegations of bribery.
• an Africa-based private equity fund on a dispute arising out of the restructuring of an investment in the Ethiopian farming sector.
• an Indian private equity fund on the construction of a suite of agreements relating to a joint venture in the IT sector.

Examples of Georgina’s recent arbitration-related court cases include:

• for one of the world's leading gold producers in a dispute over the sale of two gold mines in West Africa under the LCIA rules, London seat, applying English law (led by Fionn Pilbrow KC);
• for a leaseholder in a substantial contractual dispute with the state of Montenegro over the lease for a luxury resort on the Montenegrin coastline under the LCIA rules, London seat, applying Montenegrin law (led by Salim Moollan KC);

• for a publicly traded mining company in two London-seated UNCITRAL arbitrations against an African state;
• for the Russian Federation in a claim brought by a former Yukos Oil subsidiary under the Energy Charter Treaty alleging expropriation and other treaty breaches;
• for a publicly traded oil & gas company in a Lagos-seated ad hoc arbitration against the Nigerian National Petroleum Company involving a dispute over lifting entitlements and fiscal stabilisation provisions;
• for a Cypriot oil & gas company in a two-week commercial arbitration (and related set-aside court proceedings) in Stockholm under the SCC Rules, involving issues of illegality and civil fraud under German, Cypriot and Swedish law; and
• for a Middle Eastern sovereign state in an ad hoc arbitration against another Middle Eastern sovereign state and state-owned enterprise, involving issues of contract and public international law.

In the context of arbitral proceedings, Georgina has also recently advised:

• a multi-national telecoms provider on a prospective BIT claim against an Asian state under the ICSID rules;
• a Brazilian construction conglomerate on appeal proceedings relating to an arbitral award under the LCIA rules with a seat in the Caribbean (with Wendy Miles KC);
• an investor in an African gas project in relation to potential claims under a contract with a West African state entity as well as a prospective BIT claim;
• a multi-national mining and commodities trading company on a contractual dispute involving allegations of bribery;
• an Africa-based private equity fund on a dispute arising out of the restructuring of an investment in the Ethiopian farming sector; and
• an Indian private equity fund on the construction of a suite of agreements relating to a joint venture in the IT sector.

Examples of Georgina’s recent arbitration-related court cases include:

• Zurich Insurance Company Limited (UK Branch) v. National Foam Inc. and another:  acting for the claimant in an application for an anti-suit injunction restraining US proceedings brought in breach of arbitration clauses contained in a suite of insurance policies (led by Stephen Midwinter KC).

• Acting for a Chinese multinational company in enforcement proceedings before the BVI courts (led by Vernon Flynn KC).
• Bourlakova v Bourlakov and 12 others [2022] EWHC 1269 (Ch): acting for Loudmila Bourlakova, wife of deceased oligarch Oleg Bourlakov, against her deceased husband’s relatives and associates in claims arising from a conspiracy to defraud Mrs Bourlakova and her daughters of their rightful share of the family’s assets (led by Helen Davies KC). The Claimants succeeded in defending the English court’s jurisdiction over the dispute, including in defeating a challenge based on section 9 of the Arbitration Act 1996, which raised issues as to the scope and effect of foreign law-governed arbitration clauses in the context of multi-party fraud disputes. Trower J’s judgment is available here [2022] EWHC 1269 (Ch)
• VTB v Sberbank and others [2021] EWHC 1758 (Comm): acting for Sberbank, Russia’s largest bank in a High Court dispute with VTB involving allegations of fraud in the context of the insolvency of one of Russia’s largest oil refineries (led by Lord Goldsmith KC and James Willan KC). The dispute gave rise to complex and novel issues of jurisdiction relating to proceedings commenced in support of London-seated arbitrations. Sberbank successfully challenged the English Court’s jurisdiction. Cockerill J’s judgment is available here [2021] EWHC 1758 (Comm)
• The Federal Republic of Nigeria v Royal Dutch Shell plc and others [2020] EWHC 1315 (Comm): acting for the Shell defendants in multi-billion dollar High Court proceedings commenced by Nigeria and involving allegations of fraud and bribery of senior public officials including four former Nigerian presidents in relation to the grant of a prospecting licence over one of Africa’s largest oil deposits (led by Lord Goldsmith KC and James Willan KC). The Shell defendants successfully challenged the English Court’s jurisdiction. Butcher J’s judgment is available here [2020] EWHC 1315 (Comm)  Georgina also advised Shell in related ICSID proceedings.
• Confidential court proceedings in support of London-seated arbitrations between a London- listed mining company and a sovereign state (led by Wendy Miles KC).

2017 –  2023:  Teaching Fellow in Contract Law, University College London

2013:  Judicial Assistant to the Rt. Hon. Lord Justice Lloyd at the Court of Appeal (Civil Division)

2012: LLM in International Commercial Law, University College London (Distinction)

2011: Bar Professional Training Course, Kaplan College (Very Competent) completed under the Inner Temple’s Princess Royal Scholarship (one of the most prestigious academic scholarships awarded by the Inn)

2010: LLB in Law with German Law, University College London (First Class Honours). Various academic prizes and scholarships.

2008 – 2009: Certificate in Rechtswissenschaft (Law), Ludwig-Maximilians Universität München (Equivalent to First Class Honours)

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Fluent: German and Bulgarian

Working knowledge: French and Russian

"Extremely responsive and personable; organised and communicative; very sharp and able to distil the key points; commercially-minded; and overall a pleasure to work with." (Legal 500, 2026)

"Georgina has an encyclopedic knowledge of matters relating to public international law and a wonderful ability to convert complex concepts clearly in her writing." (Legal 500, 2026)

"Georgina is tactically savvy and unbelievably quick to take in detail." (Chambers & Partners, 2026)

"Georgina Petrova is building a notable civil fraud practice, drawing on her experience as a solicitor. She is involved in cross-jurisdictional matters that are of high value and complexity." (Chambers & Partners, 2026)

"Georgina’s analysis is first rate and she displays excellent judgement. She is an excellent team player and her written work is always sharp and client-friendly." (Legal 500, 2025)

"She is incredibly quick at absorbing complex facts and getting to the heart of the dispute." (Legal 500, 2025)

"Georgina is incredibly hardworking, diligent and an excellent junior. She is super-smart and certainly one to watch." (Legal 500, 2024)

Clients also describe Georgina as "incredibly driven" and an "excellent team player". (Legal 500, 2021)

Georgina was ‘Barrister of the Week’ in The Lawyer (July 2021).