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R. Doak Bishop
Arbitrator, Mediator
Download Bio Contact Case ManagerR. Doak Bishop is a domestic and international arbitrator based in Dallas and Houston, Texas. He has been involved in arbitrations since 1983 and has participated in more than 200 arbitrations as arbitrator and counsel. His experience spans proceedings administered by the AAA, ICDR, ICSID, ICC, LCIA, SIAC, SCC, VanIAC, CAM Santiago, CRCICA, CPR and UNCITRAL.
Mr. Bishop founded the International Arbitration Practice Group at King & Spalding in 2000 and retired from the firm at the end of 2025. He has served in a series of leadership roles in the arbitration field, including as Chairman of the Institute of Transnational Arbitration, a Director of the American Arbitration Association, a member of the Governing Board and Advisory Board of the International Council of Commercial Arbitration, a member of the LCIA Court, and a member of the Court of Arbitration of the Singapore International Arbitration Centre.
He is widely recognized for his work in international arbitration, particularly in construction, energy, oil and gas, and investor-state disputes. Chambers Global, Chambers Latin America, and Chambers USA rank him among the leading practitioners in the field, and Best Lawyers in America named him 2024 Lawyer of the Year in International Arbitration. His decades of experience as arbitrator, counsel, teacher, and author make him exceptionally qualified to assist parties and counsel in commercial, energy, infrastructure, technology, and treaty-based disputes.
AREAS OF EXPERTISE
- INTERNATIONAL COMMERCIAL ARBITRATION
- INVESTOR-STATE / TREATY ARBITRATION
- ENERGY, OIL AND GAS, AND LNG DISPUTES
- RENEWABLE ENERGY
- PUBLIC UTILITIES AND INFRASTRUCTURE
- POWER PLANTS, TURBINES, AND GENERATORS
- TECHNOLOGY AND TRADE SECRETS
- MINING AND ENVIRONMENTAL DISPUTES
- CONSTRUCTION AND SHIPBUILDING
- MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS
- INSURANCE AND REINSURANCE
- FINANCIAL INSTITUTION AND COMMERCIAL CONTRACT DISPUTES
- AVIATION, PHARMACEUTICAL, HOTEL, AND CASINO DISPUTES
REPRESENTATIVE MATTERS
ENERGY, OIL & GAS, LNG, AND RENEWABLE ENERGY
- Handled 100 or more disputes involving domestic and international energy and oil and gas matters, including leases, royalties, natural gas measurement, concessions, production sharing agreements, farm-out agreements, joint operating agreements, gas supply contracts, take-or-pay issues, export permits, pipelines, refineries, drilling contracts, and drilling incidents.
- Served in arbitrations concerning LNG supply, pricing, cargo diversion, and antitrust or competition issues.
- Handled renewable energy disputes involving wind and solar projects.
FOREIGN INVESTMENT, INFRASTRUCTURE, AND PUBLIC UTILITIES
- Handled approximately 60 or more foreign investment disputes involving governments under treaties and contracts, including claims concerning expropriation, fair and equitable treatment, taxation, privatization agreements, concessions, and political risk insurance.
- Worked on infrastructure and utility disputes involving water concessions, highway construction and toll collection, electric and gas distribution, communications towers, power purchase agreements, and electric interchange obligations.
- Handled power plant disputes and multiple matters involving turbine and generator malfunctions.
TECHNOLOGY, CONSTRUCTION, MINING, AND ENVIRONMENT
- Handled technology disputes involving energy and oil-and-gas-related technology, trade secrets, intellectual property, software, data processing, telecommunications, and other highly technical commercial issues.
- Worked on construction disputes involving power plants, offshore oil platforms, oil refineries, shipbuilding projects, and an athletic stadium.
- Handled mining disputes involving gold, silver, nickel, copper, and coal projects, including royalty, environmental, and treaty-related issues.
- Worked on environmental disputes involving groundwater contamination, refinery and service-station issues, mining operations, and indemnity agreements.
COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, INSURANCE, AND INDUSTRY-SPECIFIC DISPUTES
- Handled M&A disputes involving oil and gas company mergers, preferential rights, health-company mergers, and acquisitions in sectors including data centers and data processing.
- Worked on insurance and reinsurance matters involving policy interpretation, reinsurance alliances, surety, and performance bonds.
- Handled disputes involving major bank holding companies, investment banks, lender liability, director liability, FDIC issues, and commercial contracts.
- Also worked on shipbuilding, hotel and casino, aviation, and pharmaceutical disputes across the United States, Europe, Asia, and Latin America.
RECOGNITION
- Chambers Global: Eminent Practitioner in International Arbitration – 2025
- Chambers Latin America: Eminent Practitioner in International Arbitration – 2025
- Chambers USA: Band 1 in International Arbitration – 2025
- Lawyer of the Year in International Arbitration, Best Lawyers in America – 2024
- Hall of Fame Lawyer, Legal 500 – 2023
Chambers has described him as “a legend,” “preeminent,” and highly regarded for commercial and investment treaty arbitrations, especially in construction, energy, and oil and gas disputes.
FORMER POSITIONS
- Independent Domestic and International Arbitrator
- Partner, King & Spalding, Houston, 2000–2025
- International Partner, Baker McKenzie, 1999–2000
- Partner, Hughes & Luce, Dallas, 1982–1999
- Associate, Fulbright & Jaworski, Houston, 1976–1978
PROFESSIONAL LEADERSHIP AND SERVICE
- Chairman, Institute of Transnational Arbitration, 2012–2015
- Member, Governing Board and Advisory Board, International Council of Commercial Arbitration, 2018–2024
- Member, Board and Advisory Board of Directors, American Arbitration Association, 2010–2013
- Member, LCIA Court of the London Court of International Arbitration, 2015–2018
- Member, Court of Arbitration of the Singapore International Arbitration Centre, 2012–2015
- Adviser to the American Law Institute project on the Restatement of the Law of International Commercial and Investor-State Arbitration
- Member, U.S. Delegation to the NAFTA Advisory Committee on Private Commercial Disputes, 1998–2021
- Member, Board of Trustees, Center for American and International Law, 2003–2023
- Executive Council, American Society of International Law, 2015–2018
- Chairman, International Advisory Committee of the ICDR/AAA, 2012–2013
TEACHING ENGAGEMENTS
- SMU Law School — International Commercial Arbitration (1999, 2025, 2026)
- University of Texas Law School — Foreign Investment Disputes (2013)
- University of Oklahoma Law School — Foreign Investment Disputes (2011, 2013)
- University of Houston Law School — Foreign Investment Disputes (2002)
SELECT PUBLICATIONS
- Bishop, Crawford & Reisman, Foreign Investment Disputes: Cases, Materials & Commentary (Kluwer 2005; 2d ed. 2014).
- Bishop & Marchili, Annulment under the ICSID Convention (Oxford 2012).
- Co-Editor, The Art of Advocacy in International Arbitration (Juris Publishing, 2d ed. 2010).
- Co-Editor, The Guide to Energy Arbitrations (GAR 2020).
- Co-author of two chapters, College of Commercial Arbitrators Guide to Best Practices in Commercial Arbitration (JurisNet 2006).
- Selected articles include International Arbitration of Petroleum Disputes: The Development of a Lex Petrolea, Practical Guidelines for Interviewing, Selecting and Challenging Party-Appointed Arbitrators, and A Practical Guide for Drafting International Arbitration Clauses.
- Works in progress include books on Psychology of Decision-Making and Advocacy in Dispute Resolution and Space & Satellite Industry Disputes.
SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS
- Keynote speaker, ICCA Congress (Rio de Janeiro 2010) — The Compelling Need for a Code of Ethics in International Arbitration.
- Keynote speaker, ITA (Dallas 2012) — The Quality of Arbitral Decision-Making and Justification.
- Keynote speaker, GAR LIVE (2022) — The Psychology of Persuasion in International Arbitration.
- Keynote speaker, GAR LIVE London (2021) — Future protection for energy investments.
- Keynote speaker, Dutch Arbitration Day (2018) — The Science of Decision-Making in International Arbitration and AI.
- Speaker, Miami International Arbitration Society (2025), AI Legal Conference (2025), and New York Arbitrators’ Club (2025).
- Delivered dozens of speeches on domestic and international arbitration throughout the United States, Europe, and Latin America.
EDUCATION
- D., University of Texas Law School, with Honors (1976)
- A., Southern Methodist University, with High Honors and Departmental Distinction (1973)
- Research Editor, Texas Law Review
PROFESSIONAL LICENSES AND CERTIFICATION
- Admitted to the Bar: State of Texas; all federal courts in Texas; Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals; Federal Circuit Court of Appeals.
- Certification in AI, Digital Innovation, and Technology Dispute Resolution (ABA International Law Section and NYU Law School TechCred certification).