Expertise
Dispute Resolution
International Arbitration
Nguyen Do is a key member of YKVN’s International Arbitration team, with over 15 years of experience handling high-stakes disputes across construction, infrastructure, oil and gas, international trade, investment, and debt restructuring. He has acted in arbitrations conducted under the VIAC, SIAC, ICC, and UNCITRAL rules, in proceedings seated both within and outside of Vietnam.
Nguyen focuses his practice on complex construction and infrastructure disputes, often involving cross-border issues and FIDIC-based contracts. His experience includes advising on major energy projects, EPC arrangements, and disputes arising from large-scale development works. He also advises clients in international trade matters, particularly those involving cross-border supply, purchase and sale agreements.
Dual-qualified in Washington State (U.S.) and Vietnam, Nguyen provides clients with practical, jurisdiction-specific guidance within an international arbitration framework.
In addition to his counsel work, Nguyen serves as a VIAC arbitrator, with the majority of his appointments being as sole arbitrator or presiding arbitrator.
Nguyen also contributes to the development of Vietnam’s construction and arbitration practice through select writing and editorial work. He is the editor-in-chief of the Vietnamese version of the FIDIC 2017 Second Edition suite (Red, Yellow, and Silver Books), a key reference in construction contracting in Vietnam.
Education
Gonzaga University, School of Law, J.D., cum laude, 2007
Gonzaga University, School of Business, M.B.A., cum laude, 2003
Gonzaga University, School of Business, B.A., cum laude, 2002
Bar Membership
Hanoi Bar Association
Vietnam Bar Federation
Washington State Bar Association
Vietnam International Arbitration Centre (Arbitrator)
FIDIC Contract Advisory:
- Advising a Vietnamese project owner on claim assessment and dispute resolution strategies against a Chinese contractor and a German equipment supplier; the claims arose from a FIDIC-based EPC contract for a 100 MW wind power project.
- Advised PetroVietnam Fertilizer and Chemicals Corporation (as project owner) on the evaluation of claims and dispute resolution strategies against an Italian contractor; the claims arose from a FIDIC-based EPC contract for an NPK fertilizer plant.
- Advised Phan Vu Investment Corporation (as project owner) on claim assessment and dispute resolution strategy against a subsidiary of China Energy Engineering Corporation Limited; the claims were related to a wind power project.
- Advised the Ho Chi Minh City Management Authority for Urban Railways (as project owner) on the review, negotiation, and drafting of FIDIC-based construction contracts for multiple metro lines in Ho Chi Minh City.
- Advised the Hyundai–Ghella joint venture (as contractor) on the review of selected provisions of a FIDIC-based construction contract for the Nhon – Hanoi Station section of the Hanoi Urban Railway Project.
Dispute Representation – FIDIC Contracts:
- Representing foreign contractors in an SIAC arbitration against a Vietnamese project owner under a FIDIC-based contract related to an environmental infrastructure project in Vietnam.
- Representing a Vietnamese project owner in an ICC arbitration against a Chinese contractor under a FIDIC-based EPC contract for a 117 MW wind power project.
- Represented a Korean contractor in an ICC arbitration regarding a Vietnamese project owner’s refusal to pay for variation works in a major highway project in northern Vietnam.
- Represented a Vietnamese hydropower company in a VIAC arbitration brought by a consortium of Chinese contractors concerning a FIDIC-based contract for the power transmission line of a hydropower project.
- Represented Bachy Soletanche Vietnam, a French foundation and retaining wall contractor, in a dispute with a real estate developer over diaphragm wall works for a luxury residential project in Hanoi.
- Represented Vietnam Machinery Erection Corporation (Lilama) in a dispute with a Russian contractor related to the Uong Bi Thermal Power Plant Expansion Project.
- Represented MT Højgaard A/S, a leading Danish infrastructure company, in a dispute with a subcontractor and the Hai Phong Bridge Project Management Unit (project owner) regarding the Rao II Bridge Project.
- Editor-in-chief, Vietnamese version, FIDIC 2017 Second Edition suite (Red, Yellow and Silver books).
- Co-author, Exclusive Jurisdiction of Courts in Relation to Rights over Real Properties in Vietnam, the Supreme People’s Court Journal, No. 17/2023.
- Co-author, Interpreting and Applying the Delay Damages Provisions of the FIDIC Red Book standard form contract in accordance with Vietnamese Law, the Supreme People’s Court Journal, No. 14/2023.
- Author, 2023 Vietnam ADR Week Recap: Comparison of the Interplay of the Separability Doctrine and Questions Relating to Formation and Validity of Arbitration Agreements across Various Jurisdictions, Kluwer Arbitration Blog.
- Co-author, Post-award Interest in the Asia Pacific, Vietnam Chapter, Kluwer Law International 2023.
- Co-author, the International Arbitration Review, Vietnam Chapter, 2018-2021.
- Co-author, the International Comparative Legal Guide to International Arbitration, Vietnam Chapter, 2018-2020.
- Co-author, GAR Know how – Commercial Arbitration – Vietnam, 2017-2019.
- 2025 Paris Arbitration Week, “Vietnamese Law in International Arbitration”, hosted by YKVN, panelist on “Select Topics in Vietnamese Law” panel and “Enforceability of Foreign Arbitral Awards in Vietnam” panel;
- 2024 Construction Arbitration Conference HICAC, organized by Vietnam Society of Construction Law, panelist on “Inquisitorial Style and Adversarial Style in International Arbitration and Best Practices” panel;
- 2024 Symposium on “Completing the Third Parties’ Mechanisms for Facilitating the Arbitral Proceedings”, organized by Vietnam International Arbitration Centre (VIAC) and Ho Chi Minh City Law University (ULAW), panelist on “Improving the Mechanisms on Third Parties to Improve the Arbitral Proceeding” panel;
- 2023 Conference on Construction contract dispute resolution procedures, from Dispute Adjudication Board (DAB) to arbitration, organized by Vietnam Engineering Consultant Association (VECAS), panelist on “Noteworthy considerations when applying DAB mechanism for dispute resolution” panel;
- 2023 VAS Crossover, Talkshow series on amendments of Vietnamese Law on Commercial Arbitration, organized by VIAC, moderator of panel on “Arbitration Procedures”;
- 2023 Vietnam ADR Week, Adapting to a Vibrant Asia, organized by VIAC and Vietnam Business Lawyers Club (VBLC), moderator of panel on “the Interplay of the Separability Doctrine and Questions Relating to Formation and Validity of Arbitration Agreements across Various Jurisdictions”;
- 2023 Construction Arbitration Conference HICAC, organized by Vietnam Society of Construction Law, panelist on “Saving Time and Costs in Construction Arbitration” panel; and
- 2018, 2019 Conference on “Claim management in construction”, organized by Vietnam Engineering Consultant Association (VECAS), panelist on “Arbitration Strategy”.
