February 2024 – Kinstellar is delighted to announce that Ardak Idayatova has joined the firm's Almaty office as Partner.

Ardak Idayatova is an experienced practitioner with a career spanning 20 years. She focuses primarily on commercial arbitration (especially construction arbitration) and litigation, as well as on public-private partnerships and real estate.

Ardak'sexpertise includes providing comprehensive support to major infrastructure projects, primarily representing foreign investors, international development banks and foreign contractors. Additionally, she represents and provides legal assistance to clients in foreign commercial arbitrations, mainly in connection with construction disputes arising out of different contracts based on FIDIC models (among others, Red Book, Yellow Book and Pink Book contracts). Ardak has participated in arbitrations seated in Stockholm, Paris and London under ICC, UNCITRAL, LCIA and SCC rules, as well as in local arbitrations.

Prior to joining Kinstellar, Ardak was a Partner at a leading local law firm.

Over the course of her career, Ardak has been recognised by the main international legal directories Chambers, Legal 500 and other benchmark publications as one of the leading lawyers in Kazakhstan for dispute resolution matters. In recent editions clients describe her as: ''a great lawyer, who is highly professional and business-oriented'', with others adding that ''Ardak is technically a very good lawyer.'' (Chambers Asia-Pacific, 2024)

Joel Benjamin, Managing Partner of Kinstellar's Central Asia practice, comments: "I am delighted to welcome a lawyer of Ardak's calibre to our team. She is a highly respected lawyer with a standout reputation in Kazakhstan. Her long-standing experience, track record and skillset will be invaluable to both our firm and our clients."

Ardak adds: "I am honoured and thrilled to join Kinstellar's impressive practice in Kazakhstan. The firm's reputation for excellence precedes it, and I look forward to working with my new colleagues across Kinstellar's offices and contributing my expertise and knowledge to further enhance our client service and drive success."

For further information please contact Joel Benjamin, at joel.benjamin@kinstellar.com.