On 6 September 2024, the Supreme Court of the Netherlands ruled in favour of Malaysia by dismissing an appeal filed by seven Filipino Citizens, the alleged heirs of the Sultanate of Sulu. The Filipino Citizens were seeking to overturn a Hague Court of Appeal decision dated 27 June 2023 which dismissed their application for recognition and enforcement in the Netherlands of a purported arbitral award amounting to USD 14,92 billion and rendered by Dr. Gonzalo Stampa against Malaysia. De Brauw successfully argued that the Hague Court of Appeal decision should be upheld. The Supreme Court judgment can be found here (in Dutch).

It is recalled that the Hague Court of Appeal dismissed the Filipino Citizens' application on multiple standalone grounds, including the annulment of Dr. Gonzalo Stampa’s appointment as arbitrator by the same Spanish court that had initially appointed him, the improper constitution of the arbitral tribunal, the lack of a valid arbitration agreement, and the exceptional stay of enforcement of the purported award obtained by Malaysia in France as constituting a further ground for refusal. The Hague Court of Appeal judgment can be found here (in Dutch).

The De Brauw team successfully representing Malaysia before the Hague Court of Appeal and Supreme Court consisted of Marnix Leijten, Jan-Willem Meijer, Albert Marsman, Irina Buga, Johan Valk, Maarten Jansen, Stijn Winters, Lisa van Dord and Alexandru Baltag.