Staff profile

Affiliation

Associate Professor in Commercial Law

Co-Director of Durham International Dispute Resolution Institute

Dr Can Eken is an Associate Professor at Durham Law School and Co-Director of the Durham International Dispute Resolution Institute. A triple-qualified lawyer, he is admitted to practise in California (USA), Turkey, and England and Wales. He is also a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators.

Dr Eken is actively engaged in international research and academic collaboration. He has held visiting appointments as the George Flannery Visiting Fellow at Sydney Law School, a Visiting Scholar at Stanford Law School, the Faculty of Law and Wolfson College, University of Oxford, the Max Planck Institute Luxembourg for Procedural Law, and Singapore Management University. He has published extensively on international commercial arbitration, investment law, third-party funding, online dispute resolution, and emerging issues in dispute resolution. He has also served as an editor for Cambridge Forum on Corporate Climate Governance(Cambridge University Press) and as a peer reviewer for the Modern Law Review, the McGill Journal of Dispute Resolution, and the Asia Pacific Law Review.

His research has been recognised through competitive awards and academic leadership. He was a finalist in the 2021 Asian Law Junior Faculty Workshop at the National University of Singapore and the 2019 Herbert Smith Freehills China International Business and Economic Law (CIBEL) Global Network PhD Scholar Prize at the University of New South Wales. He was also the recipient of the 2021 Postgraduate Research Output Award from The Chinese University of Hong Kong. He convened the two-day multidisciplinary conference “Dispute Resolution in the Space Industry” at Durham University, funded by the Institute of Advanced Study in collaboration with Durham SPARC, bringing together academics and practitioners to examine emerging legal and policy challenges in the space sector.

Dr Eken is regularly invited to speak at international conferences and has lectured in jurisdictions including Turkey, Hong Kong, India, Saudi Arabia, Uzbekistan, and Kazakhstan. He also provides consultancy services to law firms on international arbitration and legal issues. He has served on the Executive Secretariat of the Asia Pacific FDI Network and on the panels of arbitrators of the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA), the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) United Kingdom, the Dubai International Arbitration Centre, and the Asian International Arbitration Centre.

Prior to joining the faculty at Durham, Dr Eken was a practising lawyer in Turkey following a brief stint as a research assistant. He holds a PhD from the Faculty of Law at The Chinese University of Hong Kong, an LLM from the London School of Economics and Political Science, and an LLM and bachelor’s degree in law from Dokuz Eylul University, where he graduated with high honours.

Research groups

Centre for Chinese Law and Policy

Centre for Law and Global Justice

• Alternative dispute resolution methods
• Commercial mediation
• International commercial arbitration
• Investment law
• Online dispute resolution
• Third-party funding

Authored book

• Third-Party Funding in Investment Arbitration: A New Player in the System
  
  Eken, C. (2024). Third-Party Funding in Investment Arbitration: A New Player in the System. Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-63620-2

Book review

• Review of the book The American Influence on International Commercial Arbitration: Doctrinal Developments and Discovery Methods (2nd ed.), edited by P. J. Martinez-Fraga
  
  Yuksel, C., & Eken, C. (2021). Review of the book The American Influence on International Commercial Arbitration: Doctrinal Developments and Discovery Methods (2nd ed.), edited by P. J. Martinez-Fraga. Public and Private International Law Bulletin, 41(1), 1-10. https://doi.org/10.26650/ppil.2021.41.1.846374
• Review of the book China’s International Investment Strategy: Bilateral, Regional, and Global Law and Policy, edited by J. Chaisse
  
  Eken, C. (2019). Review of the book China’s International Investment Strategy: Bilateral, Regional, and Global Law and Policy, edited by J. Chaisse. Public and Private International Law Bulletin, 39(2), 713-720.

Chapter in book

• Corporate Governance on Human Rights Rules as an Applicable Law to the Businesses Practice in Türkiye
  
  Eken, C., & Ilhan, E. D. (in press). Corporate Governance on Human Rights Rules as an Applicable Law to the Businesses Practice in Türkiye. In N. Monebhurrun & H. Mpoto (Eds.), Global Businesses Between Duty and Accountability. Springer.
• Sports Arbitration: What to Expect, Decision-Making, and Fairness in the Game
  
  Eken, C. (2026). Sports Arbitration: What to Expect, Decision-Making, and Fairness in the Game. In J. G. Campos, L. Moubarak, K. Shokalo, & H. F. Odría (Eds.), Law and Practice of International Arbitration: Essays in Honor of John Fellas. Juris Arbitration Law.
• Turkey's Energy Charter Treaty Investment Arbitration Map: An Analysis of Arbitral Tribunal Positions on Unmeritorious Applications
  
  Eken, C., & Roeben, V. (2025). Turkey’s Energy Charter Treaty Investment Arbitration Map: An Analysis of Arbitral Tribunal Positions on Unmeritorious Applications. In R. Kopar & V. Roeben (Eds.), International Investment Law and the Energy Transition. Bloomsbury.
• The Place and Development of Turkic States in International Arbitration
  
  Eken, C. (2024). The Place and Development of Turkic States in International Arbitration. In H. Kaya, Y. U. Uzun, & Z. D. Altinsoy (Eds.), On The 100th Anniversary Of Our Republic Turkish States Organization.
• Expedited International Arbitration in the MENA Region
  
  Eken, C., & Mahmood, T. (n.d.). Expedited International Arbitration in the MENA Region. In A. M. Anderson & H. Verbist (Eds.), Expedited International Arbitration: Policies, Rules and Procedures [Contracted by publisher]. Walters Kluwer.

Journal Article

• The Inoperability of Investment Treaties within Europe: CJEU Jurisprudence and Its Impact on Investment Arbitration
  
  Eken, C. (in press). The Inoperability of Investment Treaties within Europe: CJEU Jurisprudence and Its Impact on Investment Arbitration. American Review of International Arbitration.
• Costs and Funding Investment Arbitration Cases: What are the Problems? What are the Solutions?
  
  Eken, C. (2026). Costs and Funding Investment Arbitration Cases: What are the Problems? What are the Solutions? The International Lawyer, 59(1).
• Neural reranking for UK statutory retrieval: Provision-level evaluation and an open distilled model
  
  Alshehri, A. S., Eken, C., Bencomo, N., & Atapour-Abarghouei, A. (2026). Neural reranking for UK statutory retrieval: Provision-level evaluation and an open distilled model. Artificial Intelligence and Law. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10506-025-09501-6
• A Tale of Three Jurisdictions: How Professional Conduct Rules Impact International Arbitration
  
  Eken, C. (2025). A Tale of Three Jurisdictions: How Professional Conduct Rules Impact International Arbitration. Kuwait International Law School Journal.
• An overview of the English Arbitration Reform Act and its implications in practice
  
  Eken, C., & Yalcin, T. (2024). An overview of the English Arbitration Reform Act and its implications in practice. The Company Lawyer, 45(4), 126-128.
• Analysis of Third-Party Funding within the Islamic Framework
  
  Eken, C. (2022). Analysis of Third-Party Funding within the Islamic Framework. Transnational Dispute Management (TDM), 19(6), 1-15.
• A Detailed Comparison of Third-Party Funding Regulations in Hong Kong and Singapore
  
  Eken, C. (2022). A Detailed Comparison of Third-Party Funding Regulations in Hong Kong and Singapore. Asia Pacific Law Review, 29(1). https://doi.org/10.1080/10192557.2021.1979799
• A Socio-Legal Case Study of Decentralized Justice & Blockchain Arbitration
  
  Bergolla, L., Seif, K., & Eken, C. (2021). A Socio-Legal Case Study of Decentralized Justice & Blockchain Arbitration. Ohio State Journal on Dispute Resolution, 37(1). https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3918485
• The Monetization of Investment Claims: Promises and Pitfalls of Third-Party Funding
  
  Chaisse, J., & Eken, C. (2020). The Monetization of Investment Claims: Promises and Pitfalls of Third-Party Funding. Delaware Journal of Corporate Law, 44(2-3), 113-166.
• Applicable Law to Merits in International Arbitration and its Relation with Mandatory Rules and Public Policy
  
  Eken, C. (2018). Applicable Law to Merits in International Arbitration and its Relation with Mandatory Rules and Public Policy. Young Arbitration Review, 28(52-65).

Other (Digital/Visual Media)

• Revisiting Third-Party Funding after PACCAR: Insights from the Civil Justice Council’s Report
  
  Eken, C. (2025, November 27). Revisiting Third-Party Funding after PACCAR: Insights from the Civil Justice Council’s Report [Legal Finance Expert (LFE)]. Legal Finance Expert (LFE).
• QICCA's Arbitration Evolution: Key Changes for Practitioners
  
  Eken, C., & Hend, N. (2025, March 10). QICCA’s Arbitration Evolution: Key Changes for Practitioners. Kluwer Arbitration Blog [Kluwer Arbitration Blog].
• Greenwashing and Legal Risks: The Role of Arbitration in Resolving Sustainability Issues
  
  Eken, C., & Sadasivuni, U. (2025, January 30). Greenwashing and Legal Risks: The Role of Arbitration in Resolving Sustainability Issues [Trade for Prosperity, ICC United Kingdom]. Trade for Prosperity, ICC United Kingdom.
• Should Environmental Concerns be Considered in Investment Arbitration Rulings?
  
  Eken, C. (2021). Should Environmental Concerns be Considered in Investment Arbitration Rulings?
• Tribunal Secretaries: Explained
  
  Eken, C. (2021). Tribunal Secretaries: Explained.