Won Kidane

Won Kidane is Professor of Law at Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law and Director of its new International Entrepreneurship Program in Cape Town, South Africa. With over 20 years' experience in international commercial law and arbitration, he has practiced with major firms, served as arbitrator, and taught globally as a Fulbright Scholar.

Kidane specializes in cultural dimensions of transnational dispute resolution, examining how diverse legal traditions influence arbitration proceedings. His scholarship includes The Culture of International Arbitration (Oxford, 2017) and Africa’s International Investment Law Regimes (Oxford, 2023), which analyzes over 30 African cases before ICSID.

He actively promotes diversity in arbitration through UNCITRAL initiatives and contributed to drafting the Investment Protocol of the African Continental Free Trade Area agreement. Kidane leads Villanova's South Africa program, where students study comparative law and gain practical experience with South African law firms.