Instruct Aidan
To instruct Aidan please contact our clerks on +44 (0)20 7842 5555 or email [email protected].
Aidan Christie KC has a general commercial practice with particular expertise in:
Aidan has acted as an arbitrator on a number of occasions. He has also acted as an expert witness on English law relating to guarantees, Suretyship and one-way arbitration clauses in claims in the Russian courts brought by a major European Bank against the guarantors of a Russian agricultural conglomerate.
Aidan Christie is consistently recommended in the insurance/reinsurance, commercial litigation and professional negligence sections of Chambers & Partners and Legal 500.
Comments include:
Aidan’s experience covers most areas of dispute within the insurance and reinsurance market in the past 36 years. He acts for a wide range of clients including London market and international insurers and reinsurers as well as policyholders and has represented them in litigation in the Commercial Court in London (and Africa) and in arbitration both in London and internationally including Japan and Canada. He acts both as an advocate and an advisor and his work includes advising major UK and international insurance companies on the drafting and interpretation of standard form contracts of insurance.
London International Exhibition Centre Plc v Allianz Insurance PLC & Ors [2024] EWCA Civ 1026 – Covid-19 ‘at the premises’ litigation
UnipolSai Assicurazioni SpA v Covéa Insurance Plc [2024] EWCA Civ 1110 – recovery of Covid-19 business interruption losses under Catastrophe Excess of Loss reinsurance treaty
Zephyrus Capital Aviation Partners 1D Ltd v Fidelis Underwriting Ltd [2024] 4 WLR 47 – Russian Aviation Litigation, jurisdictional changes by reinsurers in the Operator claims
He was heavily involved in a number of the Lloyd’s Names’ actions and was extensively involved in disputes arising out of the terrorist attacks on 9/11 as well as natural disasters in the US including Hurricanes Katrina, Wilma, Rita and Ivan. His recent work has focused particularly on claims under Financial Institution and Professional Indemnity policies including jurisdictional disputes arising from them but he has extensive recent experience as well of claims under CAR policies and all forms of liability policies.
Aidan sits as an arbitrator on insurance and reinsurance disputes and has provided expert evidence on insurance and commercial issues in connection with proceedings in Greece and Russia.
Aidan has considerable experience in regulatory issues affecting the insurance industry. He has acted on behalf of the Financial Conduct Authority in regulatory proceedings involving the insurance industry.
His experience in reinsurance includes the following notable cases:
His experience in insurance includes the following notable cases:
His experience in respect of brokers and underwriting agents includes the following:
Aidan is representing the operators of the £100 million Connaught Income Fund in a group action involving approximately 1,000 retail investors in an Unregulated Collective Investment Scheme and appeared on their behalf at the hearing in the Commercial Court to determine issues relating to assignment and the right to sue under section 150 (now 138D) FSMA 2000 (Connaught Income Fund Series 1 (in liquidation) v (1) Capita Financial Managers Limited (2) Blue Gate Capital Limited [2014] EWHC 3619 (Comm).
He is also involved on behalf of insurers in the litigation following the collapse of the Honister/Burns-Anderson IFA networks.
Aidan has worked regularly for the FCA and advised on technical issues relating to the conduct of insurance and reinsurance business.
Aidan has been involved in a number of claims in relation to the provision of financial services in Jersey including acting for the Lloyd’s market in claims arising under D&O policies in relation to proceedings brought by the Jersey Financial Services Commission alleging breaches of the Collective Investment Fund (Jersey) Law 1988.
He has acted for the Lloyd’s market in claims arising under D&O policies by directors of UK and Gibraltar insurance companies subject to DTI investigation concerning alleged breaches of Financial Services Act. He appeared on behalf of Lloyd’s underwriters in a claim in High Court of Malawi in claim under D&O policy covering directors of the Finance Bank Malawi.
Aidan has extensive experience of professional negligence cases across the main professions. His work involves him acting both for and against professionals particularly in cases concerning lawyers, insurance brokers, accountants, auditors, stockbrokers, valuers, hedge fund directors, financial advisers and agents in the securities industry. In addition to his experience in relation to claims against brokers and underwriting agents, his experience includes:
Acting for the main respondents in the scheduled appeal from the first instance decision in Co-operative Group Limited v Birse Developments Ltd [2014] BLR 359 on issues relating to limitation and assignment.
Acting for Local Authority in claims against solicitors and accountants for negligent advice in relation to Private Finance Initiative educational project in South Wales.
Acting for sponsors of Enterprise Zone Trust in claims for £30 million relating to the valuation of Plaza Tower and Plaza Court in Telford.
Acting for the auditors of Syndicate 190 in claim against them by Syndicate Names.
Acting for auditors in claim relating to alleged failure to detect fraud.
Assisting Jersey advocates in long-running litigation defending claims against stockbrokers by numerous investors in Eurobonds issued by Confederation Life Insurance Company.
Acting for receiving agents in claim against them by Carnival Corporation arising out of its partial share offer for the share capital of P&O Princess Cruises.
Acting for one of the professional advisers in the claim relating to the Orion slate in the Film Finance litigation.
Aidan is regularly involved in work of a general commercial nature. He has provided expert evidence to foreign courts on a number of occasions including:
Acting, since June 2017, as Leading Counsel for the cladding contractor, CEP Architectural Facades, initially at the public inquiry and in the continuing civil proceedings
Acting for factory owner in TCC claim arising from fire at factory premises: Goodlife Foods Ltd v Hall Fire Protection Ltd [2017] BLR Plus 30 (TCC) – exclusions clause, incorporation of standard terms and UCTA.
Acting for Heathrow Airport Limited in a claim by British Airways arising out of a collision involving a 747 jet at Heathrow Airport.
Acting for manufacturer of Durex products in Chancery Division trial against distributor for wrongful termination of distributorship agreement relating to distribution of Durex products in South Africa.
Acting for European distributor of pharmaceutical products in claim against pharmaceutical manufacturer.
Acting for owner of waste plant for recovery of losses caused by fire as a result of defectively installed piping.
Acting for lender in claim to assert beneficial interest in fund held by administrators of Funding Corp Block Discounting Ltd v Lexi Holdings Plc [2008] 2 BCLC 596: Acting for lender in claim to assert beneficial interest in fund held by administrators..
Commercial arbitration before the Japan Commercial Arbitration Association in Tokyo relating to the distribution of Japanese manufactured cars in the UK.
Related proceedings in the UK against market competitor for conspiracy to injure.
Acting for charterers in a lengthy arbitration with the owners of a drilling rig in West Africa.
Acting for geotechnical experts in a claim relating to the construction of a storm drain under Brighton beach.
Acting for owners in claim relating to collapse of crane on North Sea platform.
Aidan Christie KC joined a Lloyd’s Market Association panel talk on Subscription Market Brokerage Commissions before...
Property catastrophe excess of loss reinsurance: was the outbreak of Covid-19 a “catastrophe” and aggregation of...
The decision of the Court of Appeal in London International Exhibition Centre Plc v Allianz Insurance Plc [2024] EWCA...
The Lawyer‘s Top 10 Appeals of 2024 has been released reflecting some of the key issues facing the legal industry and...
Instruct Aidan
To instruct Aidan please contact our clerks on +44 (0)20 7842 5524 or email [email protected].
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Call: +44 (0) 20 7842 5555