The Commercial Dispute Resolution team at 4 Pump Court is renowned for its depth of expertise, as noted by Chambers & Partners who comment that chambers “exhibit marked capability in the commercial litigation market and has expertise spanning a wide range of disciplines” with our team’s “exceptional advocacy” being widely praised.
Our team has grown over the last few years with several high-profile lateral recruits at silk and senior junior level complementing our experienced group, meaning that 4 Pump Court is a go-to set for the full range of commercial complex and high value arbitration and court disputes.
Our barristers appear in all court and arbitration forums both domestically and internationally, including the Commercial Court and the Business & Property Courts, as well as the appellate courts. Recent high-profile cases including numerous claims against insurers made by lessors and owners of aircraft stranded in Russia following the invasion of Ukraine and Palmali, Mansimov and others v Socar and others, a series of disputes involving allegations of terrorist funding, theft and embezzlement.
Other big-ticket litigation has included Salinas and another v Astor Asset Management and Others in both the Commercial Court and Court of Appeal regarding stock-based lending, with allegations of dishonesty in relation to hundreds of millions of collateral shares; SKAT v. Solo Capital Partners, where the Danish tax authority claims it is the victim of a sophisticated fraud between 2012 and 2015 by which it was induced to part with around £1.44 billion; Kestrel on Quartz Assets LLC and Others v Kestrel Coal Midco, a Commercial Court claim, in which Kestrel was being sued by lenders concerning the provision of mezzanine finance for the acquisition of mining assets from Rio Tinto for around USD2 billion and, Tata Consultancy Services and Barring Services which was a large-scale, high-value and technically complex dispute relating to the provision of IT implementation and business process transformation.
Complementing our chambers-wide expertise in fraud, shipping, technology & IT, energy, insurance and professional negligence, our members regularly deal with urgent injunctions and applications covering a wide variety of relief across the courts. These include anti-suit proceedings, applications for delivery-up, challenges to arbitration awards, Norwich Pharmacal and other disclosure applications, summary judgment and short notice/overnight injunctions.
Much of our commercial work has an international flavour, with our barristers able to appear in jurisdictions such as Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Hong Kong, Singapore, Bermuda, Cayman and the BVI. One such example is Orlen Trading Switzerland GMBH v Hannon International Middle East DMCC, a case in the DIFC Courts relating to a UAE-based company that is subject to a multi hundred million DIFC courts freezing order.
We are an advocacy first set, meaning that our barristers gain advocacy and case management experience from their second six months of pupillage and into the early stages of tenancy, giving them an unrivalled level of experience at the bar, a commercial outlook on cases and also an understanding of how the tribunal might view a particular case.
Our practice management team has a deep understanding of the pressures involved in commercial disputes across all sectors, honed over many years, working closely with clients to find the right barrister or team of barristers for each dispute. Chambers & Partners note that the “clerking team (are) very accommodating, and their relationships with court staff help move matters along”.
Our barristers provide pragmatic strategic advice on legal problems. Our focus is always on achieving the best commercial outcome for our clients, whether through a negotiated or mediated settlement or following a hard-fought trial.
Our commercial barristers have long been at the forefront of international work at the Commercial Bar, with members often acting in complex multi-jurisdictional disputes, including in relation to business to business, shareholders, companies and trusts disputes.
For further information or assistance on our Commercial Litigation practice please contact Senior Clerk, Stewart Gibbs and Practice Directors, Will Jackman, Richard Sumarno, Paul Bloxham and James Duncan-Hartill below.
Or call our main line:
T: +44 (0)20 7842 5555
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