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Disputes perspectives: Tracey Dovaston

I’d like to say becoming a lawyer was a very well-thought-out decision in my teenage years, but it wasn’t. I recall taking a career aptitude test at school, and it was one of the few professions I’d actually heard of. Law sounded interesting, and I’ve always enjoyed the legal wrangling in various TV shows. Showing my age, it included the less esoteric ones at the time, like LA Law in the late 80s and early 90s.

I picked Herbert Smith. I applied to a number of places, but I had heard partner Lawrence Collins, now Lord Collins of Mapesbury, speak at a careers event at university. Herbert Smith was well-known as a preeminent litigation firm and so I thought that was where I wanted to go. I wrote to him directly. I didn’t think it would make any difference, but it did. When I started, I was a trainee in his litigation department. I had an opportunity to work with him first hand, and he supported me in the early stages of my career. Continue reading “Disputes perspectives: Tracey Dovaston”

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Sponsored foreword: Litigation amid a pandemic – 2021 and beyond

Clive Zietman

One of the strangest features of Covid-19 is that it manifests itself in the human body in a random and unpredictable manner. The same can be said of its effect on the world of commercial disputes. My view is that nothing ever quite pans out in a way many commentators assume.

If one thinks back to the financial crisis of 2008, the only racing certainty was an economic downtown. To that extent, the same might be said of 2021. The prediction 13 years ago was that we would see the usual raft of fraud and insolvency work that typically accompanies a recession. It was anticipated that events would mirror those of the early 1990s, which gave rise to a boom in white collar crime cases and resultant professional negligence claims arising from corporate failures. It did not play out in that way. The scale of the frauds made them almost beyond the scope of litigation. The banks did not rush to insolvency proceedings since they themselves were on the brink of collapse and had no appetite for repossessing worthless assets. Continue reading “Sponsored foreword: Litigation amid a pandemic – 2021 and beyond”

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Hot topics

SFO in the spotlight once again after stuttering investigations

Now a few years into the Lisa Osofsky era of the Serious Fraud Office (SFO), the jury is still out on the agency’s performance.

There have been successes: white-collar crime lawyers agree that the SFO’s near-€1bn deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) with Airbus in January 2020 was a solid achievement, with Stewarts’ fraud partner David Savage praising the international co-operation involved in securing the plea deal. Continue reading “Hot topics”

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UK’s robust disputes framework holds firm amid the crisis

I have always very much enjoyed talking to the City’s disputes practitioners, and after two years away from covering my beat, I was curious to know what had changed. The answer: everything and nothing.

True, face-to-face meetings and the whistle-stop tours of London’s leading disputes practices have been replaced by Zoom and Teams. It seems that even the most momentous of disputes last year were fought and adjudicated by very intelligent people wearing very comfortable clothing; long may that continue. Continue reading “UK’s robust disputes framework holds firm amid the crisis”

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Sponsored briefing: The antitrust challenge to Big Tech

MoloLamken

Eric Posner discusses the US antitrust law challenges for Big Tech companies

After a long period of stagnation, United States antitrust law has experienced a jolt of adrenaline, thanks in large part to public anxiety about the enormous economic and cultural power of Big Tech. Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, Alphabet (which owns Google), and Facebook are the five largest companies in the US by market capitalisation. All of these firms are ubiquitous presences in people’s lives. And all of them (except Microsoft, which has tended its operating system monopoly but not tried to extend it) have been subject to a torrent of criticism about their allegedly anticompetitive practices, now the subject of a spate of lawsuits by the US government, the state governments, and private parties. Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: The antitrust challenge to Big Tech”

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Sponsored briefing: Prosecuting corporations in Romania

Ovidiu Budusan discusses corporate prosecutions in Romania

As early as 2006, the Romanian legislators adopted the view that, similar to individuals, corporations have a distinct, if collective state of mind that is similarly capable of committing crimes, and regulated the criminal liability of corporations. Since then, corporate prosecutions are nothing new to the country, but remain a matter of controversy, as the metaphorical gun is held by the government to the head of businesses, shareholders, board members, CEOs, CFOs – and the list of acronyms may go on and on. Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: Prosecuting corporations in Romania”

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Sponsored briefing: Civil mediation before litigation

R&T Asia (Thailand) assesses how recent amendments to Thailand’s Civil Procedure Code have impacted litigation practice in the jurisdiction

Thailand has recently enabled a party to a dispute to request in-court civil mediation even before a complaint is filed with the court, with a view to saving time and resources which would otherwise be used in civil proceedings. This new form of civil mediation before litigation became effective on
7 November 2020 and was introduced by way of an amendment to the Civil Procedure Code, which is the law setting out the general procedure for the conduct of civil proceedings in Thailand. Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: Civil mediation before litigation”

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Sponsored briefing: Virtual hearings: for here or to go?

Yulchon on virtual international arbitration hearings in South Korea during the Covid-19 pandemic

With no end in sight in the foreseeable future, we are all adapting to life in the Covid-19 world that has become the new normal. International arbitration is no different. Once governmental lockdowns along with social distancing regulations and norms had made in-person arbitration hearings impractical if not downright impossible, it was clear that parties and arbitral institutions would have to derive alternative solutions. This became especially necessary once disputing parties had realised that simply postponing in-person hearings scheduled to take place in 2020 to later dates could not be a permanent solution. Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: Virtual hearings: for here or to go?”

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Sponsored briefing: Unilateral adaptation of commercial contracts

Koutalidis’ Gregory Logothetis discusses the impact of Covid-19 on Greek commercial obligations

The Covid-19 pandemic has inevitably monopolised legal discourse over the last year, as commercial arrangements and entire businesses have been stressed and often crushed under the burden of extended illiquidity. The pressure of meeting outstanding obligations as a going concern has been one of the catalysts in this direction. Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: Unilateral adaptation of commercial contracts”

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Sponsored briefing: Malaysia’s intellectual property regime in the new normal

Gan Partnership’s Alex Choo, Lim Zhi Jian and Bahari Yeow assess how well Malaysia is equipped to deal with intellectual property infringements

As Malaysia (and the world) continue to combat Covid-19, the turn of the new decade promises to be a better year as stakeholders are gradually acclimatising to the new normal. The embrace of the technological wave has become an inevitability, with industries digitalising and moving their products and services online. Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: Malaysia’s intellectual property regime in the new normal”

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Sponsored briefing: Technical expertise in intellectual property litigation in Portugal

António Magalhães Cardoso and Marta Alves Vieira discuss technical expertise in IP litigation matters

Complex intellectual property (IP) litigation matters often require specialised knowledge that the assigned judges and the parties’ counsels generally do not possess.

The facts and the matters at stake in many IP litigation cases – particularly, in patent, utility model or design cases – frequently require experts to participate in the proceedings actively with their specific technical knowledge. Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: Technical expertise in intellectual property litigation in Portugal”

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Sponsored briefing: Implications of the FCA test case for contractual interpretation and broker claims

The Supreme Court judgment in the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) test case was a resounding victory for policyholders. Two potential unintended consequences of that judgment are considered here

Contractual interpretation

So-called ‘disease clauses’ provide cover for business interruption caused by the occurrence of a notifiable disease within (say) 25 miles of the insured premises. To many, the Supreme Court’s conclusion that such clauses cover losses from the Covid-19 pandemic is obviously correct. Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: Implications of the FCA test case for contractual interpretation and broker claims”

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Sponsored briefing: 2021 – a year of change

Stewarts’ Sean Upson considers how the upcoming year will define and influence new working practices

Certain years define and influence our practices for years to come, and 2021 will likely be one of those. If anything, it will eclipse the 2007-2008 financial crisis, where the market disruption played out in the courts for well over the following decade. Unlike 2007–2008, we are not now simply seeing market disruption but also seeing new working practices caused by Covid-19 and the disruptor that is Brexit. These themes are likely to define the disputes landscape for the next decade. Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: 2021 – a year of change”

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Sponsored briefing: Post-Brexit cross-border disputes – what next?

Simmons & Simmons examine the existing European framework, the legal changes introduced by Brexit and practical points that parties will need to consider in the future when contemplating, or participating in, cross-border disputes between the UK and EU

Prior to Brexit, a robust legal framework existed which governed cross-border disputes between the UK and the EU. It provided for reciprocal enforcement of judgments, choice of governing law and jurisdiction clauses. However, following Brexit, this framework has fallen away and has not yet been replaced by any similar legislative arrangement such that many civil justice matters will now be governed by member states’ local law. As a result, and in the absence of any further agreement, Brexit may have significant practical implications
for how litigants conduct cross-border litigation. Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: Post-Brexit cross-border disputes – what next?”

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Sponsored briefing: Litigation laws and regulations in Mexico

Ramón Fernández Vigil and Alejandro Del Castillo Ramírez give an overview of litigation laws and regulations that may occur in Mexico

What are the main methods of resolving commercial disputes?

The main methods of resolving commercial disputes in Mexico are: a) ordinary commercial trial, b) executive commercial trial, c) special proceedings, d) oral commercial trial, e) bankruptcy proceedings (concurso mercantil), f) arbitration, and g) mediation. Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: Litigation laws and regulations in Mexico”

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Sponsored briefing: Data breaches and cyber-attacks

Susanna Norelid and Marcus Appeltofft look at the impact of cyber-attacks in Sweden

The Covid-19 (cyber) pandemic

The Covid-19 pandemic has, among other things, brought about a significant increase in data breaches worldwide. Sweden has been no exception. Following the global trend, Swedish organisations have experienced a surge of cyber-attacks in the wake of the pandemic. The increase in cyber-attacks has intersected with an EU-wide harmonisation effort, which includes the Swedish Privacy Protection Authority that aims to change the manner in which the European DPAs investigate and manage GDPR-related complaints. As a consequence, this will likely exacerbate the business risks involved with the processing of personal data. When it comes to data breaches, it is a question of when, rather than if, one will occur. Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: Data breaches and cyber-attacks”

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Resilient Keystone sees double-digit revenue growth in financials buoyed by senior recruitment

Keystone Law has significantly outstripped its half-year results unveiled in September, by posting a healthy 11% increase in turnover for the full year to 31 January 2021.

Revenues were up to £55m from last year’s £49.6m, with the rate of increase nearly double the 6.5% announced in the half-year results. Continue reading “Resilient Keystone sees double-digit revenue growth in financials buoyed by senior recruitment”

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Sponsored briefing: Angola – getting back in the game

Morais Leitão’s Claudia Santos Cruz on recent legal developments and the future of the Angolan oil industry in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic

For a brief period in 2009, Angola was Africa’s largest oil producer with production reaching two million barrels per day. Current production is around 1.37 million barrels per day. This reduction is generally attributed to a general reduction in production; low oil prices and more recently Covid-19 pandemic effects. Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: Angola – getting back in the game”

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Sponsored briefing: Valuation – the new frontline in restructuring under the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act 2020

In the summer of last year, the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act 2020 (CIGA) was rushed through the UK Parliament in a five-week period to deal with the expected fallout from the Covid-19 pandemic. As the biggest change to the UK’s insolvency and restructuring legalisation in over 20 years, one of the cornerstones of this new legislation is the introduction of the Restructuring Plan. While many of the provisions and the intent of both the Restructuring Plan and the existing Scheme of Arrangement are not dissimilar, what is ground-breaking is the introduction of the Cross-Class Cram-Down mechanism (or CCCD) and the sharp focus this is bringing on evidence as to where value breaks within the capital structure of the company in question. Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: Valuation – the new frontline in restructuring under the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act 2020”