TWENTY ESSEX LIMITED - Key Persons
Albert's practice in London and Singapore focuses on arbitral proceedings and advice and appearance work in cases that raise private international law issues. He has a DPhil (the University of Oxford equivalent of a PhD) in that area.
He has also been involved, usually as counsel, in numerous international arbitrations in the Asia-Pacific region, most notably in Singapore and Hong Kong. Albert has particular experience in maritime and mining disputes, and also acts as an arbitrator.
Albert was educated in Australia, where he maintains chambers. He has been engaged as Counsel Assisting the Royal Commission into Misconduct in the Banking, Superannuation and Financial Services Industry. The commission was established by the Australian government in December 2017 and its final report was submitted on 1 February 2019.
Following his appointment, The Australian stated in February 2018: "Jet-setting Melbourne barrister Albert Dinelli brings an impressive professional curriculum vitae to his new role as Counsel Assisting Banking Royal Commissioner Kenneth Hayne."
Alex specialises in a broad range of commercial matters, including shipping, commodities, energy, and fraud.
He is regularly instructed (either led or as sole counsel) in matters in the Commercial Court, Admiralty Court, and arbitration.
Alex has also appeared in the Supreme Court and Court of Appeal.
Alex holds degrees from the University of Cambridge (Law, Double First) and the University of Oxford (BCL, Distinction).
Alex practices in the fields of commercial law, international arbitration, and public international law. He is well known for his work as a specialist junior acting in complex cases in private international law and jurisdictional immunities.
Alex's practice spans a broad range of matters in the business world, including civil fraud, finance, intellectual property, shipping and international trade, insurance, joint ventures, as well as general corporate disputes. He is listed in the most recent The Legal 500 directories. In addition, Alex is a strong linguist and is often involved in cases working with documentation in other languages, in particular French and Spanish.
In addition to his general commercial practice, Alex has particular specialisms in private international law and public international law, including the law of state immunity, diplomatic immunity, as well as disputes involving foreign affairs in the English Courts. He writes and speaks in various fora in these areas and is the co-author (with Professor Andrew Dickinson of Oxford University) of The State Immunity Act 1978 (OUP, forthcoming), a new edition based on one of the leading texts on the law of state immunity in the United Kingdom.
Alex acts as sole counsel or as part of larger teams for individuals, companies and State entities and has appeared at all levels of the judicial hierarchy, including the High Court (Commercial Court and Chancery Division), Court of Appeal, Supreme Court of the United Kingdom, and the Court of Justice of the European Union. He also regularly appears in major international arbitrations in London and other seats worldwide, in particular under the ICC and LCIA Rules.
Alex holds undergraduate and graduate degrees in Law from the University of Cambridge (Double First) and the University of Oxford (Distinction).
Alex has a busy practice across Chambers' core areas of shipping, commercial arbitration, and public international law (including investor-State arbitration). He has been involved in arbitrations under a variety of institutional rules, including LMAA, GAFTA, LCIA, ICC, SIAC, and ICSID, as well as arbitration-related proceedings in the Commercial Court. He is regularly instructed as sole counsel, but equally enjoys working as part of a team.
Prior to joining Chambers, Alex studied law at the University of Oxford, where he came first in his year overall and won numerous subject prizes and scholarships. He maintains a strong academic interest in the law; he enjoys attending academic conferences, and his contributions have been published in leading journals such as the Law Quarterly Review, Lloyd's Maritime and Commercial Law Quarterly, and the Journal of International Arbitration.
Alex is fluent in Mandarin Chinese, having grown up in Singapore, and maintains a keen interest in the Asian markets.
Job Titles:
- Assistant
- Practice Manager
Alicia started her clerking career in 2019. She currently assists Anthony with all areas of practice management including new enquiries, fee negotiation and general case and diary management. She is also a member of the IBC.
Alistair Wooder is a barrister practising in commercial litigation and arbitration with particular emphasis on shipping and commodities. He also has experience of high-value commercial fraud litigation.
Alistair has appeared in the Court of Appeal and High Court. He has acted in arbitrations under most major arbitral rules, with particular experience of LMAA arbitration.
Alistair has experience of a wide range of issues commonly arising in shipping and commodities disputes, including repudiation, off-hire, demurrage, cargo claims, damage to vessel, misdelivery and claims against bill-holders.
Andrew has an established commercial disputes practice, with a core of trial advocacy before courts and tribunals across the globe.
He has strong multi-jurisdictional connections, particularly in the Asia Pacific region, the Caribbean and within the wider offshore community.
He has been recommended in the legal directories in the following areas: commercial litigation, banking & finance, civil fraud, company & partnership and commercial chancery. Andrew also specialises in urgent injunctive relief, including freezing, search orders and the appointment of provisional liquidators.
Andrew Ayres QC and Andrew Dinsmore instructed on multi-million dollar fraud claim against alleged associates of former Steinhoff Group CEO
Andrew is superb with clients and also a real team player. Technically he is first-rate and quick to spot issues or opportunities that others may have missed.
Andrew has extensive international commercial litigation and arbitration experience. His practice focuses on cybersecurity fraud, banking, shipbuilding, shipping, energy, insurance and sport. He is often instructed to appear both as junior counsel in complex, multi-jurisdictional, high-value cases and as sole counsel in the Commercial Court, Chancery Division and in arbitration.
Andrew is often led in complex high-value, international cases:
Trafigura v Gupta in which he is acting for the Claimant in a US$600 million international nickel fraud (led by Nathan Pillow KC).
E,D & F Man Capital Markets Limited v Come Harvest Limited & others [2022] EWHC 229 (Comm) in which he acted for the Tenth Defendant in a US$300 million fraud concerning forged warehouse receipts in the context of commodities repurchasing agreements (led by David Lewis KC), which went to the Court of Appeal twice: on jurisdiction, [2019] EWCA Civ 2073, and on the application of the res inter alios acta principle, [2022] EWCA Civ 1704.
Durnont Enterprises Limited v Fazita Investment Ltd [2023] EWHC 1294 (Ch) in which he acts for the Claimant in a 100 million Part 19 derivative fraud claim (led by Philip Riches KC).
Newco 10 SARL v Formal Holdings Limited, in which he acts for the Claimant in a 100 million conspiracy to defraud a company by its CEO and his co-conspirators (led by Andrew Ayres KC), during which he appeared unled in an application to uplift security for costs, [2023] EWHC 1112 (Comm).
Jiangsu Guoxin Corporation Ltd (formerly known as Sainty Marine Corporation Ltd v Precious Shipping Public Co. Ltd [2021] 1 Lloyd's Rep. 413, in which Butcher J held that the prevention principle did not apply to the amended SAJ Form in the context of 11 inter-linked ship-building arbitrations (led by Duncan Matthews KC and Roderick Cordara KC).
Nigerian AGIP Exploration Ltd v GEC Petroleum Development Company Ltd [2021] EWHC 1412 (Comm) in which he obtained an anti-suit injunction in support of a US$200 million ICC arbitration concerning oil rights in Nigeria (led by Sara Masters KC).
Andrew also acts regularly as sole counsel:
Renaissance Securities (Cyprus) Limited v Chlodwig Enterprises Limited [2023] EWHC 3160 (Comm) - Acting in a US$130 million anti-suit injunction to support London arbitration (led by Paul Lowenstein KC) and acted sole counsel in this hearing which considered the requirements for naming individuals in a penal notice and dispensing with personal service for the purposes of anticipated contempt proceedings.
LCIA Arbitration - Acting as sole counsel in a US$40 million and a US$10 million commodities dispute.
Horizon Maritime Services Ltd v CNS Marine Nigeria Ltd [2023] EWHC 1419 (Comm), which established that it is not necessary to obtain permission to serve out an order with a penal notice on named directors who were not parties to the proceedings but could be the subject of later contempt proceedings. This issue arose in the context of the Claimant obtaining an asset disclosure order to enforce unpaid arbitration awards.
Giddens v Frost [2022] EWHC 1022 (Comm), in which he acted in a full day of cross-examination in the High Court on limitation in a fraud claim.
Tonstate Group Limited v Wojakovski [2021] EWHC 1122 (Ch), in which he successfully argued that money held on account by solicitors were not ‘assets' of the respondent to a freezing injunction and obtained indemnity costs, [2021] EWHC 1995 (Ch).
Schenker Ltd v Negocios Europa Ltd [2018] 1 WLR 718, in which he successfully extended the freight rule to airfreight.
He regularly publishes articles for the New Law Journal (NLJ), the Journal of International Banking and Financial Law (JIBFL), the European Business Law Review and the Lloyd's Maritime & Commercial Law Quarterly. He also sat on the Commercial Bar Association (COMBAR) Brexit Working Groups, which published papers on the impact of Brexit on private international law and on international arbitration.
Andrew has been ranked in The Legal 500 UK Bar 2022 and 2023 for both shipping (Tier 4) and commodities (Tier 3).
Andrew has an eclectic practice encompassing the full spectrum of commercial litigation, with particular specialisms in private international law, civil fraud, and shipping international trade. His recent caseload covers an unusually broad range of practice areas - from marine insurance to privacy injunctions - including energy and natural resources, banking and finance, tech and IP, and insolvency and restructuring.
Andrew has appeared recently in the large-scale litigation in Deutsche Bank v Sebastian Holdings and Sabbagh v Khoury. He also has extensive experience of cases involving jurisdictional and conflicts of laws issues, including anti-suit injunctions, cross-border insolvency cases, and disputes involving the interaction between courts and arbitral tribunals.
Before coming to the Bar, Andrew worked for several years as a competition and regulatory economist. He enjoys bringing his fluency with numerical data and analysis to his commercial cases.
Andrew has a broad and busy practice. He advises and appears in a range of high-value financial and commercial disputes, often with an international dimension.
He acted for the "Guaidó Board" of the Central Bank of Venezuela in its high-profile battle with the Maduro regime for control of billions of dollars' worth of assets in London, appeared in expedited hearings in the Commercial Court, the Court of Appeal and Supreme Court.
A large proportion of his other work in recent years has involved major fraud litigation and asset recovery exercises. He also has particular experience in capital markets and investment banking disputes, derivatives and structured products.
Andrew has experience of contractual disputes across a wide range of industry sectors. These include construction and offshore drilling arbitrations, telecommunications, mining, and motor racing. He appeared as sole counsel in a leading Court of Appeal decision on Norwich Pharmacal relief.
Before joining Twenty Essex, Andrew worked as an in-house advocate in several major law firms, most recently in the London office of US litigation specialists Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan.
Andrew was admitted as a Barrister & Solicitor of the High Court of New Zealand in 2003 and to the Bar of the East Caribbean Supreme Court, British Virgin Islands in 2015.
Andrew Fulton is very forthright and his advocacy is well judged. He judges the audience beautifully.
Andrew Fulton is very user-friendly and fun to work with, as well as extremely tenacious. He will absolutely go the extra mile.
Angharad specialises in advisory and advocacy work in a wide range of commercial and private international law disputes concerning litigation and arbitration (both domestic and international).
Her practice focuses on projects and heavy industry, sale of goods, commodities, energy and natural resources, offshore, carriage of goods, shipping and conflicts of laws. Angharad works with public international law issues arising in a commercial context. She also has expertise in topical matters relating to international trade and commercial work, including export bans, frustration and force majeure arguments arising out of volatile political situations, and sanctions issues.
Angharad has been consistently ranked as a Leading Junior in Commodities by The Legal 500 in recent years. She has wide ranging experience in respect of commodities work, and experience of numerous trade and arbitration bodies, including inter alia GAFTA, FOSFA, International Cotton Association, LCIA and CIArb. She has also been involved in s67, s68, s69 and s72 Arbitration Act challenges arising out of commodity disputes. Angharad has significant experience in respect of export bans, frustration and force majeure arguments arising out of volatile political situations, and sanctions issues that may affect the commodities market. Angharad is currently instructed to advise in respect of a number of multi-million pound commodities disputes before a variety of bodies (such as ICA, GAFTA and FOSFA), with a particular focus on hedging, securities and issues arising out of force majeure.
Angharad has been consistently ranked as a Leading Junior in Shipping by The Legal 500 in recent years. Angharad regularly undertakes advisory, arbitration and court work in respect of shipping disputes. She focuses on dry shipping work, advising and acting in respect of all aspects of charterparty, and bill of lading claims. She also has experience in relation to shipbuilding and ship sale-purchase disputes. Moreover, she undertakes all work ancillary to shipping disputes: notably cases concerning arrests and other forms of security. Angharad is involved in numerous LMAA arbitrations, both determined on paper and with oral hearings. Angharad has experience of sanctions issues that may arise. Angharad has experience in relation to maritime limitation issues that arise, in relation to cargo, crew and passenger disputes particularly Athens Convention issues.
Job Titles:
- Arbitrators' Administrator
Anisa started her clerking career in 2018, clerking arbitrators and mediators before joining Twenty Essex in 2023. Anisa assists Catherine in handling new arbitral enquiries and appointments, addressing enquiries and seeking out new opportunities.
Anna started her marketing career in 2018. Having previously worked at several legal publishers, she is well versed in delivering successful social media and marketing campaigns.
Anthony provides leadership and management with respect to the development of barristers' practices and the enhancement of Twenty Essex's profile.
Arron has over 20 years industry experience. During his time with Chambers he has gained an in depth knowledge of each members practice.
Job Titles:
- Leader in ISDS
- Senior Fellow of International Law at SOAS
Baiju is a renowned leader in ISDS, international commercial arbitration, and public international law as both counsel and arbitrator. Before he joined the Bar in November 2022, Baiju spent 20 years in international law firm practice, including 12 as partner, leading large teams of lawyers in dozens of international arbitration disputes worth several tens of billions of dollars in aggregate.
His treaty practice has encompassed representation of States and investors under both ICSID and UNCITRAL Rules. Until February 2022, he split his time between Moscow and London leading the Russian Federation's defence in six major investment treaty arbitrations. He has also advised States on the negotiation and drafting of investment treaties. Prior to that he led the international arbitration practices of major American law firms in London and Washington DC. In those roles, he won several high-profile treaty awards, with particular experience in creating and managing winning global strategies for investors in high-stakes, sensitive disputes involving geopolitical issues or major criminal allegations. His international investment law experience has also been at the forefront of the intersection of international arbitration and public international law, having acted as lead counsel on seminal cases on treaty succession, disputed territories, and the effect of alleged illegality on arbitral jurisdiction.
His commercial arbitration record is equally robust. He is often called on to lead cases involving English law or a London seat, but has equally led cases seated elsewhere involving laws ranging from those of India, Ghana, Nigeria, Egypt, UAE, Brazil, various US states, to Russia and the FSU, among others.
Baiju also regularly sits as arbitrator in treaty and commercial arbitrations, and welcomes such appointments through Chambers.
Finally, Baiju is a Senior Fellow of International Law at SOAS, University of London, where he teaches international arbitration to postgraduates from around the world. He also has an active pro bono practice using international dispute resolution techniques to further the global rule of law, and is passionate about bringing diversity into the international arbitration field.
Belinda has developed a busy and wide-ranging practice, focusing on public international law, civil fraud and complex contract disputes, jurisdiction challenges (including relating to Brexit), and all aspects of international arbitration (including enforcement and challenges to awards in London-seated arbitrations).
Since she joined Chambers in 2015, she has appeared in the Supreme Court (five times), the Court of Appeal (including as sole counsel), the High Court (Commercial Court, Chancery Division, Administrative Court and Family Division), and before arbitral tribunals under a variety of rules (UNCITRAL, ICSID, LCIA, ICC, and LMAA). She also sits as arbitrator, having been appointed as sole or wing arbitrator on 7 separate occasions. She has also been appointed to the Attorney General's Civil and Public International Law Panels.
Belinda has appeared in several high-profile cases, the subject matter of which attest to the diversity of her practice. These include acting on behalf of a group of lenders in linked Commercial Court anti-suit and arbitration proceedings (Africa Finance v Aiteo [2022] EWHC 768 (Comm)); on behalf of the Foreign Secretary in the Venezuela Gold case before the Supreme Court (Guaidó Board v Maduro Board [2022] 2 WLR 167); on behalf of Ukraine in the Ukraine v Russia application before the European Court of Human Rights arising out of the Russian invasion; on behalf of a defendant in the large-scale fraud claim in Public Institution for Social Security of Kuwait v Al Rajaan before the Commercial Court (one of The Lawyer's Top 20 Cases of 2020); on behalf of the United States in inter-State cases before the Iran-US Claims Tribunal and the International Court of Justice; and in a rare shipping case before the Supreme Court (The Global Santosh [2016] 1 WLR 1853).
Belinda is described as ‘absolutely exceptional', a ‘fabulous oral advocate' and a ‘go-to junior' by the legal directories, in which she is ranked across the fields of commercial litigation, public international law and international arbitration. In 2022, she was the winner of ‘International Arbitration Junior of the Year' at The Legal 500 Bar awards. She was also included as one of The Legal 500 Top 10 barristers under 8 years' call in commercial litigation for two years.
Before joining Chambers, Belinda was an Associate at Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP. She brings a modern, practical and team-oriented approach to her work as a result. Belinda has also worked in international courts and tribunals in Cambodia, Tanzania and Australia, including as an associate to the Hon. Justice Dyson Heydon AC, at Australia's highest court. She is a graduate of the Universities of Cambridge and Queensland.
A selection of Belinda's most recent reported/ public cases is set out below. More comprehensive information is available on request.
Belinda McRae is 'absolutely exceptional in commercial arbitration' and 'will certainly be a huge name in the years to come' according to impressed sources who add that 'she masters new and complex legal issues like no other'.
Bernard Rix is able to grasp very complex facts very quickly. He is very proficient and competent in ensuring a fair arbitration procedure.
Blair has a broad commercial practice with an emphasis on complex multi-jurisdictional fraud claims and disputes with technical insolvency or company law aspects. She is ranked across all her main practice areas in the latest editions of Chambers UK Bar and The Legal 500, and prior to taking silk, won Insolvency Junior of the Year at The Legal 500 UK Bar Awards 2019. She is described in the directories as "all-round excellent" and receives particular praise for her court room skills ("her advocacy is on another level") and "amazingly good judgment".
Blair advises and represents clients in both domestic and international court and arbitration proceedings. Her overseas practice includes Cayman, BVI, Bermuda, Hong Kong, Singapore, the Isle of Man and Dubai.
Although she has a busy advisory practice, Blair is above all a litigator. She has extensive trial and cross-examination experience and is also experienced in obtaining and resisting applications for pre-emptive and interlocutory relief, including freezing and disclosure orders and the appointment of provisional liquidators.
Blair is one of the most thorough, engaged and responsive silks in the London market, nothing escapes her attention and her ability to communicate in a concise and clear manner is singularly impressive.
Brendan has a broad practice covering all aspects of public international law and commercial arbitration. He has advised states, NGOs and private entities on a wide range of issues, including territorial sovereignty and land boundaries, maritime delimitation and the law of the sea, international environmental law, international investment protection, immunities, sanctions, the law of treaties, human rights, refugee law, and international cultural heritage law. He also has experience in contentious commercial matters. Brendan has acted in cases before a variety of international courts and tribunals, including the International Court of Justice, the European Court of Human Rights, the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights, the UN Committee Against Torture, and the East African Court of Justice. He has also acted in cases before national courts, including the UK Supreme Court and the High Court of Australia.
He was previously an academic research panelist at Blackstone Chambers (2015-2021), where he assisted on questions concerning human rights and refugee law, media law, privacy and data protection, and he has practised at major law firms in Sydney and London. He has also held research fellowships at a number of institutions, including the British Institute of International and Comparative Law.
Brendan is co-author of Evidence before the International Justice (2009, BIICL), and author of Effectiveness and the Adjudication of Territorial Disputes (forthcoming, Oxford University Press). He teaches international law and contract law at the University of Cambridge, and has lectured on all aspects of public international law at universities around the world.
Job Titles:
- Head of Practice, Arbitrators
Catherine assists full-time arbitrators and barristers who accept arbitral appointments to manage and develop their practices. This includes handling new appointment enquiries, addressing enquiries on ongoing cases and seeking out new opportunities.
Charles is developing a broad practice across all of Chambers' core specialisms, including commercial litigation, international arbitration, conflict of laws, and public international law.
Charles Kimmins is an excellent advocate and legal brain. Clients go back to him time and time again for difficult cases.
Christopher has appeared before courts at all levels, including the High Court, Court of Appeal, House of Lords and Privy Council.
Christopher is a Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution (CEDR) accredited mediator and a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators. He is also an LMAA supporting member and sits regularly as a commercial arbitrator.
He is a former Chairman of the Commercial Bar Association (COMBAR).
Christopher was appointed as a Recorder in 2004 and a deputy High Court judge in 2008. He sits regularly as a judge of the Commercial Court.
Chris is responsible for the strategic management and the development of members' practices including work allocation and fee negotiation.
Clare Ambrose is a full time arbitrator with wide ranging experience in commercial arbitration. She is a leading figure in maritime and commodities arbitration with an impressive commercial practice including in ICC, LCIA and SIAC arbitration.
Before becoming a full-time arbitrator in 2017 she built up 25 years' experience of commercial litigation as a barrister with particular expertise in international trade and energy. As arbitrator she has had over 300 appointments in international arbitrations, sitting as chair, sole and co-arbitrator. Appointments have been made under the rules of the LCIA, ICC, LMAA, SCMA, SIAC, SCC, the Swiss Arbitration Centre and UNCITRAL, and also on an ad hoc basis.
Clare's practice as an international arbitrator covers a wide field, which includes areas such as shipbuilding, offshore facilities, aviation, banking services, construction projects, distribution and licensing agreements, entertainment, healthcare, pharmaceuticals, telecommunications, competition law, professional negligence, share purchase agreements and joint ventures.
She is a full member of the LMAA, Fellow of CIArb and a Centre for Dispute Resolution (CEDR) accredited mediator, and was appointed a Deputy High Court Judge in 2018. She is a member of the ICC Commission and the UK ICC National Committee and is a coordinator on the current ICC Taskforce on issues of corruption in international arbitration.
She frequently lectures on arbitration issues and is co-author of the leading textbook on shipping arbitration, London Maritime Arbitration (4th edn, Informa 2017).
Clare Ambrose is very well prepared, conscientious and very hard-working.
Colleen is a recommended leading junior in both Chambers & Partners and The Legal 500.
She specialises in commercial litigation with a particular focus on shipping, commodities and international arbitration. Colleen appears regularly before the Commercial Court and international arbitration tribunals in disputes involving complex commercial sale contracts, charterparty construction, cargo claims and jurisdictional issues. She has particular expertise in challenging arbitration awards under the Arbitration Act and in obtaining anti-suit injunctions. Colleen has also acted for some of the world's largest commodity traders in sale of goods disputes and has specific expertise in oil and gas sale disputes. She has also advised in superyacht disputes.
Early in her career, Colleen worked in-house at the Nordisk Shipowners' Defence Club in Oslo and has a unique understanding of the day to-day legal issues arising for shipowners. She regularly advises and acts for a variety of shipowners' defence clubs and is happy to accept direct instructions.
In addition to her main commercial litigation practice, Colleen has expertise in UK and European competition law. From 2008 to 2009 she was the Principal Legal Adviser at Ofgem with responsibility for all competition law matters, as well as advising on public and regulatory law issues. As a Pegasus Scholar, Colleen worked in-house in the anti-trust department of the Washington DC office of Morgan Lewis Bockius LLP and as a Visiting Fellow on Capitol Hill during which she was seconded to the staff teams of a prominent US senator and well-known congressman.
Colleen was called to the Bar of Ireland in 2017. She also has full rights of audience to appear before the AIFC, in Astana Kazakhstan.
Courtney has developed a diverse practice in commercial, public international and human rights law.
Courtney is instructed on a broad spectrum of litigation in the English courts (Commercial Court, King's Bench Division, Court of Appeal, Supreme Court) and in international arbitrations under a variety of institutional rules. She also acts for and advises States on a range of public international law matters, including at the International Court of Justice, the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea and the European Court of Human Rights.
Courtney has recently appeared in several high-profile cases, across a variety of subject matters. These include acting on behalf of the United Kingdom at the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (Request for an Advisory Opinion submitted by the Commission of Small Island States on Climate Change and International Law); on behalf of Ukraine at the European Court of Human Rights (Ukraine v Russia); on behalf of a P&I insurer seeking anti-suit relief against Venezuela in the Court of Appeal (UK P&I Club NV and another v Republica Bolivariana de Venezuela); on behalf of Greggs plc in its claim against Zurich for over £150 million in business interruption losses arising from the Covid-19 pandemic in the Commercial Court (Greggs Plc v Zurich Insurance Plc); and on behalf of an international athlete at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (UK Anti-Doping v Boardman).
Courtney is also an expert on INTERPOL. She is the co-author of the leading text on INTERPOL, The Legal Foundations of INTERPOL (2nd edition, 2020), advises States on INTERPOL matters, and is well-versed in challenging INTERPOL red notices.
Before joining Twenty Essex, Courtney qualified as a solicitor-advocate and worked at a leading Wall Street firm. Courtney was also a Judicial Assistant at the UK Supreme Court to Lord Hodge and Lord Lloyd-Jones. She is a graduate of Yale University and the University of Cambridge.
Dalian Deepwater Developer Ltd v Dybdahl [2015] NZLR 260 − successful application, under the Evidence Act 2006, for a New Zealand witness to be compelled to give evidence in a London LCIA arbitration.
Daniel Kalderimis has over 20 years' experience as a versatile, effective and proven advocate who provides an edge in a wide range of complex disputes.
With broad experience and interests, he has a dedicated focus on advocacy in international arbitrations across the Asia-Pacific region. Daniel is also active in commercial and public law litigation, including in the emerging area of legal duties and climate change.
Daniel has appeared at all levels of the New Zealand court system and before numerous international tribunals in Singapore, London and elsewhere. Until December 2020, he was a partner in the dispute resolution team of Chapman Tripp where, after returning from practising international arbitration and public international law at Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP in London, he founded and led the firm's international law practice. He is admitted in New Zealand, New York and England & Wales.
Daniel is widely recognised for his expertise in international arbitration, public and private international law and cross-border dispute resolution. He regularly acts as counsel in international arbitrations and has experience as an ICC arbitrator. Daniel acted on the first bilateral investment treaty arbitration held in New Zealand. Daniel is New Zealand's national correspondent to UNCITRAL for the New York Convention and the Model Law.
Daniel has taught at Columbia Law School, Victoria University of Wellington Law School and Otago Law School. He is a Fellow of the Arbitrators' and Mediators' Institute of New Zealand.
He is recognised as a leading individual in dispute resolution in Chambers Global, Chambers Asia Pacific and The Legal 500 (where he is listed in the Hall of Fame for eight successive years of inclusion) and has, for a decade, been recommended by Who's Who Legal: Arbitration.
Daniel resides in New Zealand and is a member of Thorndon Chambers in Wellington and Richmond Chambers in Auckland. His international practice is conducted through Twenty Essex in Singapore.
David is a full-time arbitrator and mediator, with a practice covering a wide range of international commercial disputes. The Chambers UK Guide has described him as "a figure right at the heart of the commercial dispute resolution world".
David is good at managing a tribunal, a good listener and open-minded.
David is a full-time arbitrator practicing in London and Paris in international commercial and investment disputes. He is also an accredited mediator.
He has been involved with international arbitration for many years, first as counsel and then as arbitrator and author. David also practiced commercial litigation in the courts of England and Hong Kong.
Until 2001, David was a partner in the law firm of Allen & Overy where, with the benefit of a higher advocacy certificate, he led that firm's dispute resolution department in London for many years. He also practiced as counsel and arbitrator in Hong Kong, and later in Paris, before leaving Allen & Overy. As counsel, David acted for government entities, utilities, banks and commercial undertakings in a variety of disputes.
His professional experience as an arbitrator extends to a wide range of transactions, relating to banking and finance, joint ventures, oil and gas (onshore, offshore and pricing), intellectual property, licencing of patents, pharmaceuticals and telecommunications. David has also decided substantial claims involving civil fraud and related torts, as well as cross-border bankruptcy.
As an arbitrator, David has sat in many countries, east and west, and he has applied a variety of civil laws as well as common laws. He has been appointed as sole arbitrator and president of tribunals by many of the leading arbitration institutions, including the ICC, LCIA, Stockholm Chamber of Commerce (SCC), Zurich Chamber of Commerce (ZCC), ICDR, HKIAC and SIAC. He has also conducted ad hoc arbitrations under the UNCITRAL rules.
David has experience of virtual arbitration having conducted hearings remotely.
Job Titles:
- Administrator
- Receptionist
Job Titles:
- Assistant
- Practice Manager
George began his clerking career in 2018. He currently assists both Robert and Arron with management of the diary including liaising with solicitors, allocation of work, fee negotiation and fixing appointments. George is also a member of the IBC.
Job Titles:
- School Association of the UK: Former President
Job Titles:
- Compliance and Governance Manager
- Operations
Hayley is responsible for Corporate Governance and Secretariat matters within Chambers. She advises members and employees on compliance related processes, policies, and best practice. Prior to joining Twenty Essex, she had spent 15+years in compliance at US law firms.
Jack started his career in 2012. Prior to joining Twenty Essex, he spent 11 years at another leading commercial chambers. Jack's principal duties include dealing with new enquiries, fee estimates, brief fee negotiations, and listing hearings. He also possesses a prominent role in Chambers' business development.
Jayne is responsible for matters relating to fee chasing/credit control (Monday to Wednesday).
Jemma is responsible for the strategic direction and management of Chambers. She works closely with the employee team to provide a continuously improving quality of service to our clients and our barristers.
Kane is responsible for administration in respect of Chambers' finances.
Job Titles:
- HR Manager
- Human Resources
Job Titles:
- BD Director, Asia Pacific
- Head of BD, Asia Pacific
Lara is responsible for the business development strategy of Twenty Essex for the Asia Pacific region. She is based in Singapore and has lived in Asia for over 10 years.
Job Titles:
- Office Executive, Singapore
Job Titles:
- Head of Communications and Marketing
Mark is responsible for overseeing all aspects of communications and marketing strategy and practice at Twenty Essex.
Michael is responsible for data and financial analysis in relation to business operations, as well as projects in support of Chambers' operations.
Job Titles:
- Chartered Member of CILIP
- Knowledge Resources Manager
Michelle is a chartered member of CILIP with long term experience of global and domestic legal information. She manages the knowledge provision for chambers and business development.
Mike is responsible for the smooth running of Chambers' finance. A member of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants, most of his career has involved heading up the finance function of SMEs. More recently he transitioned into the legal sector, working with two other commercial sets of barristers.
Job Titles:
- Assistant
- Practice Manager
Robert joined Twenty Essex as an Assistant Practice Manager in 2018. He assists in all areas of business development and enhancing Chambers profile within the market and works closely alongside Arron and George to develop members' practices. His main responsibilities include work distribution, fee negotiation, BD, listing and diary management.
Sam commenced his clerking career in 2008. Sam's responsibilities in Chambers include the effective diary management of Members of Chambers, business development, allocation of instructions, fee negotiation, listing and practice development.
Sean is responsible for the effective and efficient operation of Chambers' four premises in London including security and contract management in respect of those premises.
Job Titles:
- Secretary of State for the Home Department [2021] AC 765 and [2020] 1 WLR 4267
Shamima Begum v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2021] AC 765 and [2020] 1 WLR 4267: counsel for the UN Special Rapporteur in a case relating to a British citizen detained in Syria, intervening on public international law issues relating to arbitrary deprivation of citizenship before the Supreme Court and Court of Appeal (with Guglielmo Verdirame QC and Jason Pobjoy).
Simon Franklin Plant and Daniel Plant (administrators of Relentless Software Ltd) v (1) Vision Games 1 Ltd (2) Ultimate Finance Ltd (3) Thincats Loan Syndicates Ltd (4) Relentless Vision 1 Ltd [2018] EWHC 108 (Ch): fixed and floating charges.
Charles's 55-year career in the law has combined extensive practice at the bar with distinguished public service, both national and international. For nearly 40 years he has focused on public international law and international dispute resolution.
As counsel or arbitrator he has handled cases on all six continents, principally under the rules of the ICC, UNCITRAL, LCIA, AAA, United Nations Compensation Commission, ICSID, Stockholm Chamber of Commerce, Insurance and Reinsurance Arbitration Society and LMAA. These cases have involved a wide variety of commercial disputes as well as issues of public international law, particularly involving the oil and gas sector, major infrastructural projects, expropriations, and other investment disputes, including ones arising under both bilateral and multilateral investment treaties.
Charles started his career with White & Case LLP in New York, before serving for four years in the United States Department of State in Washington, DC, concluding as its Acting Legal Adviser. He then rejoined White & Case LLP, co-founding its Washington, DC office, where his practice came to be comprised almost exclusively of substantial international arbitrations.
He has served continuously since 1983 as a judge of the Iran-United States Claims Tribunal in The Hague, The Netherlands. That service was interrupted for some months in 1987 by White House service as Deputy Special Counsellor to President Reagan. Charles resumed partnership in White & Case LLP from 1988 until joining 20 Essex Street in 2001. Since 2014 he has also served as a Judge ad hoc at the International Court of Justice.
In 2015 Charles was only the fourth ever recipient of the Global Arbitration Review Lifetime Achievement Award.
Job Titles:
- Assistant
- Practice Manager
Will works closely with Christopher and Jack to help manage all areas of practice management. He holds an ILM Level 5 Diploma in Leadership and Management and is also a member of the IBC.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Chartered Institute of Credit Management
- Senior Fees Clerk
Wojciech is responsible for fee chasing and credit control strategy at Twenty Essex. He has over five years of experience in fee collection across the private sector including handling intricate billing and fees inquiries.
Wojciech is a Member of the Chartered Institute of Credit Management, with a focus on debt collection.