Scaling up: a look back at the last ten years of disputes in London

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Scaling up: a look back at the last ten years of disputes in London

When Legal Business first launched its Disputes Yearbook back in 2014 Brexit was barely on the radar, most people had not heard of Wuhan and post-financial crisis disputes work and oligarchs were helping firms cast aside any doubts about how sustainable further disputes growth was at either the biggest players in the City or the boutiques spinning out from them.

While much has changed, many of the key market players are still the same today and some of the bigger trends keeping litigators busy now were still evident a decade ago – albeit in nascent form. Continue reading “Scaling up: a look back at the last ten years of disputes in London”

Access to justice: Spurious claims under the spotlight – best intentions or base motives?

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Access to justice: Spurious claims under the spotlight – best intentions or base motives?

With the marked increase in group litigation and rapid development of the litigation funding industry, the Competition Appeal Tribunal is consistently seeing novel claims. New theories of dominance are appearing, with what actually constitutes a dominant position widening. And the type of claim presented to the tribunal is expanding, with an increasing number of ESG claims filed.

As the only court in the jurisdiction to allow for opt-out group litigation, the CAT is the only means by which North American style class actions can be brought. Supporters of the expansion of the CAT’s domain and these new claims see it as a necessary means of consumer redress. The system is seen as one that provides access to justice for consumers, and a way of holding major corporates to account. Continue reading “Access to justice: Spurious claims under the spotlight – best intentions or base motives?”

Debate winners – which disputes teams are best at making their case to the Legal 500?

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Debate winners – which disputes teams are best at making their case to the Legal 500?

Disputes is one of the broadest areas of work covered by the Legal 500; while commercial litigation accounts for over half of all of our disputes rankings, a diverse range of specialisms also fall under the disputes umbrella, from professional discipline and commodities to debt recovery and costs. Continue reading “Debate winners – which disputes teams are best at making their case to the Legal 500?”

Disputes Yearbook 2024 – Editor’s Letter

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Disputes Yearbook 2024 – Editor’s Letter

Welcome to the latest edition of the Disputes Yearbook from the Legal 500 and Legal Business; a special edition marking ten years of our annual guide to all things contentious, and a must-read for every self-respecting litigator.

This supplement brings together analysis of the key issues facing disputes lawyers, interviews with senior figures in the market, and an in-depth round-up of some of the biggest cases around. Continue reading “Disputes Yearbook 2024 – Editor’s Letter”

Disputes perspectives: Adrian Chopin

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Disputes perspectives: Adrian Chopin

When I was nine years old, an elderly relative told me I should consider being a lawyer because I was an argumentative brat. On that flimsy basis I studied law with German law. For my first year, I hated the subject – everything had come easily to me at school but this new thing required a lot of effort. I nearly gave up. At some point I had one of those moments that still makes me wince, but that nevertheless shaped my life. I was sitting on the floor of my room alone, pre-loading on vodka and listening to Pink Floyd’s Time when I had a moment of white panic that I was going to achieve nothing with my life. I ended up learning that the surest way to start to enjoy something is to get good at it, which is usually the reward of a tonne of hard work. I ended up loving my law degree. Continue reading “Disputes perspectives: Adrian Chopin”

Disputes perspectives: Kate Davies KC

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Disputes perspectives: Kate Davies KC

I didn’t really decide to be a lawyer, the law chose me. I went to a wedding and sat next to a very nice man. He turned out to be a partner in a law firm and we talked career options all night. He gave me his business card and said to call him. I did, and was invited to meet some people. Entirely unbeknownst to me, it was a trainee selection day. I had no idea what I was doing, but I spent a day taking part in various team and individual exercises. At the end of the day the senior partner handed me a brown envelope. I asked what it was and he said, ‘a training contract’. I had to phone a friend to ask what that was. I hadn’t done a day of study in the law, but they paid for me to go to law school. I found my calling and the rest is history. Thank you, Miles. Continue reading “Disputes perspectives: Kate Davies KC”

Disputes perspectives: Sherina Petit

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Disputes perspectives: Sherina Petit

I am the third generation in my family to have taken up law, following in the footsteps of my grandfather and father. My father was a partner at one of the top law firms in Mumbai and some of my best memories are of sitting in his office during school summer holidays, listening to him advising clients and watching with awe as they would listen. In my eyes no-one was smarter than my father, who clearly had the attention of every client. Continue reading “Disputes perspectives: Sherina Petit”