Dispute Resolution: Commercial Chancery

Maitland Chambers retains its reputation as a leading set for commercial chancery matters. The set's impressive bench of barristers is regularly mentioned by interviewees: "This is a really strong set with expertise across the whole Commercial Chancery spectrum." Chambers offers significant expertise in banking and finance, insolvency and civil fraud claims, and its barristers have experience of handling both domestic and international litigation and arbitrations. Recent cases of note include Carey Street Investments Limited v Brown, and Goyal & Anor v BGF Group pls & Ors, a GBP40-70 million claim concerning alleged fraudulent misrepresentation and unlawful means conspiracy. The set was also involved in Eva Green v White Lantern Film (Britannica) Limited, a USD1 million claim brought by the actor following her dispute with a film production company over the aborted production of the sci-fi film 'A Patriot'.

"The clerking is really good. John Wiggs, who leads the team there is highly experienced, runs a very tight ship and has a good group below him."

"The clerks are friendly, responsive and knowledgeable."

"The clerking process is seamless and the team represents a very valuable resource."

Christopher Pymont KC "Very able, has enormous experience and is one of the nicest people at the Bar. He's absolutely delightful as an opponent and plays absolutely fairly."

Catherine Addy KC "Very collaborative, industrious and rigorous in her approach." "A dream silk to work with, she's phenomenally clever and incredibly hard-working - I don't know when she sleeps. She's effective, really good with clients, and also really good in court. " "Knows every corner of company insolvency law like the back of her hand, and can answer questions off the top of her head. She things strategically about how to approach a case and also, as an advocate, has an assured and confident manner. Catherine does not rush things and is methodical. She also sits as deputy ICC judge, which gives her an extra edge."

David Mumford KC "Highly strategic and very intelligent, David is consistently able to sense the direction of a case and respond accordingly." "Extremely bright, calm and measured." "He's an excellent advocate, who is always clear in his advice."

Watson Pringle "A solid junior, who gets right into the detail, and supports his leaders. Able to understand the commercial elements of a case well, he always understands the client’s position. Watson has a good read of the courts and judges, and always deals with any arguments that come up efficiently. Last minute issues or questions not expected from the judiciary are not a problem for him." "Top drawer, he is an excellent commercial junior barrister, who works exceptionally hard and is very good in a difficult case. He's good at handling expectations and delivers first rate work." "Clients like Watson because of his friendly and approachable manner, and his expertise in complex areas. He works through difficult legal issues with lay and professional clients, and puts them at ease when there are high stakes in play."

Andrew Twigger KC "Modest, approachable and always communicative - he picks his mobile up whenever. He has incredible brainpower behind him but never shows off - it's just there ready to be deployed. Consistently extraordinary in finding the answer to difficult legal problems, he's a softly spoken but highly persuasive character." "A very good, calm performer in court." "He's a great lawyer with a very gentle manner - there's nothing overstated in his approach. As a result he earns judicial trust and confidence."

Benjamin John "Ferociously intelligent and an excellent advocate both on paper and on his feet." "Technically excellent, he gives advice that is robust and commercially sound."

Rosanna Foskett "Very proactive, incredibly responsive, highly practical and  client friendly. We regularly involve her in client facing conversations, and she quickly delivers appropriately practical advice, breaking down technically complex issues into understandable concepts for us and them. Rosanna really rolls up her sleeves and gets stuck in. She's also technically brilliant." "A great advocate, who is both excellent on paper and on her feet. She's very good at putting clients at ease, but can deliver tough advice if needs be. On top of this, she's brilliant on the law."

Alec McCluskey "His strengths are his confidence, his knowledge of the law, and his ability to persuade the tribunal."

Edmund Cullen KC "Outstanding - he is user-friendly, absurdly clever and so thorough." "He is superb on his feet and judges seem to love him. His advice was brave, commercial and strategically spot on. " "Incredibly bright and someone who gives robust, clear advice, he is fantastic to work with. Able to work quickly without junior support, he is a fearless advocate not to be underestimated. He is a nice and quietly spoken man so people underestimate how effective he is as an advocate. As a result he will often prevail against those who are perhaps more ostentatious in their advocacy."

George Hayman KC "Understands the demands of the client and is willing to take a more pragmatic approach than others."

Matthew Collings KC "Very charming and an agreeable person to work with, he's very client friendly and helpful." "A very effective advocate."

Michael Gibbon KC "A fine performer, who is very experienced." "A seasoned performer who is calm at all times. Judges like him."

Olivier Kalfon "An excellent advocate, who is tactically astute and extremely user friendly. He always works to maintain a good relationship with us, and is a trusted adviser/advocate." "An excellent advocate, calm and effective in cross-examination. who always has one eye on the commercial options open to clients. In court he is a reassuring presence." "An excellent barrister with fantastic written advocacy skills."

Timothy Calland "Extremely good, very sensible and someone who pleads a very sensible case."

Caley Wright "Very intelligent, great on the client side, easy to work with and someone who adapts well to changes in the case." "Caley is excellent at breaking down complex matters into bite size chunks and explaining strategy and risk with great clarity." "Has a really outstanding ability to make a difficult set of facts seem very attractive. He's good on his feet and the courts find him very persuasive."

Duncan McCombe "His written work is extremely strong and eloquent and above the standard of someone of his year of call. Charming and likeable, he handles situations very well and is also able to be tough with the client when the situation demands it. In terms of his support for leaders at trial, he's extremely reliable." "A very able advocate, who was able to find clever arguments that weren't obvious." "His written advocacy was very persuasive."

James Kinman "Tremendously clever, very responsive and always willing to jump into a matter and do whatever is needed to help." "A wonderful barrister, who's integral to our team. Very patient and clever, he's a calming influence in any case and a great advocate." "He has judgement well beyond his years."

Jonathan Allcock "An excellent advocate with good technical knowledge, who has very strong writing skills." "The type of advocate that judges immediately warm to." "Careful in his approach, he picks his arguments well and is an excellent advocate with great judgement."

Laurie Scher "Very responsive and someone who can provide technical answers to difficult questions. He applies the law to the facts very well, and is totally to be trusted." "An absolute pleasure to work with, he's very thorough and good with clients due to the fact that he has a very lovely manner." "Meticulous, organised and well prepared, he's particularly good at cross-examination of witnesses. Laurie takes a very pragmatic approach to even the most complex of matters, and never loses commercial perspective."

Mark Cunningham KC "He's incredibly down to earth and a nice person to work with."

Maxim Cardew "He has impressive advocacy skills and shows excellent attention to detail." "A very considered, thoughtful, methodical lawyer, who likes to work collaboratively. If I want something where I need a considered and careful approach, he's the one as he will put all of the pieces of the puzzle together. Quite a quirky individual in a really good way, breaks the mould of what you'd expect of a barrister, proving brilliant in a modern, understated way. He is just very easy to work with and has a nice manner." "Really good with clients and opponents, and excellent on the law. There's nothing missing from the package."

Narinder Jhittay "Very responsive, she really rolled her sleeves up and got stuck in. She worked on a very, very technical case and got up to speed really quickly. " "Narinder combines a collaborative, responsive approach with excellent technical skills and good commercial sense. She has the ability to swiftly grasp the legal and factual aspects of complex, long running cases, and works seamlessly with the solicitor team towards achieving the client's commercial objectives."

Rowena Page "A fantastic up-and-coming junior with great judgement that belies her relatively recent year of call. She produces immaculate paperwork and has a really good sense of how things play out in court. " "Has always got the client's back and is the one you'd want fighting your corner. She's completely all over the detail." "A very able and knowledgeable barrister, who is both pragmatic and sensible."

Siward Atkins KC "He's fantastic. Great to work with, very smart, and someone who knows company law intricacies very well. He has an encyclopaedic knowledge of the background to any matter he's presented with."

Thomas Munby KC "His advice is very practical - he is flexible and can adapt to the way a case is moving, dealing effectively with the pressures involved. His opinions are always considered and to the point, and he is very client friendly. Clients value his pragmatic and reasonable approach and he knows how to listen to them." "Strategically very switched on, he's quick and sharp-witted in court. Very charming as an advocate, he's extremely bright and his powers of analysis are impressive. Thomas is very good at getting across sometimes complicated and lengthy arguments in a succinct fashion that is well received." "He has an excellent eye for detail and is able to retain a vast working-knowledge throughout the course of a matter, while giving well considered and insightful advice."