Elizabeth Blackburn KC

Practice Areas

Elizabeth Blackburn KC has been in practice at the Admiralty/Commercial Bar since 1980 and took silk in 1998. She is also a registered practitioner in the ADGM Court of Abu Dhabi and in the DIFC Court in Dubai. In addition to her commercial work, she is one of the most experienced KCs at the Bar in the field of large-scale casualty work and regularly advises on and acts in high profile maritime cases.

Her professional standing as an international arbitrator has also been recognised internationally: she is an appointed panel member of the HKIAC, KLRCA, SIAC, SHIAC, BVI IAC, and LCIA Europe. She has been appointed as both Chairman and sole Arbitrator by the ICC International Court of Arbitration in numbers of international commercial disputes, including not only international trade disputes and shipbuilding contracts, but also supply contractual disputes in the energy sector. In the maritime arbitration sphere, she is a LOF Salvage Arbitrator, a Member of the Baltic Exchange, a supporting member of the LMAA, and an appointed panel member of the SCMA. In addition to her LOF appointments, in the last 12 months she has worked on a number of appointments as a commercial arbitrator not only in London but also in Hong Kong and Singapore.

Most recently she has been heavily involved as Arbitrator in a sequence of arbitrations arising out of a ship removal contract and as Leading Counsel in two major salvage cases.

Career

Called 1980, silk 1998

Professional Memberships

Bencher of the Middle Temple and a Member of the Baltic Exchange.

Industry Sector Expertise

Arbitrator

Arbitration Counsel

Shipping

Commodities

Work Highlights

The Ever Given (2021-) Elizabeth has been representing the Claimant salvors in their High Court salvage claim arising out of the very well-known March 2021 Suez Canal incident. After the successful outcome of an important preliminary issue in the Admiralty Court in March 2023, the case is now due for hearing in the Court of Appeal in February 2024.

The Maersk Honam (2018-2023) Elizabeth has acted throughout for the majority of cargo interests in this very large scale and lengthy LOF arbitration which has raised a multitude of complex issues.

Anti-suit injunction case in Abu Dhabi (2022) Elizabeth defended a complex US$160 million commercial anti-suit injunction in the ADGM Courts of Abu Dhabi.

HKIAC arbitration concerning a high value ship conversion dispute (2022) Elizabeth was one of the panel of arbitrators which determined this high value ship conversion dispute.

Allision in South America 2013-2022 Elizabeth has acted as Leading Counsel throughout this lengthy litigation and then arbitrations arising out of an allision incident in South America. The case involved not only wet shipping/collision type issues but also unsafe port issues..