Valerie Allan

Practice Areas

Valerie is an energy disputes partner, based in Scotland but with a practice that extends across the UK and overseas. She specialises in dispute management and resolution in the energy, construction and infrastructure sectors. Valerie has particular expertise in joint venture disputes arising in UKCS joint ventures, advising several operators on highly confidential and market sensitive project and joint venture issues over the course of the last year, including in relation to the current challenges to the industry brought by protestor direct action and protest litigation, and in relation to complex decommissioning disputes. She is also recognised for her expertise in respect of regulatory issues in relation to the work of the North Sea Transition Authority.

Valerie is an Acritas-Star rated lawyer and recommended by clients there specifically for her industry knowledge and understanding. She is recognised as a key lawyer for Oil & Gas in Scotland in Legal500 and ranked Band 3 in Chambers for Energy & Natural Resources Disputes (UK-wide). She regularly carries out training for clients on topics that range from detailed black letter law topics to practical issues such as emergency protestor response. She is a trained mediator and the senior DPLP tutor on mediation for Aberdeen University.

She is primarily responsible for CMS’s annual oil & gas disputes survey and regularly presents and contributes to various publications. This year has included various webinars in relation to responding to unlawful protest activity and her article (written with Dalia Majmunder-Russell and James Snape) on developments in the UKC Emissions Trading Scheme was published in the Utilities Law Review in May 2022.

Professional Memberships

Member, Law Society of Scotland

Member, Law Society

Work Highlights

Operators and contractors on serious incident response, including with regard to incident investigation and communications with criminal prosecutors/health and safety investigators.

Operators and contractors on managing disputes arising in the context of on-going projects to safeguard project delivery.

A major utility company on the protection of crucial assets and property against disruption by environmental protesters, including by way of emergency orders.

Education