Dispute Resolution: Commercial

Blackstone Chambers' barristers are au fait with all manner of commercial cases and are also particularly noted for their acumen in the fraud, financial services, sports law and competition worlds. They regularly get their teeth into the major cases of the day such as: Virgin Aviation v Alaska Airlines, a contractual dispute; Skatteforvaltningen v Solo Capital Partners, a claim by the Danish Tax Authority arising from alleged fraud; Ridley v Dubai Islamic Bank, a matter related to an injunction; and Recovery Partners GP & anor v Rukhadze & ors, a case concerned with the scope of the solicitor's equitable lien. One source praises the set as having "a range of leaders in their particular fields who are always technically excellent." Another interviewee notes that the set has "great depth of expertise both within and beyond the commercial litigation sphere."

"The clerks provide a first class service."

"The clerks are always on hand and the excellent Adam Sloane, deputy senior clerk, in particular, is terrific."

"The clerk Billy Brian is great - he's responsive, proactive and fun to work with."

"Gary Oliver, senior clerk, superbly leads a first rate clerking team."

Andrew Green KC "Andrew is a superb strategist and advocate. It's scary how well he is able to predict how a judge will approach a point. He is very down to earth and practical, and he takes a real interest in matters." "Andrew is excellent; he's charming, capable and authoritative." "A superb cross-examiner." "Andrew reads the picture very well in terms of what to present in court."

Andrew Hunter KC "Andrew Hunter was excellent. He provided clear advice and devised a strong and successful strategy." "Andrew is reachable, responsive and very clever. He is able to get to grips with things pretty quickly and can identify what legal arguments have the best prospects." "Superb and able to quickly get to the root of complex legal issues and their factual background."

Fraser Campbell "Fraser is incredibly clever, quick on his feet and a fantastic advocate. He is also client friendly and his advice and input on strategy are always brilliant." "Fraser is an extremely bright barrister, who offers excellent strategic thoughts." "A tremendous advocate." "Fraser Campbell has a strategic sixth sense and great knowledge of the law."

Robert Anderson KC "His written work and analysis is first rate." "Robert is experienced and impressive. He knows how to take control and run the show." "He always has an idea that no-one else has come up with."

Shaheed Fatima KC "Shaheed Fatima is phenomenal in every way. She has an incredible intellect and is an excellent barrister." "A proper commercial lawyer."

Tom Weisselberg KC "Tom Weisselberg is excellent all round." "His advocacy is really top draw." "Tom judges his advocacy perfectly."

Andrew George KC "Andrew George's advocacy was outstanding and he judged his arguments really well." "Andrew is diligent, conscientious and always responsive to the needs of his instructing solicitors. His advice is clear, concise and practical, and in terms of his advocacy he is by far the most prepared, effective and charismatic barrister in the room." "Andrew has a wonderful bedside manner, is a brilliant cross examiner and is extraordinarily technically able. A world champion debater."

Ian Mill KC "A brilliant barrister and advocate." "Ian Mill is very cool under fire and has a very good sense of how to edit an argument and present it in an easy to understand way." "Extremely robust and a really confident advocate."

Mark Vinall "Mark Vinall is a very effective advocate. He is particularly good in terms of preparation work as he is a very thorough individual."

Robert Howe KC "Robert Howe is very reliable and detail orientated." "Robert Howe is in a league of his own. He is calm, authoritative and extremely knowledgeable." "Robert is good in front of judges."

Thomas de la Mare KC "Tom is outstanding and full of energy. He is an excellent advocate, who is very clever and also very proactive and responsive." "Thomas de la Mare is a true creative thinker."

Alan Maclean KC "Alan Maclean is a tough operator, who can be firm when he needs to be but is not overly aggressive." "Alan Maclean is very dynamic."

Anthony Peto KC "A seasoned expert, who is extremely knowledgeable and a known heavyweight in his area of expertise. The mere fact that Tony is advising on a matter is intimidating to his opponents." "At the top of his game. He knows the playbook inside out." "Anthony Peto is tactically astute and experienced."

David Lowe "A brilliant barrister. David is detailed, has huge intellectual capacity and is always head of the game. He has a canny ability to predict where a case is going and he reacts accordingly." "David Lowe has a very powerful advocacy style." "David's written work in particular is excellent; he is incredibly analytical but doesn't overcomplicate things." "David Lowe is excellent. Always very calm and on top of matters, he provides good, commercial advice."

Harry Adamson "He is diligent, conscientious and always responsive to the needs of his instructing solicitors. His advice is clear, concise and practical." "Harry is extremely impressive, hard working and knowledgeable." "Harry is absolutely brilliant. He has an exceptional legal mind and is a real pleasure to work with." "Harry Adamson is very detailed and thoughtful."

Michael Bloch KC "Michael Bloch is very impressive. He's determined and not afraid to be firm in his views." "One of the top advocates at the Bar. His grasp of both strategy and practicalities is superb, and his mind is razor sharp." "Very effective in the courtroom. Michael has a first rate brain and is able to handle the most complex matters." "Michael Bloch is not afraid to take on and deal with difficult points; he doesn't shy away from them which is incredibly helpful."

Shane Sibbel "Shane offers an exceptional level of client service. He is very commercially minded and proactive in offering practical solutions to actual and possible challenges to the client's case." "Shane's legal analysis is always spot on, and his advice is clear and concise. His advocacy is excellent and he always maintains a calm demeanour. Shane is fantastic at dealing with clients and is able to explain complex legal issues in a straightforward way." "Shane is an excellent barrister with a huge brain. He is responsive and client friendly."

Daniel Cashman "Daniel Cashman is extremely bright and hard working. He is great at commercial disputes and wonderful to work with." "Exceptional and undoubtedly a future star. Daniel has that rare combination of ferocious intelligence and excellent communication skills." "Daniel's knowledge of the law and the court rules is unrivalled and he is able to digest and analyse large amounts of complex detail in short order."

Simon Pritchard "Simon never wastes a word in his written and oral advocacy." "Simon is a fountain of information when it comes to financial services  and really has his finger on the pulse of what is happening."

Tom Cleaver "Tom Cleaver is like a computer on legs. He knows all the documents and twists and turns along the way." "Extremely sharp-witted and great to work with." "Tom Cleaver has a confidence in the way he does his work and sees through the complexities of a case."

Tom Mountford "Tom Mountford has both intellectual and intuitive intelligence. He gets to the crux of a matter and asks the right questions. His friendly and disarming manner encourages people to open up to him." "A great barrister, who is approachable, knowledgeable and professional."

Andrew Scott KC "Andrew Scott is exceptional in every way. His advice is always well considered, his drafting is succinct and effective and his oral advocacy is lasered." "Andrew Scott is a fantastic advocate. He has an unmatched ability to take complex legal and factual arguments and present them in a way which is both simple, and overwhelmingly persuasive." "His written advocacy is second to none. He has an incredible ability to distil even the most complex issues into manageable chunks on the hoof." "Andrew is a force to be reckoned with on any commercial case. His advocacy has reached a very high standard."

Robert Weekes KC "Robert Weekes is extremely bright, totally unflappable and someone who can absorb and analyse large volumes of information with ease." "A client is in safe hands with Rob. He is over every detail of the case and clients can be confident that he has anticipated every argument that will be made against him." "Robert is a strong advocate, who is very confident in court."

Victoria Windle KC "Victoria Windle is fantastic at very complex financial disputes which she genuinely understands. She also has a brilliant ability to communicate with solicitors." "Victoria is phenomenal and is able to advise on extremely dense and complex, novel aspects of finance regulation." "Victoria is truly great. She is incredibly clever, very easy to engage with and a popular choice for both solicitors and clients." "Victoria remarkably balances a keen eye for detail with a highly commercial approach, and has a very easy manner with clients."

Gayatri Sarathy "Gayatri is an excellent junior and an important member of any legal group - a keystone between solicitor and counsel teams. Her drafting is superb and her intellect means her analysis of any issue is far beyond her years." "Brilliant to work with and someone who puts clients at ease."

Tom Richards KC "Tom Richards is a calm, considered and quietly effective advocate. He always sees the bigger picture." "Highly user friendly and great at thinking outside the box, he is able to pick up complex issues quickly." "Tom is really responsive and very much feels like an extension of our team of solicitors. His advice is always well reasoned and thought through, and his willingness to debate points and discuss ways forward is extremely helpful."