The Legal 500

United Kingdom > London > Finance > Commodities: physicals

Editorial sections

Other

All countries

Index of tables

  1. Commodities: physicals
  2. Leading individuals: Commodities

Clyde & Co LLP, which merged with Barlow Lyde & Gilbert LLP, is ‘doing an excellent job’ in commodities, with an emphasis on contentious matters, although Philip Prowse and Simon Vere Nicoll advise banks on finance, and Clare Hatcher advises trading companies on physical transactions. Michael Swangard, John Whittaker, Eurof Lloyd-Lewis and Hatty Sumption (‘a first-rate litigator, rightly regarded as one of the very best, and a joy to work with’) stand out on the contentious side. Highlights included a $26m ICC arbitration for Stemcor.

Hill Dickinson LLP’s broad practice is best known for disputes involving soft commodities, particularly sugar. Jeff Isaacs is ‘absolutely excellent’; his ‘rapport with the tribunal and other legal representatives means he is well respected’. David Lucas is a ‘leading commodities lawyer; his knowledge is unsurpassed, and he is highly regarded by the Bar’. Fred Konynenburg, Andrew Meads and Paul Taylor are also key to the practice, with Taylor recently representing Addax Energy in an $83m dispute over crude oil payments frozen by sanctions. Other clients include Trafigura, ED&F Man, Gunvor and Bunge.

The full-service commodities team at Holman Fenwick Willan LLP includes Mark Morrison and Judith Prior, who are regular advisers to the Refined Sugar Association and the Sugar Association of London in relation to arbitrations, and are ‘always very efficient and user friendly, and advise quickly and in plain English’. Chris Swart advised ADM on tenders valued at $40m, and Damian Honey assisted Global Coal Ltd on amendments to the Standard Coal Trading Agreement. Brian Perrott also stands out. The firm counts BP, Stemcor, Gazprom and Glencore as clients.

Kyri Evagora heads the team at Reed Smith, which acts for clients such as Glencore, Cargill and Chevron. Richard Swinburn is ‘one of the most highly regarded commodities lawyers’; and the team also includes well-respected practitioners Diane Galloway, Paul Dillon, Suzanne Bainbridge and Sian Fellows. Paul Skeet and Vassia Payiataki were recently promoted to partner. The firm’s global energy and natural resources group is much sought after for commodities arbitrations.

Ince & Co’s lawyers have ‘expert knowledge and great attention to detail, and are nice people to work with’, with core strengths across commodities litigation, shipping, and energy trading. The ‘outstanding, first-rate’ Stuart Shepherd is ‘a lateral thinker who sees to the heart of a dispute very quickly’. He advised Gunvor in relation to a $7m unpaid letter of credit. Experienced litigators Steven Fox, Ted Graham and Nick Burgess ‘always give clients confidence’, and associate Jane Fitzgerald is ‘a star in the making’.

McDermott Will & Emery UK LLP ‘provides good detail and context behind issues, giving the client the ability to make the correct decisions’, and has one of the world’s leading energy practices. David Birchall, Rashpaul Bahia (‘always clear and straightforward’) and Prajakt Samant have ‘in-depth subject matter expertise and the ability to give good, honest advice’. The team advised on the physical commodities aspects of Gunvor’s $400m purchase of a share in Signal Peak coalmine, and PetroChina and RWE Energy Trading are also clients.

Banking partner Nicholas Grandage, regulatory expert Jonathan Herbst, mining and metals specialist Mark Bankes, litigator Philip Roche and clean energy guru Andrew Hedges contribute to the breadth and depth of Martin McCann’s transactional and disputes team at Norton Rose LLP. McCann advised Standard Bank on an eight-million-tonne iron ore offtake agreement from a West African mine. Other clients include Drax Power, Exxon and RWE.

Stephenson Harwood’s Haris Zografakis oversees an ‘extremely quick, very knowledgeable’ team with ‘meticulous attention to detail’. Peter Bennett is ‘an excellent lawyer in the field of international contract law’, and litigator Paolo Ghirardani is also highly recommended. The firm’s clients include Trafigura, Traxys and Indian mining giant Vedanta. It also acted for Noble in default claims against Agrovenus in FOSFA arbitrations, and for Glencore in GAFTA arbitrations against Saipol.

Boutique firm Thomas Cooper is ‘very client focused’, with Charles Williams and John McCaskill doing ‘an excellent job – clients have great faith in their judgement’. With expertise across commodities and shipping, the firm is regularly involved in high-profile disputes, including matters arising from Russia’s ban on wheat and grain exports.

Arbis LLP has an ‘outstanding energy practice’ built around highly experienced partners Mark Aspinall, Martin Wisdom and Paul Sinnott, whose reputation in the oil market is spreading to a growing presence in the metals markets. The firm is well regarded for both disputes and transactional matters.

Gateley is ‘excellent in both shipping and commodities matters’. Nicholas Walser is ‘extremely thorough and good value; it is hard to fault his approach’, and recently acted for Sovarex in relation to the enforcement of a FOSFA arbitration award. Associate James Cradick is recommended for GAFTA and FOSFA arbitrations.

Matthew Williams’ energy group at Hogan Lovells International LLP includes the highly respected David Moss, Richard Tyler and Christopher Norton, whose clients include GDF Suez Trading, Cargill International and Gazprom. Gas, power and LNG specialist Tyler advised consortium members including BP, Statoil and Total on the $20bn Shah Deniz gas project, which included long-term gas sales agreements.

Watson, Farley & Williams LLP provides ‘good service on commercial matters and litigation’. Andrew Savage and Andrew Hutcheon feature in ‘a very good team that is very pleasant to work with, taking the time to explain each stage’. Recent work includes acting for Concept Oil Services in an $11m dispute over deceit and conspiracy, against En-Gin Group. Hydro Aluminium, ING and Zeus Petroleum are also clients.

Ashurst has notable strength in the energy markets, principally coal, electricity and LNG. LNG specialist Peter Roberts advised Centrica on a groundbreaking contract for the purchase of LNG from Qatar. Luca Salerno advised Vattenfall Energy Trading on its proprietary coal trading terms.

Berwin Leighton Paisner LLP’s head of international arbitration Nic Fletcher is known for physical commodities disputes in the oil and sugar markets, while David Hughes is renowned in the grain, iron ore and coal sectors.

Linklaters LLP’s Chris Staples is ‘an expert in all areas of the carbon market, and is able to provide commercially appropriate advice on an urgent basis’. He recently advised International Finance Corporation on establishing a carbon facility programme.

Specialist international trade firm Mills & Co in Newcastle is ‘the leading firm outside London in shipping and physical commodities trading’. Jonathan Green and Simon Williams are ‘technically competent, pragmatic and personable, providing no-nonsense advice’. It recently handled an $18m tribunal defence for Marine Trade SA.

Donald Lambert at Penningtons Solicitors LLP specialises in disputes involving minor metals.

Search News and Articles

Press releases

The latest news direct from law firms. If you would like to submit press releases for your firm, send an email request to

Legal Developments in the UK

Legal Developments and updates from the leading lawyers in each jurisdiction. To contribute, send an email request to

Press Releases in the UK

The latest news direct from law firms. If you would like to submit press releases for your firm, send an email request to
© 2013 www.legal500.com