The Legal 500

The firm

Ince & Co is an international law firm, with offices in Dubai, Hamburg, Hong Kong, Le Havre, London, Paris, Piraeus, Shanghai and Singapore. The firm practises English, French, German, Hong Kong and UAE (including Shari’ah) law, in six main business strands. Underpinning the firm’s expertise is a clear grasp of clients’ commercial needs. Ince & Co provides non-contentious business and finance advice for clients in a wide range of industries, and also deploys all methods of dispute resolution.

Areas of practice

Aviation: with a ‘pragmatic and commercial approach’ (The Legal 500, 2006) and with in-depth market knowledge, Ince & Co has the flexibility to handle any kind of aviation matter anywhere in the world – from aircraft purchase to major incidents and lesser accidents worldwide. The firm often deploys legal tools to solve problems that appear to be mainly commercial in nature. For crises or disasters, the Ince Worldwide Emergency Response Service is only a phone call away.

Business and finance: the firm’s team of specialist commercial lawyers works with clients to find the answers that help drive their businesses forward. With the combination of high levels of commercial nous and a capacity for hard work, the firm can help clients achieve their goals – whether acquisition, disposal, joint venture or conclusion of a complex commercial contract. Ince & Co’s experience ranges from management buy-outs, through the resolution of shareholder disputes to challenging employment issues.

Commercial disputes: once described in the press as ‘brutal litigators’, the firm also has a lighter touch. Ince & Co’s expertise covers all forms of dispute resolution, ranging from dialogue, through ADR to arbitration and court proceedings. Where litigation is judged to be in a client’s interests, or is unavoidable, the firm draws on immense experience in the commercial courts of the countries where it has offices, and a worldwide network of correspondent lawyers. The firm’s cases come from many sectors, including sport, entertainment and financial services.

Energy: the firm has been in the oil and gas business for as long as many of its clients. Since the early days of North Sea development, the firm’s energy practice has spread all around the world, both onshore and off, from exploration and drilling to FPSOs and refineries. It now extends to renewable sources such as wind.

Insurance and reinsurance: Ince & Co’s team serves clients who provide coverage, those who broke it and those who purchase it. Whether the case is contentious or non-contentious and however straightforward or complex the subject matter insured, the firm offers all the legal services required in these industries. The firm’s direct insurance practice covers all manner of insurance claims, including marine and energy insurance, political contingent and credit risk, and coverage disputes. Reinsurance is also a strong area of focus for the firm. The team advises on, among other things, every aspect of run-off business.

Shipping and trade: from shipyard to scrapyard, from factory to receiver, from finance to flotation, the firm provides all the legal services required by the shipping and commodities industries. The firm counts among its clients many of the world’s leading shipowners, charterers, shipbuilders, traders, banks and insurers. The Legal 500 refers to the firm’s ‘outstanding pedigree in the market’ and its ‘strength in depth’.

Emergency response: Ince & Co operates a 24-hour emergency response service, 365 days a year. It has vast experience of the practical and legal problems following a major emergency, disaster or crisis. Its teams can respond immediately to a wide range of incidents, from accidents in the aviation, shipping, energy, hotel and rail sectors, including pollution and contamination, through natural disasters and outbreaks of disease, to terrorist acts. Tel: +44 20 7283 6999.

Number of lawyers 263
at this office 162

Languages
Arabic
Cantonese
English
French
German
Greek
Gujarati
Hindi
Italian
Japanese
Korean
Mandarin
Norwegian
Portuguese
Romanian
Russian
Spanish
Urdu
Welsh
Yoruba

Other offices
Dubai
Hamburg
Hong Kong
Le Havre
Paris
Piraeus
Shanghai
Singapore

International law firm Ince & Co has offices in London, Paris, Le Havre, Hamburg, Piraeus, Dubai, Hong Kong, Singapore and Shanghai.

The firm: Ince is renowned for clear legal analysis and tenacious, resourceful commercial dispute resolution, deploying ADR and arbitration, as well as litigation. Underpinning this expertise is a grasp of clients’ commercial needs. Ince provides business and finance advice for corporate clients in a wide range of industries.

Types of work undertaken: Shipping: Ince is regularly judged the number one shipping law firm. It handles every aspect of maritime law, including collisions, salvage, charterparty, carriage of goods, ship finance, work-out, general average, personal injury and pollution. Ince has been involved in countless leading arbitration and court cases and virtually every major maritime casualty of recent years, including the Prestige loss. The firm represent major P&I clubs, shipowners, charterers and their underwriters.

International Trade: Ince’s international trade practice includes drafting contracts, joint ventures, distribution and agency agreements and dealing with the documentary aspects of trade finance and disputes. The team advises on deals and disputes for derivatives, freight futures, oil and gas, bio fuels, coal, iron ore, metals and soft commodities, as well as on related insurances.

Insurance/reinsurance: Ince has been involved in most of the leading cases in the evolution of insurance and reinsurance law. The firm covers all aspects of these sectors, including marine, aviation and non-marine, plus regulatory and commercial, political risks, personal accident and professional indemnity. Its team has a specialisation in run-off.

Energy and offshore: the energy and offshore sector, principally oil and gas as well as LNG, has been one of Ince’s main areas of expertise for many years. Its expertise covers both contentious and non-contentious matters, including: drafting and negotiating contracts, asset and project finance, insurance and dispute resolution. Ince has experience in all areas, including construction and operation of pipelines, offshore structures, rigs, FPSOs and other vessels, from drilling and offshore services to transportation and refining of oil and gas. Clients include construction firms, oil and gas companies, drilling and service contractors, brokers and insurers. Ince has acted on most of the significant cases arising from offshore operations in the last 40 years, including Piper Alpha.

Aviation: the aviation team handles a wide range of aviation matters, including finance, chartering, leasing and purchase of aircraft, insurance, regulation, air carriage and accidents. Its expertise also extends to the restructuring and operation of airports.

Business and finance: Ince’s business and finance group advises on general corporate and commercial issues. These range from corporate finance through employment to the structuring of international joint ventures. Members also advise on asset finance, corporate insurance and insurance regulatory work, banking, property and private client, telecoms, IP/IT and media, EU and competition law.

Commercial disputes: Ince has one of the largest dispute resolution practices in London, and this expertise extends to all its offices. The firm handles a wide range of domestic and international disputes involving such matters as business sale and purchase, design, engineering and construction, D&O liability, financial instruments, fraud, insolvency, bankruptcy, JV and agency agreements, manufacturing and supply contracts, partnerships and shareholders agreements, product liability, property, technology and telecoms. Generally, and in its other core areas, Ince specialises in reputation issues associated with accidents and disputes. The firm has countless leading court and arbitration decisions to its credit and is said to have been the first UK law firm to mediate claims in excess of $1bn.

Ince & Co operates a 24-hour emergency response service 365 days a year with a dedicated telephone number: +44 20 7283 6999.

Other offices: Paris, Le Havre, Hamburg, Piraeus, Dubai, Hong Kong, Singapore, Shanghai

Number of UK partners 55
Number of other UK fee-earners 138