Richard Eschwege KC > Brick Court Chambers > London, England > Barrister Profile
Brick Court Chambers Offices
7-8 ESSEX STREET
LONDON
WC2R 3LD
England
- Set Profile
- Go to...
Richard Eschwege KC
Position
Richard Eschwege has a broad, predominantly commercial, practice. He has advised on and acted across a wide range of commercial disputes, including energy, banking, financial services, civil fraud, insurance, telecommunications, and conflicts of laws and jurisdiction. He is currently working on a number of matters concerning natural resources, civil fraud, and ‘oligarch’ disputes.
His recent cases include: Arcadia Petroleum v. Bosworth [2016] EWCA Civ 818; Bank St Petersburg v. Arkhangelsky (Chancery Division); Scottish Power UK v. BP Exploration Operating Company Ltd [2015] EWHC 2658 (Comm); Bonhams v. Lawson & Ors [2015] EWHC 3527 (Comm); Peak Hotels v. Tarek Investments [2015] EWHC 1997 (Ch.); Excalibur Ventures LLC v Texas Keystone & ors [2015] EWHC 566 (Comm), [2014] EWHC 3436 (Comm), [2013] EWHC 4728 (Comm); CF Partners v Barclays Bank [2014] EWHC 3049 (Ch.); Georgian American Alloys v. White & Case LLP [2014] EWHC 94 (Comm); Berezovsky v Abramovich [2012] EWHC 2463 (Comm); Katsouris Bros v Haitoglou SA [2011] EWHC 111 (QB); Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines v Steamship Mutual Underwriting Association (Bermuda) Ltd [2011] 2 All ER (Comm); Dana Petroleum v Woodside (Commercial Court) (2010).
Career
Called 2008, Gray’s Inn; tenant Brick Court Chambers 2009 to date.
Education
Balliol College, Oxford University, MA (2004 Honour Moderations, First Class; 2006 Literae Humaniores, First Class (Congratulatory)); City University, CPE (2007 Distinction); Inns of Court School of Law, BVC (2008 Outstanding).
Lawyer Rankings
London Bar > Energy
(2023 Silks)Ranked: Tier 1Richard Eschwege KC –Brick Court Chambers ‘Richard is a first-rate lawyer with sound judgment. He is a pleasure to work with and very clear in his views.’
Brick Court Chambers ‘demonstrates remarkable depth and consistency, and is an intellectual powerhouse’. Members continue to be instructed in many of the most significant cases in the energy and natural resources sector, often crossing over with their other areas of expertise. Helen Davies KC and Charlotte Thomas are currently acting for Prysmian in respect of an application for CPO on behalf of all purchasers of electricity in UK in a cartel claim concerning the supply of high-voltage underground and submarine power cables used to connect on and offshore windfarms to the transmission system. New silk Richard Eschwege KC has a strong energy practice, with work spanning complex energy frauds and difficult questions of interpretation of oil and gas contracts.
London Bar > Insurance and reinsurance
(2023 Silks)Ranked: Tier 1Richard Eschwege KC – Brick Court Chambers ‘Richard has a prodigious intellect, but also an unbelievable capacity for sheer hard work. He has a complete mastery of the technical aspects of the insurance and reinsurance industry, and is a pleasure to work with.‘
London Bar > Fraud: civil
(2023 Silks)Ranked: Tier 1Richard Eschwege KC –Brick Court Chambers ‘Hugely intelligent, with unparalleled drafting skills; Richard is able to assimilate vast quantities of complex material and produce outstanding skeleton arguments.’
Brick Court Chambers‘ members are consistently sought out to act in the market’s most high-stakes civil fraud cases. Mark Howard KC repeatedly acts in complex fraud matters with offshore elements and sums at stake exceeding $1bn; while Tim Lord KC is representing three defendants in SKAT v Solo Capital Partners, a multi-party claim by the Danish tax authority, which seeks to recover £1.5bn paid out through withholding tax refunds, the claim including fraud and conspiracy allegations and involving complex issues of public international law. Craig Morrison KC, who recently led the successful defence of a £30m-plus construction dispute that involved allegations of serious dishonesty; and Richard Eschwege KC, currently representing the two principal defendants in a $330m civil fraud claim involving oil trading in West Africa, were both raised to silk level in March 2023. Among the juniors, Sophie Shaw regularly acts in heavyweight civil fraud cases, while Tom Wood is another name to note among the set’s juniors.
London Bar > Banking and finance (including consumer credit)
(2023 Silks)Ranked: Tier 1Richard Eschwege KC –Brick Court Chambers ‘Richard is superb.’
London Bar > Commercial litigation
(2023 Silks)Ranked: Tier 1Richard Eschwege KC –Brick Court Chambers ‘He has a massive brain and demonstrates judgement beyond his years.’
Instructed in the market’s most high-profile disputes, Brick Court Chambers ‘deservedly has an outstanding reputation in the field of commercial litigation‘. In Federal Republic of Nigeria v Process & Industrial Developments, Mark Howard KC, leading Tom Pascoe and Joanne Box, represented Nigeria in a dispute concerning the enforcement of a $9.6bn arbitral award against Nigeria; and in a major boost to chambers, Richard Eschwege KC and Craig Morrison KC both took silk in March 2023. Eschwege KC acts unled for the two principal defendants in a $330m civil fraud claim involving oil trading in West Africa; and Morrison KC’s track record includes representing the Ingenious Media Group and Patrick McKenna in a film production schemes-related dispute, where Ingenious was sued by hundreds of former investors for deceit, misrepresentation, and breach of contract.