Wendy Miles KC > Twenty Essex > London, England > Barrister Profile
Twenty Essex Offices
20 ESSEX STREET
LONDON
WC2R 3AL
England
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Wendy Miles KC
Work Department
- (Re)insurance
- Arbitration
- Banking and financial services
- Energy and infrastructure
- Jurisdiction, conflicts and enforcement
- Public international law
- Technology, media and telecoms
Position
Wendy is a specialist in international arbitration and dispute resolution with a focus on private and public international law.
With over 25 years of experience, Wendy has advised on international law matters and conducted arbitrations under all the major institutions and ad hoc. She has advised a wide range of multinationals, including corporates, sovereign States and State entities and multilateral State organisations.
Wendy has assisted clients across numerous sectors, including energy, natural resources, banking, insurance, financial services, gaming, manufacturing, pharmaceutical, licensing, telecommunications and construction. She has sat as arbitrator since 2005, as sole, co-arbitrator and chair under most major arbitral institutions. Wendy has been appointed by the United Kingdom to the ICSID Panel of arbitrators and ICSID Panel of conciliators effective from 10 November 2020.
In the field of climate change and finance, Wendy acts as global coordinating counsel to various major corporates in relation to climate change transition, disclosure, reporting, compliance and investment. She regularly advises investors and States in respect of climate related physical, transition and litigation risk. She works closely with a number of States in relation to climate transition regulatory structures to mobilise finance and formulate climate investment policy. She also works closely with the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) and has represented it at the Conferences of the Parties on climate since 2015.
Lawyer Rankings
London Bar > Environment
(Leading Silks)Ranked: Tier 4Wendy Miles KC – Twenty Essex ‘Wendy is a leading thinker on climate law.’
London Bar > Public international law
(Leading Silks)Ranked: Tier 2London Bar > Energy
(Leading Silks)Ranked: Tier 3Wendy Miles KC – Twenty Essex ‘Wendy is extremely intelligent, combining a deep understanding of both the law and the most complex factual matrices. She is a systemic thinker and excellent advocate.’
Twenty Essex has ‘some of the best and broadest expertise in international trade, shipping and insurance, whether amongst skills and juniors’, and those skills see members increasingly involved in complex and high-value matters in the energy sector, particularly the oil and gas market. Their work also encompasses LNG, mining, drill and rig disputes, and there is a growing volume of work arising from the renewable energy sector and issues related to climate change and energy transition. Members couple industry-specific knowledge with expertise in financial, fraud and contractual disputes, as well as engineering and construction both onshore and offshore. David Lewis KC is an increasingly prominent presence in energy disputes, frequently acting for large trading houses in matters concerning price reviews and supply contracts. Michael Ashcroft KC recently acted for BP Oil in a $20m Commercial Court claim, BP Oil International Ltd v Vega Petroleum Ltd and Dover Investments Ltd, concerning the return of payments for 211,387 barrels of Gulf of Suez Mix crude oil that was, according to BP, never delivered from the Ras El Ush field in Egypt. Wendy Miles KC, who is best known for climate change matters, is also heavily involved in oil and gas disputes.
London Bar > International arbitration: arbitrators
(Leading counsel as arbitrators)Ranked: Tier 2Wendy Miles KC – Twenty Essex ‘Wendy is absolutely at the top of her game. She is so well-informed, interested and well-prepared for everything she does, and she presents with enthusiasm and a directness of style which is refreshing and productive.’
Twenty Essex is ‘a very strong set in the international arbitration arena with many outstanding arbitrators’ such as Sir Bernard Rix, Sara Masters KC, and Duncan Matthews KC. Appointments span all major arbitral institutions including ad-hoc arbitrations under the UNCITRAL rules across many sectors including energy, insurance, mining, IP, pharmaceuticals and a wide range of commercial disputes. While the set continues to be globally recognised and respected for its strong commercial expertise, its reputation for investor-state work grows with regular investor-state arbitration appointments. Notable additions boosting the set’s bench strength include Baiju Vasani, Wendy Miles KC, both also acting as counsel, and Philippa Charles, who joined from Stewarts Law LLP. Clare Ambrose is particularly sought-after as a full member of the LMAA and Sir Peter Gross attracts appointments in maritime as well as commercial disputes. Kate Parlett is building a strong practice of high-value international commercial arbitration appointments.
London Bar > International arbitration: counsel
(Leading Silks)Ranked: Tier 2Twenty Essex is a ‘top quality chambers of commercial arbitration’ housing ‘excellent talent at all levels with exceptional experience.’ The set has ‘some of the best and broadest expertise in international trade, shipping and insurance’ that aligns with significant strength in international commercial and public international law, translating into the ability to provide teams for global cases with instructing parties based across Europe, Asia-Pacific, the US, African and Middle East. Members are routinely instructed on cases relating to the impact of major global events, including Covid, Brexit and the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Chambers is jointly led by renowned commercial silks Charles Kimmins KC and Philip Edey KC. Other notable members include Wendy Miles KC who is instructed in a set of globally significant cases spanning energy, environment, climate and finance, and Belinda McRae on the junior end with expertise spanning commercial arbitration, arbitration appeals and enforcement, and investment treaty arbitration.