Simon Westbrook SC > Des Voeux Chambers > Hong Kong, Hong Kong > Lawyer Profile

Simon Westbrook SC

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Career

Simon Westbrook S.C. has been in continuous practice at the Bar for over 40 years, both in England and Hong Kong, taking silk in 2001. He has handled a wide variety of cases, mostly civil, and appeared in all levels of Courts up to and including the UK Privy Council and the Court of Final Appeal. He appears in over 300 cases reported on the Hong Kong Judiciary website.

His areas of specialty include construction and arbitration, securities and regulatory cases, judicial review, professional negligence and commercial litigation. He also handles a wide variety of cases in general practice including criminal law, family work and statutory tribunals and inquests.

He has been consistently recommended in Chambers & Partners Asia Pacific legal guide. His latest entry (2012) reads “Simon Westbrook S.C. is best known for his solid civil and criminal law practice, and for his construction law expertise. Peers recognize him as “a superb cross-examiner”.”

He occasionally works as an arbitrator and has sat as a Deputy Judge in the District Court (1990 ) and the High Court (2009) where he delivered judgment in W. HING CONSTRUCTION CO LTD v. BOOST INVESTMENTS LTD : reported in [2009] 2 HKLRD 501

In the construction field he has handled cases involving performance bonds, re-rating BQ items, defective piling works, claims involving extensions of time, liquidated damages and prolongation costs . Arbitration work includes applications for leave to appeal to the courts, removal of an arbitrator for misconduct and 2 major ICC arbitrations in Singapore.

Securities and regulatory work has involved claims for “grey market” trading, SFC action for and against IPO sponsors, insider dealing, share re-purchase and option schemes, SFC action under section 213 of the SFO and cases before the Securities and Futures Tribunal and the Market Misconduct Tribunal.

Commercial cases include defending a $2 billion claim by a publicly listed company for alleged fraud by its directors, claims for professional negligence involving lawyers, engineers, doctors and valuers, and a well-publicised case where a leading private banker successfully sued her dance instructors for the return of large pre-payments for dance tuition.

Tribunal work includes acting for a major party at the Public Enquiry in 1999 into the opening of Chek Lap Kok Airport and acting as leading counsel for the tribunal enquiring into Hong Kong’s only fatal air accident. Other tribunal work includes disciplinary tribunals for doctors, lawyers and civil servants and death inquests and Judicial Review of such decisions.

Memberships

• Deputy Judge in the District Court (1990) and the High Court (2009)

Education

• Newcastle-upon-Tyne University (LL.B.) (Hons)
• FCIArb