Charles Buss > Watson Farley & Williams LLP > London, England > Lawyer Profile
Watson Farley & Williams LLP Offices

15 APPOLD STREET
LONDON
EC2A 2HB
England
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Charles Buss

Work Department
PARTNER IN THE DISPUTE RESOLUTION GROUP
Position
He specialises in commercial, banking and maritime litigation and arbitration.
In the ship finance sector, Charles has acted for a large number of lending banks, bank syndicates and financial institutions in disputes, security enforcements, restructurings and insolvencies. In the maritime and offshore oil and gas sectors, Charles regularly acts for shipowners, charterers, contractors and others in relation to commercial disputes arising from construction contracts, charters and drilling contracts, ship sale and purchase contracts as well as cargo and marine insurance disputes.
In 2016, Charles co-authored the second edition of “The Law of Ship Mortgages”, the industry’s most comprehensive book on English law on the topic.
Charles is recommended for his maritime litigation expertise in Legal 500 UK 2021, where he is described “as having a very deep understanding of enforcement action and related litigation” and “unrivalled knowledge of Admiralty work and procedure”.
Career
Articled Slaughter and May; qualified September 1992; joined Watson, Farley & Williams in June 1995; partner May 2000.
Languages
French (fluent).
Education
Rugby School; Exeter University (1987 BA Hons 2(1)); College of Law, Chester (1989 CPE, 1990 LSF).
Lawyer Rankings
London > Dispute resolution > Commercial litigation: mid-market
Watson Farley & Williams LLP‘s ‘very effective team‘ is constantly involved in some of the English Courts’ highest profile commercial litigation; and the fielding of dispute resolution teams from Europe, Asia, the US and the Middle East (in addition to London) facilitates the coordination of complex cross-jurisdictional cases. The practice also stands out for its expertise in large-scale, commercial and corporate litigation in the transport, energy and real estate sectors. The team is jointly led by transport sector expert Andrew Ward; and construction, engineering, petrochemical and energy disputes specialist Rebecca Williams. Also integral to the group are Charles Buss, who focuses on maritime litigation, as well as general commercial and banking disputes; Rob Fidoe, who is ‘building a very strong commercial litigation practice‘; and commercial and financial disputes expert Andrew Hutcheon. At senior associate level Mark McAllister-Jones and Jemma Dhillon both have extensive commercial litigation practices.
London > Transport > Shipping
‘Recognised for the depth and breadth of the practice’, the shipping team at Watson Farley & Williams LLP provides full-service support to clients in the maritime sector, with strong expertise regarding insolvency and restructuring matters as well as the enforcement of ship mortgages. George Macheras took over the role of co-practice head in February 2022 and now leads the team alongside Athens-based George Paleokrasses. Mike Phillips fields strength in a wide range of shipping matters, including contentious ship finance work, carriage of goods, and offshore vessel construction issues. Commercial contracts and dispute resolution are areas of focus for Robert Platt, and contentious dry shipping matters are handled by Charles Buss.
Lawyer Rankings
Top Tier Firm Rankings
- Dispute resolution > Commercial litigation: mid-market
- Real estate > Environment
- Finance > Transport finance and leasing
Firm Rankings
- Dispute resolution > Commodities disputes
- Projects, energy and natural resources > Power (including electricity, nuclear and renewables)
- Industry focus > Hospitality and leisure
- Corporate and commercial > M&A: lower mid-market deals, £50m-£500m
- Projects, energy and natural resources > Oil and gas
- Transport > Shipping
- Finance > Trade finance
- Transport > Aviation
- Real estate > Construction: contentious
- Real estate > Construction: non-contentious
- Corporate and commercial > Equity capital markets – small-mid cap
- Employment > Immigration
- Dispute resolution > International arbitration
- Projects, energy and natural resources > Mining and minerals
- Real estate > Planning
- Corporate and commercial > Private equity: transactions - mid-market deals (up to £250m)
- Transport > Rail
- Corporate and commercial > Corporate tax
- Real estate > Property litigation
- Employment > Employers
- Corporate and commercial > EU and competition
- Real estate > Property finance