The Legal 500

London: Corporate and commercial

EU and competition

Within: Leading individuals

Andrew Hockley - Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner LLP

Within: EU and competition

The newly-combined team at Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner LLP has ‘excellent client service, good industry knowledge and bench strength’, combining Berwin Leighton Paisner’s (‘BLP’) strength in the financial services, utilities and regulated sectors with Bryan Cave’s expertise in EU and UK merger control for US clients. The firm was appointed to BT’s competition and regulatory panel in May 2017 and Andrew Hockley, head of antitrust and competition at BLP, has since advised on the merger control aspects of BT’s acquisition of IP Trade, including advising on the CMA process, managing the CMA review and achieving phase 1 clearance. James Marshall acts as standing competition and regulatory adviser to Heathrow Airport and is recommended for his ‘calm and effective delivery of advice’ and being ‘pragmatic with advice and sympathetic to the competing demands within an organisation’. ‘Rising star’ Victoria Newbold ‘is very proactive and responsive to client needs, giving solid commercially focussed advice, and is a lovely person to work with’. Chris Bryant is noted for his experience in cartel investigations and state aid matters. From the Bryan Cave side, Robert Bell is recommended as being ‘very responsive’ and ‘providing practical solutions’. One recent highlight saw Bell and Roman Madej  instructed by Novus International in respect of a claim against another company for alleged abuse of dominant position.

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London: Dispute resolution

Competition litigation

Within: Competition litigation

The 'top-notch' antitrust and competition team at Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner LLP is 'a market leader' in follow-on damages claims, for which it stands out for its 'impressive record' in high-profile cases at trial. The team is led by Edward Coulson, who is 'quick to understand the economics of a case' and 'brings with him a wealth of experience' in competition litigation. Antitrust and competition head Andrew Hockley is noted for his approach to teamwork, which informs his 'strong overall strategic perspective'. Together, the duo are advising Royal Mail group on its landmark High Court claim against DAF, in relation to the defendant's participation in a price fixing cartel in medium and heavy trucks; successfully securing orders for disclosure of the European Commission's file and key documents in the case and persuading the Court of Appeal not to grant DAF's application for permission to appeal. They are also representing BT group in a similar claim against the same defendant. In another highlight, Joby Davies is acting for National Grid in its claim for damages due to overcharges paid for the purchase of high voltage power cables against 20 defendants across eight countries. Chris Bryant and senior associates Rachel Ziegler and Clare Reeve are key practitioners with significant experience in the space.

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London: Projects, energy and natural resources

Power (including electricity and renewables)

Within: Power (including electricity and renewables)

The 'easy to work with' and 'competent' power team at Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner LLP is recommended by clients for energy-from-waste projects especially with regards to the contractual and construction aspects. The firm acts for clients such as National Grid, Ancala and major retailers in matters across the energy supply chain under the leadership of Adam Dann . Recently, Dann and Kiran Arora advised EDFES - a joint venture between EDF and Dalkia - on its acquisition of Imtech from Endless, and Mark Richards is currently assisting the University of Cambridge with all aspects of utility provision at the North West Cambridge Development. Ed Coulson and Andrew Hockley continue to represent National Grid and Scottish Power in their respective claims for damages arising from alleged overcharges paid for the purchase of high voltage power cables following the EU's 2014 cartel decision. The firm's energy disputes practice is spearheaded by Segun Osuntokun while Christian Drage specialises in planning issues.

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Water

Within: Water

James Marshall and Andrew Hockley have substantial expertise and experience in the regulatory and competition fields and jointly lead the water offering at Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner LLP . In parallel with the firm's ongoing counsel to Thames Water with regards to competition, construction, corporate governance, finance and dispute resolution issues, the team also recently handled Ancala's contested acquisition of listed water company Dee Valley under the supervision of Mark Richards and Nicholas Myatt . On the contentious front, Caroline Pope represented a construction company in a series of claims for delay, additional costs and misrepresentation arising from a contract for the design and construction of a new waste water treatment plant in Northern England. Other notable clients include Tideway, the University of Cambridge and Wren Renewables.

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