Henry Forbes Smith KC > Chambers of Lord Grabiner KC > London, England > Barrister Profile

‘A class outfit and a really strong chambers for all things energy and broader commercial work’, One Essex Court ‘has extraordinary strength in depth.’ Members regularly appear in many of the main arbitral centres, representing clients in arbitration proceedings across a broad spectrum of industries, including aviation, construction and infrastructure, energy and mining, finance and banking as well as transport and telecoms. Recent examples include Hulley Enterprises Limited, Yukos Universal Limited and Veteran Petroleum Limited v The Russian Federation in which Laurence Rabinowitz KC, leading Henry Hoskins, acted for the Russian Federation in proceedings brought by the claimants in the Commercial Court for the recognition and enforcement of arbitration awards made in an international arbitration pursuant to the Energy Charter Treaty. Notable practitioners include Sa’ad Hossain KC on the senior end – Henry Forbes Smith KC and Marcos Dracos KC joined the silk ranks in March 2023.  Nehali Shah, Michelle Menashy and Rachel Oakeshott are strong and sought-after juniors.

‘One of the standout London commercial sets‘, One Essex Court fields ‘a great collection of top-end silks‘. The set’s members handle a sizeable number of cases that involve civil fraud elements, as well as allegations of bribery, conspiracy, deceit, misrepresentation, unlawful means, corruption or dishonesty. In one of the largest and most complex cases to come before the Commercial Court, Laurence Rabinowitz KC and Jamie Goldsmith KC represent SKAT, the Danish tax authority, in a high-profile £1.5bn claim against over 100 defendants, which concerns an alleged international conspiracy to deceive the Danish tax authority through “cum-ex” strategies. Sonia Tolaney KC‘s recent highlights include acting for Vale, a Brazilian multinational mining conglomerate, in a $2bn mining rights-related claim for fraudulent misrepresentation and conspiracy to defraud. Henry Forbes Smith KC, who is routinely instructed in major fraud disputes, is at silk level since March 2023; and rising star Alyssa Stansbury is currently part of the counsel team for a high-profile Ukrainian businessman, in PrivatBank v Kolomoisky, Bogolyubov & Ors, which concerns the allegation that approximately $2bn was misappropriated from Ukrainian bank PrivatBank. Nathaniel Bird joined the team in October 2023.

One Essex Court is known for its ‘consistently high performing barristers‘ who have cemented their position as a preeminent set in banking and finance, with regular instructions received from all the major bank panel law firms. Some of the set’s recent highlights includes Philipp v Barclays, which dealt with the possible extension of Quincecare duties owed by banks to corporate clients to retail customers, which saw members such as Sonia Tolaney KC and James Ruddell acting for UK Finance in a Supreme Court appeal. Laurence Rabinowitz KC is regularly instructed in relation to commercial litigation and high profile disputes in overseas courts, while Lord David Wolfson KC has acted for a number of high profile banks like PrivatBank over the past year. Henry Forbes Smith KC and Marcos Dracos KC were both appointed as silk in 2023. Nathaniel Bird joined the team in October 2023.