Sean’s specialises in public international law (“PIL”) before international and domestic courts and tribunals and investor-State arbitration.
His recent notable instructions include three cases before the ICJ (including successfully acting for Iran in Certain Iranian Assets (Iran v USA)), three cases before investor-State arbitration tribunals (including acting as sole counsel for a State), and two key cases before the UK Supreme Court concerning the relationship between international law and English law (Rahmatullah (No. 2) v. MOD and Belhaj v. Straw).
Sean was appointed Junior Counsel to the Crown (the UK Attorney General’s Public International Law B Panel) in 2020, and he previously worked as an Assistant Legal Advisor to the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office. He was previously appointed to the Attorney General’s PIL C Panel in 2017.
Sean’s advice on matters of public international law has been cited in national UK newspapers (see here and here in relation to the UK’s withdrawal from the EU Treaties), and he recently gave joint written evidence to the UK House of Lords (see here).
Sean previously held positions at the University of Cambridge (as a Bye Fellow in Law and supervisor in European Union law at Downing College, Cambridge in 2010-11), Harvard Law School (as a Visiting Scholar (EALS) in 2012) and Pepperdine University School of Law (as Adjunct Professor in Public International Law from 2015-17).
He is a committee member of the Administrative Law Bar Association and previously completed a traineeship at the European Court of Human Rights.
Sean recently spoke at the London Conference of International Law (2022) and co-authored an article (with Amy Sander) entitled ‘Intervention before the ICJ: A practical guide’ (2022).
He is currently writing a chapter on ‘Public International Law and Foreign Relations in Judicial Review’ for the forthcoming edition of a leading practitioners’ text on Judicial Review.
2017: Appointed to the Attorney General's C PIL Panel
2015-17: Adjunct Professor in Public International Law, Pepperdine University, London
2011: Stagiaire, European Court of Human Rights
2011: Intern, Volterra Fietta
2011: Intern, International Arbitration Department, Wilmer Hale
2010-11: Bye-Fellow in Law and supervisor in European Union Law, Downing College, University of Cambridge
2010: Intern, International Law Programme, Chatham House
2010: Volunteer, Advice and Information Department, Liberty
2010: Call: Lincoln's Inn
2009: Intern, International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia
2012: Harvard Law School, Visiting Scholar (EALS)
2010: Bar Vocational Course, BPP: Very Competent
2009: The Hague Academy of International Law, Public International Law Session
2009: University of Cambridge, Downing College, LL.M: Class I (ranked second overall)
2008: University of Cambridge, Downing College, BA (Hons), Law Tripos