Set Profile > Twenty Essex > London, England
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20 ESSEX STREET
LONDON
WC2R 3AL
England
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Twenty Essex > The Legal 500 Rankings
Offshore
Leading Silks
2020 Silks
Blair Leahy QC - Twenty Essex ‘She distils the questions asked of her and zeroes in on the key issues.’
Leading Juniors
Tony Beswetherick- Twenty Essex ‘A great tactician.’
Insolvency
Leading Silks
Stephen Atherton QC - Twenty Essex ‘On the go-to list of counsel in the restructuring and insolvency arena.’
2020 Silks
Leading Juniors
Tony Beswetherick - Twenty Essex ‘He is a great tactician, anticipates every argument and is fully prepared to counter it.’
Commodities Tier 1
Twenty Essex is 'still considered the leading set for commodities matters'. Members have extensive experience in private international law and frequently represent major commodities trading houses in high-value disputes. Their work is closely tied to the set's prominence in shipping and insurance matters. Co-head of chambers Duncan Matthews QC has more than 30 years' experience in shipping and commodities matters and he recently led prominent junior Susannah Jones in a successful $32m claim by Natixis against commodities broker and trader Marex for breach of a conditional repo agreement in relation to a metal spot purchase contract. Experienced silk Timothy Young QC and new 2020 silks Henry Byam Cook QC and Phillip Riches QC are among the set's other stars. The clerks are well led by Arron Zitver, whose 23 years' experience in instructions in the shipping, commodities and insurance sectors.
Leading Silks
2020 Silks
Leading Juniors
Josephine Davies - Twenty Essex ‘Precise in her work and excellent in technical matters, she is also straightforward and pleasant to work with.’
Colleen Hanley - Twenty Essex ‘A hardworking and highly capable junior with experience in the court and in arbitral tribunals.’
Company and partnership
Company - Leading Silks
Stephen Atherton QC - Twenty Essex ‘Held in high regard by clients.’
Company - 2020 Silks
Blair Leahy QC - Twenty Essex ‘She is extremely user friendly and always willing to go the extra mile to make sure that the quality of the work she produces is of outstanding standards.’
Company - Leading juniors
Harris Bor - Twenty Essex ‘He is a real fighter for the clients and a persuasive oral advocate.’
International arbitration: arbitrators Tier 1
Twenty Essex's longstanding commitment to international arbitration is demonstrated by its strong selection of highly-rated arbitrators, many of whom have established themselves as leading figures on the market. These include highly-rated former solicitors, such as Judith Gill QC and Julian Lew QC, as well as former judges, including Sir Bernard Rix. Several practising counsel are also popular choices for the tribunal, including Duncan Matthews QC. The arbitrators are regularly appointed to sit on major commercial and investment treaty arbitration tribunals. Gill and Michael Lee primarily work from the set's Singapore base.
IT and telecoms
IT and telecoms (excluding regulatory) - Leading Silks
Lawrence Akka QC - Twenty Essex ‘He is fantastic – approachable, insightful and clear. Very measured; strong analytical skills; expert in IT issues; pleasure to work with.’
Paul Lowenstein QC - Twenty Essex ‘He is brilliant under pressure, bright, innovative, hard-working, responsive, brilliant as a team leader.’
Public international law Tier 1
Twenty Essex is 'top of the list for public international law'. Clients appreciate that the 'powerhouse' set's 'very approachable' juniors and silks 'wear their considerable expertise lightly'. Two of the set's top members, Sir Daniel Bethlehem QC and Sir Michael Wood KCMG served as principal legal advisers to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, and are now highly sought after as counsel. Both Bethlehem and Wood, as well as Guglielmo Verdirame QC, Philippa Webb, and Sudhanshu Swaroop QC, are representing Italy in a dispute with India, following the 'Enrica Lexie' Incident, before the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea. Verdirame QC was also a member of the government's legal team advising on the controversial Internal Markets Bill. Chambers' junior ranks have been bolstered by the arrival of Simon Olleson from Three Stone.
Leading Silks
2019 Silks
Guglielmo Verdirame QC - Twenty Essex ‘Top of the list for public international law. Very strong and highly knowledgable in international issues.’
Leading Juniors
Commercial litigation Tier 2
Twenty Essex is 'a very reputable commercial set' which seems 'to have an expert in every field of commercial law', and is particularly noted for its strong expertise in international trade. The set fields a strong selection of 'very able' barristers, including senior silks and up-and-coming baby juniors. Notable cases include Halliburton v Chubb, in which Charles Kimmins QC and Luke Pearce led the LCIA's intervention to the Supreme Court concerning the high profile arbitration award. Philip Edey QC also led Andrew Fulton in the $5bn dispute, Fundo Suberano De Angola and Others v Jean-Claude Bastos De Morais and Others.
Leading Silks
2020 Silks
2021 Silks
Leading Juniors
Fraud: civil Tier 2
Twenty Essex is an 'excellent' set with a strong background in civil fraud, particularly when it comes to disputes in associated areas such as commodities trading and insolvency. Clients appreciate 'the good availability of highly experienced counsel' and note that they are 'glad to accept their suggestions of junior counsel'. Recently, Stephen Atherton QC has been leading Tony Beswetherick in Standard Chartered Bank v African Minerals. Elsewhere, in Vneshprombank LLC v Bedzhamov & Ors, Paul Lowenstein QC and rising star Sam Goodman acted for the Deposit Insurance Agency of Russia, and new silk Blair Leahy QC was on the opposing team; Philip Riches was another member of the set to be elevated to silk in March 2020.
Rising stars
Leading Silks
2020 Silks
2021 Silks
Leading Juniors
Christopher Newman - Twenty Essex ‘Chris exudes confidence and assertively picks apart an opponent's cases seemingly with ease.’
International arbitration: counsel Tier 2
Twenty Essex offers top-notch expertise in areas of traditional strength, such as international trade and shipping, as well as broader commercial disputes. The set's provision of highly experienced senior silks is matched by an impressive up-flow of impressive juniors. Members are regularly instructed on major disputes, such as PL Holdings S.A.R.L -and- Republic of Poland, in which Sara Masters QC and Belinda McRae lead Poland's bid to set aside a BIT arbitration award, with Phillip Riches QC among the opposing counsel. Riches and Henry Byam-Cook boosted chambers at the senior end following their respective elevations to silk, plus the arrival of highly-rated former solicitor advocate Wendy Miles QC from Debevoise & Plimpton LLP is a further demonstration of the set's commitment to international arbitration.
Leading Silks
2020 Silks
2021 Silks
Leading Juniors
Shipping Tier 2
‘A very good and well-respected set', Twenty Essex’s barristers handled a number of high-profile, cross-border shipping disputes in 2019. The highly experienced Michael Ashcroft QC led Luke Pearce in RENOS - The Swedish Club v Machrimar Management S.A. before the Supreme Court, while the Commercial Court case The Chang Hang Guang Rong featured Ashcroft QC and Oliver Caplin against Thomas Raphael QC, while Sara Masters QC represented another party to the dispute. Pearce was also against Daniel Bovensiepen in Nautica Marine Limited v Trafigura Trading LLC (The Leonidas) before the Commercial Court. Chambers has been strengthened at the senior end after Henry Byam-Cook and Philip Riches both took silk in 2020. Also of note, at the junior end, Matthew McGhee is a rising star in chambers.
Rising stars
Leading Silks
2020 Silks
Philip Riches QC - Twenty Essex ‘Very thorough and detailed.’
Leading Juniors
Banking and finance (including consumer credit) Tier 3
Twenty Essex has several silks and juniors with a strong grounding in this area, particularly in disputes relating to futures and derivatives, and on claims with a trade, offshore, fraud or insolvency element. Paul Lowenstein QC and and Tony Beswetherick are currently representing Alfa Bank in Alfa Bank v Abyzov, Emmerson and others. Lowenstein is also acting for the claimants, alongside Luke Pearce, in two separate claims against HBOS: Dove v HBOS, and Wells v HBOS. A highlight for Philip Edey QC has been his advice to Boris Mints on PJSC National Bank and PJSC Bank Otkritie v Boris Mints and Others.
Leading Silks
2021 Silks
Leading Juniors
Energy Tier 3
Twenty Essex has 'very successfully tapped into the need to market and is a set of the future' in the energy market, with clients remarking that it is 'a modern-thinking set, keen to work in partnership with those instructing them'. Strong in shipping, commodities and commercial litigation, the set increasingly handles a broad range of energy disputes relating to oil and gas including rig construction and LNG supply matters, as well as cases in the renewable energy sector. The 'very knowledgeable and sharp' Charles Kimmins QC advised respondents in a substantial dispute concerning the construction of a jack-up drilling rig. Of the clerks, clients note that 'they really understand the set having been there for many years but are still young and enthusiastic'.
Leading Silks
2020 Silks
2021 Silks
Leading Juniors
International crime and extradition
Leading Juniors
Monica Feria-Tinta - Twenty Essex ‘A junior who is very competent and dedicated to her work.’
Professional negligence
Leading Silks
Paul Lowenstein QC - Twenty Essex ‘He is incredibly bright.’
Insurance and reinsurance Tier 4
Twenty Essex's members consistently act for and against insurance entities in cases that raise questions about the construction of standard forms in common use, and which impact upon insurers and the insured. In recent work of note, Christopher Hancock QC acted for the claimant in a major declaration application, which concerned a pollution liability claim by the insurers under a P&I contract, and Charles Kimmins QC appeared in a UK Supreme Court appeal of a Bermuda Form liability insurance award, which arose from the Deepwater Horizon catastrophe. Michael Ashcroft QC also has extensive experience in insurance disputes, particularly in the marine and energy sectors, but also in relation to property and legal expenses.
Leading Silks
Environment
Leading Juniors
Monica Feria-Tinta - Twenty Essex ‘Hard-working, very committed, and generous. She has made disputes under international environmental treaties her own.’
Administrative and public law (including elections)
Leading Silks
Leading Juniors
Penelope Nevill - Twenty Essex ‘Penelope has an encyclopaedic knowledge of her field. She was always able to come up with an interesting angle or case to consider.’
Set overviews: England and Wales
Benefiting from offices in London and Singapore, Twenty Essex has an excellent reputation for international arbitration work. The set has seen multiple recent developments: Sir Peter Gross has returned to chambers as an arbitrator following his departure after being appointed to the bench; Simon Olleson joined the public international law team from Three Stone; Henry Byam-Cook QC, Blair Leahy QC and Philip Riches QC took silk in early 2020; Wendy Miles QC joined from Debevoise & Plimpton LLP in February 2020; Judith Gill QC was elected vice president of the International Council for Commercial Arbitration, with effect from 1 April 2020; Duncan Matthews QC and Stephen Atherton QC were appointed joint Heads of Chambers, effective from 1 August 2020; Penelope Nevill and Belinda McRae were appointed to the Attorney General's Panel of Counsel, effective from 1 September 2020; and former solicitor-advocate Maria Kennedy joined from Norton Rose Fulbright.
Clerks:
Jemma Tagg (CEO); Daniel Clark (COO); Arron Zitver (Practice Director); Christopher Theobald (Practice Director); Anthony Carroll (Practice Director); George Bennett (Practice Manager); Tara Shah (Practice Manager); Rachael Osborne (Practice Manager); Catherine Reeves (Arbitrators’ Practice Manager); Elliott Denton (Arbitrators’ Administrator); Rachel Foxton (Business Development Director, Asia Pacific)
Testimonials
Clerks:
‘Consistent with approach of chambers overall – they do a good job of helping firms to work with chambers, rather than the traditional role of acting as a gatekeeper (however friendly) to an ivory tower of experts. Anthony Carroll typifies this.’
‘Great service, professional, accommodating and efficient.’
‘I have always had very prompt, friendly and professional service from the clerks. Chris Theobald in particular has a very good knowledge of what I need.’
‘The clerks at 20 Essex are very good. In particular, Tara Shah (the clerk to Paul Lowenstein QC and Luke Pearce) has chased up queries from my firm in a timely and helpful manner.’
‘The clerks at Twenty Essex are extremely responsive, friendly and efficient. Rachael Osborne is particularly good – knowledgeable and always ready to help.’
‘The clerks at Twenty Essex work very hard. They are contactable at all times of the day and night and even on weekends. I have not had any issue with them as they have generally been very helpful in helping me find the right barrister for the case. Arron Zitver has been outstanding.’
‘The clerks were friendly and helpful, providing a personalised service. Anthony Carroll is a pleasure to work with.’
‘The service is good and the clerks always available to discuss and propose alternatives.’
Set:
’20 Essex are probably the best set for international arbitration, particularly with an international trade, energy and maritime focus.’
’20 Essex is one of the “go to” places in terms of shipping and commercial matters.’
’20 Essex Street is an excellent set, with long-standing strength and depth in PIL.’
‘I rate Twenty Essex very highly – they are the Chambers with whom I work most closely.’
’20 Essex St is the foremost set for international trade disputes. They have great strength in depth at the mid junior and senior levels and as a whole are a pleasure to work with.’
‘One of the pre-eminent arbitration and PIL sets. Set themselves apart from the other three PIL powerhouses, which our firm also like and use, in that their barristers (or almost all of them) consistently wear their considerable expertise lightly. Very approachable.’
‘Twenty Essex have good availability of highly experienced counsel. We have often been glad to accept their suggestions off junior counsel that we have not come across before. This gives us a wider variety of counsel to work with on future cases.’
‘Twenty Essex is a very reputable commercial set. They seem to have an expert in every field of commercial law. I can’t think of an instance where we had to instruct counsel and a name from Twenty Essex did not come up.’
‘Twenty Essex is an impressive set for commodities (which includes associated sectors like fraud and insolvency) and I use them a lot. Their commodities trading expertise is fantastic and their barristers have deep knowledge of the industry.’
Twenty Essex > Set Profile
The Set: A leading commercial set of chambers, the barristers of Twenty Essex offer outstanding legal minds combined with a modern and commercial disputes experience.
Clients include major global companies, institutions, governments and their advisors from around the world and our barristers advise and appear as advocates in court or arbitration in relation to a broad range of company and commercial, EU, competition, and public international law disputes. Practices involve the preparation and conduct of litigation before a wide range of courts and tribunals, in the UK, in foreign jurisdictions as well as on the international stage.
The vast majority of the work is international in nature and we have well-established links to many overseas markets, including through our Asian hub in Singapore servicing clients throughout Asia Pacific and beyond.
The set is also home to a number of highly respected domestic and international arbitrators and mediators, some of whom were previously judges either in the UK or overseas.
Types of work undertaken:
Commercial dispute resolution: most members of Twenty Essex advise and act as advocates in relation to all types of commercial disputes, particularly in disputes with an international dimension. These may be resolved in the English courts, by institutional or ad hoc international arbitration, or by London maritime and commodity trade arbitrations. Members are experienced in representing overseas and large corporate clients and advising in complex, high-value and multi-forum litigation. The areas in which members accept instructions are: financial services (banking/compliance/regulation); international trade (including shipping, commodities and sale of goods); energy and natural resources; insurance and reinsurance; civil fraud; aviation; information technology, data protection; intellectual property; telecoms and media; ; shareholder, joint venture and partnership disputes; agency and sport.
Brexit, EU and competition: a number of members at Twenty Essex specialise in the substantive law of the EU (including Brexit) and in UK and EU competition law. Virtually all members deal with aspects of EU law regularly. A number have experience of working in the European Court of Justice, at the European Commission and for UK government regulatory authorities. Members appear before the: Competition Appeal Tribunal; Competition Commission; European Commission; European Court of First Instance; and European Court of Justice. In addition, members of the set appear regularly before domestic courts and tribunals to argue questions of EU and competition law. They also advise and represent Community institutions, member states, corporations and private individuals. Advice and the conduct of litigation both for and against the OFT and other regulatory bodies also forms a significant part of members work.
International arbitration: Twenty Essex has a strong reputation as a leading arbitration set. It has an exclusive team of 15 leading international arbitrators from around the globe. In addition, the set has 79 barrister members who act as advocates and arbitrators at all of the world’s major institutions. Its high-quality silks and juniors deal with all manner of international commercial disputes involving banking, shipping, international trade and energy, and investor trade disputes (among many others).
Insolvency and company: members of Twenty Essex are well known for their expertise in contentious and non-contentious restructurings (including schemes of arrangement), insolvency law and company law, spanning all business and industry sectors. In the context of restructurings and insolvency, members regularly advise and represent insolvency office-holders, companies, creditors, shareholders and company directors (both in the UK and abroad) and have been heavily involved in most of the major restructurings and insolvencies of recent years.
Public international law: Twenty Essex is pre-eminent in public international law. Two members of chambers have been principal legal advisers to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. Others have been appointed judges ad hoc of the International Court of Justice, president and members of the North American Free Trade Association tribunals and members of tribunals under the World Bank’s International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes and have been engaged as legal adviser within the United Nations. Members provide legal and strategic advice to states and other parties and appear before English courts in cases in which issues of public international law arise, before international courts and tribunals including: The International Court of Justice; dispute settlement panels of the World Trade Organisation; the European Court of Human Rights; the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea; and international arbitral tribunals.
Main Contacts
| Department | Name | Telephone | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Head of Chambers | Duncan Matthews QC (1986) | DMatthews@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Head of Chambers | Stephen Atherton QC (1989) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 44207842100 |
| CEO | Jemma Tagg | JTagg@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Practice Director | Arron Zitver | AZitver@twentyessex.com | 442078421205 |
| Practice Director | Christopher Theobald | CTheobald@twentyessex.com | 442078421210 |
| Practice Director | Anthony Carroll | ACarroll@twentyessex.com | 442078421230 |
| Member | Alexander Layton QC (1976) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Timothy Young QC (1977) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Christopher Hancock QC (1983) | CHancock@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Sir Daniel Bethlehem QC (1988) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Phillip Edey QC (1994) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Timothy Hill QC (1990) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Paul Lowenstein QC (1988) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Michael Coburn QC (1990) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Charles Kimmins QC (1994) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Gordon Nardell QC (1995) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Michael Ashcroft QC (1997) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Lawrence Akka QC (1991) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Sara Masters QC (1993) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Michael Collett QC (1995) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | David Lewis QC (1999) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Thomas Raphael QC (1999) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Wendy Miles QC (2020) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 | |
| Member | Sudhanshu Swaroop QC (1997) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Julian Kenny QC (1997) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Guglielmo Veridrame QC (2006) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Nakul Dewan SA (2014) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 6562257230 |
| Member | Henry Byam-Cook QC (2000) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Blair Leahy QC (2001) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Phillip Riches QC (2001) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Sir Michael Wood (1968) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Karen Maxwell (1992) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Julie Anderson (1993) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Malcolm Jarvis (1998) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Susannah Jones (1999) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Andrew Fulton (1999) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Zannis Mavrogordato (1999) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Sean Snook (2000) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Socrates Papadopoulos (2001) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Angharad Parry (2002) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Simon Olleson (2002) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Colleen Hanley (2003) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Christopher Newman (2003) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Simon Milnes (2005) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Tony Beswetherick (2003) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Daniel Bovenseipen (2004) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Josephine Davies (2006) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Stefan Talmon (2007) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Patricia Edwards (2006) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Sarah Tresman (2008) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Harris Bor (2006) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Luke Pearce (2007) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Albert Dinelli (2007) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 6562257230 |
| Member | Penelope Nevill (2010) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Rupert Hamilton (2010) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Thomas Corby (2011) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Mahnaz Malik (2012) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Oliver Caplin (2012) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Alex Carless (2012) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Thomas Leary (2012) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Richard Greenberg (2013) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Matthew McGhee (2013) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Andrew Feld (2013) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Andrew Dinsmore (2013) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Monica Feria-Tinta (2014) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Belinda McRae (2014) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Alexander Thompson (2014) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Kate Parlett (2015) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | John Bethell (2014) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Sam Goodman (2015) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Alistair Wooder (2015) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Jonathan Ketcheson (2016) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Phillipa Webb (2016) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Mark Tushingham (2016) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Paulo Busco (2017) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Patrick Dunn Walsh (2012) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Michal Hain (2017) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Fiona Whiteside (2017) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Matthew Chan (2018) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Edward Gilmore (2018) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | James Gardner (2018) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Maria Kennedy (2018) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Fiona Petersen (2018) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Paolo Busco (Registered European Lawyer) | enquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | The Honorable Charles N Brower | arbitralenquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Michael Lee (Arbitrator) | arbitralenquiries@twentyessex.com | 6562257230 |
| Member | David Sutton (Arbitrator) | arbitralenquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | J William Rowley QC (Arbitrator) | arbitralenquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Malcolm Holmes QC (Arbitrator) | arbitralenquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | L Yves Fortier QC (Arbitrator) | arbitralenquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Sir Bernard Rix (Arbitrator) | arbitralenquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | David Owen QC (Arbitrator) | arbitralenquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Michael Tselentis QC (Arbitrator) | arbitralenquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Professor Julian Lew QC (Arbitrator) | arbitralenquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Dr Michael Moser (Arbitrator) | arbitralenquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Sir Martin Moore-Bick (Arbitrator) | arbitralenquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Sir Mark Havelock-Allan (Arbitrator) | arbitralenquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Clare Ambrose (Arbitrator) | arbitralenquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
| Member | Judith Gill QC (Arbitrator) | arbitralenquiries@twentyessex.com | 65 62257230 |
| Member | Sir Peter Gross (Arbitrator) | arbitralenquiries@twentyessex.com | 442078421200 |
Barrister Profiles
| Photo | Name | Position | Profile |
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Lawrence Akka QC | Lawrence’s practice encompasses high value and technically complex commercial and contractual disputes.… | View Profile |
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Clare Ambrose | Clare is a full-time arbitrator with over 25 years’ experience of arbitration… | View Profile |
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Julie Anderson | Julie has an outstanding level of “hands on” litigation experience in the… | View Profile |
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Michael Ashcroft QC | Michael has a broad commercial practice, specialising in high value and complex… | View Profile |
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Stephen Atherton QC | Stephen’s practice comprises international and domestic corporate insolvency and restructuring, company law,… | View Profile |
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Tony Beswetherick | Tony specialises in the fields of insolvency and restructuring, civil fraud, commercial… | View Profile |
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John Bethell | John practises mainly in the areas of commercial disputes and public law.… | View Profile |
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Sir Daniel Bethlehem QC | Daniel specialises in public international law, accepting instructions as counsel and adviser… | View Profile |
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Dr Harris Bor | Harris’s practice covers all areas of international arbitration and commercial and company… | View Profile |
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Daniel Bovensiepen | Daniel’s practice covers a broad range of international commercial work, with a… | View Profile |
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The Honorable Charles N Brower | Charles’s 55-year career in the law has combined extensive practice at the… | View Profile |
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Paolo Busco | Paolo specialises in international dispute settlement, public international law and EU law.… | View Profile |
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Henry Byam-Cook | Henry practises in a range of commercial disputes, including shipping and international… | View Profile |
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Oliver Caplin | Oliver has a broad commercial practice which particularly focuses on international trade,… | View Profile |
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Alex Carless | Alex specialises in a broad range of commercial matters, including banking and… | View Profile |
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Michael Coburn QC | Michael practises in all aspects of commercial law, usually with an international… | View Profile |
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Michael Collett QC | Michael specialises in commercial law. His areas of practice include general commercial… | View Profile |
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Thomas Corby | Thomas has a varied commercial practice, with a focus on international arbitration,… | View Profile |
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Josephine Davies | Josephine specialises in all areas of commercial and competition law and litigation.… | View Profile |
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Nakul Dewan SA | Nakul practises from Singapore, Delhi and London. He accepts appointments both as… | View Profile |
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Albert Dinelli | Albert’s practice in London and Singapore focuses on arbitral proceedings and advice… | View Profile |
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Andrew Dinsmore | Andrew has extensive international commercial litigation and arbitration experience. His practice focuses… | View Profile |
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Patrick Dunn-Walsh | Patrick became a member of Chambers in September 2018, having joined as… | View Profile |
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Philip Edey QC | Philip is a specialist lead advocate whose practice focuses on commercial disputes… | View Profile |
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Patricia Edwards | Patricia has a broad commercial practice, with a particular emphasis on advising… | View Profile |
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Andrew Feld | Andrew has a busy commercial practice encompassing all areas of Chambers’ work,… | View Profile |
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Monica Feria-Tinta | Monica is a specialist in public international law. Her practice covers the… | View Profile |
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The Honorable Yves Fortier QC | Arbitrator/mediator, specialising in public international law and international dispute resolutions. | View Profile |
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Andrew Fulton | Andrew has a broad and busy practice. He advises and appears in… | View Profile |
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Judith Gill QC | Judith is recognised as one of the leading practitioners in the field… | View Profile |
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Sam Goodman | Sam has a broad commercial practice covering both litigation and international arbitration,… | View Profile |
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Richard Greenberg | Richard has a broad commercial practice, with a particular focus on civil… | View Profile |
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Michal Hain | Michal joined Twenty Essex after successfully completing his pupillage in September 2018.… | View Profile |
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Rupert Hamilton | Rupert has a varied practice covering all aspects of commercial law. He… | View Profile |
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Christopher Hancock QC | Christopher is joint Head of Chambers. He has appeared before courts at… | View Profile |
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Colleen Hanley | Colleen is recommended as a leading junior for both shipping and commodities… | View Profile |
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Sir Mark Havelock-Allan QC | Mark is a former Mercantile Judge on the Western Circuit, and judge… | View Profile |
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Timothy Hill QC | Timothy specialises in international commercial litigation and arbitration. He has considerable expertise… | View Profile |
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Malcolm Holmes QC | Malcolm is a chartered arbitrator primarily based in Sydney but with an… | View Profile |
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Malcolm Jarvis | Malcolm specialises in commercial and EU law. He acts in commercial disputes… | View Profile |
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Susannah Jones | Susannah specialises in commercial and private international law disputes, in particular concerning… | View Profile |
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Julian Kenny QC | Julian specialises in commercial law, particularly banking, shipping and commodities, insurance and… | View Profile |
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Jonathan Ketcheson | Jonathan practises across all Chambers’ areas of expertise, including international arbitration, public… | View Profile |
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Charles Kimmins QC | Charles specialises in commercial law, and represents clients in both court and… | View Profile |
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Alexander Layton QC | Alex is a specialist in private international law. His practice consists almost… | View Profile |
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Blair Leahy | Blair is a commercial litigator specialising in complex multi-jurisdictional fraud and asset… | View Profile |
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Thomas Leary | Tom has a broad practice in commercial litigation, arbitration and public law.… | View Profile |
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Michael Lee | Michael is an experienced international commercial arbitrator practising principally from Singapore and… | View Profile |
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Dr Julian Lew QC | Julian is a full-time arbitrator in international commercial and investment disputes. He… | View Profile |
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David Lewis QC | David is a specialist advocate who took silk in 2014 at the… | View Profile |
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Paul Lowenstein QC | Paul is a leading commercial silk in domestic and international litigation and… | View Profile |
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Mahnaz Malik | Mahnaz is a barrister and arbitrator at Twenty Essex who specialises in… | View Profile |
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Sara Masters QC | Sara specialises in all areas of commercial law. She has a particular… | View Profile |
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Duncan Matthews QC | Duncan is joint Head of Chambers. He is a leading trial advocate… | View Profile |
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Zannis Mavrogordato | Zannis is a barrister, French avocat and arbitrator. He is a specialist… | View Profile |
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Karen Maxwell | Karen practises in commercial law and international trade, with a particular focus… | View Profile |
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Matthew McGhee | Matthew enjoys a broad commercial practice. Clients instruct him to advise or… | View Profile |
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Belinda McRae | Belinda has developed an impressive and diverse commercial practice. She has a… | View Profile |
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Simon Milnes | Simon specialises in international dispute resolution, especially in the fields of energy… | View Profile |
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Sir Martin Moore-Bick | Sir Martin recently retired as a Lord Justice of Appeal after serving… | View Profile |
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Dr Michael Moser | Michael serves as arbitrator in high-value, complex international disputes. His specialities include… | View Profile |
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Gordon Nardell QC | Gordon specialises in international litigation and arbitration. He has a particular focus… | View Profile |
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Penelope Nevill | Penelope is a specialist in international law. Her practice focuses on disputes… | View Profile |
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Christopher Newman | Chris has a broad commercial practice with a focus on heavyweight commercial… | View Profile |
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David Owen QC | David is a full-time arbitrator and mediator, with a practice covering a… | View Profile |
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Socrates Papadopoulos | Socrates has been a tenant at Twenty Essex since October 2001. He… | View Profile |
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Dr Kate Parlett | Kate specialises in public international law and international arbitration. She acts for… | View Profile |
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Angharad Parry | Angharad specialises in advisory and advocacy work in a wide range of… | View Profile |
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Luke Pearce | Luke has a broad practice covering all aspects of commercial law, with… | View Profile |
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Thomas Raphael QC | Thomas is a commercial silk, with a wide commercial practice, and a… | View Profile |
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Philip Riches | Philip has a wide-ranging commercial practice in international litigation and arbitration. His… | View Profile |
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Sir Bernard Rix | Sir Bernard retired in 2013 as a Lord Justice of Appeal with… | View Profile |
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J. William Rowley QC | Bill is a highly experienced international arbitrator. He joined Twenty Essex in… | View Profile |
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Sean Snook | Sean advises and represents clients in a broad range of commercial and… | View Profile |
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David St John Sutton | David is a full-time arbitrator practicing in London and Paris in international… | View Profile |
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Sudhanshu Swaroop QC | Sudhanshu practises commercial, arbitration and public international law. He has acted in… | View Profile |
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Prof Stefan Talmon | Stefan has a wide-ranging practice in public international law. He has appeared… | View Profile |
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Alexander Thompson | Alexander is a commercial litigator. He has a broad practice in all… | View Profile |
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Michael Tselentis QC | Michael’s practice as an international arbitrator covers a wide field, which includes… | View Profile |
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Mark Tushingham | Mark has a broad practice in commercial law and a growing practice… | View Profile |
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Guglielmo Verdirame QC | Guglielmo acts as counsel in cases before English courts, international courts and… | View Profile |
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Philippa Webb | Philippa’s practice covers all aspects of public international law. She acts for… | View Profile |
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Fiona Whiteside | Fiona became a member of Twenty Essex on successful completion of her… | View Profile |
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Sir Michael Wood KCMG | Sir Michael is a member of the United Nations (UN) International Law… | View Profile |
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Alistair Wooder | Alistair is a commercial litigator with a broad practice spanning general commercial… | View Profile |
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Timothy Young QC | Timothy’s principal area of practice is international trade, embracing shipping, commodities, insurance,… | View Profile |
Languages
Cantonese Chinese (Mandarin) Czech French German Greek Italian Japanese Hebrew Hindi SpanishMemberships
AIPN CEDR Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (CIArb) Dubai International Arbitration Centre (DIAC) General Council of the Bar of England and Wales Hong Kong International Arbitration Centre (HKIAC) ICCA INSOL - International Association of Restructuring IBA (International Bar Association) International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) KLRCA London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA) London Maritime Arbitrators Association (supporting member) SIAC COMBAR British Institute of International and Comparative Law (BIICL) Young International Arbitration GroupDiversity/Community
Diversity and inclusion
Twenty Essex has adopted a proactive approach to ensuring diversity within chambers and at the Bar. With an active and engaged committee spearheading internal and external initiatives, Twenty Essex is proud to be an inclusive environment and is committed to ensuring equal opportunities for members, employees, pupils, mini-pupils, prospective tenants and prospective pupils.
For questions relating to our equality and diversity policy, please contact our Equality and Diversity Officer, Angharad Parry.
We are proud to declare that we are a London Living Wage employer.
Diversity data
The Bar Standards Board Code of Conduct states that a summary of the Diversity Data submitted by the Members of the Workforce be published every three years from 31 December 2012 onwards. The summary data for Twenty Essex can be found here.
Rare contextual recruitment
We use Rare’s Contextual Recruitment System to review applications for pupillage and mini-pupillage in the context of the candidates’ socio-economic background. The system is intended to allow a recruiter to put a candidate’s achievements into the context of the candidate’s circumstances. Efforts to improve recruitment processes in terms of fairness, objectivity and awareness are just one piece of the jigsaw that will lead to a more diverse Bar and this is why a long-term commitment to diversity is one of our strategic objectives.
Women in Law Pledge
We are proud signatories to the Women in Law Pledge created by the Bar Council of England and Wales, The Law Society, and the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives (CILEx). We are committed to the progress of gender equality, elimination of gender discrimination and pledge to make positive change for the legal profession.
Disability and accessibility at Twenty Essex
Twenty Essex’s premises are compliant with the Disability Discrimination Act and if you would like to discuss any particular requirements for adjustments to services, including specific visitor needs, please contact our Facilities Manager.
Wellbeing
We recognise that working in the legal profession can often create a highly demanding and stressful environment for members and employees. As a chambers we are determined to achieve the appropriate balance between the professional and personal demands of working at the Bar and the need for individual wellbeing. We are focused on the wellbeing of members and employees and we are pleased to highlight that we have been awarded the Wellbeing at the Bar Certificate of Recognition.
Responsibility
Pro bono
Twenty Essex has a long tradition of its’ members providing legal advice and representation on a pro bono basis. Barristers support Advocate, CLIPS, and FRU on a regular basis as well as a range of other organisations.
Social mobility
Chambers has provided placements on the Bar Placement Week in partnership with the Bar Council and a number of our barristers have volunteered as mentors for students in recent years, through the Social Mobility Foundation as well as other organisations.
Volunteering and giving
Members and employees regularly make charitable donations, and within the work environment take part in a range of charitable events such as the annual London Legal Walk and the Palace to Palace bike ride in support of The Prince’s Trust. Internally hosted fundraising events also raised money for local and nominated charities.
Disputes Yearbook 2020
Briefing
The evolution of the Commercial Bar (https://www.legalbusiness.co.uk/analysis/disputes-yearbook-2020/sponsored-briefing-the-evolution-of-the-commercial-bar/)
Duncan Matthews QC, co-head, and Jemma Tagg, chief executive, reflect on the evolution of Twenty Essex and wider sector changes across the Commercial Bar
Top Tier Set Rankings
- London Bar Offshore
- London Bar Insolvency
- London Bar Commodities
- London Bar Company and partnership
- London Mediators
- London Bar International arbitration: arbitrators
- London Bar IT and telecoms
- London Bar Public international law
Set Rankings
- London Bar Commercial litigation
- London Bar Fraud: civil
- London Bar International arbitration: counsel
- London Bar Shipping
- London Bar Banking and finance (including consumer credit)
- London Bar Energy
- London Bar International crime and extradition
- London Bar Professional negligence
- London Bar Insurance and reinsurance
- London Bar Environment
- London Bar Administrative and public law (including elections)
- Regional Bar Set overviews: England and Wales
- London Bar Set overviews: England and Wales