Philip Edey KC > Twenty Essex > London, England > Lawyer Profile

‘Up there as a go-to set for insurance litigation‘, Twenty Essex acts across the whole spectrum of commercial insurance and reinsurance disputes, both in arbitration (seated in England and elsewhere, including Bermuda), as well as in court. Further to the recent high-profile pandemic-related FCA test case concerning business interruption, Philip Edey KC‘s recent activity includes a number of other lockdown-related business interruption insurance disputes; and Charles Kimmins KC‘s longstanding track record includes leading insurance matters that come before the Commercial Court and Court of Appeal. At senior-junior level, insurance and reinsurance work features prominently within Susannah Jones ‘ practice; and in a boost to Chambers, Joshua Folkard, who has a significant insurance practice, joined from 4 New Square in September 2021.

Twenty Essex is a ‘go-to set for high-value banking and finance work, both in litigation and arbitration‘. The members are noted for their ‘broad skill set and are able to help us on a range of cases ranging from high volume caseloads to large and complex matters‘. A major dispute before the Court of Appeal was Canada Square v Potter, a high profile PPI mis-selling test case, in which Charles Kimmins KC led a team including Sean Snook for Citibank as defendant. Luke Pearce acted for the defendants (having previously been led by Philip Edey KC) in Victor Pisante; Swindon Holdings & Finance Ltd; BCA Shipping Investments Corporation; Castor Navigation Ltd v George Logothetis; Lomar Corporation Ltd ; Lomar Shipmanagement Ltd; Libra Holdings, a Commercial Court case stemming from various investments in the shipping market and in Piraeus Bank.

Twenty Essex is a ‘ go-to set for substantial commercial disputes, particularly with an international angle‘. Clients appreciate its ‘good strength in depth and a dazzling array of legal talent,‘ who bring experience of handling the largest cases. Notable instructions include Abdulhameed Dhia Jafar v The GHF Group Limited and GHF General Partner Limited, a case arising from the collapse of the Abraaj emerging markets private equity house, in which Stephen Atherton KC  is leading Sarah Tresman for GHF, which sits within the Abraaj fund structure. Another major case involving several members is PJSC National Bank Trust; PJSC Otkritie Bank Financial Corporation v Boris Mints; Dmitry Mints; Alexander Mints; Igor Mints, a fraudulent conspiracy claim in relation to the restructuring of loans, with Philip Edey KC and Tresman representing Boris Mints and Duncan Matthews KC representing his son, Igor Mints.

Twenty Essex is going from ‘strength to strength with many quality advocates at all levels particularly in fraud and insolvency‘. The set’s offering also overlaps into key areas such as banking and commodities. Multiple members were represented defendants in PJSC National Bank Trust; PJSC Otkritie Bank Financial Corporation v Mints, a fraudulent conspiracy claim in relation to the restructuring of loans, with Philip Edey KC and Sarah Tresman representing Boris Mints and Duncan Matthews KC representing Igor, one of his three co-defendant sons. In The Libyan Investment Authority v Credit Suisse International; Man Asset Management (Ireland) Limited; Frontier Investment Management Partners Ltd & others, Paul Lowenstein KC and Sam Goodman  successfully defended Frontier Investment Management Partners in the last of several high-profile investment disputes brought by the Libyan sovereign wealth fund.