Keating Chambers

Simon Taylor is an experienced competition and procurement specialist, with a background in EU law. He was originally called to the Bar in 1987 but left to study in Brussels and re-qualified as a solicitor. After 20 years or so practising in Brussels and London, including 7 years as a partner in a leading law firm, he returned to the Bar in 2012 and joined Keating Chambers.

His career has been based on the regulation of public bodies and network industries, subsidies/state aid and the competition rules. These rules have historically been based on EU Treaty provisions and directives, but remain in modified form in UK law post Brexit. Simon was involved in 2001 in one of the first UK public procurement case, Severn Trent v Dwr Cymru and has since been at the forefront of development of procurement law. He has published and spoken widely on the area and has a busy contentious practice, acting both for bidders and buyers in public procurement disputes. He has acted in some of the most high-profile procurement cases in recent years, including acting for HS2 in Bechtel Ltd v HS2 Ltd (construction of Old Oak Common) and Siemens Mobility Ltd v HS2 Ltd (rolling stock) and also provides strategic advice on the conduct of tenders. He has also acted as a mediator on procurement disputes.

He advises companies, utilities and public bodies on competition, subsidy control and regulatory issues arising from disputes, transactions such as mergers or joint ventures and commercial agreements or conduct. He has specific expertise in regulated sectors such as healthcare, communications, rail and water and also acts on commercial disputes and public law cases, particularly in these areas.

Called 1987; pupillage 2 Temple Gardens 1987-88; associate Squire Sanders & Dempsey (Brussels) 1990-92; Norton Rose (Brussels) 1992-96; regulatory counsel Cable & Wireless Communications 1996-2000; solicitor 1999; associate Allen & Overy 2000-04; antitrust partner Wragge & Co 2004-11; Keating Chambers 2012.

French (fluent), Spanish (conversational)

Procurement Lawyers Association Royal Society of Arts Society of Labour Lawyers Association of London Welsh Lawyers

Magdalen College, University of Oxford (1986 BA Hons jurisprudence); Université Libre de Bruxelles (1990 Licence Spéciale en droit communautaire in French grande distinction).

Simon enjoys the theatre, travel, hillwalking, skiing, rugby, food and wine.