Members of Chambers have received 99 rankings in the 2022 edition of the Chambers Global Guide following its release on Thursday 17 February.
Members of Chambers have been ranked in 5 jurisdictions including The USA, The UK, Belize, Asia-Pacific and Europe. Chambers earned several notable rankings and received outstanding praise from clients and colleagues, including in the following practice areas:
- International Arbitration: The English Bar – Band 1
Essex Court Chambers has long enjoyed a reputation as the go-to set for international arbitration. Its barristers are consistently recognised for their truly international practices, receiving instructions from the Middle East, Europe and Africa and acting in some of the most significant and high-value disputes. The “absolutely stellar” barristers at Essex Court Chambers are regularly called upon to handle complex proceedings and cases involving foreign law under all major institutional rules. - Public International Law: The English Bar – Band 1
Essex Court Chambers is a pre-eminent public international law set and remains at the forefront of the most cutting-edge international disputes. The set’s academically accomplished barristers field significant expertise in state-versus-state disputes and BIT arbitration. They frequently appear before the ICJ and all of the other major international courts and tribunals, as well as the UK and European courts. Recent highlights include Mauritius v Maldives, which concerned a boundary claim, and a dispute between Iran and the USA arising from economic sanctions. A client comments: “The technical expertise and forensic attention to the detail of the work provided is excellent.”
- Dispute Resolution: Commercial – Band 1
Essex Court Chambers is regularly involved in some of the highest-value domestic and international commercial disputes. By way of example, it acted in PCP Capital Partners LLP v Barclays Bank Plc, a claim for over GBP1 billion in damages for alleged fraud by Barclays executives in relation to its GBP7 billion capital raising exercise in 2008. Individuals here have also appeared in PJSC Tatneft v Bogolyubov, a major fraud case. The set has a deep pool of experts capable of handling commercial cases arising from many different legal areas, such as banking, civil fraud, energy and shipping, to name but a few. Its barristers are praised by instructing solicitors for being “always excellent and very progressional.”
- Dispute Resolution: Commercial Chancery – Band 2
Noted for their expert handling of complex and high-profile commercial chancery disputes, with the team offering significant strength in civil fraud and banking litigation. An instructing solicitor notes that Essex Court Chambers is a “standout chambers for civil fraud,” adding: “They have a tremendous strength in depth and are involved in most big civil fraud cases.” The team receives regular instructions to handle cases in offshore jurisdictions, and frequently undertakes complex shareholder disputes involving the Far East and the CIS.
- Energy & Natural Resources – Band 2
Essex Court Chambers is a heavyweight set which draws upon particular strengths in international arbitration and commercial disputes to represent clients in a range of energy matters. Members are renowned for their strong international practices and are adept at handling cases relating to oil and gas pricing, climate change, insurance matters and construction problems. The work handled recently by members of the set includes a case regarding an allegation of fraud relating to an iron ore mining investment. An interviewee says: “The set has very impressive practitioners who are always on top of the law.”
- Offshore (Bar) – Band 2
Essex Court Chambers offers substantial expertise in a variety of offshore commercial disputes including fraud, shareholder actions, contentious liquidations and complex civil fraud matters. Its barristers act in some of the most high-profile and high-value offshore disputes, including such matters as Convoy v Roy Cho and Broad Idea, an important case regarding jurisdiction to grant interim relief orders. Members have experience in several key offshore jurisdictions, including the Caribbean and the Channel Islands. A client describes the barristers as “excellent.”
- Shipping & Commodities – Band 2
Adept across wet and dry shipping matters, members of Essex Court Chambers are regularly sought out by shipbuilders, ship owners, shipyards and insurers for their expert knowledge. Its tenants have acted in high-profile court cases including those regarding the ‘Tilawa’ and ‘CCNI Arauco’.
Published annually in February the Chambers Global Guide covers over 190 countries across the world and includes Region-wide and Global-wide sections. Individual barrister rankings and Chambers’ ranked departments can be viewed here.
