David Peters KC has a wide-ranging practice, covering commercial litigation, civil fraud, arbitration and insurance work. As a senior junior, he has placed particular emphasis on leading, and on conducting his own advocacy – both of which he now looks forward to developing further in silk.
He is particularly well known for his civil fraud expertise. Before taking Silk, David was recognised as a leading junior barrister in the legal directories, including as a Band 1 in Civil Fraud, where is described as ‘a star at the bar’ and ‘truly first-rate’. He is also ranked in Commercial Disputes, International Arbitration, Chancery and Insurance. As junior David has been shortlisted by The Legal 500 for Commercial Litigation and International Arbitration counsel of the year awards. As well as being highly recommended for his work in the directories, David is currently instructed in several very substantial civil fraud matters, including:
- Magomedov v TPG & Others: An $8.8bn claim arising out of the alleged expropriation of assets by the Russian State.
- Trafigura v Gupta & Others: A $600m claim arising out of an alleged nickel trading fraud.
- NMC v Shetty: A multibillion dollar claim arising out of the collapse of the NMC Healthcare Group.
As part of his fraud practice, David has gained extensive experience of obtaining and resisting interim relief (including freezing and search orders and Norwich Pharmacal relief), often at very short notice.
David also has a well-developed insurance practice, spanning both insurance litigation and arbitration. He is currently instructed in the Russian Aviation Litigation – which is one of The Lawyer’s Top 20 cases of 2024, and is set down for a 12 week trial in October 2024.
Through his long-running instruction by the former Yukos shareholders (one of The Lawyer’s Top 20 cases of 2023) – in relation to their enforce a $50bn Arbitral Award against the Russian Federation – David has developed considerable expertise in relation to State immunity, and enforcement actions against States and State property.
