Antonia Fitzpatrick and Clíodhna Kelleher to be Monckton tenants

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The members of Monckton Chambers congratulate pupil barristers Clíodhna Kelleher and Dr Antonia Fitzpatrick on being invited to join Chambers following successful completion of pupillage. All are delighted they have accepted.

Prior to pupillage Antonia was Student Director of the School Exclusion Project. She was also, for six years, a member of St. John’s College and the History Faculty, University of Oxford, holding the positions of Junior Research Fellow and Departmental Lecturer in Medieval History.

Clíodhna Kelleher, a graduate of University College Dublin and Harvard Law School, was the recipient of the Irving R Kaufman Fellowship awarded by Harvard Law School and has won a number of debating championships including the John Smith Memorial Mace and the 2016 ‘Irish Times’ debate individual award.

Both Clíodhna and Antonia will become tenants on 01 October 2021.

Second Annual Summer Webinar Series: Competition Law in the UK and EU

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Monckton Chambers is honored to partner with NERA Economic Consulting to cordially invite you to join us for the Second Annual Summer Webinar Series: Competition Law in the UK and EU.

Building on the success of our inaugural program, this year’s series will include four information-packed webinars held across four weeks, beginning on Thursday, 8 July 2021. We will bring together leading regulators and distinguished legal and economic experts to discuss, give insight, and share their expertise on some of the most significant competition challenges we face today.

Upcoming Summer Series Sessions:

Webinar 1 – 8 July, 3pm – 4pm  – Mergers: The CMA Rattling the Sabre

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has strengthened its approach to merger investigations, with new merger guidance, collaboration with international enforcers, and recent Competition Appeal Tribunal successes (such as Sabre/Farelogix and Facebook/Giphy). But has it gone too far? Or perhaps not far enough?

In this roundtable session, our experts will discuss where the CMA’s approach to merger control has changed, address how the change came about, and offer insight into reasons behind the change.

Chair:
Grant Saggers, Director, NERA Economic Consulting

Speakers:
Eleni Gouliou, Director of Mergers, CMA
Alex Baker, Managing Director, Fingleton
Alison Berridge, Barrister, Monckton Chambers

The recording is available here

 

Webinar 2 – 15 July, 3pm – 4pm  – Cartels: From Leniency to Litigation

Cartel enforcement continues apace in the UK, whether regarding information exchange, Resale Price Maintenance, or collective actions.

During this interactive session, our panel of distinguished experts will take a detailed look at recent enforcement cases, appeals made to the Competition Appeal Tribunal, and damages actions.

Chair:
Tim Ward QC, Barrister, Monckton Chambers

Speakers:

Dr Anca Cojoc, Senior Consultant, NERA Economic Consulting
Ben Lasserson, Partner, Mishcon De Reya
Edward Coulson, Partner, BCLP
Julianne Kerr Morrison, Monckton Chambers

The recording is available here

 

Webinar 3 – 22 July, 3pm – 4pm  – Privacy: Competition, Harm, and Damages

Privacy and GDPR issues are shaping the focus of competition authorities and regulators. They are also among the key battlegrounds in competition policy and litigation.

In this session, our experts will provide insight into the latest competition policy and litigation issues regarding privacy and GDPR, asking:

          • Where is the common ground?
          • Who occupies this common ground?
          • What do experiences elsewhere in the world mean for the UK?

Chair:
Dr Lawrence Wu, President, NERA Economic Consulting

Speakers:
Dr Luisa Affuso, Chief Economist, Ofcom
Gerry Facenna QC, Barrister, Monckton Chambers
Tom Reynolds, Head of Economic Analysis, Information Commissioner’s Office

The recording is available here

 

Webinar 4 – 29 July, 3pm – 4pm  – Abuse of Dominance: A ‘Whistl’-Stop Tour

The CMA has launched new investigations into digital markets, while at the Competition Appeal Tribunal some of the largest damage claims relate to abuse of dominance issues.

In this session, our leading experts will provide insight into recent cases and appeals that relate to abuses of dominance (e.g, Royal Mail vs Ofcom), the future of the AEC test, and how abuses may be mitigated through new regulation.

Chair:
Josh Holmes QC, Barrister, Monckton Chambers

Speakers:
Jenny Haydock, Economics Director, CMA
Daniel Beard QC, Barrister, Monckton Chambers
Adrien Cervera-Jackson, Associate Director, NERA Economic Consulting

The recording is available here

The Lawyer Barrister of the week: William Hooper

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The Lawyer has recognised William Hooper as its “Barrister of the Week” for his role in the Court of Appeal’s recent decision in the long-running Gregor Fisken Limited v Bernard Carl dispute, one of The Lawyer’s Top 15 appeals for 2021, which was about the ownership of the original gearbox of a 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO sold for US$ 44m in 2018. See website news 28 May.

The Lawyer article leads on the fact that Will, at just seven years call, “pulled off a remarkable result by defeating not just one experienced silk in a high-profile dispute, but two.” Will trusted his long-standing familiarity with the matter: “I had to be adaptable and flexible,” he said. “Speaking of the the degree of press attention the case had attracted, Will said “I had done the prep and I knew the case backwards. I just had to focus on my submissions and treat it like any other case.”

“Barrister of the Week” is selected by The Lawyer’s Litigation Tracker team. Subscribers can access the full article here.

Drew Holiner joins Panels of Arbitrators of the Singapore International Arbitration Centre and the Korean Commercial Arbitration Board International

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Drew Holiner has been appointed to the Panels of Arbitrators of the Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC) and the Korean Commercial Arbitration Board International (KCAB International), with immediate effect.

The SIAC commenced operations in 1991 as an independent, not-for-profit organisation, and has since established itself as one of the world’s leading arbitration institutions providing services to the global business community.  On 20 May 2021, the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation granted approval for the SIAC to be registered as a permanent arbitral institution under Russia’s Federal Law on Arbitration.  Read more here.

The KCAB was founded in 1966 and over the past 50 years has handled about 7,000 arbitration cases and 15,000 conciliation cases marking itself as a leading alternative dispute resolution centre.  On 20 April 2018, KCAB International was established as an independent division of the KCAB to meet the growing demand for cross-border commercial dispute resolution and focuses exclusively on international disputes, with offices in Seoul, Los Angeles, Hanoi and Shanghai.

The Lawyer Barrister of the week: Julianne Kerr Morrison

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The Lawyer has recognised Julianne Kerr Morrison as its “Barrister of the Week” for her role in the Court of Appeal’s recent decision to uphold Ofcom’s £50m fine of Royal Mail and its finding that Royal Mail abused its dominant position by obstructing rival Whistl from breaking into the wholesale market for bulk mail delivery services (See website news 07 May.) Julianne joined the dispute, three years ago, back when Ofcom was still drafting a decision in its initial investigation.

Julianne appeared for Ofcom alongside leading counsel Josh Holmes QC and Nikolaus Grubeck in the proceedings in which all parties– Royal Mail, Ofcom and Whistl – were represented by leading and junior counsel from Monckton Chambers. Julianne is reported as commenting that such in-chambers combat, common in competition disputes, is no more than “healthy rivalry” that makes you work harder. “It’s great to be up against your colleagues. You know what they’re capable of, so it really makes you focus on doing the job well when you know people that you respect and like are going to be putting their best foot forward as well.”

The Lawyer article also highlights Julianne’s varied caseload which includes working on an anti-trust claim involving Google’s shopping service, data protection matters involving sexual violence victims, and citizenship deprivation cases in which British individuals are being stripped of their citizenships due to alleged association to certain terror groups or for time spent in ISIS controlled areas.

“Barrister of the Week” is selected by The Lawyer’s Litigation Tracker team. Subscribers can access the full article here.

In court this week – latest development in the interchange litigation and Care UK dispute re the CMA review of the care sector

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Two separate teams from Monckton Chambers are in court this week on significant cases:

Monckton’s Kassie Smith QC and Fiona Banks, instructed by Humphries Kerstetter partner Mark Humphries, are representing hundreds of claimants against Visa and Mastercard, in what will be the latest development in the interchange litigation saga. Wednesday’s proceedings follow last month’s preliminary hearing to determine whether 40 Italy-based claimants are to be governed by English or Italian law. The Claimants are seeking summary judgment under Article 101(1) on all of their claims following the Supreme Court judgment of last summer. This application has huge implications for all “second wave” MIFs claims as, if it succeeds, only issues arising under Article 101(3) and as regards quantum will remain to be litigated in these cases. The application is being hotly contested by Visa and Mastercard.

Monckton’s Gerry Facenna QC and Daisy Mackersie, instructed by CMS Cameron McKenna Nabarro Olswang disputes partner Tom Dane, are representing Care UK, one of the UK’s largest care home providers, defending a claim by the CMA in the Business and Property Courts that the administration fees charged by Care UK between 2013 and 2018 were contrary to EU consumer protection legislation and should be refunded. This dispute forms part of the CMA’s wider review into the care home sector and its efforts to bolster its consumer protection powers.

For subscribers to The Lawyer Litigation Tracker, further detail can be found here.

Melanie Hall QC, Brendan McGurk and David Gregory secure Court of Appeal victory against the landfill sector in a landmark test case

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In the last of a series of challenges brought by the UK’s landfill sector which has generated a decade of litigation in the Administrative Court, Tax Tribunals and the Court of Appeal, Monckton Chambers has secured a further victory on behalf of HMRC.

In a combined judgment handed down by Rose LJ, Nugee LJ and Newey LJ, the Court of Appeal unanimously overturned the decisions of the UT which had decided that substantial refunds of landfill tax were payable across the landfill sector. The Court of Appeal found that material known as “fluff”, even when shredded (as Biffa had done) did not give rise to any legally relevant use, as contended by the sector on the basis of the Court of Appeal’s judgment in Waste Recycling Group v HMRC [2008] EWCA Civ 849, [2009] STC. The FTT had been right to conclude that fluff was merely carefully emplaced waste on which landfill tax was therefore payable. Biffa’s decision to shred that waste made no difference.

Link to judgment here.

Melanie Hall QC, Brendan McGurk and David Gregory represented HMRC.

Jeremy McBride prepares feasibility study for a European legal instrument to protect the profession of lawyer

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Jeremy McBride has prepared for the European Committee on Legal Co-operation (CDCJ) of the Council of Europe a feasibility study on a new binding or non-binding, European legal instrument to protect the profession of lawyer.

This study examines the problems faced by lawyers in the 47 member States of the Council of Europe, the extent of these problems, the use made of the existing instruments in practice as well as the level of the protection and the manner in which this is currently offered to lawyers. It assesses the possible added-value and effectiveness of a possible future legal instrument in the field, the advantages and disadvantages or risks, according to the nature of such an instrument.

The Committee of Ministers’ Deputies, at its 1400th meeting held on 31 March 2021, took note of the study as well as the draft terms of reference of a subordinate committee of experts tasked with drawing up a draft instrument to be proposed in the context of the examination of the next Council of Europe programme and budget (2022-2025).

Who’s Who Legal UK Bar 2021 – Monckton Chambers is one of seven sets highlighted for their impressive roster of market leading practitioners

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In the latest edition of WWL:UK Bar, the researchers have identified Monckton Chambers as one of seven sets, with the most individual listings. “Monckton Chambers is a market-leading set which demonstrates the strength and depth of its offering with an impressive 57 listings across 10 different practice area chapters this year.” 33 individual members are recognised across 10 practices.

This is what the analysis highlights about Monckton Chambers:

“Competition is a key area in which the set excels, with an impressive total of 23 listings for its silks and juniors. These practitioners are recognised for their outstanding expertise across contentious M&A and state aid matters as well as complex cartel investigations.

The set distinguishes itself with a further 10 listings in our telecoms chapter, cementing its place as a go-to establishment for sector-related licensing, contractual and broadcasting disputes.
Government contracts is another area in which the set is highly esteemed, with 12 barristers noted in our corresponding chapter for their excellence in domestic and cross-border public procurement disputes.

Standout figures at the set include George Peretz QC, who is highlighted as a Global Elite Thought Leader for his encyclopaedic knowledge of competition and state aid law. Jon Turner QC and Anneli Howard QC are also highly regarded for their expertise in competition disputes, while Daniel Beard QC enjoys a strong reputation for his work on complex cases arising from the telecoms sector.”

The editorial also includes the following comments on individual members under the practice area analyses:

UK Bar 2021 – Arbitration
Steven Gee QC with Monckton Chambers is celebrated as “a brilliant strategist and advocate with very deep knowledge of law and industry”. One peer adds, “His knowledge of injunctions and pre-emptive remedies is second to none.”
Thomas Sebastian is recognised as a “star practitioner” who shines in domestic and international arbitration.

UK Bar 2021 – Competition
George Peretz QC is a “market-leading silk for state aid matters” according to impressed sources.
Daniel Beard QC is a “formidable adversary” and “effective litigator” who takes an “impressive strategic approach” to complex international competition disputes.
The “superb” Jon Turner QC is highlighted for his “unrivalled expertise”, with one peer adding, “The courts love him for his clear and robust submissions.”
Josh Holmes QC is regarded as an “excellent silk” with a highly sought-after competition practice.
Anneli Howard QC has amassed a stellar reputation for her “excellent work” and “pragmatic approach” in complex competition cases.
Paul Harris QC is a leading silk who excels in damages claims and abuse of dominance trials.
Mark Brealey QC is highly acclaimed for his strong advocacy in damages actions and pricing disputes.
Kassie Smith QC is recognised for her significant experience and expertise in high-profile damages cases and CAT appeals.
Alan Bates is recognised for his expansive knowledge of European competition law.
Anneliese Blackwood garners plaudits as a go-to competition specialist with deep expertise in damages claims and cartel investigations.
The “absolutely terrific” Ligia Osepciu applies a “practical approach” and “powerful but accessible intellect” to complicated competition cases.
Julianne Kerr Morrison is an “extremely impressive” junior who is “incisive and careful” and a “real star in the making” according to impressed peers.
Philip Woolfe is an “experienced and hard-working junior”, lauded for his “excellent work ethic” and expert handling of complex damages claims and telecoms disputes.
Tim Ward QC, Meredith Pickford QC, Robert Palmer QC, Ronit Kreisberger QC, Rob Williams QC, Alistair Lindsay, Ben Rayment, Laura Elizabeth John, Alison Berridge and Stefan Kuppen are also recognised.

UK Bar 2021 – Government Contracts
Michael Bowsher QC is considered the “Grandfather of procurement law” by peers who laud his “strategic view of complex matters” as well as his “deep knowledge of the field”.
The “excellent” Philip Moser QC is distinguished by his “lovely, smooth advocacy style” and is highly sought after for his expansive knowledge of domestic and EU trade law.
Valentina Sloane QC is a “very strong advocate” who draws high praise for her expertise in transport-related procurement disputes.
Rob Williams QC is highly esteemed for his in-depth understanding of complex procurement matters including damages claims and regulatory issues.
Fiona Banks is an “absolute star” who is “particularly good at getting up to speed very quickly in document-heavy cases” and applying “in-depth knowledge of complicated case law” to her “swift and accurate legal advice”.
Ewan West is lauded for his profound knowledge of regulatory law and is highly sought after by claimants and defendants in high-profile procurement disputes.
Anneliese Blackwood is a “very intelligent and hardworking junior” who regularly provides an array of clients with top-tier advice regarding government contracts.
Alan Bates is revered for his deep expertise in EU and domestic procurement law as well as complex telecoms regulations and state aid issues.
Ligia Osepciu receives plaudits for her “excellent work rate and clarity of analysis” and is regularly engaged in complex PPP and PFI disputes.
Ben Rayment is highly commended for his profound understanding of utilities regulations and EU procurement law.

UK Bar 2021 – International Trade & Commodities
Peers say Thomas Sebastian from Monckton Chambers is “very experienced in WTO matters” and recently acted for Gazprom in a multi-billion-dollar arbitration.

UK Bar 2021 – Sports
Fiona Banks at Monckton Chambers is “a really fantastic sports specialist” who regularly represents national governing bodies, individual players, managers and clubs in disciplinary issues, arbitration proceedings and High Court matters.
Paul Harris QC is also ranked.

UK Bar 2021 – Telecoms
Daniel Beard QC is renowned for representing high-profile clients in complex telecoms appeals.
Josh Holmes QC is held in high esteem by sources thanks to his “incredibly personable advocacy style” and strong expertise in telecommunications regulation and related disputes.
Jon Turner QC is an accomplished silk with a well-developed practice, which sees him regularly representing big-name clients in telecoms disputes.
Meredith Pickford QC is a prominent name in the TMT space where he regularly represents high-profile clients in regulatory proceedings.
Tim Ward QC is recognised for his expansive knowledge of competition and public law, earning him a strong reputation as as a go-to barrister in the telecoms sector.
Anneli Howard QC is revered for her in-depth understanding of EU and public administrative law, with one peer adding, “Her reputation precedes her as an outstanding barrister in the telecoms field”.
Alan Bates from Monckton Chambers is an exceptional junior who “always does an excellent job” for clients in complex telecoms cases.
Stefan Kuppen garners widespread plaudits for his profound knowledge of competition and regulatory law issues facing clients in the telecoms sector.
Fiona Banks is a standout junior, widely acclaimed for her first-rate work acting for telecoms companies and regulators in complex disputes.
Ligia Osepciu is also recognised for the practice.
Members are also recognised in the following categories but without editorial comment:
UK Bar 2021 – Energy & Natural Resources – Kassie Smith QC
UK Bar 2021 – Corporate Tax – Melanie Hall QC and Valentina Sloane QC
UK Bar 2021 – Environment – Jon Turner QC, Gerry Facenna QC, Alan Bates
UK Bar 2021 – Media & Entertainment – Jon Turner QC

Who’s Who Legal is published by Law Business Research, an independent London-based publishing group, which provides research, analysis and reports on the international legal services marketplace.

Monckton members commissioned to write Internal Market Act Book

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George Peretz QC, Alan Bates, Brendan McGurk and Jack Williams have been commissioned by OUP to write a Blackstone’s Guide to the UK Internal Market Act 2020.

The Internal Market Act is of significant importance and interest to UK businesses, consumers, and professionals. It essentially replaces (and modifies) the large body of EU internal market law for the UK post-Brexit. This will touch on almost every area of domestic business and trade.

This book will explore the Act’s provisions in a succinct and practical manner, working through the provisions in the Act in a logical and cohesive manner to help the busy practitioner. The book will be published later this year.