The rise of International Commercial Courts: what it means for the Rule of Law, English lawyers, and the standing of English law worldwide
Date: Wednesday 4 June 2025
Time: 11:00-12:30
Venue: Baker McKenzie, 280 Bishopsgate, London, EC2M 4AG
Our expert panel will examine the growing role of International Commercial Courts in resolving disputes and the opportunities this presents for English law and lawyers. We will discuss SIFoCC’s efforts over the past eight years to unite Commercial Courts from 58 jurisdictions to promote best practices and the Rule of Law. Additionally, English practitioners will share insights from their experiences in overseas Commercial Courts handling complex international disputes.
Speakers
Sir William Blair – Qatar International Court and Dispute Resolution Centre
Charles Thomson – Baker McKenzie
Georgina Peters – South Square
When arbitration and insolvency collide – key recent developments
Date: Wednesday 4 June 2025
Time: 16:00-17:30
Venue: Alston & Bird LLP, 3 Noble Street, London, EC2V 7EE
Arbitration lawyers talk about “”bet the company”” disputes, but what happens when the dispute really does kill the company? This panel will cover issues such as:
-
- The position of arbitral award creditors in a scheme of arrangement and other insolvency settings (see e.g. McDermott);
- Attempts to use arbitration processes to achieve a preferential outcome as a creditor (see e.g. the recent WM Mining v Mongolia ICSID case);
- The moratorium on proceedings and how this is treated by arbitral tribunals.
Our panel brings together market leading insolvency practitioners, arbitration counsel and restructuring counsel, all with direct experience of landmark recent cases.
Speakers
- Felicity Toube KC – South Square
- Charlotte Cooke – South Square
- David Mitchell – Interpath
- David Pike – Interpath
- Will Hooker – Alston & Bird
- Phil Taylor – Alston & Bird
Climbing the walls: navigating obstacles in a cross-border insolvency strategy
Date: Thursday 5 June 2025
Time: 11:00-12:30
Venue: Howard Kennedy LLP, 1 London Bridge, London, SE1 9BG
Cross-border insolvency poses unique challenges, from evidentiary hurdles to jurisdictional complexities. In this interactive session, our panel of legal and forensic experts will use a fictitious case study to explore key obstacles in implementing successful strategies. Discussions will focus on evidence disclosure difficulties, the impact of conflicting jurisdictional rules, and issues with collateral use and interference by bad actors. Each panellist will address a specific challenge and its role in the broader strategy.
Speakers
- Crispin Daly – Howard Kennedy
- Rebecca Hume – Howard Kennedy
- Andrew Shaw – South Square
- Ian Thompson – FTI Consulting
Restructuring disputes: legal challenges and shaping outcomes
Date: Thursday 5 June 2025
Time: 18:00-19:30
Venue: Freshfields LLP, 100 Bishopsgate, London, EC2P 2SR
Legal disputes can lead to the success or failure of restructuring efforts. Don’t miss this panel discussion where leading legal practitioners and restructuring experts will share their insights on how to navigate the challenges posed by legal disputes in the context of restructurings and offer practical strategies to ensure favourable outcomes. The panel will explore and compare the complexities of litigation risk across different restructuring tools, including Part 26A restructuring plans and other alternatives (e.g., enforcements, liability management exercises and company voluntary arrangements).
Speakers
- Daniel Bayfield KC – South Square
- Peter Dickens – PwC
- Lindsay Hingston – Freshfields
- Craig Montgomery – Freshfields
Regulation, valuation and control: perspectives on the Thames Water restructuring
Date: Friday 6 June 2025
Time: 14:00-15:30
Venue: Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, 90 High Holborn, London, WC1V 6LJ
At this event, commercial litigation and restructuring experts at Quinn Emanuel and South Square will be joined by water industry regulation and valuation experts from Osborne Partners in discussing their role in challenging Thames Water’s recent £3 billion restructuring plan, which involved an expedited five-day trial before the High Court in February and a three-day appeal before the Court of Appeal in March. They will discuss the broader landscape in relation to contested restructuring plans, and look at what the future holds following this landmark case.
Speakers
![Judgment Hand Down: Gerasimenko v VTB Capital Plc [2025] EWHC 1333 (Comm)](https://southsquare.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/alejandro-pohlenz-gYbOFTwcJx4-unsplash-scaled.jpg)
