Colleen Hanley

Areas of expertise

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Colleen has been a tenant at 20 Essex St since October 2004. She specialises in all areas of commercial law, including shipping, commodities and arbitration. She also specialises in Competition and European law. She is a recommended junior in both Chambers and Partners and The Legal 500 . In 2007 she was named by The Times on-line as one of 10 "Future Stars of the Bar" in the areas of competition, commercial and shipping law. From January to December 2008 Colleen was appointed Principal Legal Adviser at OFGEM (Office of Gas and Electricity Markets) with responsibility for all competition law matters as well as general public and regulatory law issues.Colleen also has an interest in human rights having been awarded The Lawyer Magazine's "Pro Bono Activity of the Year Award 2006" for her pro-bono work on the A and Others v Secretary of State for Home Department House of Lords intervention. She was appointed as a Junior Counsel to the Crown (C Panel) in 2010.

Specialisations: 

  • Shipping commodities
  • Arbitration law
  • Commercial law
  • EU and UK competition law

Colleen has a special interest in the area of overlap between Shipping Law and Competition Law and in particular the recent changes in EC Competition law which affect liner shipping, cabotage and consortia.

Specialisations: 

Commercial Law and Arbitration

Colleen has acted in various disputes heard before the Commercial Court involving a wide range of commercial law issues including international sale of goods, commodities, shipping, carriage of goods, as well as applications for freezing orders, recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments and anti-suit injunctions. She also has experience appearing before a range of arbitration tribunals and has acted in a number of arbitration-related applications in the High Court (including challenges to awards under ss 67, 68 and 69 of the Arbitration Act 1996). Colleen has advised and acted for a number of P & I Clubs, most recently in a major insurance related dispute arising out of the Alexandros T disaster. During April - May 2005 Colleen worked as an in-house adviser at the Nordisk Shipowners' Defence Club in Oslo.

Competition and European Law

From January 09- September 09 Colleen was appointed Principal Legal Adviser OFGEM (The Office of Gas and Electricity Markets) with responsibility for all competition law matters as well as advising on general public and regulatory law issues. During September - October 2007 Colleen worked in-house in the anti-trust department of the Washington DC office of US law firm Morgan Lewis Bockius LLP. During May- October 2007 she acted as the main Legal Adviser to the Sportech/Vernons Football Pools merger inquiry referred to the Competition Commission (Final Report published 11 October 2007).

Principal Cases: 

Commercial Law and Arbitration

The "Mariana" [2005] 1 Lloyd's Rep 640: challenge to an arbitration award on the grounds that it was procured by fraud/contrary to public policy;

Acted in a major ship-pool LMAA arbitration hearing concerning assets worth over $500 million (2004);

Acted in a major ship-building arbitration dispute concerning assets worth over $200 million (2006);

Instructed (together with Nicholas Hamblen QC) in the mv Probo Koala toxic waste incident in the Côte d'Ivoire.

Competition and European Law

February-December 2008: Colleen advised the OFT in the Scottish Milk Article 81 investigation (case closed October 2008) and in the separate on-going Dairy Milk Price Initiative Article 81 investigation;

Inntrepreneur Pub Company and others v. Crehan [2006] UKHL 38, overturning Court of Appeal decision [2004] EWCA Civ 637.

Colleen acted as junior counsel for Visa International Services Association in an intervening application before the House of Lords.

May - October 2007: Colleen acted as the main Legal Adviser to the Sportech/Vernons Football Pools merger inquiry referred to the Competition Commission (Final Report published 11 October 2007).

Mastercard International Inc and Mastercard Europe SPRL v. The Office of Fair Trading. Colleen acted as junior counsel for Visa International Services Association in the OFT's Competition Act investigation of Mastercard's interchange arrangements before the UK Competition Appeal Tribunal.

Morgan Stanley v. Visa International Service Association Junior counsel advising Visa on Article 81 issues before the EC Commission.

Human Rights Law

A and Others v Secretary of State for the Home Secretary [2005] UKHL 71 (overturning Court of Appeal decision of Laws LLJ and Pill LLJ);

During October and November 2004 and again in July 2005, Colleen worked in-house with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in Geneva, assisting the Secretariat to the Basel Convention.

Education and Career: 

BA Jurisprudence (Law with German law) (1st Class) Oxford University, Somerville College. Achieved the second highest first in the Oxford law year and appointed proxime accesit to the Martin Wronker Prize. Awarded the Mary Somerville prize and appointed a Coombs Scholar by Somerville College.

LLM (Masters in laws) in European, International and Comparative law awarded by European University Institute Florence, Italy.

Zertificat in German law awarded by University of Munich ("Eins" the highest possible grade).

Appointments and Society Memberships: 

Founder member of the London Irish Lawyers Association (LILA).

Junior Counsel to the Crown (C Panel)

Lectures and Teaching: 

Lecturer in Law, Oxford University, Queens' College (2002-2003)

In 2007 Colleen was awarded a Pegasus Scholarship by the Inner Temple during which she was seconded to US law firm Morgan Lewis Bockius in Washington DC. As part of this scholarship Colleen also worked as a 'Visiting Fellow' on Capitol Hill, Washington DC observing various Senate and House Committees and the work of several prominent US politicians.

Quotes: 

Chambers and Partners 2009: "The 'young and talented' Colleen Hanley is receiving growing respect ... for her grasp of EU and competition law, especially in the private enforcement sector. She acted as the legal adviser to the Sportech/Vernons Football Pools merger inquiry referred to the Competition Commission."

Chambers and Partners 2008: "Clients consider that 'very able young junior' Colleen Hanley is establishing a real presence, particularly in private enforcement work. She recently supported Stephen Morris QC in acting for Visa before the House of Lords."

Members with similar specialisations...

Many other members specialise in similar fields. A selection is below.

Queen's Counsel

Junior Counsel