Michael graduated from Oxford with a first in jurisprudence and a first on the BCL. He became a member of chambers in 1997 and took silk in 2011, aged 38.
The majority of his work falls within four main areas: general commercial litigation/arbitration; offshore/energy; shipping (including shipbuilding and ship sale disputes) and commodities; and insurance/reinsurance. However, he enjoys the challenge of complex, technical and unusual cases. He has recently been involved in several cases involving allegations of fraud, professional negligence and breach of fiduciary duties. He has just finished acting for assureds in a substantial marine insurance dispute in the Commercial Court and Court of Appeal. He was heavily involved in litigation relating to the ISDA Master Agreements as applied in the context of various FFA disputes. He is presently involved in several disputes relating to the construction of offshore structures, including jack-up rigs and drillships. He has also acted recently in disputes arising out of share purchases, share option agreements, mining agreements, investment agreements and guarantees/bonds.
Michael appears regularly in the High Court and the Court of Appeal, and has had recent success in the Supreme Court. He also has a wide range of experience preparing and presenting cases before, and on appeal from, various arbitration tribunals. He has appeared as counsel in arbitrations in Singapore. He has also been involved in several (successful) mediations. He is willing to accept appointments as an arbitrator in London or Singapore.
Over the years, Michael has consistently been rated as a leading junior in the fields of Shipping, Commodities and Commercial Arbitration in The Legal 500 and Chambers and Partners. In more recent years, Michael has always been ranked in band 1 (the highest) for Shipping and Commodities juniors. Since taking silk, Michael has been similarly recommended as a leading "new silk" in the fields of Shipping, Commodities and Commercial Arbitration.
