Daniel Saoul QC has a commercial practice encompassing business disputes, sports law and public law. He is one of the leading barristers practising in these fields.
He took silk in 2019, after just ten years at the Bar, and was recognised by the legal press as one of the most outstanding barristers taking silk that year. He is described as “the complete counsel“, as an “outstanding advocate” who “commands the court“, and as being “excellent strategically” and “exceptionally good to work with“. He is also described as having “a brilliant intellect” and “thoroughly commercial instincts“.
The legal directories rank him as a leading silk in seven areas: commercial dispute resolution, international arbitration, civil fraud, professional negligence, offshore disputes, sports law and costs litigation. Prior to taking silk he was also a member of the Attorney General’s Panel of Counsel, and he continues to advise UK Government departments and agencies on sensitive and complex legal matters.
His commercial practice is wide-ranging, spanning the full spectrum of corporate, civil fraud, banking and finance and professional negligence disputes. His sports law practice is equally broad and includes anti-doping, governance, disciplinary issues, selection, player/agent disputes and other commercial matters arising in a sports context. He is also instructed on cases involving public and regulatory law, often connected to his other areas of practice.
His work is frequently international in nature, including English Court litigation involving cross-border legal issues or foreign law, and includes an extensive international arbitration practice as well as instructions in relation to litigation in overseas jurisdictions, in particular offshore. The cases in which he is instructed often involve allegations of dishonesty or other intentional wrongdoing and he has been instructed in some of the biggest commercial fraud cases to come before the English Courts in recent years.
His work also frequently arises out of, or is connected to, corporate collapse, and he has substantial experience of related areas of insolvency law and insurance law. He is also an expert in the law relating to solicitors’ costs, typically acting in matters connected with substantial commercial litigation.
He has appeared in leading cases across all of his areas of expertise, both at trial and appellate level, including as advocate in the Supreme Court in the UK and before the Court of Arbitration for Sport. He is a highly experienced cross-examiner and also has substantial experience of heavyweight and often urgent applications, including for freezing and other injunctive relief as well as for committal for contempt of Court, in respect of which he has appeared in a number of legally groundbreaking cases.
Recent comments from Chambers & Partners, Legal 500 and Who’s Who Legal include:
- “Absolutely outstanding. He is the complete counsel: he has a brilliant intellect, he’s always able to find one extra first-rate point of argument, he’s excellent at paperwork and he’s a particularly outstanding advocate”
- “He commands the court and is extremely eloquent”
- “A first class arbitration advocate“
- “Has a razor-sharp mind combined with thoroughly commercial instincts”
- “Incredibly astute and intelligent”
- “His commerciality and passionate advocacy make him stand out from the crowd”
- “A tough opponent, who knows his stuff and will always give you a hard fight”
- “Technically excellent and has an excellent feel for a case, he is exceptionally good to work with”
- “Excellent strategically, he integrates himself seamlessly into the team”
- “He creates solutions to complex problems”
Dan joined 4 New Square after training and practising as a solicitor-advocate at City firm Herbert Smith (now Herbert Smith Freehills). He has also worked as a litigator in the British Virgin Islands for leading offshore firm Conyers Dill & Pearman and was called to the Bar of the BVI in 2009.
He has served on the Executive Committee of both the Commercial Bar Association (COMBAR) and the British Association for Sport and Law (BASL).
More information about Dan’s specific areas of practice is set out below.
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