Ian joined 4 New Square in October 2018 following the successful completion of his pupillage and is developing a broad practice across Chambers’ core areas, with a particular focus on commercial litigation, the conflict of laws, professional liability, construction, and civil fraud.
His recent led work includes:
- Junior to Matthew Bradley in Ang v Reliantco Investments Ltd [2019] EWHC 879 (Comm), involving a jurisdiction challenge under the recast Brussels I Regulation (in particular, the choice-of-court and consumer contract provisions);
- Acting for a sub-contractor in an adjudication claim – led by Hugh Saunders – over a £1.2million final account dispute arising out of an NEC sub-contract relating to a highways project;
- Acting in a Counsel team led by Garry Borland QC in a complex adjudication claim against one of a main contractor’s engineers arising out of a PFI roads scheme;
- Junior to Hugh Saunders in a £2million claim relating to the defective design of a new £4million private residence;
- Assisting with a defence to a multi-million pound unlawful means conspiracy claim; and,
- Acting for a housing association in a £7million dispute arising out of the termination of a number of PPC2000 contracts (led by Hugh Saunders).
Ian has also settled pleadings in a range of matters, including actions against solicitors, surveyors, and financial practitioners, and regularly appears in his own right in hearings and trials in the County Court.
Given Ian’s background – he originally trained and worked as a journalist before spending five years at Liberty, the human rights organisation, in senior media and campaigns roles – he also has a strong interest in public law, and was recently involved in the filing of an application, engaging (inter alia) Article 5 of the European Convention on Human Rights (the right to liberty and security), to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg.
During pupillage, meanwhile, Ian assisted in a variety of domestic and international disputes, including:
- An application for a worldwide freezing injunction, arising out of a multi-million pound fraud;
- An advice on service out of the jurisdiction in a large multi-jurisdictional action for deceit;
- A UNCITRAL arbitration relating to a concession agreement in respect of an international airport;
- A three-week TCC trial in a claim for breach of contract and misrepresentation; and,
- Professional liability proceedings against an investment management company.
Prior to commencing pupillage, Ian read law at Birkbeck, University of London, where he won the Prize for Outstanding Performance on the LLB, and at Balliol College, Oxford, where he was the 4 New Square Chambers Scholar and achieved a Distinction on the Bachelor of Civil Law. He subsequently completed the BPTC, for which he was awarded the Cunningham Scholarship by Middle Temple and an Excellence Award by BPP University, securing Outstanding grades in all three Advocacy modules and Commercial Dispute Resolution.
Ian has particular expertise in the conflict of laws. He has worked as a teaching assistant on the Conflict of Laws module on the BCL at the University of Oxford, and has delivered tutorials in the same subject to visiting students at St Catherine’s College, Oxford. During pupillage, Ian also taught BPTC Commercial Dispute Resolution classes on jurisdiction and foreign judgments at BPP University, and won The Bar Council’s Law Reform Essay Competition for his paper “One rule for all: An end to the Abouloff double standard on fraud and foreign judgments”.
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