We deliver effective solutions for all disputes, regardless of how simple or complex they may be.
Clients can rely on the combined experience of our team of experienced and skilled barristers to offer clear and commercially focused advice that will best serve their interests. Should a matter proceed to litigation, as a specialist litigation practice that has earned a well-established reputation for strong advocacy skills, we bring our combined talents to promote the interests of our clients.
- Administrative Law /
Judicial Review - Aviation
- Admiralty & Shipping
- Arbitration
- Banking & Finance
- Commercial
- Company Law
- Competition
- Constitutional Law
- Construction Disputes
- Equity & Trusts
- Insolvency
- Islamic Banking
- Intellectual Property
- Maritime Law
- Oil & Gas
- Property
- Securities Law
- Tax
- Wills
We are backed by a team of talented barristers
The firm places great emphasis on enabling our lawyers to acquire as much advocacy experience as possible in their initial years of practice, in order to empower them to be skilled barristers.
Aviation
- Acting for 76 relatives of passengers on board Malaysian Airlines Flight MH370 in one of the largest suits of its kind worldwide.
Admiralty & Shipping
- Counsel in a complex collision case that resulted in the sinking of a vessel. Involved towage and pilotage principles, port authority regulations, and an indemnity claim under a knock-for-knock clause under a charterparty.
- Acting for the Indemnity provider under a Charterparty, in a litigation against the shipowner by cargo interests for alleged wrongful delivery of cargo without the presentation of the bills of lading.
- Representing a shipowner and its holding company in their ground breaking and precedent setting litigation to secure an injunction against the arrest of their ships, in circumstances of a complicated novation of charterparty rights and set-off of claims.
- Obtaining an urgent injunction as Counsel before the Malaysian Admiralty Court to prevent dealings with cargo that was the subject of arbitration in London, and parallel Court proceedings in China. This Injunctive Order was instrumental in achieving the settlement of multiple proceedings over the purchase and sale of commodities.
- Numerous arrests, and release of vessels from arrest, including one where expedited Sheriff’s consent was procured for the ship to ship transfer of cargo of fuel oil within hours of the tanker’s arrest.
Commercial
- Acted for a consortium of 7 financial institutions, in a landmark bond dispute against the issuer, lead arranger, trustee and professional advisors, and secured judgment exceeding RM200 million after a 40 day trial at the High Court.
- Acting for a state government in on-going litigation with the Federal government for royalties relating to oil and gas revenues produced offshore.
- Acting for the sole concessionaire for school textbooks in Malaysia in a 23 day arbitration hearing brought against the government, with a value in excess of RM115 million.
- Successfully concluding the first legal challenge on the goods and services tax law : on whether the ultimate beneficiary of services is imposed with the legal liability to pay the tax.
Constitutional Law
- Acted for the Speaker of a state legislative assembly in a landmark Federal Court constitutional appeal which upheld the non-justiciability of acts of the Speaker in the internal administration of the assembly and discipline of members.
- Acted for a state government in successful judicial review proceedings in which the Court of Appeal set aside a declaration that a community watch organisation was an unlawful society.
Construction Disputes
- Acting for a prominent Malaysian highway concessionaire in judicial review and land reference proceedings arising from construction on Kuala Lumpur’s 3rd tranche of outer ring roads.
- Acting for major Malaysian listed construction companies in numerous ongoing construction litigation and adjudication matters.
- Advising and acting for a Malaysian listed construction company on the MRT and Light Rail Transit 3 Projects.
Maritime Law
- Throughout 2016 and 2017, the firm’s consultant Sitpah Selvaratnam as the founding president of the International Malaysian Society of Maritime Law (IMSML) worked closely and intensively with regulators, government ministries, maritime agencies and the maritime industry to identify areas of maritime law reform, trade facilitation and capacity building in Malaysia through a series of high level law review workshops, maritime law conferences and training and certification programs. She delivered numerous papers on diverse topics encompassing maritime insolvency, ship arrests and arbitration, at various international fora, including the 8th Asian Maritime Law Conference in 2016 (Singapore), IADC Regional Meeting in 2016 (Hong Kong) and ICMA Conference in 2017 (Copenhagen). Sitpah is regularly appointed as sole or presiding arbitrator in international disputes.
- In 2017, Sitpah authored the Admiralty section of the Malaysian edition of Bullen & Leake, together with 2 colleagues from Tommy Thomas.
Oil & Gas
- Acting for a listed Malaysian oil and gas exploration company against a Swedish conglomerate in international arbitration proceedings in Switzerland under ICC Rules.
- Acting for a major oil and gas company in relation to negligent construction of a wellhead platform.
Securities Law
- Acting for the Securities Commission of Malaysia in civil enforcement proceedings, for insider trading, breaches of fund manager guidelines, and fraudulent dual currency instrument and real estate-linked investment schemes.
- Successfully defended charges of market manipulation brought by the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange against a major market participant.
- Advising the Financial Markets Association of Malaysia and drafting its internal disciplinary code of conduct for financial market misconduct.
- Acting for a prominent asset manager in a RM100 million investment fraud.
- Advising the largest crytocurrency exchange in South East Asia on compliance with local banking and securities laws.
