Members of Sydney-based Banco Chambers handle large-scale competition and consumer litigation across Australia, acting on behalf of businesses, individuals and the regulator in cases of anti-competitive behaviour, exclusive trade, abuse of market power and deceptive behaviour. Members have appeared at the litigation and appeal levels, including key antitrust enforcement cases. Cameron Moore SC is known for his involvement in high-profile ACCC investigations and proceedings. Ruth Higgins SC has strengthened its reputation in key competition cases by successfully acting for TPG, Pacific National and AGL in contentious merger proceedings against ACCC and defending modern antitrust proceedings. The „talented and competent“ Peter Brereton SC is involved in a number of major cases on behalf of companies and government agencies. „Extensive expertise in competition litigation, the first choice for this job. ` The Bar Association is dominated by a wide range of commercial disputes, with lawyers representing companies and individual clients in numerous contractual and managing director disputes as well as insolvency and tax proceedings. Areas of interest include competition law, media and defamation, construction, white-collar crime and intellectual property. The client sector tends to vary from state to state, with members of Queensland`s major housing estates, including Level Twenty Seven Chambers, working for many of the state`s major energy and resources companies, while Sydney and Melbourne, such as Banco Chambers and List A Barristers, focus more on financial services and technology. Queensland-based practitioners have broader practices than other groups, combining commercial litigation, construction, resources and public law expertise. Blackstone Chambers is considered the „gold standard in sports law“ and assists clients in all areas of practice, including the governance and regulation of sports organisations, as well as commercial matters.
Nick De Marco KC`s exclusive sports law practice includes regulatory, sponsorship, agency, image rights, financial fair play and competition law matters; He worked for Newcastle United in the dispute over new owners with the Premier League as well as for various league clubs in relation to financial fair play rules. Adam Lewis KC represented the FA in defending UEFA`s charges in the European Championships and on behalf of the EFL in disciplinary proceedings against Derby County. Jane Mulcahy KC has defended England footballer Kieran Trippier against the FA`s betting allegations, with prosecutors represented by Kate Gallafent KC and Celia Rooney. Ian Mill KC works for many people, teams, organisers, managers, governing bodies and sports broadcasters. Blackstone Chambers offers extensive competitive experience, as members have appeared in numerous landmark cases before national and European courts and are at the forefront of enforcement and private damages actions in the UK. Brian Kennelly KC represented the Kentish tech giant against Apple and defended an allegation of abuse of dominance over Apple`s App Store fees before the Competition Appeal Tribunal. James Segan KC has particular expertise in global FRAND issues, which he used in InterDigital vs. Lenovo when he represented the latter in a licensing lawsuit involving Motorola and Lenovo smartphones. Emily Neill worked for Bank of America in connection with a claim for damages brought by various financial institutions for alleged manipulation of the foreign exchange market. „Brick Court continues to be a first port of call for competition disputes.
The depth of talent at all levels of seniority is very impressive and I have never been disappointed. Brick Court Chambers is a „world-class competitive entity“ with expertise in all competition matters, including state aid, merger control, consequential damages and individual cases. Helen Davies KC works for the banking firm in Allianz Global Investors v. HSBC, a multi-million pound damages claim related to an alleged cartel involving foreign exchange transactions over a decade. Marie Demetriou KC is involved in a standalone competition lawsuit worth more than £1 billion in Phones4U v Orange and others and is defending a lawsuit brought by the directors of the defunct phone retailer, arguing that various mobile operators worked together to push them out of business. Mark Hoskins KC is acting in one of last year`s most widely reported media reports, representing some of Europe`s biggest football clubs in the European Super League against UEFA and FIFA, with the proposed splinter league claiming that football associations` rules for sanctioning cross-border competitions are anti-competitive. In Pfizer v. Flynn v.
CMA, Daniel Jowell KC and Tom Pascoe have won a competition case concerning the price of epilepsy medicines sold to the NHS, becoming the main instance of excessive pricing under English competition law. Temple Chambers includes commercial silk fabrics that are taught in some of the competition cases in Hong Kong. Abraham Chan SC, who has a strong background in telecommunications, was Senior Legal Counsel to the Competition Commission at the Competition Commission against W Hing Construction, while Charles Hollander QC – a double tenant at London`s Brick Court Chambers – represented BT Hong Kong in Competition Commission v. Nutanix; In 2019, Silk Eva Sit SC represented Innovix Distribution in this case. Monckton Chambers is an outstanding player in competition law and has expertise in the senior and younger ranks. covers the range of areas such as antitrust, collective redress and accelerated litigation, mergers, public undertakings and State aid. Jon Turner KC is for the consumer group in Which? against Qualcomm Inc, a multi-million pound class action lawsuit alleging that it abused a dominant position in the supply of key processors for smartphones and the licensing of patents essential to compliance with the 4G standard. Daniel Beard KC and Ciar McAndrew represented the postal service in Royal Mail v. Ofcom, the Court of Appeal upheld the largest fine ever imposed by the regulator for abuse of dominance to exclude its competitor Whistl from the wholesale market for mass delivery services.
In another case of alleged abuse of dominance, Tim Ward KC represents the Norwegian telecommunications operator in Telenor v. EFTA Surveillance Authority; A case that raises fundamental questions about the standard of proof in cases of sanctions under competition law. Meredith Pickford KC led David Gregory, representing the global search engine in Google, v. European Commission, challenging the record single fine of €2.42 billion related to Google`s search algorithms. „Monckton is, in my opinion, the leading competition litigation body with the most impressive lawyers in the field. Monckton Chambers provides expertise in litigation arising in overlapping areas of EU sport and commercial law, including competition law, free movement and cross-border trade. Paul Harris KC has dealt with a trade dispute related to rugby broadcast deals interrupted by COVID force majeure events. Separately, Fiona Banks successfully defended former Red Bull junior driver Callan O`Keeffe and his father in connection with a threatened prosecution for illegal conspiracy brought by a Caymanian company, Axon, in relation to sponsorship money paid by Axon to Drivex, with whom he participated in the 2019 Formula Renault Eurocup. „Great employees make Monckton our place to stay for competitive support. Denis Chang`s firm`s reputation as a public law body gives it a launching pad for competition law work in Hong Kong, which its members undertake for both the Commission and companies. Members were on both sides of the Five Respondent case regarding bid manipulation in the YWCA`s bidding process for new computer systems: Tim Parker, who is also a member of Blackstone Chambers in London, represented SiS International, which was found to be the only defendant not to have breached the first conduct rule, and Carter Chim, the Competition Commission`s case manager.
In addition, Chim represented the defendants in the competition against W Hing Construction Company & Ors concerning market sharing in the construction sector, in which the court held that a criminal standard of proof applied in competition proceedings in Hong Kong. In this context, Samuel Chan, who remains a member of the Chambers, was appointed Chairman of the Hong Kong Competition Commission in March 2020.