Delivering the Gray’s Inn & City of London Law School Joint Annual Lecture, Commercial Judge Mr Justice Foxton spoke on the topic of the enforcement of judgments of English & Welsh Courts in a post-Brexit legal environment. Noting that ease of enforcement of judgments is an essential requirement for an effective and successful legal system, Mr Justice Foxton discussed various available techniques for securing enforcement in commercial actions, including pre- and post-judgment freezing injunctions, information orders, notification injunctions, and cross-examination of judgment debtors as to their assets, and suggested some potential procedural changes to improve their effectiveness.

Read Mr Justice Foxton’s lecture here.

Mr Justice Cockerill, Judge In Charge Of The Commercial Court, delivered a lecture at Liverpool Law School celebrating the city’s significant contribution to the judiciary of the Commercial Court and to the development of commercial law. In her lecture (which you can read here), Mrs Justice Cockerill spoke of how, as one of the main hubs of Britain’s international trade, Liverpool was a source of milestone cases in the law of contract, marine insurance, and shipping. She also touched on the careers of some of the prominent Commercial Judges who began their careers in the Liverpool Courts, including the first Lord Russell of Killowen, Viscount Mersey, Lord Justices Greer and Sellers, and Mr Justice Walton. Mrs Jutice Cockerill noted that Liverpool remains a major business centre today, and that commercial disputes can still be tried locally, in the Circuit Commercial Court.

Commercial Judge Mr Justice Foxton delivered a lecture organised by Combar in memory of Edmund King QC, a prominent and popular commercial barrister at Essex Court Chambers, who died from cancer in 2020 aged only forty-five.

Taking inspiration from Edmund’s love of France and all things French, Mr Justice Foxton posed the question: “What have the French ever done for us?” In answer, he highlighted the significant influence (often, but not always beneficial) of Robert Pothier and other French theorists on the development of English contract doctrine during the 19th century, and analysed parallels between the French principle of non-cumul and the approach of English law to the availability of alternative remedies where a defendant owes concurrent duties. Turning his question around, Mr Justice Foxton concluded the lecture by looking at common law influences on the French contract law reforms of 2016.

The statistics for the 12 months covered by the latest Report indicate that the overall level of work was comparable with that for 2019 - 2020. A small reduction in the number of new claims commenced in the Commercial Court was matched almost exactly by an increase in the number of new London Circuit Commercial Court cases, suggesting an increased recognition by litigants and their advisers that the latter Court is the appropriate jurisdiction for smaller commercial actions. The combined total of new claims across these two Courts was a little over 1,300. There was a total of around 1,000 hearings, which was again similar to the previous period, although there was a significant increase in the number of applications dealt with on paper without a hearing. 42 cases were tried in the Commercial Court. Nearly twice as many settled before the listed trial date, which has been a consistent trend in recent years. Only 1 case was tried in the Admiralty Court, although the Court saw a significant uplift in the numbers of arrests and ship sales, and the total number of hearings was greater than in the previous year. There were 41 London Circuit Commercial Court Trials.

As for many years, the very high proportion of cases categorised as “international” (ie, as involving events occurring outside England & Wales and/or involving at least one overseas party) demonstrates the Commercial Court’s pre-eminent position in global commercial dispute resolution: nearly 75% of the Court’s work in 2020 - 2021 was international in nature.

The Commercial Court is the principal supervisory Court for arbitrations seated in England & Wales, and arbitration claims continue to represent a significant proportion of its workload. The number of challenges to arbitration awards under the Arbitration Act 1996 was roughly in line with the previous 12 month period. Overall, the majority of challenges continue to be unsuccessful.

In a speech to the Newcastle Business & Property Courts Forum, Mrs Justice Cockerill, Judge In Charge Of The Commercial Court, reflected on the fruitful history of commercial litigation in Newcastle, and on the contribution to the work of the Commercial Court made by two significant judicial figures born and brought up on Tyneside, Newcastle’s Gainsford Bruce, and South Shields’. Robert Wright. Mrs Justice Cockerill also met practitioners and users of the Newcastle Circuit Commercial Court, and participated in a Question & Answer session with students from Northumrbia University.

Read Mrs Justice Cockerill’s talk on “The Changing Face Of Commercial Litigation In Newcastle & Tyneside” here.

The 11th Edition of the Commercial Court Guide & Admiralty Court Guide has been published, with the approval of the Lord Chief Justice of England & Wales, Lord Burnett of Maldon. It supersedes the 10th Edition, which was published in 2017. Developments in the new edition include changes to the sections dealing with disclosure and witness statements, to reflect updates to the Disclosure Pilot and the introduction of the new Practice Direction 57AC, which applies to witness statements in the Commercial and Admiralty Courts. There is a renewed emphasis on the use of technology for trials and other hearings - including electronic bundles and use of remote platforms - which builds on the Court’s experience during lockdown; and a general encouragement to litigants in the Commercial and Admiralty Courts to give close thought at an early stage of each case to what evidence (documentary, factual witness, and expert witness) is necessary to decide the issues which really matter.

The 5th Annual Jill Poole Memorial Lecture, which Mrs Justice Cockerill, Judge In Charge of the Commercial Court, delivered at Aston University in November 2021, is now available to watch online.

The series of annual lectures honours Jill Poole, Aston’s Head of Law and Professor of Commercial Law, who died in 2016.

Mrs Justice Cockerill spoke on the evolving concept of so-called “contractual estoppel”, which has been considered in a number of recent cases, and has generated a lively debate among lawyers, both professional and academic.

You can watch Mrs Justice Cockerill’s, and previous lectures in the series, here.

Valedictory For Sir Michael Burton GBE (5th November 2011)

Mrs Justice Cockerill, Judge In Charge of the Commercial Court, and Selwyn Bloch QC, made speeches at a valedictory to mark Sir Michael Burton GBE’s contribution to the Commercial Court and his final retirement from judicial work.

Sir Michael Burton was called to the Bar by Gray’s Inn in 1970 and practised from Littleton Chambers. He became a QC in 1984, and was a Recorder and the head of Chambers at Littleton before he was appointed to the High Court Bench in 1998. As a Judge, Sir Michael sat in the Employment Appeal Tribunal and occasionally in the Chancery Division, as well as in the Commercial Court. He became President of the Employment Appeal Tribunal and of the Investigatory Powers Tribunal. Although he formally retired in 2016, he has continued to sit regularly in the Commercial Court as an additional Judge. Sir Michael was knighted on his appointment to the Bench, and was made a Knight of the Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire in 2019.

On 12th October 2021, the Commercial Court hosted a webinar on a range of highly topical shipping law issues. Lord Hamblen, formerly a Commercial Judge and now one of the Justices of the Supreme Court of England & Wales, moderated this event, which consisted of:

• A discussion by Commercial & Admiralty Judge Mr Justice Baker and Thomas Raphael QC of Twenty Essex Chambers of English law’s approach to the the important jurisdictional issue of the incorporation of charterparty arbitration clauses into bills of lading.

• An analysis by Simon Rainey QC of Quadrant Chambers of the classification of terms in shipping contracts, discussing whether judicial preference for innominate terms over conditions has made it too difficult for an “innocent party” to terminate a shipping contract for the other party’s breach.

• An overview by Rebecca Sabben-Clare QC of 7 King’s Bench Walk of major aspects of the approach of English law to the interpretation of charters, including consideration of the relative importance of printed versus bespoke clauses, and the significance of market circulars and publications.

Watch a recording of the webinar here.

Commercial Judge Mr Justice Jacobs delivered the inaugural Arnould Lecture on 29th September 2021.

This new lecture series marks the key contribution to the development of English insurance law made by successive editors of twenty editions (to date) of ‘Arnould On The Law Of Marine Insurance & Average’. Taking insurance as his topic, Mr Justice Jacobs addressed the question “Can You Judge A Policy” by its cover, and considered the importance of the contractual text, relative to the “factual matrix” and other considerations, in the resolution of policy disputes.

Mt Justice Jacob’s lecture is available to watch here.

Mrs Justice Cockerill, Judge In Charge Of The Commercial Court, delivered the keynote speech at the Dispute Resolution Forum 2021.

Reflecting on the impact of lockdown on the conduct of cases in the Commercial Court, and looking ahead to the potential implications of Brexit, Mrs Justice Cockerill considered how virtual hearings may affect the way in which witnesses give evidence, and the importance of ensuring that remote working practices do not deprive more junior lawyers of the valuable learning opportunities which attendance at physical hearings has traditionally provided. She also emphasised the importance of preserving the factors which have made England & Wales a global centre for the resolution of England & Wales, and discussed ways in which the Court might improve procedural effectiveness to maintain its international position post-Brexit.

Read the speech here.

The Private Law Implications Of Public Law Illegality (24th February 2021)

In a lecture organised by the London Common Law Bar Association and the Administrative Law Bar Association, Commercial Judge Mr Justice Foxton considered the possible implications for private law claims against local authorities and other public bodies of a finding that the public body had behaved in a way which was unlawful as a matter of public law. The potential for public law illegality to affect private law claims against public bodies in a commercial context was illustrated by the interest-rate swaps cases in the 1990’s. Mr Justice Foxton explained, by reference to more recent cases, that public law illegality retains the capacity to have an impact on contracts and other private law arrangements involving central and local government entities. Read his lecture here.

New Chancellor of the High Court (4th February 2021)

Sir Julian Flaux has been sworn-in by Lord Burnett, the Lord Chief Justice, as the new Chancellor of the High Court.

The Chancellor is responsible for the running of the Business & Property Courts of England & Wales. This includes, in consultation with the Judge In Charge and the Admiralty Judge, supervision of the operation of the Commercial Court and the Admiralty Court. The Chancellor is a member of the Court of Appeal.

Sir Julian Flaux was called to the Bar in 1978 and practised commercial law from 7 King’s Bench Walk. He was a Judge of the Commercial Court from 2007 to 2016, and was Judge In Charge from 2014 to 2015. He has been a Lord Justice of Appeal since 2016, and Supervising Lord Justice of the Commercial Court since 2020.

Read Lord Burnett’s speech at Sir Julian’s swearing-in here.

The third seminar in the series organised to mark and celebrate the first 125 years of the Commercial Court considered to what extent modern English law treats commercial contracts differently from contracts which operate in other spheres.

A panel consisting of Commercial Judge Mr Justice Foxton, Professor Louise Gullifer QC, Rouse Ball Professor of English Law at the University of Cambridge, and Philippa Hopkins QC, commercial barrister at Essex Court Chambers, discussed the extent to which the “traditional” special rules for the construction of exemption clauses in commercial contracts retain their force today; the approach of the Courts to the construction of standard form contracts in the commercial world, such as charterparties and trade organisations’ sale agreements, and the evolution of the law in relation to implied terms. The event was chaired by former Commercial Judge and current Supreme Court Justice Lord Leggatt, who contributed thoughts on the role of good faith in “relational” contracts.

Register to watch a recording of the seminar here.

In the second in the series of online seminars being presented as part of the celebrations to mark the Commercial Court’s 125th birthday, Lord Justice Males chaired a discussion which looked at the inter-action between commercial litigation and public international law.

A panel consisting of Commercial Judge Mr Justice Butcher and Professors Dapo Akande (Professor of Public International Law at the University of Oxford) and Philippa Webb (Professor of Public International Law at King’s College London) considered the circumstances in which such concepts as sovereign immunity, act of state, and non-justiciability might come into play in the types of case which are litigated in the Commercial Court. The panellists also considered the various exceptions to these principles, and considered whether the exceptions have now become so broad as to significantly restrict the potential for immunities to arise in commercial cases.

Register here to watch a recording of the seminar.

The Donald O’May Lecture is organised annually by the Institute of Maritime Law at the University of Southampton. The Lectures are named after a past senior partner at the London law firm Ince & Co. Donald O’May specialised in maritime litigation, and wrote a textbook (which was published posthumously) on English marine insurance law. The Lectures are intended to interest not only legal practitioners and academics specialising in shipping law but also people actively involved in the shipping industry and in associated sectors, such as broking and insurance.

You can watch Mr Justice Foxton’s conclusions about “Why Shipping Law Still Matters” here.

Lord Hamblen, one of the Justices of the Supreme Court, delivered the Combar Annual Lecture for 2020. This year, the lecture was virtual. To mark the Commercial Court’s 125th Anniversary, Lord Hamblen chose as his subject “The Commercial Court: Past, Present & Future”. In the lecture, he considered how the commercial’s community’s dissatisfaction with the Court system led to the creation of the Commercial Court in 1895 as a specialist forum for the resolution of commercial disputes; how the Court’s practices and procedures, have evolved and developed over 125 years to ensure that they always promote the efficient determination of commercial cases; and what challenges, changes, and opportunities the future may bring.

Lord Hamblen, who has been a Justice of the Supreme Court since 2020, was a Judge of the Commercial Court from 2008 to 2016, when he was appointed a Lord Justice of the Court of Appeal. Watch his lecture here, or read the text here.

Combar, the Commercial Bar Association, is the specialist association for barristers of England & Wales who practise commercial law. It represents around 1,600 individual barristers and 38 sets of chambers, all of whom specialise in legal advice and advocacy in commercial disputes. The Annual Lecture is part of Combar’s educational programme, which provides regular lecture, seminars and events in a wide range of topics related to commercial law, commercial litigation, and commercial arbitration.

In the first of three online seminars forming part of the Commercial Court’s 125th anniversary celebrations, Mrs Justice Cockerill, Judge In Charge Of The Commercial Court, Rob Merkin QC, Professor of Law at the Universities of Exeter and Reading, and Duncan Mathews QC, joint Head of Chambers at Twenty Essex, spoke on several topical issues involving the importance of the relationship between the Commercial Court and the world of international commercial arbitration.

The event, which was chaired by Lord Justice Flaux, highlighted both the position of England & Wales as the pre-eminent location for the resolution of commercial disputes through arbitration, and the Commercial Court’s crucial role as the primary supervisory Court for arbitrations which have their seat within the jurisdiction.

The issues which were discussed included the use of the Court’s powers under the Arbitration Act 1996 and at common law to support arbitration (including injunctions to restrain breaches of arbitration clauses); challenges to arbitrators’ jurisdiction; the proper law of arbitration agreements; and whether the rules governing appeals from arbitration awards on points of law should be reformed.

You can register to watch a recording of the seminar here.

Retirement Of Mr Justice Teare (1st October 2020)

Mr Justice Teare has retired with effect from 1st October 2020 after a fourteen year career as a High Court Judge.

Sir Nigel Martin John Teare was called to the Bar in 1974 and joined the chambers at 2 Essex Court, which subsequently became Quadrant Chambers. At the Bar, he specialised in admiralty and maritime law. He was appointed Queen’s Counsel in 1991. In addition to appearing as an advocate in the Courts and in arbitration, Sir Nigel sat as a Lloyd’s arbitrator and held part-time judicial appointments in England and in his native Isle of Man, before he became a Judge of the Queen’s Bench Division in 2006. He has been the Admiralty Judge since 2013, and the Judge In Charge of the Commercial Court since 2017.

Mrs Justice Cockerill succeeds Sir Nigel as Judge In Charge of the Commercial Court. Mr Justice Andrew Baker is the new Admiralty Judge.

Neil Calver QC has been appointed a Judge of the Queen’s Bench Division with effect from 1st October 2020. Mr Justice Calver has been nominated to sit as a Judge of the Commercial Court.

Sir Neil Calver was called to the Bar of England & Wales in 1997, and was appointed Queen’s Counsel in 1996. He was also a member of the Bars of the British Virgin Islands and Gibraltar. Sir Neil specialised in commercial litigation and arbitration, and also practised competition law and publlc law. He has been a Recorder since 2017

Commercial Judges, practitioners, and academics, participated in an online seminar arranged as part of the celebrations of the Commercial Court’s 125th Anniversary.

Based around the theme “Year 126 and onwards: planning for the future of London’s Commercial Court”, the event was divided into three sessions. In “Virtual & Hybrid Hearings: Legacies & Lessons”, the panel discussed the experiences of Judges, practitioners, and other Court users in conducting hearings remotely since the Court’s move to virtual working during lockdown, and the possible future implications for how the Court arranges hearings. “The Disclosure Pilot - Phase 2” addressed upcoming developments in the application of the Disclosure Pilot, CPR Practice Direction 51U, which applies in the Commercial Court and which substantially modifies the rules which govern disclosure. Finally, “What Next For Witness Statements” looked in detail at the forthcoming new rules for the preparation, content, and form of witness statements intended for use at trial, which will take effect in the Commercial Court under a new Practice Direction which will come into force in April 2021.

The seminar formed part of London International Disputes Week, an annual forum which celebrates and promotes London’s pre-eminent place as a venue for the resolution of international commercial disputes, both in the Courts and in arbitration.

Register to watch a recording of the seminar here.

Mr Justice Andrew Baker has been appointed as the Admiralty Judge with effect from 1st August 2020. He succeeds Mr Justice Teare, who has been the Admiralty since 2013 and who retires shortly.

Sir Andrew Baker has been a Judge of the Queen’s Bench Division, nominated to sit in the Commercial Court since 2016. Before that, he practised at the Bar in commercial litigation and arbitration. He was called in 1988 and was appointed Queen’s Counsel in 2006. He sat as a Recorder from 2012 to 2016.

Mrs Justice Cockerill has been appointed Judge In Charge of the Commercial Court in succession to Mr Justice Teare, who retires in October. The appointment takes effect from 1st August 2020.

Dame Sara Cockerill was called to the Bar in 1990 and specialised in commercial litigation and arbitration. She became Queen’s Counsel in 2011 and was appointed a Deputy High Court Judge in 2016.

Retirement of Lord Justice Simon (21st June 2020)

Former Commercial Judge Lord Justice Simon retires with effect from 21st June 2020. He has been a Lord Justice of the Court of Appeal since 2015.

Sir Peregrine Charles Hugo Simon was called to the Bar in 1973 and practised commercial law from Brick Court Chambers. He was appointed Queen’s Counsel in 1991, and became a Recorder in 1998 and a Deputy High Court Judge in 1999. Sir Peregrine was appointed a Judge of the Queen’s Bench Division in 2001, and was nominated to sit in the Commercial Court. He was a Presiding Judge on the North Eastern Circuit from 2006 to 2008.

Mr Justice Teare, the Judge In Charge Of The Commercial Court, and Commercial Judge Mr Justice Waksman, participated in a webinar organised by Combar and the Bar Council on the subject of “Online commercial trials and hearings: the latest developments from the Rolls Building.” The webinar covered the rules and procedures which apply to virtual or “hybrid” hearings, and the practical experiences of Commercial Judges and practitioners since the Commercial Court moved to online working as a consequence of Coronavirus restrictions in late March.

A video of the webinar as available here.

Appointment of Lady Justice Carr (21st April 2020)

Commercial Judge Mrs Justice Carr becomes a Lady Justice of the Court of Appeal with effect from 21st April 2020.

Dame Sue Lascelles Carr was called to the Bar in 1987 and became a member of chambers at 4 New Square, where she practised commercial law, professional liability, and professional indemnity insurance. She was appointed Queen’s Counsel in 2003. Dame Sue has been a Judge of the Queen’s Bench Division, nominated to sit in the Commercial Court, since 2013. She was a Presiding Judge on the Midland Circuit from 2016 to 2020.

The Commercial Court celebrates its 125th birthday in 2020-2021.

The Commercial Court was created in February 1895, when the Judges of the Queen’s Bench Division published a Notice setting out new arrangements for the listing, management, and trial of commercial cases. It started work on 1st March 1895, when Mr Justice Mathew, the first Commercial Judge, heard 31 summonses in a morning. He tried the Court’s first case the following week.

A new exhibition has been established in the Rolls Building to celebrate and commemorate the anniversary. The exhibition includes portraits and brief biographies of some of the Court’s most eminent Judges; illustrated displays explaining the background to the Court’s creation and giving an overview of its history, including leading cases and personalities; and a collection of memorabilia from the career of Lord Justice T.E. Scrutton, author of the famous textbook on charterparties, and one the most celebrated of all Commercial Judges.

Lord Chief Justice Burnett officially opened the exhibition at a ceremony attended by Commercial Court Judges and users. The Lord Chief Justice gave a short address, followed by brief speeches by the President of the Law Society, Simon Davis, and the Chair of Combar, Sonia Tolaney QC.

There will be a series of lectures and seminars throughout 2020-2021, both to mark the Commercial Court’s first 125 years and to look ahead to the future of commercial litigation in England & Wales.

The latest Commercial Court Report has been published. The Report incorporates the Admiralty Court Report, and contains information and statistics about the work of the Courts and procedural innovations and other developments during 2018-2019.

The number of new claims made and of applications heard in both Courts was broadly in line with the previous year. 53 cases were tried in the Commercial Court, including 11 large trials which lasted more than 4 weeks. There were also 7 Admiralty trials.

Around 30% of the Commercial Court’s workload consisted of applications made under the Arbitration Act 1996 or otherwise related to arbitration. This reflects both the importance of the Court’s function as the principal supervisory Court for arbitration in England & Wales, and the continuing success of England & Wales as a pre-eminent jurisdiction for the resolution of commercial disputes by arbitration.

As has been the case throughout the Commercial Court’s history, a very substantial proportinocof the Court’s work during 2018-2019 was international: one or more of the parties was located outside England & Wales in around 70% of cases.

Read the Report here.

Mr Justice Butcher delivered this year’s Lords Goff & Hobhouse Memorial Lecture to an audience at the Stationer’s Hall. Taking as his subject “Commercial Jurisdiction: the pattern of the past and the shape of the future”, Mr Justice Butcher discussed the development of the domestic and European procedural rules which enable the English Courts to assume jurisdiction over commercial disputes with an international element, and looked ahead to possible future developments in a world after Brexit. Read his lecture here.

The Lords Goff & Hobhouse Memorial Lectures are organised annually by 7 King’s Bench Walk to commemorate two former members of the chambers who were leading practitioners at the Commercial Bar, became eminent Commercial Court Judges, and ended their careers as Law Lords: Robert Goff, Lord Goff of Chieveley, and John Hobhouse, Lord Hobhouse of Woodborough.

Lord Justice Flaux has been appointed Supervising Lord Justice of the Commercial Court for a four year term, with effect from 6th February 2020. He will work with the Judge In Charge Of The Commercial Court in relation to the operation of the Court, and in particular in promoting overseas links and maintaining the Court’s international profile.

Sir Julian Martin Flaux was himself a Commercial Judge for nine years before he became a Lord Justice of Appeal in 2016.

Appointment of Lord Justice Phillips (13th January 2020)

Mr Justice Phillips, who has been a Commercial Judge since 2014, takes office as a Lord Justice of the Court of Appeal from 13th January 2020.

Sir Stephen Edmund Phillips was called to the Bar in 1984. He practised from 3 Verulam Buildings, and specialised in the law of banking and finance, civil fraud, and other aspects of commercial law. He became Queen’s Counsel in 2002. Sir Stephen became a Recorder in 2000 and a Deputy High Court Judge in 2008. He was appointed a Judge of the Queen’s Bench Division in 2013, and nominated to sit in the Commercial Court in the following year.

New Commercial Judge: Mr Justice Foxton (13th January 2020)

David Foxton QC’s appointment as a Judge of the Queen’s Bench Division takes effect from 13th January 2020. The Lord Chief Justice has nominated Mr Justice Foxton to sit in the Commercial Court.

Sir David Andrew Foxton was called to the Bar in 1989. He practised commercial law from Essex Court Chambers, and was appointed Queen’s Counsel in 2006. He has been a Recorder since 2009 and a Deputy High Court Judge since 2016.