Ben Bruton

Litigation

• Acted on behalf of a global news agency in connection with the defense of high-value defamation proceedings in the UAE.
• Acted on behalf of a Bahraini bank in connection with the financing of an aircraft. The litigation raised novel issues around whether a commitment letter is a binding agreement or a non-binding agreement to agree.
• Acted for a global power generation company in a €155M multi-jurisdictional dispute against a world leading construction company and a major international bank concerning an on-demand performance bond. The litigation (in England and France) raised novel questions of jurisdiction and ultimately changed the law in relation to on-demand performance bonds.
• Acted for Shamil Bank in the Shamil Bank v Beximco litigation. The Bank successfully rebutted the Defendant’s argument (in both the London High Court and Court of Appeal) that it should be relieved from its obligation to repay corporate borrowing on the basis that the underlying Morabaha was not Sharia’a compliant.
• Acted for one of the largest investment banks in the U.S. in defending a high-value claim brought in the Abu Dhabi court relating to allegations of mis-selling and mis-management of structured products. Following a detailed expert investigation, the claim against the bank was dismissed in full.
• Acted on behalf of Rolls-Royce plc in a multi-jurisdictional claim for more than US$100M against a range of insurers. The dispute, which culminated in High Court proceedings, was listed as one of the top 20 litigation matters in The Lawyer magazine and raised numerous technical issues in relation to adequacy of notice and coverage under General Liability insurance policies.
• Acted for a leading global bank in London High Court proceedings brought by a borrower against the bank alleging breach of an obligation to lend and a £80M loss of opportunity as a result of the alleged breach.

Arbitration

• Acted for UAE-Government employer in connection with a claim against its main contractor for failing to deliver a critical infrastructure project on schedule. This matter is subject to the ADCCAC arbitration rules.
• Acted on behalf of a global O&M contractor in connection with multi-million dollar ICC arbitration proceedings brought against its former employer in Pakistan.
• Handled construction arbitration disputes in all of the main arbitral centres in the UAE (DIFC-LCIA, DIAC, ADCCAC) having taken three such matters to a final evidential hearing over the last two years.
• Advised a leading main contractor in the power generation sector in connection with a gas-fired power station in Oman on construction disputes relating to responsibility for unforeseen civil works and force majeure events.
• Acted for a UAE telecoms company in an ICC arbitration against a Nigerian state owned entity which involved advising on strategies for enforcement of a London-issued arbitration award in Nigeria.
• Acted for a major life assurance company in a €1.6B arbitration dispute with a fund manager. The client’s funds performed badly as a result of breaches of the Investment Management Agreement, which prohibited investment in collateralized debt obligations and certain other securities. The dispute covered a range of issues relating to the nature of the structured products, quantification based on the notional performance of "permitted" products and the scope of a fund manager’s duty.

Investigations

• Acted on behalf of a U.S. multinational corporation which is the subject of a DFSA investigation.
• Acted on behalf of a leading pharmaceuticals company in connection with the internal investigation and subsequent report to their domestic regulator arising from a high value fraud in Saudi Arabia.
• Acted on behalf of a global shipping company following a whistleblower report highlighting a long-running, complex fraud involving the theft and resale of fuel.
• Acted on behalf of a leading Dubai bank in a multi-jurisdictional investigation and litigation arising from a complex letter of credit fraud.