Jeffrey Thomson

Call:2004

Introduction and Contact details

Jeffrey joined Hardwicke in 2007. His practice is focused on insurance, shipping and trade, and closely related areas such as banking, finance and professional liability. Much of his work is international in character, involving multiple jurisdictions and international conventions relevant to commercial disputes.

He has worked, both as sole counsel and as junior, on a number of complex and sometimes high-profile cases, both in the High Court and in arbitration, including the Buncefield litigation, and multi-jurisdictional matters.

Jeffrey has been a visiting lecturer and tutor at King’s College London’s School of Law, and has worked as a case-presenting officer for the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration in Canada. He regularly presents seminars and publishes on shipping and insurance law issues. He is fluent in written and spoken French, and holds a degree (“Maîtrise”) in French civil law from the Sorbonne, Paris.

Tel: 020 7242 2523 (switchboard), 020 7691 0122 (direct)
Fax: 020 7691 1234
Email: jeffrey.thomson@hardwicke.co.uk

COMMERCIAL

Jeffrey deals with a range of commercial disputes, further details as to which appear under the individual practice areas below. He has particular expertise in the conflict of laws and jurisdictional issues and with the applicable international conventions. Recently, he has advised on:

• whether a claim in conversion could be issued in England against residents of Finland under the Brussels Regulation;
• whether reference to standard GAFTA wording incorporated a jurisdiction clause, both under the common law and under European norms;
• the applicable jurisdiction for consumer contracts as between constituent part of the United Kingdom.

Recent and ongoing commercial cases include

• acting, as junior counsel led by Paul Reed, for a substantial insurer in a large-scale policy dispute in enforcing Letters of Request issued by a US Federal Court to obtain the deposition of London-based brokers and the production of broking documents;
• a £8m claim in the TCC arising out of the abortive design of an art gallery;
• acting for a contractor in defending a substantial claim, in the TCC, under the Construction Plant-hire Association conditions.

Reported commercial cases

Seele Austria GmbH v. Tokio Marine Europe Insurance [2009] EWHC 2151 (QB), led by Paul Reed, a decision on costs following summary judgment in a substantial insurance dispute, in which the effect of an early ‘drop hands’ offer was considered.

Arbitration

Jeffrey has experience with arbitration and other forms of alternative dispute resolution. In particular, his shipping and international work has led him to deal with many of the issues arising in arbitration.

Examples include

• the incorporation of arbitration clauses
• applications to confirm the jurisdiction of arbitral tribunals
• appeals from arbitral tribunals on points of law
• applications to challenge the recognition and enforcement of foreign arbitral awards under the New York Convention

Recent and ongoing commercial arbitrations include a US$70m LMAA arbitration arising from the early redelivery of a ship. He has also acted and advised in relation to GAFTA, FOSFA, and LCIA arbitral proceedings.

Banking, Finance & Credit

Jeffrey has a degree in financial economics, and a real and continuing interest in finance and banking matters, including derivatives. He acts regularly for major banks and commercial lenders.

His shipping and international commercial experience has led him to deal with financial arrangements commonly used in trade, including:

• Bills of exchange
• Performance bonds
• Documentary credits
• Standby letters of credit
• Guarantees and indemnities

In 2008 he spent two months on secondment to DLA Piper's Financial Litigation team, during and following which he acted in a range of claims relating to large-scale secured-lending. He has advised and appeared in substantial claims involving secured-lending and subrogated claims.

Professional Negligence

Jeffrey acts and advises on claims against professionals acting in areas relating to insurance, shipping, trade and finance.

Recent and ongoing matters involving insurance brokers

• advising on a claim arising from the placing of a shipbuilder’s all risk policy which contained an overly-narrow definition of “assured”
• advising an assured on a claim against brokers for failing to advise properly in relation to the scope of an all-risks business interruption policy
• advising an insurer on a claim against foreign brokerage companies and their directors for misappropriated premium monies

Recent and ongoing solicitors’ liability cases, including

• advising on a claim for the mishandling of a carriage of goods by air dispute under the Warsaw-Hague regime
• acting in a range of claims against solicitors relating to secured-lending transactions

He has also advised on claims against surveyors, including recently a claim against marine surveyors for failures in supervising refurbishment works on a vessel, and has worked on matters involving the liability of finance professionals and FSA / FOS regulations.

Shipping

Jeffrey acts in the full range of shipping and carriage disputes, appearing in, advising and drafting documents for arbitral and court proceedings.

He has expertise in relation to charterparty disputes, both voyage charters (demurrage, laycan and strike clauses, dangerous cargos, safe port/berth clauses, etc) and time charters (speed and consumption, off-hire claims, detention, options to sell or purchase vessels, early and late redelivery, etc). He also acts in bill of lading and cargo disputes. He has experience with ship sale and financing disputes. He has worked with a wide range of standard forms, including AmWelsh, Asbatankvoy, NYPE, Shelltime, Norwegian Saleform, and others.

Jeffrey’s practice also covers admiralty matters, including general average claims under the York-Antwerp Rules, collisions, issues pertaining to registered and unregistered ships and ship mortgages, and arrest.

He has recently advised and acted in

• a c.US$15m cargo claim under the Hague Rules arising from damage suffered by industrial 'project cargo' during loading;
• a claim under the Warsaw-Hague convention for loss of a cargo of fruit due to failure to keep cool during air-carriage;
• a US$70m LMAA arbitration arising from the early redelivery of a time-chartered vessel  (NYPE form) and a claim on a third-party guarantor;
• a claim by a bank against third-party purchasers of a UK-registered vessel following its wrongful sale by the mortgagor;
• a dispute arising from damage to a yacht caused by a defective mooring pontoon;
• a claim for damage to a number of yachts caused by contractors working at a marina.

Jeffrey has also advised on disputes relating to the carriage of goods by air and the Warsaw-Hague regime. He has a real interest in all matters relating to carriage (by sea, air, rail or road), and in ships and aviation, and is a regular sailor.

Trade

Jeffrey advises and acts in matters involving international trade contracts. He has experience with a range of standard forms, including GAFTA and FOSFA, and with Incoterms, as well as with a variety of bespoke contracts (c.i.f., f.o.b., etc).

Issues he has advised on recently include

• the construction of terms as to quality and description of goods, and in relation to letters of credit;
• the effect of a demurrage clause in an ex ship sales contracts;
• the frustration of a c.i.f. contract by a national prohibition on trading;
• the incorporation of choice of law and jurisdiction clauses in such contracts.

Jeffrey also has experience in relation to the domestic law of the sale and supply of goods and services.

INSURANCE

Jeffrey’s practice covers the full range insurance and reinsurance matters, further details as to which appear under the individual practice areas below. He acts regularly for and against many types of assureds, companies market insurers as well as Lloyd’s underwriters and managing agents, brokers, and P&I clubs.

He has particular expertise in policy coverage work, and he advises regularly on issues such as avoidance (misrepresentation and non-disclosure, for example), policy interpretation, causation, and notification. He has experience with standard forms and bespoke policy wordings, both marine and non-marine.

He advises on reinsurance matters, including on issues such as the attachment of risks under treaties, the incorporation of underlying policy wording, policy interpretation, ‘pay as may be paid’, ‘follow the settlements’, and other similar clauses.

Recent and ongoing cases in which Jeffrey has been involved include

• advising, in the context of a substantial coverage dispute, on the duties of London-market brokers to retain documents and to disclose them to underwriters;
• as junior led by Paul Reed, advising a Lloyd’s managing agent as to the extent to which excess insurers are bound by the claims-handling decisions of the primary layer where the excess layer is on 'follow-form' terms.
• advising on the extent to which employees and agents are “agents to know” for the purposes of non-disclosure.

Jeffrey has dealt with numerous subrogated claims and defences, and has acted in matters in which the professional liability of insurance market participants  (particularly brokers) has been in issue (fuller details are given under the heading ‘Professional Negligence’, above).

All risks

Jeffrey advises regularly on coverage issues under all risks policies.

Reported cases include:

Seele Austria GmbH Co v. Tokio Marine Europe Insurance [2009] EWHC 255 (TCC), acting as junior led by Paul Reed, a claim by subcontractors under a project policy, where underwriters successfully argued issue estoppel and Henderson v. Henderson abuse of process in relation to the application of the retained liability;

Seele Austria GmbH Co v. Tokio Marine Europe Insurance [2009] EWHC 2066 (TCC), led by Paul Reed, in which insurers successfully applied for summary judgment, the Court holding that a new case had been advanced out of time, in the process raising issues as to nature of the assured’s cause of action against insurers, the effect of a global settlement, proximate cause, and the recoverability of consequential losses.

Recent and ongoing cases involving all risks cover

• advising on coverage issues under an all-risks business interruption policy in relation to substantial loss of business caused by a highly-mediatised crime;
• a $60m insurance arbitration arising out of storm damage to a hotel resort.

Fire Damage

Jeffrey advises and acts in relation to non-marine insurance policies providing cover in the event of fire or other named perils. Through his marine and non-marine property insurance work, he has experience in construing such policies and with issues commonly arising in their regard.

Marine

Due to his special interest in shipping and carriage, Jeffrey has developed special expertise in relation to marine insurance. He advises on issues particular to marine policies and arising from the provisions of the Marine Insurance Act 1906, including constructive total loss, the incidence of seaworthiness, scuttling and fraudulent claims, sue and labour clauses, and war and political risks.

He is familiar with the standard forms (Institute and International) in use for hull, freight and cargo insurance, and is also able to advise on bespoke policies and ship builder’s all risks cover.

Recent cases include

• advising on a claim under a BAR policy for damage to a vessel caused when she flooded during dry-docking
• advising on a claim for damage and personal injury arising from a dock-side accident;
• acting and advising in a claim against marine contractors for damages to a yacht ‘on the hard’.

He has an interest in comparative marine insurance law, and is currently undertaking research on comparative French and English marine insurance law.

Professional Indemnity

Jeffrey regularly advises in relation to issues commonly arising under professional indemnity cover, including aggregation, policy limits, notification provisions, the effect of settlements, conduct of proceedings clauses and conflicts of interest.

Recent and ongoing cases

• advising on various issues arising from the Law Society's Qualifying Insurer's Agreements and Minimum Terms and Conditions, including determining when a claim is first made, the meaning of "Successor Practice", and issues relating to the aggregation of claims;
• acting in a £5m claim under a professional indemnity policy relating to a substantial public works project.