Oscar Schonfeld

• UNCITRAL Proceedings 
  Acted for a large international oil company (led by Ali Malek QC) defending claims of over US$ 200 million relating to the sale and marketing of oil products in UNCITRAL proceedings.
• LCIA Proceedings
  Acted in London seated arbitration under the LCIA Rules for the property owners in a dispute about the management of a student accommodation development.
• ICC Proceedings (2016)
  Assisting Charles Graham QC, Michelle Menashy and Owain Draper for the Claimant in substantial international arbitration proceedings between a major Russian manufacturer and its supplier of metal for use in a gas pipeline.
• Assisted (during pupillage) Laurence Rabinowitz QC and Conall Patton acting for an oil major in a $50m+ claim under the UNCITRAL rules about its right to participate in a development programme undertaken under a joint operating agreement.
• Assisted (during pupillage) Laurence Rabinowitz QC and Conall Patton acting for an oil major in a $50m+ claim under the UNCITRAL rules about its right to participate in a development programme undertaken under a joint operating agreement.
• Assisted (during pupillage) Neil Kitchener QC and Alexander Brown in an application for security for costs under ss. 70(6) and (7) of the Arbitration Act 1996.
• Assisted (during pupillage) Conall Patton in seeking summary judgment for $75m in a contractual dispute between a steel trading company and a producer of metallurgical coke and resisting a cross-application for stay of the action pending the outcome of arbitration.
• Assisted (during pupillage) Ben Strong QC in relation to limitation points in an arbitration appeal in the British Virgin Islands.

• LS-Aviation No. 5 v FitzWalter Capital Partners
  Acted as sole counsel in Commercial Court proceedings for a global private investment firm in a dispute over the collapse of aircraft financing arrangements involving claims in the region of £10 million for breach of contract, breach of equitable duty, procuring breach of contract and unlawful interference.

• LS-Aviation No. 5 v FitzWalter Capital Partners
  Acted as sole counsel in Commercial Court proceedings for a global private investment firm in a dispute over the collapse of aircraft financing arrangements involving claims in the region of £10 million for breach of contract, breach of equitable duty, procuring breach of contract and unlawful interference
• Abraaj Group matter
  Acting (led by Orlando Gledhill QC) for Cayman feeder funds in relation to high-value disputes arising from the Abraaj Group scandal. These include potential Cayman-law claims against Abraaj entities, their post-Abraaj successors and third party advisers
• Axiom v RBSI
  Acting (led by Stephen Auld KC) for the claimants in relation to claims against Royal Bank of Scotland International arising out of a fraud against the Claimants perpetrated using RBSI bank accounts. Appeal in respect of RBSI’s summary judgment/ strike out application (unsuccessful at first instance, but successful in Isle of Man Court of Appeal) to be heard by the Privy Council in early 2022.  The appeal centres on whether RBSI owed a duty, in particular a Quincecare duty, to the underlying beneficial owner of the funds in the relevant RBSI bank accounts and is likely to involve consideration of the Supreme Court’s recent decision in Singularis v Daiwa [2019] UKSC 50.
• Quartz Assets LLC and others v Kestrel Coal Midco Pty Ltd [2021] EWHC 2675 (Comm)
  Acted, with Charles Graham QC and Mehdi Baiou, on behalf of the Claimant companies in their claim arising out of the Defendant’s funding of the acquisition of an Australian coal mine in 2018. That case was settled shortly before trial, but not before significant skirmishes in the High Court on disclosure relating to, amongst other things, the quantum of the Claimant’s damages claim and control over documents in the hands of third parties: [2021] EWHC 2675 (Comm).
• Public Institution for Social Security of Kuwait (PIFSS) v Al-Rajaan & Ors
  Acted (led by Kenneth MacLean QC) in major multiparty litigation in the Commercial Court involving various banks and allegations of bribery, dishonest assistance and knowing receipt spanning three decades in relation to alleged payments to the former Director General of the public institution which operates the Kuwaiti social security and pension scheme.  More than £600m claimed. One of The Lawyer’s Top 20 cases for 2020.
• Libyan Investment Authority v Société Générale & ors
  Acted as part of the counsel team for the Fifth Defendant in claims brought by the LIA to set aside $1.5bn of structured investments with SocGen on the basis that they formed part of a corrupt scheme involving alleged bribery of Libyan officials.
• RREEF European Value Added Fund I LP v Deutsche Alternative Asset Management (UK) Ltd
  Assisted (during pupillage) Daniel Toledano QC and Orlando Gledhill in a €160 million claim in contract and tort against an allegedly negligent fund manager.
• Assisted (during pupillage) Laurence Rabinowitz QC and Henry Forbes Smith in advising a major UK bank on the courts’ use of their powers under s. 36 of the Administration of Justice Act 1970 to defer possession of residential dwellings following mortgage defaults.
• Assisted (during pupillage) Conall Patton in defending a claim arising out of multiple contracts for the sale of securities and raising points under the Financial Services Act 2012 and issues of New York securities law.

• LS-Aviation No. 5 v FitzWalter Capital Partners
  Acted as sole counsel in Commercial Court proceedings for a global private investment firm in a dispute over the collapse of aircraft financing arrangements involving claims in the region of £10 million for breach of contract, breach of equitable duty, procuring breach of contract and unlawful interference
• Abraaj Group matter
  Acting (led by Orlando Gledhill QC) for Cayman feeder funds in relation to high-value disputes arising from the Abraaj Group scandal. These include potential Cayman-law claims against Abraaj entities, their post-Abraaj successors and third party adviser
• Axiom v RBSI
  Acting (led by Stephen Auld KC) for the claimants in relation to claims against Royal Bank of Scotland International arising out of a fraud against the Claimants perpetrated using RBSI bank accounts. Appeal in respect of RBSI’s summary judgment/ strike out application (unsuccessful at first instance, but successful in Isle of Man Court of Appeal) to be heard by the Privy Council in early 2022.  The appeal centres on whether RBSI owed a duty, in particular a Quincecare duty, to the underlying beneficial owner of the funds in the relevant RBSI bank accounts and is likely to involve consideration of the Supreme Court’s recent decision in Singularis v Daiwa [2019] UKSC 50.
• Berkeley Square Holdings Ltd v Lancer Property Asset Management Ltd
  Acted (led by Adrian Beltrami QC) for the Defendants to fraud and bribery claims arising out of the management of a c.£6 billion London property portfolio ultimately owned by the President of the United Arab Emirates. The proceedings generated several interlocutory judgments on issues such as “control” for the purposes of disclosure: [2021] EWHC 849 (Ch), [2021] EWHC 818 (Ch) and [2021] EWHC 750 (Ch).
• Public Institution for Social Security of Kuwait (PIFSS) v Al-Rajaan & Ors
  Acted (led by Kenneth MacLean QC) in major multiparty litigation in the Commercial Court involving various banks and allegations of bribery, dishonest assistance and knowing receipt spanning three decades in relation to alleged payments to the former Director General of the public institution which operates the Kuwaiti social security and pension scheme.  More than £600m claimed.  One of The Lawyer’s Top 20 cases for 2020.
• Libyan Investment Authority v Société Générale & Ors
  Acted as part of the counsel team for the Fifth Defendant in claims brought by the LIA to set aside $1.5bn of structured investments with SocGen on the basis that they formed part of a corrupt scheme involving alleged bribery of Libyan officials.
• Sir Owen Glenn & Anr v Eric Watson & Others (Ch)
  Acted (led by John McCaughran QC, Hannah Brown QC and Eleanor Campbell) in high value (c. £125million) and complex litigation arising out of property investments in UK involving allegations of fraud, breach of fiduciary duties and misrepresentation.

• LS-Aviation No. 5 v FitzWalter Capital Partners
  Acted as sole counsel in Commercial Court proceedings for a global private investment firm in a dispute over the collapse of aircraft financing arrangements involving claims in the region of £10 million for breach of contract, breach of equitable duty, procuring breach of contract and unlawful interference
• The Environmental Information Regulations litigation (Chancery Division)
  Acting (led by Edmund Nourse QC) for a group of English water companies.  The claimants are approximately 100 property search companies, who purchased environmental searches from the water companies over a period of many years.  The claimants now say that the water companies were obliged to provide the information for free under the Environmental Information Regulations 2004, and claim restitution of all of the fees paid (over £150 million in total)
• Abraaj Group matter
  Acting (led by Orlando Gledhill QC) for Cayman feeder funds in relation to high-value disputes arising from the Abraaj Group scandal. These include potential Cayman-law claims against Abraaj entities, their post-Abraaj successors and third party advisers.
• Quartz Assets LLC and others v Kestrel Coal Midco Pty Ltd [2021] EWHC 2675 (Comm)
  Acted, with Charles Graham QC and Mehdi Baiou, on behalf of the Claimant companies in their claim arising out of the Defendant’s funding of the acquisition of an Australian coal mine in 2018. That case was settled shortly before trial, but not before significant skirmishes in the High Court on disclosure relating to, amongst other things, the quantum of the Claimant’s damages claim and control over documents in the hands of third parties: [2021] EWHC 2675 (Comm).
• Libyan Investment Authority v Société Générale & Ors
  Acted as part of the counsel team for the Fifth Defendant in claims brought by the LIA to set aside $1.5bn of structured investments with SocGen on the basis that they formed part of a corrupt scheme involving alleged bribery of Libyan officials.
• Sir Owen Glenn & Anr v Eric Watson & Others (Ch)
  Acted (led by John McCaughran QC, Hannah Brown QC and Eleanor Campbell) in high value (c. £125million) and complex litigation arising out of property investments in UK involving allegations of fraud, breach of fiduciary duties and misrepresentation.
• Galasys plc v WOI and others
  Acted (along with Malcolm Davis-White QC and Tamara Kagan) for the claimant company in expedited proceedings in Jersey concerning corporate governance issues with related proceedings in the Commercial Court.
• Dutton v Minards [2015] EWCA Civ 984
  Acted on behalf of the Appellants (led by Edmund Nourse QC) in the Court of Appeal in an appeal against a costs award centring on the validity of a purported Part 36 offer.
• RREEF European Value Added Fund I LP v Deutsche Alternative Asset Management (UK) Ltd
  Assisted (during pupillage) Daniel Toledano QC and Orlando Gledhill in a €160 million claim in contract and tort against an allegedly negligent fund manager.
• Assisted (during pupillage) Orlando Gledhill in responding to an application for pre-action disclosure relating to a long-running multi-jurisdictional dispute between a Russian mining company and a South African mine shaft development company.
• Assisted (during pupillage) Orlando Gledhill in defending a claim by an investment bank for fees allegedly arising from its involvement in the sale of a Spanish holding company’s stake in a major telecoms company.
• Prepared an application for non-party disclosure for the claimant in an action for payment of recruitment consulting fees
• Assisted (during pupillage) Orlando Gledhill in defending a claim by a former manager for payment of management and incentive fees allegedly due to him.
• Assisted (during pupillage) Laurence Rabinowitz QC, Patrick Goodall QC and Conall Patton in a high-profile Commercial Court claim between three Ukrainian businessmen concerning title to an iron ore plan.
• Assisted (during pupillage) Conall Patton in seeking summary judgment for $75m in a contractual dispute between a steel trading company and a producer of metallurgical coke and resisting a cross-application for stay of the action pending the outcome of arbitration.
• Assisted (during pupillage) Conall Patton in a claim for negative declaratory relief brought by an Iraq-based oil company against a former service provider.

• Abraaj Group matter
  Acting (led by Orlando Gledhill QC) for Cayman feeder funds in relation to high-value disputes arising from the Abraaj Group scandal. These include potential Cayman-law claims against Abraaj entities, their post-Abraaj successors and third party advisers.
• Galasys plc v WOI and others
  Acted (along with Malcolm Davis-White QC and Tamara Kagan) for the claimant company in expedited proceedings in Jersey concerning corporate governance issues with related proceedings in the Commercial Court.

Merchant Interchange Fee Proceedings
Acting for the largest group of merchant claimants (over 1,500 merchants) in their actions to recover the MIFs charged by Mastercard and Visa.  The claims in the proceedings are valued in the billions of pounds, making the proceedings one of, if not, the largest competition actions ever heard in the UK (alongside the Trucks Cartel litigation).  A lengthy split trial of the claims is scheduled for 2024-25 and is likely to determine a number of significant legal and procedural points for competition law claims going forward.

• Trucks Cartel Litigation
  Acting for a major truck manufacturing group in one of, if not, the largest competition action ever heard in the UK.  Following on from a 2016 European Commission decision, the UK actions involve several separate proceedings before the CAT brought by or on behalf of thousands of claimants for billions of pounds of damages. The claims are to be heard across several lengthy trials over the coming years and are likely to determine a number of significant legal and procedural points for competition law claims going forward.

• Quartz Assets LLC and others v Kestrel Coal Midco Pty Ltd [2021] EWHC 2675 (Comm)
  Acted, with Charles Graham QC and Mehdi Baiou, on behalf of the Claimant companies in their claim arising out of the Defendant’s funding of the acquisition of an Australian coal mine in 2018. That case was settled shortly before trial, but not before significant skirmishes in the High Court on disclosure relating to, amongst other things, the quantum of the Claimant’s damages claim and control over documents in the hands of third parties: [2021] EWHC 2675 (Comm).
• UNCITRAL Proceedings 
  Acted for a large international oil company (led by Ali Malek QC) defending claims of over US$ 200 million relating to the sale and marketing of oil products in UNCITRAL proceedings.
• ICC Proceedings (2016)
  Assisting Charles Graham QC, Michelle Menashy and Owain Draper for the Claimant in substantial international arbitration proceedings between a major Russian manufacturer and its supplier of metal for use in a gas pipeline.
• Assisted (during pupillage) Orlando Gledhill in bringing a breach of confidence claim and preparing an interim injunction application in a dispute between a Saudi petrochemical company and former fundraisers.
• Assisted (during pupillage) Orlando Gledhill in responding to an application for pre-action disclosure relating to a long-running multi-jurisdictional dispute between a Russian mining company and a South African mine shaft development company.
• Assisted (during pupillage) Laurence Rabinowitz QC and Conall Patton acting for an oil major in a $50m+ claim under the UNCITRAL rules about its right to participate in a development programme undertaken under a joint operating agreement.
• Assisted (during pupillage) Laurence Rabinowitz QC and Jamie Goldsmith in a dispute about the banking of an oil and gas project, in particular in relation to disclosure applications.

• Public Institution for Social Security of Kuwait (PIFSS) v Al-Rajaan & Ors
  Acted (led by Kenneth MacLean QC) in major multiparty litigation in the Commercial Court involving various banks and allegations of bribery, dishonest assistance and knowing receipt spanning three decades in relation to alleged payments to the former Director General of the public institution which operates the Kuwaiti social security and pension scheme.  More than £600m claimed.  One of The Lawyer’s Top 20 cases for 2020.
• Assisted (during pupillage) Conall Patton in responding to an appeal against registration of a foreign judgment.

• Axiom v RBSI
  Acting (led by Stephen Auld KC) for the claimants in relation to claims against Royal Bank of Scotland International arising out of a fraud against the Claimants perpetrated using RBSI bank accounts. Appeal in respect of RBSI’s summary judgment/ strike out application (unsuccessful at first instance, but successful in Isle of Man Court of Appeal) to be heard by the Privy Council in early 2022.  The appeal centres on whether RBSI owed a duty, in particular a Quincecare duty, to the underlying beneficial owner of the funds in the relevant RBSI bank accounts and is likely to involve consideration of the Supreme Court’s recent decision in Singularis v Daiwa [2019] UKSC 50.
• RREEF European Value Added Fund I LP v Deutsche Alternative Asset Management (UK) Ltd
  Assisted (during pupillage) Daniel Toledano QC and Orlando Gledhill in a €160 million claim in contract and tort against an allegedly negligent fund manager.
• Assisted (during pupillage) Christopher Butcher QC, Jamie Goldsmith and Andrew Lodder defending a Nominated Adviser on the Alternative Investment Market against a $70m claim for alleged. The claimant discontinued on the 7th day of what was to be a 25 day trial before Morgan J in the Chancery Division. The Nominated Advisor proceeded to judgment on its counterclaim and was awarded 100% indemnity costs in respect of the costs of the claim and the counterclaim.

• Sky UK Limited v Football Association Premier League Limited, Matchroom Boxing Limited and others (August 2022)
  Appeared in the High Court for Sky UK Limited in relation to its application to allow Sky to access certain confidential materials of FAPL and Matchroom to facilitate its application for a blocking order targeting illegal streaming of a major upcoming boxing match.
• Sheldrake v GMK
  Acted as sole counsel for the merchant in a dispute over the quality of sporting shotguns culminating in a three day trial.
• Assisted (during pupillage) Orlando Gledhill in advising an international sports association in a dispute relating to equipment specifications.

• Ingenious Games LLP & Ors v HMRC [2016] UKFTT 521 (TC); [2017] UKFTT 429 (TC); [2019] UKUT 0226 (TCC)
  Acting for HMRC (led by Malcolm Gammie CBE QC) in major litigation in the Tax Tribunals concerning film and games financing schemes. The tax at stake is c£1bn. Whether arrangements for investing in films were effective to give rise to substantial losses for investors; whether expenditure on films was capital or income. Decision substantially in favour of HMRC in both First Tier Tribunal and on appeal to Upper Tribunal.