Clare Stanley

Practice Overview

Clare is known for her ability to master complex commercial fraud cases, frequently involving tracing of assets and cross-border elements to which she is able to apply her knowledge of complex financial structures and her command of commercial legal principles. She has acted in a number of long-running, high-profile cases before the English courts. 

In 2007 she completed a lengthy fraud trial in the Chancery Division arising out of the large scale corruption in the former Zambian Government (Attorney General for Zambia v Meer Care Desai & ors [2007] EWHC 952 (Ch)). In 2008 she acted for beneficiaries in the Bahamas in Re Weissfisch concerning a bitter dispute about the ownership of a well-known international commodity brokerage, and also acted for the claimant in Kensington v Montrow (BVI).

In 2009 she completed a six month fraud trial in the Chancery Division concerning a pre-export trade finance facility (Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi v Baskan Gida & others).  Her current cases include acting for a subsidiary of the Icelandic bank, Kaupthing, in numerous actions arising out of the sale of the Somerfield chain of supermarkets.  She is also acting for two main defendants in a large-scale conspiracy claim brought by the five major English brewers.   

Clare appeared in the House of Lords in the leading modern case on asset tracing (Foskett v McKeown [2001] 1 AC 102 (HL)) and was counsel in what is now the leading case on the ability of the english court to injunct a foreign arbitration.

Much of Clare's work is foreign litigation in offshore jurisdictions and her cases are almost always high-value. Consequently, she frequently works with overseas lawyers and experts. 

Recent matters include high-value disputes involving England, Jersey, The Bahamas, BVI, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, The Republic of Congo and Zambia, which have variously entailed: trust arbitration, fraudulent and negligent breach of trust claims, exculpation clauses, removal of trustees and protectors, dishonest assistance/knowing receipt/constructive trust claims, tracing and fraudulent dispositions, purpose trusts, sham companies/structures, and jurisdiction disputes.

Her popularity and ability are reflected in the fact that in November 2007 she was named as a "Star at the Commercial Bar" by Legal Week and likely to take silk in the near future.

Professional Reputation

Clare is recommended as a leading junior in The Legal 500, for professional negligence and private client (personal tax, trusts and probate).  It writes 'Clare Stanley  "is surely heading for silk - a brilliant legal mind".'

Chambers & Partners, 2011 and 2010  recommends Clare as a leading junior in Chancery Commercial.

Chambers & Partners 2011 writes, '"Punchy" Clare Stanley "is not afraid to go all out in even the very biggest of cases," sources state. "One of those barristers that come out fighting, she is resolute and gets results in court." Her accomplishments in fraud and asset tracing lend great weight to her reputation.'

Chambers Gloabal, 2011 writes 'Clare Stanley is "a very user-friendly barrister" who "quickly grasps all the pertinent issues in a case." International and offshore litigation makes up a large proportion of her practice, and she has worked throughout Jersey, the Bahamas, the BVI, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, the Republic of Congo and Zambia.'

Chambers & Partners, 2010  writes 'Clare Stanley is widely recommended for her expertise in complex commercial fraud cases, and has appeared in such signal cases as Attorney General of Zambia v Meer Care & Desai. Solicitors like her as she is "not afraid to give difficult advice" and has "an enormous capacity for remembering the detail in voluminous bundles".'

Qualifications

• BA (Cantab), Law Tripos (Downing College)

• BEc (Adelaide)

Memberships

• Chancery Bar Association
• Commercial Bar Association
• Insolvency Lawyers' Association
• Commercial Fraud Lawyers' Association

Publications

'Disclosure threshold falls in Jersey', Fraud Intelligence, February/March 2008.

'Hedge Funds - Can investors recover their losses?,' Practical Law Company, December 2008.

'Challenges in Clawing Back Redemption Payments,' The Hedge Fund Journal, October 2008.

'Fraud - Running the Risk,' Solicitor's Journal, 8 September 2009.

'Door Ajar For Claims Against Trust Directors For Negligent Loss,' Private Client Practitioner (to be published).

Former joint editor of Glasson's International Trust Laws.