Rupert Reed

Commercial CV

Much of Rupert's commercial practice arises out of contracts relating to property development and investment.  However, he does an increasing amount of work for international commercial clients litigating in the English courts and before offshore courts and tribunals.  

Recent / notable cases include:

• With Jonathan Acton Davis QC, acting for the guarantor under a Rescheduling Agreement in successfully resisting summary judgment sought by the Dubai Islamic Bank in the English Commercial Court on the bases among others that the Bank had repudiated the agreement on which it relied and had itself engineered the default of the principal debtor (Dubai Islamic Bank PJSC v. PSI Energy Holding Co BSC & Ors [2011] EWHC 2718 (Comm)).
  
  
• Acting for the Administrators of Lehman Brothers in pursuing breach of warranty claims against Northern Rock in respect of a portfolio of pools of mortgage loans sold to Lehman Brothers [2011].
  
  
• With John Martin QC, acting for the Interim Administrators of Arkadi Patarkatsishvili (‘Badri') in defending various actions brought by Boris Berezovsky (‘BB') against Badri's Estate based on alleged existence of an asset protection agreement arising out of an alleged joint venture, subsequently consolidated with an earlier action brought by BB against Roman Abramovich in the Commercial Court (Berezovsky v. Abramovich; Berezovsky v. Hine & Ors[2010] EWHC 2044 (Ch)).
  
  
• Acting for the Saudi Economic and Development Company (‘SEDCO'), various Anguillan SPVs, and the UK asset manager, Arab Investments Limited in defending claims made in respect of statements made in an information memorandum for a private placement of shares in the Anguillan SPV holding the Pinnacle Development in the City: succeeding in having significant parts of the Claimants' pleading withdrawn on an application for summary judgment and further succeeding in having the circulation in the Gulf of a fraudulent version of a judgment in that application referred to the AG for investigation (Abbar v. SEDCO & Ors[2010] EWHC 2132 (Ch); [2010] EWHC 2677 (Ch)).
  
  
• Acting for American hedge fund manager in Beirut in claims in Dubai International Finance Centre Courts on claim against a Dubai government-owned property developer in respect of breaches of an agreement by a property had been reserved for the Claimant (Dorsey v. Union Properties PJSC [2011]).
  
  
• Advising a major Lebanese bank as to the effects of worldwide freezing injunction made in England and Jersey against a Syrian client and various associates, and in particular on the continuing operation of certain credit facilities extended to that client by various European subsidiaries of the bank (Cargill Africa Investments Limited & Ors v. Mohammed Najeb al Assaf & Ors [2011]).
  
  
• Acting for the former Middle East HR Director of Morgan Stanley in respect of various claims against Morgan Stanley arising in contract and statutory duty, relating in part to a joint venture between Morgan Stanley and a Saudi investment bank [2011].
  
  
• Acting for a former director of a global provider of product identification solutions in a dispute as to the value of his shares in the company by Barclays Private Equity that sought to rely on the company's leveraging pursuant to a buy-out to give low maintainable earnings [2011].
  
  
• Acting successfully in the DIFC Courts for the former Managing Director of DIFC Investments LLC in defending allegations of fraud and breach of duty in respect of bonus recommendations made by him and a significant property investment by the company, and procuring a settlement before trial of the Claimant's claims for unpaid salary, other benefits and his costs (Barazi v. DIFC Investments LLC [2011]).
  
  
• With Jonathan Seitler QC, acting in dispute arising on failure of Crest Nicholson to purchase development land in Guildford for £16.7 million pursuant to sale agreement which raises issues of whether buyer has lawfully rescinded and the vendor was entitled to specific performance (Crest Nicholson (South) Ltd v. Regional Investments (Guildford) Ltd; Regional Investments (Guildford) Ltd v. Lawrence Stephens (a firm) [2010]).
  
  
• With Lawrence Cohen QC, acting for National Amusements in claiming its entitlement to rescind the Agreement for the construction and lease of the cinema at the Westfield Centre in White City, and defending Westfield's £24 million counterclaim based on an alleged estoppel or repudiatory breach of the agreement (National Amusements (UK) Ltd & Ors v. (1) White City (Shepherds Bush) Ltd Partnership (2) Commerz Real Investmentgesellschaft mbH [2009] EWHC 2524 (TCC); [2010] 1 WLR 1181; (2010) BLR 24; (2009) NPC 116).
  
  
• Acting successfully in obtaining an order for significant pre-action disclosure in respect of a claim in fraudulent misrepresentation brought by an investment trustee company against a law firm that had acted for the vendor of certain shares (Verton Holdings Ltd & Anor v. Osborne Clarke [2009]).
  
  
• Acting for a Monaco oil trading company in an action in the Commercial Court on claims against its Swiss counter-party on a contract for the sale and re-purchase of 10,000 cubic metres of gasoil, in claiming there had been breaches of the jurisdiction agreement by the claimant's bringing proceedings in various French courts and counterclaiming for wrongful non-acceptance of a contractual tender and re-tender of conforming gasoil by ‘in tank transfer' (Sempra Oil Trading SARL v. Energex SAM [2007]).