Practice overview

Tom has acted in numerous reported and high-profile cases and cross-border disputes before a large variety of tribunals in a number of different jurisdictions. Much of his work stems from collapses of complex investment structures and from high-value cross-border private client disputes.

He has developed a substantial offshore practice and is one of very few barristers who have had full and not merely ad hoc practising certificates in both the BVI and the Cayman Islands. Hence he has acted for a variety of different parties in hedge fund and banking disputes. Bear Stearns, Re Sphinx, Re Medley Opportunity Fund in the Cayman Islands and Kingate Global Fund v Kingate Management Ltd in Bermuda.

He is regularly called upon to give expert evidence on both UK and offshore law in the US on matters of company law and the liability of fiduciaries.

Many of the cross-border disputes such as SAAD v AHAB have involved asset tracing in the context of commercial or financial fraud but he has had to apply this knowledge in cases in which the primary focus might be as diverse as professional negligence, financial services, shareholder disputes or even judicial review. Tom has also been involved in a number of leading high value trust and probate cases. Although these cases or his involvement tends to be confidential, reported examples include well-known decisions such as Walker v Stones and Al Bassam in the UK, Re A v N and Re Circle Trust in the Cayman Islands and Wang Din Shan v Nina Wang in Hong Kong.

Commercial disputes

Tom has combined an extensive practice in the field for company and insolvency work with a regular case load in the field of civil fraud and asset tracing.

His reported cases range from well-known decisions in the insolvency field such as the landmark case Wight v Eckhardt Marine and Dextra v Bank of Jamaica a well-known decision of the Privy Council by Lord Goff on the limits of the change of position defence. Over the years he has acted in a number of cases involving corporate fraud, breaches of directors’ fiduciary duties or claims for secret profits.

He has been heavily involved in many of the long-running offshore liquidations of foreign banks such as Kaupthing (Isis v Kaupthing in Iceland, the UK and Isle of Man)the relevant claims arising from its securitisation of loans with one of its well-known customers. He has acted for a number of years in billion dollar cases for the major shareholders and owners of Latin American banks in, cases such as Bancredito in the Cayman Islands and the Dominican Republic as well as, Banco Economico (Cayman Islands and Brazil).

Over the years practising offshore, Tom has had a prominent role in numerous hedge funds disputes.

  • Lunan Pharmaceutical Group Limited (2021 – 2022 ongoing) – a long running dispute regarding the ownership of shares in a significant PRC pharmaceutical company. Involved the BVI Court’s ability to effectively adjudicate complex cross-border commercial disputes involving PRC assets and wide ranging questions of both BVI and PRC law.
  • He acted for the liquidator in Re Sphinx (Cayman Islands), a controversial liquidation arising from the collapse of a well-known prime brokerage house.
  • He has defending fund professionals in Re Oracle Fund (Bahamas) arising from the collapse of a fund investing in sub-prime US debt.
  • He has acted on behalf of creditors in Lancelot and Palm Beach (Cayman Islands), the liquidation of the main feeder funds involved in the SU$10 billion Petters fraud.
  • He defended the managers and fund entities in Gottex v New Stream (Bermuda) the first reported case on the winding up of segregated portfolio companies.
  • He acted on behalf of creditors in Re Wyser-Pratt one of the first cases to explore the alternatives to winding up under local insolvency law (Cayman Islands).
  • He has acted for liquidators ,in the context of hedge fund restructuring in Belmont Finance (Cayman Islands), Medley Opportunity Fund (Cayman Islands), many of which were associated with fraud or asset tracing.

Over the years Tom has often found himself instructed in large well-known fraud and asset tracing cases in the UK. For example, he acted for the plaintiff in Bottin v Venson, and on behalf of one the defendants in the Phillips v Symes saga liquidators in Kaupthing v Isis. He is currently instructed in AHAB v SAAD, a multibillion claim relating to a complex, cross-border fraud before the Courts of the Cayman Islands. Tom’s knowledge of civil fraud work enabled him recently successfully to defend a US $1bn bribery claim arising out of the supply of defence equipment in the civil courts in the Cayman Islands as well as fending off a criminal proceedings in the UK in judicial review proceedings.

His technical knowledge of company law, financial services and partnerships has meant that he has frequently been called upon to give evidence in the US, in states including New York, California, Texas and the Carolinas. He is currently retained as an expert on UK law in the BP securities litigation in Texas arising from the gulf oil spill.

Download Commercial disputes CV

  • Quote symbolTruly exceptional - Thomas is the best.

    Chambers & Partners 2024

  • Quote symbolAn incredibly gifted advocate with unparalleled experience of Cayman Islands insolvency, company law and commercial disputes.

    The Legal 500 2024

  • Quote symbolJudges love him; he has a great approach and an affable manner in court.

    Chambers & Partners 2024

  • Quote symbolHe's an impressive performer.

    Chambers & Partners 2024

  • Quote symbolThomas is extremely good on his feet and highly familiar with the Bench in Cayman.

    Chambers & Partners 2024

Commercial disputes insights & events View all thought leadership View all events

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    Recent Cases

    Supreme Court and Privy Council simultaneously deliver important judgments on arbitration stays

    Commercial disputes, International / offshore, International arbitration

    Thomas Lowe KC
    Monday 25 September 2023

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    Events / Webinars

    Wilberforce Cayman Conference 2023

    Thursday 14th September 2023 | 3.45pm - 6.55pm followed by a dinner buffet
    Kimpton Seafire Resort

    Free to attend | 2.25 CPD

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    Events / Webinars

    Wilberforce BVI Conference 2023

    Tuesday 12th September 2023 | 3.30pm - 6.25pm followed by a dinner buffet
    Scrub Island Resort

    Free to attend | 1.5 CPD

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    Recent Cases

    The Privy Council clarifies principles relating to the enforcement of foreign arbitral awards

    International arbitration, Commercial disputes, International / offshore

    Thomas Lowe KC
    Friday 10 June 2022

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International arbitration

Tom has appeared before a range of ad hoc private tribunals and been involved in a number of arbitrations in the commercial field as well as shareholder and partnership disputes.

Tom is currently involved in an initiative to open up arbitration in the Caribbean for Latin American parties.

Reported examples of arbitration cases include Fidelity Management SA v Myriad International Holdings [2005] EWHC 1193 which arose from an ICC arbitration concerning Greek licensing transaction and AL Thompson v Beazeley [2011] 2 CILR 496 which arose from an insurance dispute.

Download International arbitration CV

  • Quote symbolTruly exceptional - Thomas is the best.

    Chambers & Partners 2024

  • Quote symbolAn incredibly gifted advocate with unparalleled experience of Cayman Islands insolvency, company law and commercial disputes.

    The Legal 500 2024

  • Quote symbolHe has a deep understanding of the machinations of Cayman law and the principles underpinning it, and his ability to craft technical arguments is second to none.

    Chambers & Partners 2024

  • Quote symbolJudges love him; he has a great approach and an affable manner in court.

    Chambers & Partners 2024

  • Quote symbolHe's an impressive performer.

    Chambers & Partners 2024

International arbitration insights & events View all thought leadership View all events

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    External Conferences

    CIArb EAB Evening Talk: “What No Longer Matters In Light of the ‘FamilyMart / Mozambique’ Cases”

    Thursday 30th November 2023 | 7pm
    Hong Kong International Arbitration Centre (HKAC), 38/F Two Exchange Square, 8 Connaught Place, Central, Hong Kong.

    Free (CIArb Members), HKD 200 (Non-CIArb Members)

    Speakers:
    Thomas Lowe KC

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    Recent Cases

    Supreme Court and Privy Council simultaneously deliver important judgments on arbitration stays

    Commercial disputes, International / offshore, International arbitration

    Thomas Lowe KC
    Monday 25 September 2023

    View more
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    Recent Cases

    The Privy Council clarifies principles relating to the enforcement of foreign arbitral awards

    International arbitration, Commercial disputes, International / offshore

    Thomas Lowe KC
    Friday 10 June 2022

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Professional liability

The nature of Tom’s work frequently involves negligence on the part of investment managers, actuaries, directors and others who are in the position of trustees and fiduciaries. He regularly finds himself defending auditors and accountants and lawyers both in the UK and offshore.

He has given expert evidence in the US on fiduciary duties and negligence of accountants, administrators and fund managers, usually in the context of financial failures. Such cases include Re Primeo in New York, Wimbledon in California and the BP Securities Litigation in Texas.

He has been counsel in well-known cases such as the claim against trustees in Walker v Stones and on behalf of auditors involvement in a take-over Morgan Crucible v Hill Samuel.

Recent examples of his work include defending solicitors in the Cayman Islands, defending one of the principal fund managers embroiled in the Madoff claims in Bermuda and in the UK and Isle of Man acting for the claimant against fund managers in Isis v Kaupthing.

Download Professional liability CV

  • Quote symbolTruly exceptional - Thomas is the best.

    Chambers & Partners 2024

  • Quote symbolJudges love him; he has a great approach and an affable manner in court.

    Chambers & Partners 2024

  • Quote symbolHe's an impressive performer.

    Chambers & Partners 2024

  • Quote symbolHe has a deep understanding of the machinations of Cayman law and the principles underpinning it, and his ability to craft technical arguments is second to none.

    The Legal 500 2024

  • Quote symbolThomas is extremely good on his feet and highly familiar with the Bench in Cayman.

    Chambers & Partners 2024

Trusts, probate and estates: contentious

Tom has frequently been instructed to act on behalf of clients in contentious well-known trust matters mostly offshore and high value probate cases. Although the cases or his involvement is often confidential, he has appeared in a number of important reported cases on trust matters such as Walker v Stones (UK the test for dishonesty in exoneration clauses), Re Circle trust (status of protectors and duties of trustees) and Re BIO Trust or A v N (duties of trustees and effect of forfeiture clauses).

Much of his probate work involves cross-border disputes with complex estates such as Al Bassam v Al Bassam in which the English Court of Appeal considered how it would deal with human rights objections to a trial of a probate claim under sharia law. He spent several years, until its final conclusion, acting as a junior for the ultimately successful defendant in the long running Hong Kong case of Wang Din Shen v Nina Wang in which the Court of Final Appeal gave a definitive explanation of the differences between the defences to probate claims.

He has also acted successfully on behalf of purveyors of tax loss schemes in cases such as Freshwater v KUH and developed an expertise in the human rights aspects of cross-border enforcement of tax obligations, a subjective on which he has spoken at international conferences. He is currently instructed in ongoing judicial reviews in the Cayman Islands in MHI Investments v Cayman Islands Tax Information Exchange Authority, a case arising from challenges in Australia and the UK to tax avoidance structures.

Tom regularly writes papers and lectures on trust law issues and is currently involved in promoting offshore trust arbitrations.

Download Trusts, probate and estates: contentious CV

  • Quote symbolTruly exceptional - Thomas is the best.

    Chambers & Partners 2024

  • Quote symbolJudges love him; he has a great approach and an affable manner in court.

    Chambers & Partners 2024

  • Quote symbolHe's an impressive performer.

    Chambers & Partners 2024

  • Quote symbolHe has a deep understanding of the machinations of Cayman law and the principles underpinning it, and his ability to craft technical arguments is second to none.

    The Legal 500 2024

  • Quote symbolThomas is extremely good on his feet and highly familiar with the Bench in Cayman.

    Chambers & Partners 2024

Trusts, probate and estates: contentious insights & events View all thought leadership View all events

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    Events / Webinars

    Wilberforce Cayman Conference 2023

    Thursday 14th September 2023 | 3.45pm - 6.55pm followed by a dinner buffet
    Kimpton Seafire Resort

    Free to attend | 2.25 CPD

    View more
  2. Placeholder

    Events / Webinars

    Wilberforce BVI Conference 2023

    Tuesday 12th September 2023 | 3.30pm - 6.25pm followed by a dinner buffet
    Scrub Island Resort

    Free to attend | 1.5 CPD

    View more
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    Events / Webinars

    Annual Trust Litigation Day 2016

    Monday 1 February 2016 | 9am - 5pm Followed by drinks reception (and dinner)
    The Dorchester, Park LaneLondon

    from £299 + VAT | 5.5 CPD

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    Events / Webinars

    Wilberforce and Jirehouse – Nevis Seminar

    Friday 25 September 2015 | 11.30am - 2.00pm
    The Four Seasons Resort, Nevis (Ballrooms A&B),

    1.0 CPD

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Thomas's Details

BSB/VAT information

Registered name: Mr Thomas William Gordon Lowe KC
VAT number: 494796181

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Qualifications and Appointments

  • Upper Second Class degree (LLB) from London School of Economics
  • First Class LLM at Cambridge
  • Inner Temple Queen Elizabeth scholarship at the Bar and a number of prizes at The College of Law

Memberships

  • Chancery Bar Association
  • Commercial Bar Association
  • British and German Jurists Association

Publications

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