Quillon Law launches in London

Leading litigators join forces to create specialist disputes practice

LONDON – Quillon Law, a specialist commercial disputes-only practice, officially launches in London this week, founded by a trio of leading City litigators, Michael Barnett, Mark Hastings and Mark Gill.

Mark Hastings

Working in the international commercial and financial markets, Quillon aims to resolve complex business and financial services disputes swiftly, commercially, and effectively, without the conflicts associated with larger law firms.

Each of the founding partners has strong reputations in their fields of expertise, having worked in some of the largest, most complex and high-profile commercial disputes fought in recent times, both in the UK and internationally.

Each has made his name with recognised City of London legal practices. Barnett and Gill were senior partners at Addleshaw Goddard, where Barnett was, until recently, the global head of litigation at that firm. Gill was previously lead partner in financial markets litigation.

Hastings, formerly a partner at Grosvenor Law and Quinn Emmanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, worked for over a decade with both Gill and Barnett at Addleshaw Goddard, where he was head of civil fraud.

All are leaders in their areas of expertise, from multi-faceted international commercial fraud disputes to cases covering every aspect of the financial services industry, focusing on clients’ evolving needs, for whom delivery, agility, and flexibility count for everything.

Barnett said: “We are delighted to found Quillon Law. Our law firm is dedicated to meeting the needs of commercial clients, marshalling our collective judgment, expertise and experience. Combining our many years in the field, while keeping an eye on risks looming on the horizon, we aim to make our mark in handling complex commercial and financial disputes and fraud-related work.”

Barnett stressed the value of experienced counsel in challenging times for businesses: “When crisis strikes and the stakes are high, the immediate threat and accompanying complexities of a major dispute can be challenging for experienced and less experienced clients alike. We aim to bring our collective experience to help clients navigate these challenges, providing strategic advice, reassurance and positive action to take control of difficult situations.”

The firm aims to gain significant momentum in its first year, attracting clients looking for a more attentive and agile service and practitioners seeking to align their practices with a specialised, conflict-free platform for their work.

Hastings said: “I am proud to found the firm with Michael and Mark; each of us has in common a history of creating high-quality, motivated teams. Our aims and ambitions for the firm are aligned, in leading from the front, building the teams and tactics designed to succeed in any given case, taking the actions needed to deliver on litigation strategies, and so meet client needs.”

Gill added: “I am very pleased to be working with Michael and Mark again. I have great regard for them as lawyers. We look forward to helping clients with the support they need in challenging times.”

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NOTE TO EDITORS //

• Michael Barnett is a founder of Quillon Law. He has almost 30 years experience as a litigator, the last seven of which he spent as the head of litigation at Addleshaw Goddard. During this time, the team experienced exceptional levels of growth and increased standing in the market.

  • Michael built his reputation as a specialist in financial markets and, more recently, complex fraud and international commercial litigation, having been involved in some of the highest-profile and significant cases of the last decade, many arising out of the 2008 financial crisis, including industry-wide banking scandals.
  • Michael acts for financial institutions and senior individuals who manage them across the full spectrum of market participants. He also works for corporate and high net-worth investors and state-owned entities seeking recovery of assets. He has fought and won major international and domestic cases for his clients in the UK High Court, the Court of Appeal, the UK Supreme Court and the European Court of Justice.

• Mark Hastings is a founder of Quillon Law. Recognised for his work as a commercial litigator, especially in civil fraud, he is a determined, strategically focused and commercially astute disputes lawyer who practised law as a partner at Grosvenor Law, Quinn Emanuel, and Addleshaw Goddard before founding Quillon Law.

  • Mark acts for high-net-worth individuals, major corporates and their directors, hedge funds and insolvency practitioners. His areas of focus include high-value fraud, asset tracing, contentious trusts, contractual and warranty disputes, shareholder disputes and contentious insolvency. He has extensive experience in executing and advising on injunctions, including freezing, proprietary and search orders.
  • Many of Mark’s cases involve cross-border issues and proceedings in other jurisdictions, and he has particular expertise in litigation originating in CIS, South America and the Middle East. Chambers UK 2020 recently noted that “the way he deals with clients is remarkable; he is extremely impressive.”

• Mark Gill is a founder of Quillon Law and a leading name in the world of disputes. He launched his career at legacy Wilde Sapte (now Dentons), where he became a board member and head of litigation. He then joined Addleshaw Goddard as a partner and head of finance litigation.

  • Mark is a widely recognised practitioner for banking and financial services clients. He has handled most types of finance litigation, including disputes concerning commercial lending and security; payment; fraud and constructive trusts; insolvency; professional negligence and mis-selling. He is also a member of the Legal 500’s ‘Hall of Fame’ for banking litigation.
  • Mark is praised for his wisdom, originality and lateral thinking used when it comes to resolving disputes. He has been described in Chambers & Partners as “ferociously smart, a real chess player of a litigator – more moves ahead than anyone I’ve ever met. To my mind, the best litigator out there”.