Name
Steven Gee QC

Steven Gee QC has been in silk since 1993. Whilst a junior he was standing junior counsel to the Department of Trade and Industry (ECGD). He is the head of a specialist commercial, shipping and intellectual property set of chambers, a commercial litigator, and the author of a practitioners' textbook on injunctions. He practises in the full range of commercial work including insurance, reinsurance, banking, fraud and dishonesty, arbitration including international arbitration, sale of goods, professional negligence, insolvency, commercial contracts, shipping, and heavy, commercial advisory work, particularly in complicated cases. He sits as a commercial arbitrator. He was a tenant in two leading sets of commercial chambers for the first 25 years of his career, and in 1999 accepted an invitation to become Head of Chambers of the late Geoffrey Brice QC (now Stone Chambers).

During his career he has been counsel in a series of cases in the House of Lords:

The Starsin [2003] 2 WLR 711 - identity of the contracting carrier on bills of lading, title to sue, the meaning and effect of the Himalaya clause, and interpretation of bills of lading.

Astro Exito Navegacion SA v Southland Enterprise Co Ltd - interim specific performance of a contract for sale.

The Sennar No 2 - issue estoppel / res judicata.

The Lips - damages for late payment involving a currency loss.

DSV v Shell No 2 - banking, garnishee orders, and the risk of double payment for a garnishee out of the jurisdiction.

Dimskal Shipping v ITF - economic duress, and conflicts of law.

Other cases include:

The Noga litigation which lasted over 65 days in front of Rix LJ and concerned freezing relief for $800 million and a dispute over a settlement for US$100 million, and see [2001] 3 AER 513 on the jurisdiction to reconsider, and in the Court of Appeal upon the effect of the declaratory remedy on the need to obtain permission to appeal: Compagnie Noga d'Importation et d'Exportation SA v Abacha (No.3) [2002] C.L.C. 207 (declaration) affirmed [2003] 1 WLR 307, and interpretation of contracts : Compagnie Noga d'Importation et d'Exportation SA v Abacha (No.4) [2003] EWCA Civ 1100 [2003] 2 All E.R. (Comm) 915. For the judgment at first instance see: Compagnie Noga d'Importation et d'Exportation SA v Abacha (No.1) (Reserved Judgment) 2001 WL 542308.

Arkin v Borchard Lines [2003] 2 Ll. Rep 225 - a 40 day trial in the commercial court instructed by P&O - the first case to go to trial seeking damages under articles 81 and 82 of the EU treaty, concerning the effect of these articles in the context of liner shipping conferences and the EU Block Exemption on liner conferences, and Arkin v Borchard Lines No 2 [2004] 1 Ll. Rep. 88 concerning section 51 of the Supreme Court Act 1981 and professional funders, see also Arkin v Borchard Lines Ltd (Costs) [2001] C.P. Rep. 108 (costs and set off) Arkin v Borchard Lines Ltd (Costs: Third Party Proceedings) [2003] EWHC 3088 (2004) 154 N.L.J. 22. Arkin v Borchard Lines Ltd (No.3) [2004] 1 Ll Rep 636.

Petromec Inc. v Petroleo Brasilico S.A Petrobras & Ors case [2004] 1 Ll Rep 629 - concerning the total loss of production platform "P 36", which at one time was one of the largest offshore production platforms in the world, and the interpretation of contracts.

The Fjord Wind [1999] 1 Ll. Rep. 307 and [2000] 2 Ll. Rep.191- a leading case on Article III rule 1 of the Hague Rules and the obligation of due diligence.

Glencore v Metro No 1 [2001] 1 Ll. Rep 283- phase 1 of the Metro litigation which is one of the largest case managed cases in the Commercial Court and related to title to oil/bunkers in a floating oil terminal following the insolvency of the storage company, The Metro litigation phase 2 (judgment 1st August 2001).

Hamble Fisheries v L Gardener & Sons [1999] 1 Ll.Rep. 1- on claims for economic loss in tort for loss caused by defective ship's engine manufacture.

Insolvency work includes Re Pinstripe Farming Co Limited [1996] 2 BCLC 295.

Intellectual property work includes the Chiron v Murex litigation.

Yukong Line Ltd of Korea v Rendsburg Investments Corp of Liberia (The Rialto) (Injunctive Relief) [2001] 2 Lloyd's Rep. 113,

Refco v Eastern Trading [1998] 1 Ll. Rep. 159 (injunction in support of federal proceedings);

Yukong v Rendsburg No 2 [1998] 1 WLR 294- claim on a cross-undertaking in damages and the court's jurisdiction to award damages for losses caused by a freezing order,

Re A Solicitor [1997] Ch 1 (injunction to protect confidential information),

Union Bank v Lelakis [1997] 1 WLR 590 - service out of the jurisdiction of an order for examination about assets,

Allied Irish Bank Plc v Ashford Hotels Ltd [1997] 3 All E.R. 309 (interim receiver)

The Choko Star [1996] 1 WLR 774 (limitation of actions and corporate changes).

Flettamentos v Effjohn [1996] 2 Ll. Rep. 304 (arbitration/jurisdiction)

Balkanbank v Taher Nos 1 and 2 [1995] 1 WLR 1056 and 1067 (litigation relating to the enforcement of a cross-undertaking in damages, and an appeal before the Irish Supreme
Court),

Trade Indemnity v Njord [1995] 1 AER 796 (Brussels Convention).

Cheltenham & Gloucester Building Society v Ricketts [1993] 1 WLR 1545 (enforcement of cross-undertaking in damages),

Mercantile Group v Aiyela [1993] FSR 745 (injunction ancillary to enforcement of judgment);

Standard Chartered Bank v Walker [1992] 1 W.L.R. 561

Republic of Haiti v Duvalier [1990] 1 Q.B 202.

He is the author of "Mareva Injunctions and Anton Piller Relief", and "Commercial Injunctions" (5th Edition) to be published by Sweet & Maxwell in Autumn 2004. For views about him see the forewords printed in the 4th edition.

Articles include

• "The Solicitor's duty to warn that a court might take a different view" (2003) Professional Negligence Vol 19 p.362;
• "Interpretation of Commercial Contracts" (2001) 117 Law Quarterly Review 358;
• "Construing Contracts with Mistakes in them" [2001] LMCLQ 214;
• Keeping Confidences (1998) Commercial Lawyer 38 (about Chinese Walls),
• "Mareva Injunctions-the Reforms of the Law made by its Soul" [1998] International Journal of Insurance Law 133,
• Mareva Injunctions - the Law (1995) Commercial Lawyer 52,
• 'Mercedes and Mareva' (1995) 139 Solicitors Journal 1076,
• 'Diving In at the Deep End' (1995) Law Society Gazette 23 (Damages for breach of contract)
• 'Transactions in Fraud of Creditors: The Foreign Element' [2005] 1 International Corporate Rescue p.29, co-authored with Ravi Aswani

Member of the New York Bar and admitted to practice in the State and Federal Courts in New York.
Recorder of the Crown Court.
Member of the Bar of Antigua.

Education:

• M.A. Oxford University, First Class in Law;
• Gibbs Prize for Law, Oxford University,
• Senate of Inns of Court Prize for top placed candidate in Bar Exams.