Professional Qualifications

Areas of expertise

• Acting for Shell Exploration NZ Limited in High Court proceedings in a complex commercial dispute between the parties to an oil and gas exploration joint venture, in proceedings involving over 10 alleged causes of action (including claims based on the Commerce Act 1986)
• Acting for Hamilton Medical Laboratory Holdings (formerly Medlab Hamilton Limited) and New Zealand Diagnostic Group in the defence of penalty proceedings brought by the Commerce Commission under the Commerce Act 1986 concerning alleged anticompetitive conduct in the pathology industry in the Waikato
• Acting for Shell New Zealand Limited in the defence of penalty proceedings brought by the Commerce Commission under the Fair Trading Act 1986 concerning Shell’s advertising for Fuel Economy Formula
• Acting for Shell New Zealand Limited in interim injunction proceedings concerning a dispute with a distributor
• Acting for Shell New Zealand Limited in its application for clearance to acquire the assets comprising Mobil Oil New Zealand Limited’s “swipe card bowser network” for general aviation (cleared in October 2008)
• Representing clients involved in Commerce Commission investigations under the Commerce and Fair Trading Acts
• Advising a client in lease dispute, acting for the plaintiff in summary judgment proceedings in the District Court
• Advising Wellington Radiology on its sale to Pacific Radiology
• Acting for New Zealand Post and Salmat in relation to the clearance for their unaddressed mail joint venture
• Acting for Shell New Zealand in the sale of LPG assets to BOC
• Advising on the NZ competition law aspects of Hamburg Süd’s acquisition of certain assets from FESCO
• Advising New Zealand Diagnostic Group in relation to its proposed joint ventures with Sonic Healthcare
• Advising a multinational client in relation to the defence of claims for damages brought in the English Commercial Court following on from the decision of the European Commission finding a series of cartels in the vitamins industry
• Advising in relation to the first claims for cartel damages to be commenced in the UK’s Competition Appeal Tribunal
• Advising in the latter phases of a European Commission investigation into an alleged agreement and concerted practice in the paper sector
• Advising a UK-based client in the telecommunications sector in connection with a potential dispute concerning the interpretation of commercial agreements relating to “Third Generation” (3G) mobile infrastructure rollout
• Advising in English Commercial Court proceedings concerning a shareholder dispute between major players in the telecommunications sector
• Advising a multinational client in the UK, bringing proceedings in the UK and co-ordination similar proceedings in France, Germany and the Netherlands, in relation to an attempted “hack” into the client’s network