Introduction
Lucy is qualified in four jurisdictions. She is a barrister in England & Wales, an attorney at law in New York, an advocate in Scotland and a barrister at law in Ireland. She specialises in international dispute resolution, with particular interest and expertise in international commercial arbitration.
Lucy, called to the Bar in Scotland in 1988, has extensive experience as an advocate dealing with commercial litigation. Her range of experience includes shareholder disputes, commercial contracts, investment funds and associated regulatory issues, charity law, sale and carriage of goods and international trade. Lucy also deals with building contract and property disputes, product liability, professional negligence and professional discipline and oil & gas disputes. Lucy gained invaluable experience in international oil & gas matters early in her career as counsel in the team representing Occidental Petroleum in the Piper Alpha disaster arbitrations and her interest in international arbitration and energy-related matters developed from there.
Lucy is qualified as a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators and holds the Chartered Institute’s Diploma in International Commercial Arbitration. Her enthusiasm for international arbitration extends to conducting lectures and training on the subject, particularly in relation to advocacy in international arbitration. She recently presented training seminars on this topic to legal professionals in the Netherlands. Being qualified in four jurisdictions, Lucy has the ability to work across legal borders with ease. Her facility for languages has also been invaluable in many instances and she has particular competence and experience in working on cases in German.
Lucy recently used her German language skills as part of the team acting for Volkswagen AG in its defence of a product liability case concerning alleged breaches of diesel emissions limits. This case is proceeding as a group litigation in the High Court in London.
As a New York lawyer, Lucy has developed links with legal professionals in the USA and is available to advise on issues of US Federal Law and New York State Law.
Lucy is also Co-Chair of the New York State Bar Association International Section Committee on Art Law, Art Funds and Art Finance, reflecting her passion for art and its intersection with law and business.
In addition to her expertise as counsel in civil cases, Lucy has solid experience as a criminal advocate, having held an appointment in Scotland as an Advocate-Depute (roughly equivalent to Treasury Counsel). She has strong capability in dealing with white-collar crime, fraud, asset recovery proceedings and corporate investigations.
Lucy has represented both the Crown and other parties in Fatal Accident Inquiries (equivalent to Inquests) involving sudden or suspicous deaths. She recently acted for a medical professional in the longest Fatal Accident Inquiry (Inquest) held in Glasgow Sheriff Court, a complex and challenging matter involving a number of specialisms including haematology, oncology and neurology.
Lucy’s breadth of experience has included a judicial appointment in Scotland as a part-time Sheriff sitting in the sheriff courts in both civil and criminal cases. She has appeared in courts at all levels in Scotland and has taken a case from first instance to the House of Lords. She is an extremely competent advocate whose advocacy experience ranges from interlocutory matters to complex appeals. Lucy was awarded a Certificate of Excellence in Advocacy by the Faculty of Advocates in 2016.
Further Information
Lucy’s expertise is not limited to the professional practice of law. She co-founded a start-up specialist wine importing business and gained hands-on experience of the challenges of entrepreneurship. Lucy not only developed an appreciation of excellent wine but also acquired significant experience in dealing with international supply contracts, shipping and distribution contracts, compliance issues, sales and general management.
Qualifications
LLB, University of Strathclyde
Diploma in Legal Practice, University of Strathclyde
Certificate in International Commercial Arbitration, University of Dundee
Diploma in International Commercial Arbitration, Chartered Institute of Arbitrators
Memberships
Chartered Institute of Arbitrators: Fellow (FCIArb)
The Worshipful Company of Arbitrators
The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple
The Honorable Society of King's Inns (Ireland)
Faculty of Advocates (Scotland)
London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA) Users’ Council
New York State Bar Association
American Bar Association
The Energy Arbitration Club, London
Swiss Arbitration Association
Arbitration Ireland
Publications
“The Prague Rules: A Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing”: Journal of Enforcement of Arbitration Awards (Juris Publishing) Vol. 2 No. 1 2020
Teaching Experience
Netherlands Arbitration Institute Jung Oranje group: devised and presented workshop on “The Art of Cross-Examination in International Arbitration”, Leiden University 2018
Loyens & Loeff, LLP Amsterdam: conducted seminar on “The Art of Cross-Examination” for the firm’s Dutch offices, Amsterdam 2018
Vis International Commercial Arbitration Moot, Vienna: Arbitrator 2019, 2020, 2021,2022.
American Bar Assocation: member of panel on "Interim Measures in International Litigation" at the ABA's 1st Virtual International Litigation Skills Conference, May 2021.
Direct Access
Lucy is accredited to accept work under Direct access, also known as Public access, in suitable cases. In order to instruct Lucy on a Direct access basis, contact the clerks on +44 (0) 20 7242 6476 or at clerks@33bedfordrow.co.uk.