Shipping was actually a reasonably well-known practice within CC. Some big names have emanated from the team — executive partner and general counsel Chris Perrin and litigation partners Roger Baggallay, Roger Best and Alex Panayides all started in shipping, while veteran shipping head Tony Vlasto is also regarded as a big-hitter in his field.
But while the practice did not create any conflicts, it did not charge high enough rates to justify keeping it, according to the firm. Privately, partners concede they had come to regard shipping in the same way as private client work is often characterised in the larger firms. Shipping can be lucrative for firms that specialise in the sector, but it does not really work as a bolt-on practice.
The team, which at its peak numbered four partners and 12 associates, had become known among shipping rivals as one that was “trying to survive in a magic circle firm”.
This, according to Clyde & Co shipping litigation partner Hatty Sumption, just does not work. “Shipping litigation is a very specialised field and, as such, involves peculiarities that are not common to general commercial litigation,” she says. Stephenson Harwood shipping litigation partner Paolo Ghirardani adds: “You cannot afford to be ‘half in, half out’.”
While CC’s decision to part company with its shipping practice makes sense, the timing is perhaps surprising. Most top
Recent cases include the litigation surrounding the cargo ship MSC Napoli, which ran aground off Cornwall — a case that looks set to be worth around $100m (£49m) — and a claim arising from the discovery of a shipwreck carrying treasure thought to be worth $500m (£244m). The mammoth dispute between Fiona Trust and a number of shipbrokers and other companies, which is estimated to be worth in the region of $600m-$700m (£293m-£342m), also continues to roll on.
Shipping lawyers are also expecting a further rise in work on the assumption that the credit crunch will put shipping companies under strain, leading to more disputes as they struggle to pay their loans.
Ghirardani comments: “The trends of commercial trade and shipping litigation tend to follow each other. We are in a volatile marketplace at the moment, with shipping and trade litigation set to increase should the credit crunch get worse.”
After a few years of below-average growth, shipping firms are expecting to produce stronger financial results in the coming years.
All of which means that CC’s team can hardly be said to have been cut adrift. Indeed, it could be argued that having spent several years trying to keep their heads above water, they are now sailing off into quite a lucrative sunset, so to speak…