Terence Mowschenson KC

Commercial disputes

Terence has extensive experience in business and commercial matters and a substantial part of his practice involves giving advice in relation to commercial, company and banking matters under English law and that of a number of jurisdictions including The Bahamas, Bermuda, BVI, Cayman Islands, Gibraltar, and the Isle of Man.

Terence has renowned company law experience and has advised on minority shareholders rights and unfair prejudice on numerous occasions in the above listed jurisdictions for clients based in Hong Kong, PRC and BVI.

Matters include:

• Lehman Bros International Europe Ltd where he acted for the liquidator in relation to obtaining the court sanction to distribute US $19bn of assets.
• Acting for ABC Company in ABC Company (SPV) v J & Co involving an application by an investor in a split portfolio company which had suspended redemptions of a minority of its portfolios to wind up the company.
• Singer and Friedlander Investment (IOM) Limited where acted for the liquidator in seeking directions as to the application of client money held by the bank in breach of client money rules.
• Madoff Securities International Ltd v Raven and others where he acted for Mrs Kohn in successfully challenging the jurisdiction of the Commercial Court to hear a claim by the New York Madoff entity for the recovery of US $60m in commissions paid to Mrs Kohn.
• DE Shaw Oculus Portfolios LLC v Orient – Express Hotels Limited where he appeared in the High Court in Bermuda on behalf of Orient Express Hotels Limited and successfully argued that it was lawful under the laws of Bermuda for a publicly-quoted company to be controlled by its own wholly owned subsidiary.
• R v V [2008] All ER (d) 111 successfully appearing for the successful party in the Commercial Court in the arbitration in a  matter raising issues as to the enforceability of an award on public interest grounds.
• Appeared for a consortium of banks in HSH Cayman v ABN Amro in the Court of Appeal and High Court in the Cayman Island seeking to recover US $600m.
• He appeared twice for Herald Fund SPC in relation to contested winding up petitions presented by the Madoff trustee in bankruptcy presented in the Cayman Islands.
• Acting on behalf of Caprikat inTullow Oil v Caprikat Ltd before the commercial court in the BVI and successfully defending its rights to hydrocarbons in the BVI.
• Acting as an expert witness on Bermuda company law on behalf of Sea Containers in arbitration between GE Capital Containers v Sea Containers where his evidence was accepted.
• Acting for Calyon (the former Credit Agricole) in Michailidis v Calyon which has been heard twice in the Gibraltar Court of Appeal, once in the Privy Council, on an issue as to the effect of a foreign judgment and is due to be heard in the Privy Council in the latter half of 2014 on the issue as to when a bank has notice of a third-party claim to monies deposited with it and the relationship of anti-money regulations laundering regulations and notice of third-party claims.
• Acting for Wardour in Wadour v Nekrich in the Supreme Court in Gibraltar. Wardour (a subsidiary of Rosneft) is claiming the proceeds of sale of consignments of oil allegedly diverted by Nekrich and Sagredos.
• Acted in Derby v Weldon (for the 3rd to 11th Defendants) a matter which involved 115 interlocutory applications before settling three months into the trial.

Download Commercial disputes CV

Domestic arbitration

Terence is a member of the ICC and LCIA and a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators and the Australian Centre for International Commercial Arbitration.

He is also a panel member of the Kuala Lumpur Regional Centre for Arbitration (KLRCA).

Amongst other arbitral rules he has acted under the rules of the ICC, UNCITRAL, CEPANI, LCIA and Chartered Institute of Arbitrators.

Terence has appeared as counsel in arbitrations as well as acted as an arbitrator on substantial matters including:

• Disputes between financial institutions arising out of trading on various exchanges.
• Disputes arising out of insurance claims.
• Shareholder disputes.
• Manufacturing and supply contracts.
• The construction of gas liquefaction facilities in the Middle East.
• Ownership of the largest bank in a country formerly part of the old Soviet Union.
• Disputes over the mis-selling of securities.
• A dispute between on line gaming companies over the right to conduct gaming over the internet.
• A dispute between developers of a new town and housing estate over the distribution of land in the development scheme.
• A dispute over ownership of a brokerage company.
• He has also appeared in the Commercial Court in relation to the enforceability of an award on public interest grounds where he acted for the successful party in R v V [2008] All ER (d) 111.

Download Domestic arbitration CV

Insolvency

Terence is an incredibly experienced silk who has undertaken a range of company and insolvency cases worldwide.

Matters include:

• Neville Barry Khan v The Institute of Chartered Accounts. Acted for the Institute in relation to an application by the joint liquidators of the Comet Group PLC and succeeded in obtaining the appointment of an additional independent liquidator to review issues arising in the liquidation of Comet and the conduct of the joint liquidators.
• Acted for the liquidator of Lehman Bros International Europe Ltd in relation to obtaining the sanction of the court to the distribution of US$19 billion of assets.
• Acted for the liquidator of Singer and Friedlander (IOM) Ltd in seeking directions as to the application of client money held by the bank in breach of client money rules.
• Madoff Securities International Ltd v Raven and others. Acted for Mrs Kohn in successfully challenging the jurisdiction of the Commercial Court to hear a claim by Irving Picard as trustee of Bernard l. Madoff Investment Securities limited for the recovery of $60 million paid in commissions.
• Acted for Bank J Safra (Gibraltar) in litigation brought by Irving Picard as trustee of Bernard l. Madoff Investment Securities limited.
• Acting twice for Herald Fund SPC in Grand Cayman defending bankruptcy petitions presented by Primeo Fund.
• Acted for Bank J Safra (Suisse) in litigation brought by Irving Picard as trustee of Bernard l. Madoff Investment Securities limited.
• Acting for Vizcaya, Zeus and Asphalia funds in various proceedings brought by Irving Picard as trustee of Bernard l. Madoff Investment Securities limited.

Download Insolvency CV

International arbitration

Terence is a highly experienced arbitrator, as evidenced in recent years by his involvement in two substantial arbitrations under the Rules of the Dubai International Arbitration Centre. In these cases was one of three arbitrators on the panel, examining issues arising out of the corporate law of the United Arab Emirates.

He is a member of the ICC, a panel member of the LCIA and a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators and the Australian Centre for International Commercial Arbitration. He is also a panel member of the Kuala Lumpur Regional Centre for Arbitration (KLRCA).

In addition to his sought-after arbitrator experience, Terence has appeared as counsel in numerous arbitrations, and amongst other arbitral rules. He has acted under the rules of the ICC, UNCITRAL, CEPANI, DIAC, LCIA and Chartered Institute of Arbitrators.

Furthermore, he has sat in the Chancery Division as a deputy High Court Judge dealing an array of commercial matters, including those involving significant corporate and insolvency issues, and is also the former chairman of the Financial Reporting Council Tribunal, which investigates accountants’ conduct (among other matters) following an insolvency of a company.

In addition to the above, further arbitrator and counsel experience includes:

• Shareholder disputes.
• Insurance/reinsurance claims.
• Manufacturing and supply contracts.
• Appearing as an expert witness in relation to oil exploration contracts at the International Court of Justice in the Hague, where his evidence was upheld at first instance and on appeal.
• Complex contractual dispute relating to gas liquefaction facilities in the Middle East.
• Ownership of the largest bank in a country formerly part of the old Soviet Union.
• Disputes over the mis-selling of securities.
• A dispute between online gaming companies over the right to conduct gaming over the internet.
• A dispute between developers of a new town and housing estate over the distribution of land in the development scheme.
• A dispute over ownership of a brokerage company.
• Appearing in the Commercial Court in relation to the enforceability of an award on public interest grounds: acting for the successful party in R v V [2008] All ER (d) 111, which concerned oil concessions in Libya.

Download International arbitration CV

Professional liability

Terence has advised on and acted in numerous matters involving professional liability for and against accountants, lawyers, directors, and professional trustees and fiduciaries.

Matters include:

• Anglo Group of Companies v Peter Willers
• Langstone Leisure v Pannone
• ITS v Hassans
• ITS v Line Trust
• Acting for leading counsel in Re Harris & Cartwright and Hains Watt v Thornhill QC

Download Professional liability CV

Trusts, probate and estates: contentious

Terence has acted in numerous matters involving breach of trust, disputes as to the validity or existence of a trust or the use of trust concepts in a commercial context.

Recent Matters include:

• Re Lehman Bros Europe Limited where he acted for the liquidator in relation to obtaining the court sanction to distribute $19bn of assets in circumstances where there was uncertainty as to the identity of the beneficiaries.
• Singer and Friedlander Investment (IoM) Limited where he acted for the liquidator in seeking directions as to the application of client money held in breach of client money rules.
• Acting on a compromise and settlement of the affairs of one of the wealthiest families in North America sanctioned by the High Court in Bermuda.
• Acting for members of a family in litigation over the affairs of a settlement in the Bahamas.
• Acting for the 1st Defendant in Michael Goodman v Mina Goodman, Re the Estate of Everard Goodman Deceased [2013] WLR (D) 197 establishing that S 50 of the Administration of Justice Act 1985 applied to executors who had not been granted probate.

Download Trusts, probate and estates: contentious CV