Watson Farley & Williams

Senior Associate Archit Dhir is featured in Lloyd's List discussing a recent High Court ruling that underlines the importance of clause paramount in shipping contracts. The ruling held that where claims are governed by Hague Rules, the one-year time bar in Article III, rule 6 will prevail over any inconsistent provisions. As Archit says, “It says paramount, so it is paramount’. Read the full article here (subscription required): https://lnkd.in/e_txKb6S Read our full article about the case, Tanga Pharmaceutical Plastics Limited and others v Emirates Shipping Line FZE, here: https://lnkd.in/ehgaNtQJ #WFW #Maritime #DisputeResolution #ClauseParamount

🚀 In the fourth episode of our interview series, Partner Randeep Bubbra is joined by Sameer Karimbhai, General Counsel at ABS - Agility Beyond Space. He touches on the challenges and opportunities he sees for GEO operators and how multi-earth orbit options are becoming critical within the market in order to provide a full service offering to customers. Key takeaways: • different verticals require and value different service levels, which creates opportunity for operators in the market, with the focus not solely being on pricing but key verticals such as aviation and maritime; • the impact of Starlink has changed the market and the way capacity and connectivity is sold with operators looking at multiple methods to combine both GEO and LEO offerings for customers; and  • whist there are challenges, there are also advantages and use cases where the GEO offering makes more sense than LEO, hence operators looking to provide a multi-earth orbit solution to customers. 🎞️ Listen to the full episode here: https://lnkd.in/g53FccQx #WFW #Satellites #Aerospace #LEO #GEO

In a session organised by our Senior Associate James Ballantyne, yesterday we hosted Ed Porter and the Modo Energy team at our London office to deliver an interactive training on batteries, the battery market and Modo’s insights on anticipated future developments in the space. Key themes discussed at the session included: a history of the BESS market and changes in battery asset revenue stacks, discussion of the growth of the BESS fleet, the practical reality of the growth in negative pricing, an analysis of the issue of skipping and the increasing competitiveness of BESS pricing in competition with gas. Thank you to Ed for a brilliant session, and to all WFW and client attendees for the excellent turnout and for making the session so engaging.  #WFW #Batteries #EnergyStorage

New York Partner Will Vogel had the pleasure of moderating an insightful panel at the Capital Link New York event in March. The panel featured Dr. Anastasios Aslidis (CFO & Treasurer of Euroseas Ltd. and Chief Strategy Officer of Euroholdings Ltd.), George Syllantavos (co-CEO and CFO of Stellar V Capital Corp.) and Pankaj Khanna (CEO of Heidmar Maritime Holdings Corp.). The discussion delved into the various alternative approaches each company took to their listings, including reverse mergers and SPACs, along with the timing of their listings, their views on current market conditions and their unique offerings in the market. Will also explored the structure of each listing, highlighting the advantages and disadvantages compared to traditional IPOs. These new, smaller listings challenge the trend of consolidation and take-privates amongst shipping public companies. The panellists shared their perspectives on the valuation of public shipping companies, the importance of liquidity and the need for consolidation in the industry. Watch the full discussion here: https://lnkd.in/eqH5muGC. #WFW #CapitalLink #Shipping #MarketInsights

The Financial Conduct Authority has fined the London Metal Exchange £9.2 million for inadequate systems and controls during the March 2022 nickel market crisis. Our Singapore Dispute Resolution team played a pivotal role in advising a sovereign-backed international commodity trader during this turbulent period.   In a recent article, Singapore Partner Sumeet Malhotra and Associate Alankriti Sethi discuss the implications of this penalty and the importance of robust mechanisms to manage extreme market volatility.   Read the article here: https://lnkd.in/eTmxa38D.   #WFW #CommodityTrading #FCA #DisputeResolution

Ahead of Good Friday and Easter Sunday, we wish all of our colleagues and clients a Happy Easter. #WFW #Easter

📣 Along The smarter E trade fair, we are delighted to be holding our Women in Energy Breakfast on 8 May at our Munich office. The event is hosted by our partners Dr. Christine Bader, Verena Scheibe, Britta Wißmann and Carolin Woggon. We look forward to welcoming women from across the energy sector for inspiring conversations and new connections – and to hearing keynote insights from Nunzia Pignataro, Investment Manager at Bluefield Partners, on “Exploring the challenges and opportunities of ageing renewable assets” and Marianne W., Investment Manager at Voltwise, on "Cooperation instead of conflict: How the storage boom can succeed in Germany". 👉 Further information and registration: https://lnkd.in/dKrgff3x The event is part of our We Further Women initiative aimed at empowering and supporting women in our core sectors. Learn more about the initiative: https://lnkd.in/d94dFmzi #WFW #WomenInEnergy #Energy

📝 Sydney Partner Alan Polivnick explores the recent Supreme Court ruling against Allianz Australia Insurance Ltd and AWP Australia Pty Ltd, which resulted in AU$16.8m fines for misleading travel insurance policies. Find out the impact of the judgment and fines and how these travel insurance products were found to be materially misleading. Don't miss out on this interesting article! Read more here: https://lnkd.in/giDPvEwf #WFW #Insurance #Travel #Hospitality

We are pleased to have sponsored the first "Yearbook of the ILA Italian Branch", which has been published by leading academic publisher Brill. The Yearbook aims to create a forum for debate between academia, law professionals and civil servants on public and private international law, as well as European Union law. It also aims to disseminate the work of the International Law Association Italian Branch and its associates, in particular the latter’s contribution within ILA Committees and Study Groups, and to discuss topical issues in contemporary international law. Find out more here: https://lnkd.in/edAPEuQX #WFW #ILA #PublicInternationalLaw #PrivateInternationalLaw

Seoul Partner Philip Do Youn Kim is featured in a Law.com International article about economic disruptions and the potential rise of force majeure claims due to the global tariff changes. Philip highlights a notable increase in force majeure claims during the pandemic, a trend that continues to shape the international arbitration landscape. Additionally, Philip observes that recent tariff increases have not yet significantly impacted force majeure claims, but may prompt companies to streamline supply chains and exercise greater caution in invoking force majeure claims. This article provides valuable insights for businesses looking to understand and manage risk implications of tariff changes on operations. Read the full article here (subscription required): https://lnkd.in/eWSE5gGT #WFW #InternationalTrade #ForceMajeure #Arbitration