Biography
Sarah is an Associate with experience in complex multi-party international disputes, many of which have focussed on transactions adversely affected by the global financial crisis, and in particular the insolvency of a major international bank.
Sarah has experience in dealing with disputes involving a wide range of financial products including derivatives, notes, warrants, Collateralized Debt Obligation (CDO) squared programmes and share issuances. Her experience covers pre-action, High Court litigation and mediation. Sarah also has broad transactional experience in a wide variety of complex financial structures including credit, equity and fund-linked OTC derivatives, loan origination, securitisation and transfers of loan portfolios.
Prior to joining Signature Litigation, Sarah was an associate in the Global Finance team at leading US law firm Sidley Austin LLP. Sarah qualified at Sidley Austin LLP in September 2013.
Sarah is a member of the Junior LSLA.
Experience
Commercial Litigation
- Acting for a large institutional and retail claimant group in complex group litigation against a large UK bank and its former directors in relation to allegations of breach of statutory obligations under s.90 FSMA with respect to alleged omissions and/or misleading statements in a prospectus. The areas of complaint include liquidity, capital, credit market exposures, risk management, VAR and LIBOR.
- Acting for an Italian pension fund in its action against a major international bank in relation to a dispute over the quantum of a termination payment under a principal protected constant proportion portfolio insurance (CPPI) product.
- Acting for a Korean insurance company in a dispute against a major international bank in relation to the distribution of collateral and entitlement to a termination amount in a CDO squared transaction.
- Acting for a ‘Class X’ noteholder in several securitisations nearing their maturity date in relation to an alleged miscalculation of interest payments.
Acting for a major US hedge fund in relation to its claim against a major international bank in respect of warrants issued by that bank.
Training and other experience
- Acting for an American multinational investment management firm in relation to a multi-million Euro commercial mortgage-backed note issuance in relation to property portfolios in the Hellenic Republic and admitted to trading on the Irish Stock Exchange.
- Acting for a leading international asset manager in relation to its role as arranger of a multi-million pound facility agreement relating to the refinancing of an acquisition of 14 properties let to a major national furniture retailer.
- Acting for a major international bank in relation to a loan facility it provided to a bank in Botswana.
- Acting for numerous clients in establishing new funds.
- Advising clients in respect of international European regulations in relation to derivatives (European Market Infrastructure Regulations).
- Drafting ISDA documentation.
Areas of Expertise
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Signature Partners
Ioannis Alexopoulos
Ioannis is recognised in The Legal 500 UK 2020 as a ‘Recommended Lawyer’ for his international arbitration and commercial litigation expertise, and has been noted as a “highly rated litigator”. Ioannis has also been ranked in Chambers Global as a ‘Foreign Expert Based in UK’ and a ‘Foreign Expert for Greece’ for his dispute resolution expertise and is commended for his ability to “see right to the heart of sprawling banking disputes.”
Nicolas Brooke
Nicolas has deep experience in the management of complex and international high stakes litigations. He receives high praise within the industry; his team at Société Générale was awarded the “Trophée d’or Direction Juridique Contentieux” by Décideurs/Leaders League and most recently Nicolas won the “Outstanding In-house Counsel” award at the Global Investigations Review Awards in 2018.
Simon Bushell
Simon is regarded as a ‘Leading Individual’ in The Legal 500 UK 2020 for his civil fraud and commercial litigation expertise, and is recognised as a ‘Recommended Lawyer’ for his banking litigation work. The Legal 500 notes Simon is “an excellent litigator, constantly striving for ways to improve a case or undermine his opponents”, a “force-field of drive and determination” and he is “highly rated for high-stakes Russian and CIS-related disputes”. Chambers UK describes him as a “truly exceptional lawyer” and he has also been ranked as a Foreign Expert for his Russian dispute resolution work in Chambers Global. Simon became involved in Russian and CIS related disputes nearly two decades ago and continues regularly to handle matters with a connection to the region. Recognised for being “very clear-sighted and capable of identifying clear strategies for his clients to pursue“, Simon has been consistently ranked in Bands 1 and 2 for his civil fraud expertise in Chambers UK over many years.
Natalia Chumak
Natalia is ranked in the Chambers UK and The Legal 500 UK Guides for her International Arbitration expertise. She has previously been praised by The Legal 500 and Chambers UK for her “fantastic experience and responsiveness”, for being an “extremely good tactical mind”, a “steely litigator with excellent litigation instincts” and she has been praised for her ability to “remain incredibly calm under pressure”.
Julian Connerty
Julian has been ranked in Chambers for Civil Fraud and the Guide notes he “has considerable expertise in international fraud cases.” Julian is recommended in The Legal 500 UK 2020 for his civil fraud and banking litigation expertise. The Legal 500 notes that Julian is a “highly rated” litigator and an “extremely experienced operator“.
Sylvie Gallage-Alwis
Sylvie is described by Who’s Who Legal as a “dynamic and determined litigator”, who is “a firm favourite among clients” as “she always goes the extra mile to support her clients, and is proactive in seeking commercial solutions to disputes” and is “analytical, intelligent and responsive”.
Graham Huntley
Graham is consistently recognised by The Legal 500 and Chambers as one of the UK’s highest ranked commercial and banking litigators and has been involved in some of the most significant cases of recent years. Chambers UK describes him as “an intense and effective solicitor with an incredibly client-focused approach” and he has previously been described as “very bright, very hard-working, a good tactician” and “very committed and driven”. The Legal 500 recognises Graham for being a “a leading figure in commercial dispute resolution and widely regarded as a rainmaker.”
Abdulali Jiwaji
The Legal 500 UK has noted that Abdulali is recommended for commercial litigation and financial disputes. The Legal 500 praises him for his ‘ability to analyse difficult issues and provide concise and clear advice’, whilst Chambers Global has described Abdulali as a “technically sound, sensible and robust litigator who always finds practical solutions”.
Emmanuèle Lutfalla
Emmanuèle is recognised as a “thought leader” in Who’s Who Thought Leaders 2018. She is also ranked in Who’s Who Legal France: Product Liability Defence 2019, which notes that she “draws recommendations from peers across the EU, the USA and Asia.”
Hermès Marangos
Hermès is recognised as a ‘Leading Individual’ in The Legal 500 UK 2020 for his insurance and reinsurance litigation practice. Hermès is ranked as a Band 3 expert in Chambers Global 2019 and Chambers Latin America 2020 for his Insurance expertise in the region.
Elliott Phillips
Elliott is an internationally recognised barrister and specialises in global commercial litigation and international contentious trusts disputes. He has been recognised in The Legal 500 for his experience in dispute resolution work and is also ranked as a Band 2 individual in both Chambers Global and Chambers Europe for General Business Law: Dispute Resolution — Gibraltar. In 2019 Elliott was recognised as one of the world’s leading private client lawyers and trusts and estates litigators, and was listed in the Private Client Global Elite community.
Thomas Rouhette
Thomas is ranked Band 2 by both Chambers Global and Europe for his litigation and aviation law expertise, with sources praising him for his “invaluable” advice, experience and knowledge. The Legal 500 EMEA Guide recognises Thomas as a ‘Leading Individual’ for his aviation and commercial litigation practices, and he is regarded as a ‘Recommended Lawyer’ for his insurance experience. Who’s Who Legal regards Thomas as the “finest product liability lawyer in the country and one of the very best on the continent.”
Daniel Spendlove
Daniel has been highly ranked in The Legal 500 UK Guide for his expertise in banking litigation, commercial litigation and professional negligence. The Guide describes him as “very smart, client focused and details-oriented” and a “highly rated litigator”. He receives praise for being “a strategic thinker” who “brings real energy to cases”. He was recently described, by Commercial Dispute Resolution magazine, as “one of a new breed of independent and forceful commercial litigation partners”.
Josh Wong
Josh is recognised as a ‘Recommended Lawyer’ in The Legal 500 UK 2020 for his international arbitration expertise, and is praised for being “an excellent lawyer, who is hardworking and has a clear vision.” He is also ranked in Chambers Global as a ‘Foreign Expert Based in UK’ for his Chinese dispute resolution, arbitration expertise, and as a ‘Foreign Expert for China’ for UK dispute resolution.
