CLF NY Drinks Reception.
Host/Venue: Brown Rudnick, New York Offices
The Hon. Mr. Justice Blair (Judge in charge of the Commercial Court) discussed (in the company of invited New York judges) the introduction of the new Financial List in the High Court of England and Wales.
The event provided an opportunity to meet the judiciary and practitioners from New York and London in an informal setting over drinks.
A key topic of conversation was whether a specialized financial court would be useful to establish in the US. The Hon. Mr Justice Blair discussed the benefits of the new Financial List in the High Court of England and Wales, a new UK business court which began in 2015, with expert judges hearing and ruling on complex business cases relating to derivatives, sovereign debt and other complex financial disputes. Concerns were raised by the New York lawyers regarding potential ‘judge shopping’ and the necessity of having a specialised court in the US seemed less apparent in view of the current system of federal judges handling such cases.
Justice William Blair, second from right, Judge in charge of the Commercial Court, at the offices of Brown Rudnick, discussed the introduction of the new Financial List in the High Court of England and Wales. Left to right: David Molton- partner at Brown Rudnick; Hilton Mervis-partner at Arnold & Porter; Roger Kennell-partner at Brown Rudnick; Paul Convery-partner at William Fry; Justice Blair and Stewart Aaron-partner at Arnold & Porter. September 22, 2016
The Rolls Building, which opened in 2011 in London, is the world’s largest dedicated business court. It launched the Financial List to provide a specialised forum for resolving particularly complex or high value (£50 million and above) financial disputes and issues of general importance to the financial markets. Building on the joint strength and reputation of the Chancery Division and the Commercial Court, the Financial List is designed to set an international benchmark. The Financial List is part of the on-going commitment of the Courts of England and Wales to meeting the needs of the international financial community.