Natasha Johnson > Herbert Smith Freehills LLP > London, England > Lawyer Profile

The team at Herbert Smith Freehills LLP is the ‘top choice for litigation of significant value, strategic importance or complexity’, covering the whole gamut from general commercial disputes to more specialist areas, including insurance disputes, with a dedicated international arbitration practice. The firm is particularly well placed to see clients through the energy transition, and provides a comprehensive service for its clients through alternative legal services businesses within the firm’s international offices. Paul Lewis, previously the head of the insurance disputes practice at the firm, has recently replaced Damien Byrne Hill as managing partner of the disputes practice, with the latter returning to full-time practice. Alan Watts is another key name at leadership level, acting as the head of both global class actions, and UK commercial litigation. The ‘excellent technical knowledge’ of the team is thanks in part to dual-qualified Julian Copeman, Natasha Johnson, Andrew Cooke, and solicitor advocate Rachel Lidgate. Of counsel Catherine Emanuel is another key figure in the team, with specific expertise in class actions.

Drawing upon ‘excellent insight and rounded knowledge of the industry’, Herbert Smith Freehills LLP provides a ‘responsive and proactive’ service to a debtor-focused client base across a range of restructuring and formal insolvency matters. Unsurprisingly perhaps given the firm’s commercial litigation pedigree, the team, which is led by John Whiteoak (‘extremely energetic and full of ideas’), is particularly adept at handling contentious insolvency engagements. Appreciated for her ‘measured and incisive’ advice, Natasha Johnson is also a key practitioner for contentious matters, including as it relates to directors’ duties/misfeasance issues. As part of his broad skillset in the space, Kevin Pullen has niche expertise handling    infrastructure and project restructurings including those underpinned by PFI/PPP contractual terms.

Herbert Smith Freehills LLP has ‘a long pedigree as a leader in disputes generally‘, with its civil fraud practice stated to be ‘unrivalled’. The team is particularly adept at handling multi-jurisdictional, high value and complex fraud cases, and specialisms include fraud cases in the cryptocurrency sector, as well as acting for sovereign wealth funds on misappropriated assets in different jurisdictions. Practice head Jeremy Garson is ‘one of the best in the business‘, and has recently been active in complex cross-border cases pertaining to allegations of unlawful and dishonest conduct, including bribery, dissipating assets and sham transactions.  ‘Stand-out partner‘ Natasha Johnson specialises in proceedings related to the financial services industry, including alleged financial misstatements, financial and consumer mis-selling and director misfeasance. ‘Outstanding‘ William Turner, specialist for fraud matters involving offshore trusts, as well as Chris Bushell and associate Heather Rankin are further key members of the team.