Bernard O'Sullivan > CMS > London, England > Lawyer Profile
CMS Offices

CANNON PLACE
78 CANNON STREET
LONDON
EC4N 6AF
England
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Bernard O'Sullivan

Position
Partner
Career
Bernard advises on all aspects of complex commercial litigation with a particular emphasis on asset recovery, civil fraud and regulatory issues. Bernard frequently acts for both claimants and defendants in high value multi-jurisdictional disputes. Bernard is a member of the advisory board and co-chair of the Informa Asset Recovery conference in Dublin.
Chambers UK 2020 describes Bernard as a “supreme strategist” who is “unflappable, pragmatic and commercial.” Chambers UK 2019 noted of Bernard that: “He is a brilliant lawyer who not only knows the law but knows how to achieve positive results efficiently. He understands the various cultural issues that are at play in international fraud cases, and manages various competing interests simultaneously with savvy.”
Bernard has in depth experience of securing and defending asset tracing orders including freezing, search, disclosure and Norwich Pharmacal orders. Bernard has also acted as lead litigation adviser for clients in a wide range of jurisdictions (both common law and civil law) including securing appropriate orders and investigations in these jurisdictions.
Prior to CMS he was a partner in Dechert before setting up the niche practice Byrne and Partners.
Education
- Birmingham University, Birmingham
Lawyer Rankings
London > Crime, fraud and licensing > Fraud: civil
(Hall of Fame)‘Continuously focused on generating victories for clients’, CMS‘ fraud team in London leverages the firm’s enviable banking client base, particularly in relation to financial fraud. The group is also supported by the firm’s highly regarded regulatory lawyers. Other areas of expertise are energy-related mandates, along with corruption, tax evasion and money laundering cases. The firm additionally has a robust cyber fraud practice, with its breach response service covering 70 jurisdictions worldwide. Praised for his ‘intellectual dynamism and brilliance’, commercial litigator Bernard O’Sullivan is a specialist in asset recovery, civil fraud and regulatory issues; Andrew Taplin‘s broad fraud practice ranges from multi-jurisdictional claims involving HNW individuals and their corporate vehicles, to employee fraud, payment fraud claims for banks, and business and share sale-related fraud, dishonesty and concealment claims; Tamsin Blow represents both claimants and defendants in multi-jurisdictional fraud cases; Luke Pardey is ‘fantastic’; and Eoin O’Shea
is a highly regarded fraud and financial crime practitioner. In April 2024, Nadia Latti was promoted to partner, ‘a role she has been owning for some time’, while Anita de Villiers has notable experience in fraud proceedings (both in the UK and Australia).
Lawyer Rankings
- Fraud: civil London > Crime, fraud and licensing
- Hall of Fame London > Crime, fraud and licensing > Fraud: civil
Top Tier Firm Rankings
- Real estate > Commercial property: corporate occupiers
- Real estate > Commercial property: development
- Real estate > Commercial property: investment
- Real estate > Construction: contentious
- Real estate > Environment
- Corporate and commercial > Equity capital markets – small-mid cap
- TMT (technology, media and telecoms) > Fintech: corporate and commercial
- Crime, fraud and licensing > Fraud: civil
- Crime, fraud and licensing > Gaming and betting
- Insurance > Product liability: defendant
- Industry focus > Hospitality and leisure
- Projects, energy and natural resources > Infrastructure: Project finance and development
- TMT (technology, media and telecoms) > Intellectual property: trade marks, copyright and design
- TMT (technology, media and telecoms) > IT and telecoms
- Insurance > Product liability: defendant
- TMT (technology, media and telecoms) > Media: Digital content & social
- TMT (technology, media and telecoms) > PATMA: Patent attorneys
- Employment > Pensions (non-contentious)
- Employment > Pensions: dispute resolution
- Real estate > Planning
- Projects, energy and natural resources > Power (including electricity and nuclear)
- Real estate > Property litigation
- Investment fund formation and management > Real estate funds
- Projects, energy and natural resources > Renewables
- Industry focus > Retail and consumer
- Investment fund formation and management > Retail funds
- Industry focus > TMT
Firm Rankings
- Corporate and commercial > Commercial contracts
- Real estate > Construction: non-contentious
- Risk advisory > Data protection, privacy and cybersecurity
- Employment > Employers
- Corporate and commercial > Financial services: contentious
- TMT (technology, media and telecoms) > Fintech: regulatory
- Projects, energy and natural resources > Infrastructure: M&A and acquisition financing
- Insurance > Insurance and reinsurance litigation
- Insurance > Insurance: corporate and regulatory
- TMT (technology, media and telecoms) > Intellectual property: patents (contentious and non-contentious)
- Industry focus > Life sciences and healthcare
- TMT (technology, media and telecoms) > Media: Advertising & marketing
- TMT (technology, media and telecoms) > Media: Film & TV
- TMT (technology, media and telecoms) > Media: Media finance
- Projects, energy and natural resources > Oil and gas
- TMT (technology, media and telecoms) > PATMA: Trade mark attorneys
- Dispute resolution > Professional discipline
- Insurance > Professional negligence
- Real estate > Property finance
- Transport > Rail
- TMT (technology, media and telecoms) > Sport
- Corporate and commercial > VAT and indirect tax
- Corporate and commercial > Venture capital
- Finance > Bank lending: investment grade debt and syndicated loans
- Dispute resolution > Banking litigation: investment and retail
- Insurance > Clinical negligence: defendant
- Dispute resolution > Commercial litigation: premium
- Corporate and commercial > Corporate tax
- Finance > Derivatives and structured products
- Employment > Employee share schemes
- Corporate and commercial > Financial services: non-contentious/regulatory
- Employment > Health and safety
- Dispute resolution > International arbitration
- Investment fund formation and management > Listed funds
- Corporate and commercial > M&A: Upper Mid-Market And Premium Deals, £750m+
- TMT (technology, media and telecoms) > Media: Music
- Corporate and commercial > Private equity: transactions - mid-market deals (up to £500m)
- Risk advisory > Regulatory investigations and corporate crime (advice to corporates)
- TMT (technology, media and telecoms) > Reputation management
- Public sector > Administrative and public law
- Transport > Aviation
- Dispute resolution > Competition litigation
- Finance > Corporate restructuring & insolvency
- Finance > Debt capital markets
- Corporate and commercial > Equity capital markets – mid-large cap
- Corporate and commercial > EU and competition
- Dispute resolution > Public international law
- Dispute resolution > Tax litigation and investigations
- Finance > Acquisition finance
- Finance > Transport finance and leasing
- Investment fund formation and management > Private funds