The 36 Group

Charles Debattista

Charles Debattista practises as counsel in the areas of dry shipping law, international trade and international arbitration. He appears in Court and in arbitrations in the UK and abroad, and also regularly provides Expert Opinions on English law for use in Courts and Tribunals abroad. He has also regularly sat as an Arbitrator over almost two decades under LMAA, ICC, LCIA, SCMA, Swiss Chamber of Arbitration terms or ad hoc, both in this country and abroad. Widely published and cited, he has been closely associated with many of the main instruments used in shipping and trade law, spanning from COGSA 1992 to Incoterms 2020. Much of Charles’s practice is cross-border and he has particular experience before and on tribunals composed of both common and civil lawyers, a context with which he is very comfortable having first qualified in Malta, a civilian jurisdiction, and then of course in England as a common lawyer. Practice areas: All areas of dry shipping Charterparties Bills of Lading, and other Cargo Documents Contracts of Affreightment Commodities and International Trade Sale of goods contracts for bulk commodities, dry and wet Sale of goods in containers Incoterms 2020 Trade Finance Letters of Credit Bank Guarantees and Performance Bonds International Arbitration Sits as arbitrator in the above areas Acts as Counsel before Tribunals in the above areas Litigation arising out of arbitrations, particularly challenges to Awards

Rachel Toney

36 Stone Special Advocate Rachel’s commercial practice includes all aspects of international trade, shipping and maritime work (including a wide variety of bills of lading/charterparty disputes, indemnity claims, Agency Agreement disputes, contamination and cargo claims; Admiralty claims, primarily collisions/allisions including jurisdictional and procedural issues, contracts for the sale and carriage of goods together with insurance and re-insurance) with a particular emphasis on shipbuilding and superyachts, having been instructed in many of the high value new-build disputes involving the world’s largest superyachts. Rachel was instructed in the recent high-profile “test” case of Hamida Begum v Maran (UK) Limited in which a spotlight was shone on the disreputable practice of dismantling large ships on the beaches of economically developing nations. The Court of Appeal ruled that a shipping company in London selling a vessel to South Asia could owe a duty of care to shipbreaking workers in Bangladesh. Experienced in mediation as well as arbitration. Rachel’s commercial practice includes conflict of laws/jurisdictional issues, international and domestic disputes, international trade, construction disputes, agency disputes, contracts for the sale and carriage of goods, insurance and re-insurance. Uniquely qualified market leader in the field of employment and personal injury related shipping matters. As Special Advocate, Rachel is regularly instructed in nationally and internationally high profile, sensitive, national security cases including cases involving the FCDO, the NCA, the Home Office and the Security Services. Cases include consideration of all aspects of HMG’s implementation of counter-terrorism measures, multi-party private law claims and Judicial Reviews in the Appellate Courts and deprivation/deportation/exclusion appeals before the Special Immigration Appeals Tribunal. Since developing this specialist area of her practice, Rachel has appeared in many of the leading cases in this field. She is also instructed in cases before SVAP (Security Vetting Appeals Panel). Shortlisted for Legal 500 UK Bar Shipping Junior of the Year 2022.

Ravi Aswani

Ravi Aswani is a commercial dispute resolution barrister. He has a broad practice which covers a range of areas including in particular shipping and international trade, banking and finance, commodities, construction, energy, insurance and re-insurance, and various international consortia and joint venture agreements. As well as litigation in the English courts (primarily the Commercial Court), Ravi has an extensive international arbitration practice. He has been instructed in arbitrations seated in several jurisdictions, both ad hoc arbitrations (in particular under LMAA rules and UNCITRAL rules) as well as institutional arbitrations (in particular ICC, LCIA and SIAC). Recent arbitrations he has been instructed on have been seated in Mauritius, Singapore and Kosovo, as well as in England. Increasingly, Ravi is instructed in arbitrations arising out of contracts governed by a law other than English law.  Recent arbitrations he has been instructed on have involved consideration of Ghanaian law, Malaysian law and Singaporean law, as well as English law. Ravi has extensive experience of hybrid and remote hearings across a range of platforms, including across multiple time zones and asynchronous hearings. Ravi is frequently instructed to appear unled against KC opposition (often substantially more senior than him), as well as instructed to act as co-counsel with foreign lawyers from both civil law and common law jurisdictions. Recent representative arbitrations include: related GAFTA arbitrations arising out of a prohibition on export imposed by the Government if India to preserve domestic food security, an LMAA arbitration arising out of a long term high value freight forwarding contract (English seat, English law); an LCIA arbitration arising out of the resignation of the former CEO of a multinational business; UNCITRAL arbitration arising out of a mining joint venture (Kosovo seat, English law); an LMAA arbitration (English seat, English law) raising questions of illegality under a foreign law; an ICC arbitration (English seat, Ghanaian law) arising out of contracts for the construction of hospitals; an SIAC arbitration (Singapore seat, Malaysian law) arising out of the moving to a new position of a large jack up oil rig; an LCIA arbitration (English seat, English law) arising out of alleged breach of loan facility agreement and ancillary guarantee; and two substantial and high profile LOF arbitrations arising out fires on very large container ships. Recent representative litigation includes multi-million dollar litigation in the Commercial Court on behalf of charterers in claims for alleged long-term failures to service charterparty obligations. Ravi has a broad domestic and international client base and has developed particular links across the Middle East and Asia Pacific, as well as throughout the UK and Europe. Ravi is regularly instructed to provide expert evidence on English law for use in foreign courts and arbitral tribunals. He frequently speaks at conferences on subjects arising out of his practice areas, both in the UK and abroad. Ravi additionally has a growing arbitrator and mediator practice. In recent years he has received several arbitrator nominations / appointments in both institutional arbitrations (LCIA and ICC) as well as ad hoc arbitrations (primarily LMAA). He is a CEDR accredited mediator, a freeman of the Worshipful Company of Arbitrators, and a Member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators. He is a member of the ICC Global Commission on Arbitration and ADR, representing the UK. He is an inaugural member of the panel of arbitrators and mediators of the London Chamber of Arbitration and Mediation (LCAM). Ravi has sat as a deputy district judge in the County Court since 2013 in general civil matters, and in 2020 received an authorisation to hear specialist chancery / bankruptcy and insolvency matters. An early adopter of social media for business purposes, Ravi has a large following within the dispute resolution community (and beyond) on LinkedIn. Ravi has a longstanding interest in matters of equality, diversity (especially intersectional), inclusion and belonging, and has over the years attended numerous cross-sector and cross-discipline advanced training events and seminars on these topics, observing  considerable changes in thinking and practice over that time. Ravi also has a keen interest in mentoring and assisting the next generation of practitioners. He has participated in mentoring programmes run by Young ICCA (2018-2022), UCL (2019-2023) and others, sat in many moots, and is a Chambers' pupil supervisor. He is also often sought out informally for mentorship and career guidance by aspiring / junior practitioners.  He sits on the E&D and CSR Committees in Chambers.

Rhys Taylor

Rhys Taylor specialises in money and property disputes following family relationship breakdown. In the field of financial remedies, he has a noted and sought after specialism dealing with pensions on divorce. He is very well versed with cohabitant disputes or disputes involving third party rights in financial remedy cases. Rhys also has extensive experience dealing with complex assets, businesses and trust structures. Rhys is both an IFLA appointed arbitrator and mediator. He also offers Early Neutral Evaluation (private FDRs) for both financial remedy disputes and TOLATA disputes. Rhys sits as a Recorder in the Family Court. Rhys is a member of the Family Procedure Rule Committee. He is a contributing editor to the Family Court Practice (Red Book).  He is also the editor of the Financial Remedies Journal (Class). He is a co-author of the third edition of “Pensions on Divorce: A Practitioner’s Handbook” and a member of the Pension Advisory Group. Rhys lectures regularly on his areas of interest, including at the Judicial College on the subject of pensions on divorce.

Sabuhi Chaudhry

Sabuhi specialises in both financial remedy and private law children work. For Financial remedy, Sabuhi undertakes a broad spectrum of work dealing with finances on marital breakdown including issues concerning employed, self-employed and family businesses; cases involving a foreign element; debt; pre and post marital accruals and separation agreements; children with special needs and/or adults with medical needs and the impact of the same on finances. Sabuhi also deal with contested divorce or Nullity cases For Private Law Children cases, Sabuhi’s  practice includes  issues concerning serious domestic violence and complex fact finding cases; mental health; child special needs; cases concerning religious or cultural element; applications for internal and external relocation.

Vasanti Selvaratnam

Vasanti Selvaratnam KC is a senior Silk practising as Counsel and International Arbitrator within 36 Stone and joint head of Chambers of The 36 Group from 2018 to 2023. Her practice embraces all aspects of international commercial litigation and arbitration, including shipping (wet, dry and shipbuilding), commodities, banking and finance, conflict of law and jurisdiction disputes, all forms of interim urgent relief, including freezing orders and anti-suit injunctions, and civil fraud. She is particularly noted for her user friendly hands-on approach to cases and for her ability quickly to get to grips with disputes raising complex factual and technical issues which require a sound grasp of expert evidence and mastery of detail. As Counsel Clients include the major P&I clubs, shipowners, charterers and salvors as well as large commercial organisations involved in commercial court litigation or international commercial arbitration in non-shipping matters. Recent notable cases include; The Alexandra 1 (2021), the leading case in the Supreme Court on the scope of the Crossing Rule in the International Collision Regulations; Rubicon Vantage v KrisEnergy [2019] EWHC 2012 (Comm), the first reported case to consider a hybrid guarantee which is part "on demand" and part "see to it" and the role of the Marubeni principle in relation to construction of the scope of the "on demand" portion of the guarantee; Emirates Trading Agency LLC v PMEPL [2014] 2 Lloyd’s Rep 457, regarding friendly discussions clause a condition precedent to right to commence arbitration; she is appearing in the Supreme Court  in RTI v MUR, an important case on the meaning of reasonable endeavours in a force majeure clause in the context of sanctions against Russia and currency of payment. As Arbitrator: Vasanti Selvaratnam KC has significant experience of dispute resolution in both a judicial and quasi-judicial capacity. She was appointed a Recorder in 1999, is an accredited mediator, and receives regular appointments to act as an arbitrator across a wide range of industry sectors, including but not limited to shipping and international trade disputes. She accepts appointments under all the major industry rules, including LCIA, ICC, LMAA,  LOF, SCMA, SIAC, HKIAC and UNCITRAL  and has particular expertise in cases raising complex technical issues as well as novel or difficult points on assessment of damages. Recent arbitrations include; Chair of an LCIA Panel relation to disputes under contract relating to the sale of crude oil.  Chair of an ICC Panel relating to contractual disputes governed by Iraq law concerning removal of unexploded materials at Basrah port. Sole arbitrator in an UNCITRAL governed dispute relating to disputes under a guarantee (appointed by the LCIA). Co-arbitrator in an ICC India law governed and seated matter in the pharmaceutical sector. Numerous LOF appointments by Lloyds Salvage Arbitration Branch, including an ongoing matter which involves the largest LOF fund since records began. Numerous LMAA party appointments, including by well-known oil and commodity traders. Her expertise was acknowledged again when she was announced as the highest ranked member of the UK Bar to feature in ‘All About Shipping’s Top 100 women in shipping for 2019’; a list of remarkable women who have substantially contributed to the international maritime industry over the years. She has been shortlisted by Legal 500 as Shipping Silk of the Year 2023.