Barristers

Zoe O'Sullivan KC

Zoe O'Sullivan KC

Serle Court, London

Work Department

Arbitration, Banking, Financial Services, Civil Fraud, Commercial Litigation, Insurance and Reinsurance, Telecommunications and Company.

Position

Zoe O’Sullivan KC is a robust and experienced advocate who thrives on the challenges of oral advocacy and cross-examination.  She is recommended by Chambers UK Bar for Commercial Dispute Resolution, Banking & Finance and Information Technology. Zoe is also recommended in Dispute Resolution (The English Bar - United Arab Emirates) by Chambers Global.

Zoe is described in Chambers UK as “very easy to work with and very hands-on”, “very technically able” and “formidably bright”.  The Legal 500 says: “Zoe is - even by the standards of the commercial bar - highly intelligent and extremely diligent: she is seriously very hard-working. As a result she displays complete mastery of the documents and of the law. She is an extremely tough, but always fair and decent, opponent. A star silk for the future.”

Zoe’s commercial/Chancery practice spans a broad range including IT and outsourcing disputes, shareholder disputes/joint ventures, directors’ duties, banking and finance, civil fraud, oil and gas, and shipbuilding. She is highly experienced in jurisdiction issues and in key interim applications including freezing orders, anti-suit injunctions, and applications under section 44 of the Arbitration Act 1996.

Zoe is also ranked by the Legal 500 as a leading silk in international commercial arbitration.   She is regularly appointed as presiding, sole and co-arbitrator in claims proceeding under the LCIA, DIFC-LCIA, ICC and UNICTRAL rules.   She is on the List of Arbitrators of the HK IAC.

Zoe is registered in the DIFC and admitted to the Bar of the BVI.

Career

Year of Call: 1993; Year of Silk: 2015.

Languages

Zoe has a working knowledge of French and Spanish.

Memberships

Member of the Society for Computers and Law Adjudication Scheme Panel.

Education

Educated at Oxford University (1991 Congratulatory First in English, 3 University prizes), City University (1992 Distinction, Arbitrators’ Prize) and Inns of Court School of Law (1993 Very Competent).

Leisure

Interests: Classical Music, Argentine Tango, Medieval History, Ski-Ing. Fellow of Westminister Abbey Institute.

Mentions

London Bar

Banking and finance (including consumer credit)

Leading silk3
Zoe O’Sullivan KC – Serle Court ‘Zoe’s strengths are a combination of her incredible sharp mind and the speed at which she can deliver comprehensive, thought-through advice to issues as they arise. As an advocate, she has the gift of keeping the relevant adjudicator fully invested in her presentation.’
Middle East: The English Bar

Commercial

Leading silk1
Zoe O’Sullivan KC – Serle Court ‘Zoe is an excellent advocate. She gets up to speed quickly and is persuasive, cuts to the chase and is practical. The lay client is always really impressed with her work.’
London Bar

Commercial litigation

Leading silk4
Zoe O’Sullivan KC –Serle Court ‘Zoe enjoys getting stuck into the detail of the case and is able to grapple with a lot of technical detail. She gets to the nub of the legal and factual case very quickly and is clearly very experienced in the IT and telecoms sectors.'
London Bar

International arbitration: counsel

Leading silk4
Zoe O’Sullivan KC –Serle Court 'A very nice advocacy style and particularly gifted in putting very difficult arguments to best advantage.'