Full Profile
Will is a Special Counsel within the Energy, Marine and Natural Resources group. He trained at Clyde & Co and worked as an Associate in London before relocating to Melbourne in 2021.
Will's practice focuses on advising commodity traders, mining companies, insurers, banks, shipowners and charterers on contentious issues relating to the production, trading and transportation of commodities. He acts for a range of clients across the APAC region. Most of his matters are, by their nature, cross-border and multiparty. He handles disputes arising from international sale contracts, offtake agreements, charterparties, bills of lading and letters of credit. He also advises on non-contentious and transactional issues, and has experience in oil and gas, shipbuilding and sanctions.
Will has acted as the lead associate in several cases in the Federal Court of Australia and the High Court in London. He has experience of domestic and international arbitration in various forums, including LMAA, LCIA and ICC. He has also represented clients at mediations.
Will has gained significant sector expertise from three client secondments: he has worked within legal teams at a commodity trader based in London, an oil trader based in Geneva, and a mining company based in Australia. He has also spent six months working for Clyde & Co’s Marine team in Hong Kong.
Experience
- UIL (Singapore) Pte Ltd v Wollongong Coal Ltd (FCA): Acting for the applicant in ongoing proceedings in the Federal Court of Australia arising from a dispute concerning two coal offtake agreements.
- Vitol SA v Beta Renowable Group SA, 2017: Acting for the successful claimant in proceedings arising out of the non-delivery of a cargo of biofuel and related hedging losses.
- Acting for one of the world's leading commodity traders in ICC arbitration proceedings arising out of a storage and throughput agreement for a port in Eastern Europe.
- Acting for a shipowner in a multiparty dispute against oil majors arising out of the breakdown of a vessel's engine, which exposed the shipowner to liabilities under a chain of charterparties and a term supply contract. The dispute was settled following 15-hour mediation.
- Acting for a P&I Club in connection with the c.US$300 million "Alpine Eternity" claim, which involved complex issues relating to US sanctions.
- Acting for a P&I Club in a dispute arising from the inability of a vessel to berth and discharge its cargo in China for over 6 months due to an unofficial ban on discharging Australian coal in China.
- Acting for a renowned tanker company in an arbitration concerning the construction of a profit-share clause in a charterparty. The claim was defended successfully.
- Acting for a Greek ship-management company in a complex and fast-moving arbitration against the Greek owner of the managed fleet of vessels.
