Calum Mulderrig

Calum Mulderrig

Call: 2019

"3 Verulam Buildings is first-class."

- Chambers & Partners UK Bar (2022)

“The set boasts some of the strongest practitioners in the market.”

- Chambers & Partners UK Bar (2022)

Practice Overview

Calum maintains a broad commercial litigation and arbitration practice encompassing civil fraud, banking, cryptoasset and finance disputes, investment treaty arbitration, and disputes involving complex conflict of laws issues.

Calum has appeared unled in the High Court, both the Commercial Court and the Chancery Division, as well as appearing regularly in the County Courts and before the courts of the DIFC. In addition, Calum has broad experience before international arbitration tribunals, including ICSID, the PCA, the LCIA and the ICC Court.

Examples of Current and Recent Matters:

  • Currently acting for investors bringing claims under s. 90A FSMA 2000 for the publication of misleading information by two publicly listed companies (led by Andrew Onslow KC), including successfully opposing a strike out of certain aspects of those claims: Allianz Global Investors GmbH & Ors v G4S Ltd [2022] EWHC 1081 (Ch).
  • Currently acting for a large retail bank defending separate claims brought by customers for alleged breaches of account terms and conditions (unled).
  • Currently acting in contempt proceedings before the DIFC Courts (unled).
  • Currently acting for a middle-eastern State in defence of proceedings brought by an investor under the OIC Agreement before the ICC Court (led by Christopher Harris KC).
  • Currently acting for an individual before the DIFC Court of Appeal seeking to overturn a finding of fraud (led by Rajesh Pillai KC).
  • Recently acted for a large offshore trust successfully defending breach of contract claims in relation to pension entitlements and succeeding in a counterclaim (led by Jonathan Nash KC): Davies v Novatrust Ltd [2023] EWHC 1196 (Ch).
  • Recently obtained a USD 100 million award for a claimant arising out of a breach by an insurer to honour the terms of a political risk insurance policy (led by Christopher Harris KC).

Prior to transferring to the Bar, Calum trained as a solicitor in London and Dubai with Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP and practised as an associate solicitor in London with Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan UK LLP. He holds law degrees from the University of Cambridge and the University of Oxford and was awarded scholarships at both.

  • Representing an East African State in its defence of breach of contract claims brought by a foreign investor in UNCITRAL proceedings (as a pupil).
  • Acting for a telecoms company in ICC proceedings in defence of claims for breach of contract brought for non-payment of telecoms services agreements (as a pupil).
  • Opposing enforcement in the High Court of a judgment obtained in the DIFC courts by a UAE state entity (as a pupil).
  • Challenging the LCIA’s jurisdiction to hear claims brought against a bank (led by Rajesh Pillai QC).
  • Acting for a Nigerian energy company in opposition to the enforcement of a judgment obtained in the Nigerian courts (as a pupil).
  • Representing a publicly listed company in a billion-dollar LCIA arbitration for breach of a litigation cooperation covenant (as an Associate at QE).
  • Acting for claimants in ad hoc and AFSA proceedings in Tanzania and South Africa on challenges to jurisdiction (as an Associate at QE).
  • Assisting on an ICSID arbitration against Venezuela (Vestey Group Ltd v. Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, ICSID Case No. ARB/06/4) (as a trainee solicitor at Freshfields)
  • Acting for a bank in its enforcement of guarantee covenants against a former director of a large oil refinery before the LCIA (as a pupil).
  • Successfully acting for a bank before the High Court seeking recognition of its rights under an ISDA Master Agreement (BNPP Paribas SA v Trattamento Rifiuti Metropolitani SpA [2020] EWHC 2436 (Comm)) as a pupil led by Adrian Beltrami QC and Christopher Bond).
  • Acting for institutional investors in claims against a bank for misrepresentation under s 90 FSMA, based on the mis-stated financial position of the bank in its rights issue prospectus (RBS Rights Issue Litigation) (as an Associate at QE)
  • Representing a limited company in fraud and misappropriation claims against previous directors of the company (as a pupil).
  • Acting for the joint administrators of a classic car company in their claims against the former director and owner (JD Classics Limited (in administration) v Derek Hood) (as an Associate at QE).
  • Representing the joint administrators in a civil fraud case in the High Court (BTA Bank v Ablyazov) (as a trainee at Freshfields).
  • Currently acting for an individual bringing claims against an educational trust for breach of a settlement agreement (unled).
  • Opposing applications for pre-action disclosure and third party disclosure (unled).
  • Defending committal proceedings for breach of a freezing injunction (led by Farhaz Khan).
  • Advising a pop group in an application to the Court of Appeal on questions of contractual interpretation and intellectual property right protection (as an Associate at QE).
  • Representing the joint administrators in a civil fraud case in the High Court (BTA Bank v Ablyazov) (as a trainee at Freshfields).
  • Working in a team defending Sotheby’s against claims of negligently mis-selling an alleged Caravaggio painting in the High Court (Thwaytes v Sotheby’s) (as a trainee solicitor at Freshfields)
  • Representing a biotechnology company in its claims against former employees for breach of confidence and misappropriation of confidential and proprietary information in the High Court (Invista Textiles UK Ltd v Botes [2019] EWHC 58 (Ch)).
  • Acting for the joint administrators of a classic car company in their Insolvency Act claims against the former director and owner (JD Classics Limited (in administration) v Derek Hood) (as an Associate at QE).
  • Challenging the LCIA’s jurisdiction to hear claims for declaratory relief brought against an investment bank (led by Rajesh Pillai QC).
  • Obtaining declaratory relief of effective service of a claim before the High Court (as a pupil).
  • Representing a mining company in a jurisdiction dispute in the courts of Tanzania and related arbitration proceedings (as an Associate at QE)
  • Representing an oil and gas company in LCIA proceedings for breach of a shareholder agreement by its joint venture partner (as an Associate at QE).
  • Representing a Tanzanian mining company in claims under a services agreement in local and international arbitration proceedings (as an Associate at QE).
  • Representing an oil and gas consortium in its claims against the Kurdistan Government in an LCIA arbitration (as a trainee solicitor at Freshfields in Dubai)
  • Advising a publicly listed company on its defence to prospective claims under articles 101 and 102 TFEU (as an Associate at QE).
  • Representing an EU-wide cartel against follow-on damages claims (as a trainee solicitor at Freshfields)
  • Working in a team defending Sotheby’s against claims of negligently mis-selling an alleged Caravaggio painting in the High Court (Thwaytes v Sotheby’s) (as a trainee solicitor at Freshfields).
  • Advising a pop group in an application to the Court of Appeal on questions of contractual interpretation and intellectual property right protection (as an Associate at QE)
  • Representing an investment bank in unfair dismissal claims before the DIFC Court of Appeal (as a pupil).
  • Defending a committal application in the DIFC Court (led by Farhaz Khan).
  • Acting for a private equity house in professional negligence claims against its statutory auditors (as an Associate at QE).
  • Advising administrators in claims against statutory auditors for negligence in audit practice (as an Associate at QE).
  • Advising a pop group on potential professional negligence claims against former advisors (as an Associate at QE).
  • Representing an East African State in its defence of breach of contract claims brought by a foreign investor in UNCITRAL proceedings (as a pupil).
  • Assisting on an ICSID arbitration against Venezuela (Vestey Group Ltd v. Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, ICSID Case No. ARB/06/4) (as a trainee solicitor at Freshfields)
  • Assisting on an internal investigation at an investment bank regarding breaches of the FCA code of conduct (as a trainee solicitor at Freshfields).
  • Spanish (fluent)
  • French (reading)
  • Italian (reading)
Winner: UK Bar Awards 2023
The Lawyer Awards 2022: Chambers of the Year