Date of Birth: 1971
Date of Call: 1994
General Information
Educated at Cranleigh School (1984-89) and then at St. Catherine's College, Oxford (1990-93) where he obtained a first class Honours degree in Jurisprudence and was awarded the Richards Butler Prize for International Trade. He was also awarded a Sir Thomas More Bursary and the Denning Scholarship by Lincoln's Inn. Jawdat has lectured in contract law at St. Catherine’s College, Oxford (1994-96).
Practice
Jawdat specialises in all aspects of commercial law, but with particular emphasis on insurance and reinsurance, banking and commercial fraud, international arbitration, professional negligence, shipping and international trade.
Jawdat is engaged primarily as an advocate, or as part of a team of advocates, in contentious litigation in court and in international arbitrations in the field of commercial law, but he is equally able and willing to be engaged in an advisory capacity. Jawdat operates a very ‘hands-on’ approach to his cases and is both accessible and ‘user-friendly’. He is recommended by The Legal 500 as a leading junior in the field of insurance and reinsurance.
Selected Cases
Jawdat has particular experience in preparing for and fighting lengthy commercial trials and arbitrations, with the need to focus on long-term tactical planning as well as the detail of particular issues. In this respect, Jawdat acted most recently on behalf of foreign investors in HSBC v 5th Avenue Partners & Others, commercial fraud proceedings before the Commercial Court in London by which the investors brought personal and proprietary claims against the perpetrator of the fraud and a major bank. Other large-scale disputes in which Jawdat has been involved include the following:
Grupo Torras -v- Pictet Bank, a claim before the Supreme Court of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas involving issues of banking and trust law, dishonest assistance and knowing receipt. Jawdat acted on behalf of the Bahamian subsidiaries of the Swiss private bank.
Oceanic Bank and Trust Limited -v- MJ Select Global Ltd, a claim before the Supreme Court of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas involving issues of banking, regulatory and company law as well as mutual fund management. Jawdat acted on behalf of the official liquidator of MJ Select, an international hedge fund.
Sun Life & Phoenix -v- Lincoln National, a claim in arbitration in London brought by insurers against whole account reinsurers in connection with a portfolio of accident and health business. Jawdat acted on behalf of Sun Life and Phoenix, having previously represented the same insurers in arbitrations proceedings against specific reinsurers. An appeal from this arbitration concerned with the question whether an award in arbitration between A and B is binding on B in an arbitration between B and C. The judgment of the Court of Appeal is reported at [2005] 1 Lloyd’s Rep 606.
The Gold Medal Arbitration, a claim in arbitration in Bermuda brought by the captive insurer of a large Minnesotan food producer against a Bermudian reinsurer in connection with the unlawful application of a pesticide in the US. The case involved questions, as a matter of Minnesotan law, as to the proper construction of the underlying insurance contract, physical loss and damage, and mitigation; as well as questions, as a matter of Bermudian law, as to the conduct of the captive insurer’s defence. Jawdat acted on behalf of the Bermudian reinsurer.
R+V Versicherung -v- RISK Insurance & Reinsurance, a commercial fraud claim before the Commercial Court in London brought by German reinsurers against certain insurance intermediaries. The issue in the case was whether a senior underwriter at the reinsurers conspired with the RISK companies to defraud the reinsurers by putting in place binding authorities that enabled the RISK companies to obtain large amounts of money by way of commission to the detriment of the reinsurers. Jawdat acted for the RISK companies.
Beazley -v- Horizon, a claim before the Commercial Court in London involving issues of misrepresentation, non-disclosure and unseaworthiness in connection with a policy of marine towage insurance. Jawdat acted for the US owners of the pipelay and bury barge Gulf Horizon. The anti-suit injection obtained by insurers at the outset of the case is reported at [2005] Lloyd's Rep IR 231.
Jawdat also acts in smaller-scale litigation in court and in arbitration. Examples include Commercial Court proceedings brought by assureds under policies of film finance insurance, London arbitration proceedings by Weavers’ pool members against their quota share reinsurers, and the following:
Commercial Court proceedings brought by an assured under a policy of contingency insurance against Lloyd’s and company insurers in connection with the cancellation of a cricket tournament between India and Pakistan. The issues in International Management Group -v- Simmonds [2003] EWHC 177 (Comm) included whether there was a breach of warranty, whether ‘rumours’ were material to be disclosed, and whether there was a non-disclosure to the following market of an unfair presentation to the leaders.
Various disputes as to jurisdiction and choice of law, including disputes in arbitrations conducted under the UNCITRAL and ICC Rules and a dispute before the Commercial Court in ESG -v- ACE as to the meaning and effect of the words “Norwegian Arbitration Clause” in the context of Article 17(4) of the Lugano Convention.
An application for a stay of Commercial Court proceedings under Section 9 of the Arbitration Act 1996. The application raised issues as to the formation of contract, incorporation of terms and the existence of arbitration agreement. The judgment of the Court of Appeal is now reported as Sun Life -v- CX Reinsurance [2004] Lloyd’s Rep. IR 58.
Earlier cases include:
CNA International Reinsurance & Others -v- Companhia de Seguros and Tranquilidade [1999] Lloyd’s Rep IR 289, [1999] CLC 140, a case concerning the cancellation of a concert by Placido Domingo in Lisbon due to the illness of the performer’s mother, in which reinsurers secured a favourable construction of a policy of contingency reinsurance against the largest insurance company in Portugal.
The State of the Netherlands -v- Youell and Hayward [1998] 1 Lloyd’s Rep. 236, [1997] 2 Lloyd’s Rep. 440, proceedings in the Commercial Court and the Court of Appeal concerning allegations of wilful misconduct by the shipyard and of a failure to sue and labour during the construction of two submarines within the meaning of sections 55(2) and 78(4) of the Marine Insurance Act 1906 respectively.
