Nichola Warrender

Inner Temple

Summary of Practice

• Shipping including charterparty disputes, carriage by sea, ship construction and repair, ship sale and purchase and ship mortgages.
• Insurance
• Commercial litigation
• Professional negligence
• Disputes in related areas including employment and personal injury.

Nichola Warrender has a broad practice adopting a modern and commercial approach to litigation.  She believes in combining an understanding of her clients' needs with meticulous preparation and effective presentation of her clients' cases. 

Nichola Warrender has been recommended as a leading junior in shipping in Chambers and Partners.

Shipping

Nichola Warrender has experience of a wide variety of shipping litigation.  She has been instructed in wet shipping collision actions and related quantum assessments and in a broad range of dry shipping cases in charterparty, bills of lading and cargo disputes (both dry and liquid cargoes), shipbuilding and ship repair disputes.  In the field of ship finance, she has been involved litigation arising from ship sale and purchase and ship mortgages including enforcements by arrest and sale. She has advised commercial entities, public authorities, harbour authorities and individuals as to their statutory and common law rights and duties with respect to shipping, pipeline and development projects including the availability of injunctive relief to protect their interests.  She also has experience of shipping formal investigations and public inquiries and shipping-associated commercial, employment and personal injury work.  

Examples of Cases

• Anton Durbeck GmbH v Den Norske Bank ASA: The Tropical Reefer [2006] 1 Lloyds Rep 93: whether mortgagee Bank liable to third party cargo owner for interfering with performance of bill of lading contracts by arresting vessel.
• International Oil Pollution Compensation Fund v Milford Haven Port Authority [2003] EWHC 1246: Sea Empress litigation, liability of port for oil spill and £50 million damages. 
• Formal Investigation and Non-Statutory Investigation [2000]: Marchioness/ Bowbelle formal investigation and non-statutory investigation.
• Owners of Paola v Owners of Mineral Venture: assessment of claims for damages arising out of a collision in the Singapore Straits including interim procedural applications arising from disclosure.
• OKI v Europa Horizons Ltd: claim and counterclaim under yacht sponsorship agreement to stage European yacht event.
• Caldwell Marine Transportation Inc v Roma Leasing SPA & others - claim arising from tug and tow (TOWCON).
• Product Transport Corp Ltd v Total Transport Corp: demurrage claim and related bill of lading claim for cargo contamination in Total International Limited v Product Transport Corp Ltd.
• Hyundai Merchant Marine Co v (1) Estuary Maritime Limited & (2) Southampton Cargo Handling Plc: setting aside default judgment in bill of lading claim.
• Hanjin Shipping v Owners of XP Manaslu: bill of lading claim following seawater damage to containers.
• Rowlands v Deacons & Northwinds SL: claim against shipyard for defective build of yacht and subsequent repair agreement.
• Wawryzniak & others v Blue Macedonia Shipping Company: The Athenian Fidelity: personal injuries and fatal accident claims following explosion on board vessel.
• Luter v ABP: personal injury claim arising from negligent design of pilot launch.

Examples of Arbitrations

Arbitrations have included the following:-
Charterparty disputes: claims under time, voyage and bareboat charters raising a variety of issues including disputes arising out defective condition of vessel on redelivery; hire and freight claims; laytime and demurrage claims; claims of wrongful termination and late redelivery; indemnity claims under the charterparty and/or the Inter-Club agreement; cargo, stevedore and vessel damage claims; performance claims.

Bill of lading disputes: cargo claims (containers and non-containerized cargo) arising from unseaworthiness, grounding, fire and contamination claims; title to sue issues; incorporation of Hague/ Hague-Visby rules and their applicability.

Ship sale and purchase disputes: claims arising from second-hand ship sale/purchase and construction of the Norwegian sale form.

Shipbuilding and repair disputes: claims against builder for defective barge and negligent repairs.

Commercial Litigation

Nichola Warrender has undertaken a broad range of commercial litigation. She has advised and appeared in cases concerning the international sale and carriage of goods, often involving conflicts of law and jurisdictional issues.  She also has experience in the field of domestic banking and commercial disputes including sale of goods, agency and distribution agreements. She has advised and appeared in a number of directors' disqualification proceedings in the Companies Court and also has acted in a range of insolvency actions including winding up petitions, disputed company insolvency and personal bankruptcy proceedings.  Nichola Warrender also has undertaken employment work at Tribunal and Court levels.

Professional Negligence

Nichola Warrender's experience in the field of professional negligence and liability is in disputes involving solicitors who have provided transaction and litigation services.   In this area she has also previously been involved in a large-scale civil fraud claim instructed on behalf of insurers to investigate and identify potential misappropriation of client and beneficiary monies.  Nichola Warrender also has some experience of professional negligence against healthcare providers.

Other Bar Memberships
Called to NY State Bar October 2008

Publications
Contributor to Butterworths "Commercial Court & Arbitration Pleadings."

Contributor to LMAA newsletter summary of arbitrations