Tom joined Quadrant in October 2025, following the successful completion of pupillage, and is developing his practice across Chambers’ core areas.
Tom graduated with a First in Classics from the University of Oxford where he was awarded various prizes. He was then awarded the Lord Haldane and Lord Denning scholarships by Lincoln’s Inn to complete the GDL and Bar Course at City Law School, attaining Distinctions.
Prior to pupillage, Tom worked in the shipping department of an international law firm where he advised owners, charterers and P&I clubs on a range of shipping, arbitration and insurance matters.
During pupillage, Tom was exposed to a range of work across Chambers’ practice areas. Illustrative examples from his pupillage and practice are given below:
Shipping
Charterparties:
- 5-day LMAA arbitration concerning political unsafety due to detention under a time charterparty (led by Saira Paruk).
- 3-day LMAA arbitration concerning whether a condition precedent to a charterparty was satisfied (led by Nigel Cooper KC).
- Advising on the MARPOL sulphur content regulations for bunkers and their consequences under time charterparties.
- Advising and drafting submissions in relation to off-hire and detention disputes.
- Assisting (as a pupil) with the s.69 appeal in Bunge S.A. v Pan Ocean Co., Ltd (The “Sagar Ratan”) [2025] EWHC 193 (Admlty) concerning the interpretation of the BIMCO Infectious and Contagious Diseases Clause for Time Charter Parties 2015 and its application to COVID-19 port restrictions.
Bills of lading:
- London Arbitration: claims and counterclaims arising from the detention of a vessel due to sanctioned cargo and alleged unseaworthiness (led by Yash Kulkarni KC and Ben Gardner).
- Drafting pleadings and submissions in cargo claims, including for short and damaged delivery of soft commodities.
Salvage:
- LOF arbitration concerning a containership grounding, raising pollution management and engineering issues (led by Stewart Buckingham KC).
General Average:
- Tom is acting in multiple general average arbitrations following groundings of vessels.
Collisions:
- Tom has experience (as a pupil) drafting collision statements of case and advising on apportionment of liability.
Ship sale and purchase:
- Tom has experience (as a pupil) advising on ship sale and purchase agreements, including disputes as to the time and place of delivery.
Shipbuilding
- London arbitration: breach of warranty claim arising from substantial defects affecting a luxury new-build superyacht, involving detailed quantum expert evidence. A hearing was averted by late settlement (led by Nigel Cooper KC and Benjamin Joseph).
- Acting as sole counsel in a dispute regarding the alleged constructive total loss of a yacht due to an onboard explosion during repair works.
- Advising on a potential multi-million euro claim for defects affecting a new-build superyacht.
- Assisting (as a pupil) with a London arbitration following a fire onboard a ro-ro ferry resulting in a constructive total loss with extensive firefighting and quantum expert evidence.
Commodities
- Advising on indemnity claims under CIF sale contracts following late pre-payment and a refusal to load cargo (with John Russell KC).
- Drafting pleadings and submissions in cargo claims, including for short and damaged delivery of soft commodities.
- Assisting (as a pupil) with an advice on the recoverability of carrying charges incurred under an FOB sale contract from shipowners.
Insurance
- Defending a claim under a hull and machinery policy for losses suffered as a result of a defect in the hull of a superyacht, raising issues regarding the duty of fair presentation (with Chris Smith KC, hearing averted by settlement).
- Advising insurers on coverage under a hull and property policy for a yacht which sank at sea.
- Assisting (as a pupil) with written submissions on the nature and scope of P&I, war risks, and hull and machinery cover required under a bareboat charter.
- Co-editor of the Lexis PSL article “Marine Insurance – essentials” (assisting Nigel Cooper KC).
Aviation & Travel
- Tom has successfully defended EC 261 claims for flight cancellations and delays, including on the grounds of weather conditions constituting extraordinary circumstances.
Commercial Dispute Resolution
- Acting in a dispute involving allegations of deceit and unlawful means conspiracy in the context of a consortium agreement (led by Poonam Melwani KC and Caroline Pounds KC).
- Assisting (as a pupil) with a s.44 Arbitration Act 1996 application in O v C [2024] EWHC 2383 (Comm) for an order for the sale of a cargo of naphtha blocked under US Iranian sanctions. The application raised the question of when the Court will make an order which may require a party to breach foreign sanctions.
- Assisting (as a pupil) in a London arbitration concerning the validity of a settlement agreement raising issues of waiver and estoppel.
- Assisting (as a pupil) with an advice and written submissions on issue estoppel and Henderson v Henderson abuse of process.
- Assisting (as a pupil) with an application for security for costs involving the Crabtree principle.
- Tom has experience of contempt proceedings from his time working at an international law firm where he assisted with the successful contempt application in OCM Maritime Nile LLC v Courage Shipping Co [2024] EWHC 1226 (Comm).