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07 February 2019 / Giles Tagg
Issue: 7827 / Categories: Features , Procedure & practice
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Ever been zugzwanged?

Chess masters & litigators have a lot in common as Giles Tagg reports

 

After the FIDE world chess championship which took place in London at the end of last year, I noticed how the strategems in chess and the terms of art involved feed directly into how one might think about litigation and, even, dispute resolution. The result? An A–Z of chess...as seen through the eyes of a litigator.

A is for attack: Traditionally white, which has the first move, is the attacking force making aggressive advances towards black. White is the claimant in litigation.

B is for blitz: Blitz chess is an extra-fast form of the game where both players have to make all their moves within a set time of ten minutes or less. This is chess as adjudication, where both sides have to act within a swift time-frame and unusual results can occur.

C is for checkmate: The end of the game where either white or black emerges

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Sharpe Pritchard—Victoria Heald-Barraclough

Sharpe Pritchard—Victoria Heald-Barraclough

Magic Circle hire strengthens Sharpe Pritchard’s infrastructure finance capability

Lewis Silkin—Iskander Fernandez

Lewis Silkin—Iskander Fernandez

Lewis Silkin adds corporate crime specialist to growing dispute resolution team

Morr & Co—Michael Charalambous

Morr & Co—Michael Charalambous

Morr Co strengthens private client team with partner appointment

NEWS
Should every solicitor found to have acted dishonestly face automatic striking off? The answer, argues John Gould, chair of Russell-Cooke LLP in NLJ this week, is no 
Winning an arbitral award against a state is one thing; enforcing it is another
Can government success in court tell us whether the rule of law is healthy? 
Poorly drafted dispute resolution clauses can trigger litigation before the real dispute is even addressed
As cryptocurrency becomes mainstream, family lawyers are increasingly confronting the challenges it creates on divorce
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