London’s commercial courts have enjoyed a record year despite the approach of Brexit, with 1,012 litigants from 28 countries.
US, Russian, Kazakh and Ukrainian litigants were prominent across all 258 cases in 2018/19, according to the Commercial Courts Report, published by Portland Disputes specialist litigation consultants. The number of cases rose 63% on the previous year, and the number of litigants increased by 54%.
The figures are good news for London lawyers, who have expressed concern about other jurisdictions stealing London’s crown post-Brexit. They show that London remains the forum of choice, despite competition from courts such as Singapore International Commercial Court.
Philip Hall, head of Portland’s disputes practice, said: ‘The coming years will be interesting as courts in London and around the world adapt their offers to the changing demands of international businesses in dispute.’
