Senior Practice Manager
Practice Manager
Assistant Practice Manager
James Bradford is a busy junior with a broad commercial chancery practice, which focuses on domestic and international commercial disputes, arbitration, trusts & offshore litigation.
He has a breadth of experience of very high-profile commercial litigation: he is regularly instructed in the Chancery Division and Commercial Court and has appeared (led) in the Court of Appeal, Supreme Court and Privy Council. He also has experience on matters relating to a number of different offshore jurisdictions including The Bahamas, Guernsey, Bermuda and the British Virgin Islands.
He is currently instructed in one of The Lawyer’s Top 20 Cases of 2024 (see here), the upcoming trial of which is described in the British media as the “trial of the century” (example link here). He has recently appeared (led) in an appeal to the Privy Council, at which he conducted part of the advocacy.
James is bilingual in Italian and a native speaker. As a barrister, he is regularly instructed in commercial matters involving Italian language and with Italian speaking clients. Previously, James has worked as a research assistant to leading Italian academics, Prof. Guido Alpa (La Sapienza Università di Roma) and Prof. Attila Tanzi (Università di Bologna).
He has extensive academic experience, particularly in contract law. Before joining the Bar, James taught law at Oxford University, teaching a number of subjects including contract law to undergraduate students across different colleges. Since starting his practice, James has conducted a series of training sessions with leading international law firms on the interpretation of guarantees and performance bonds, is also a contributing editor to Wilmot-Smith on Construction Contracts (4th Edn.) and has written widely on a range of topics.
James has a broad commercial practice across a range of different sectors, with a particular interest in matters involving complex questions of private international law and civil fraud. Alongside his trial work, James is very experienced advising and/or preparing a range of different procedural matters in the Chancery Division or Commercial Court.
He is regularly instructed in high profile commercial matters and is currently instructed in one of The Lawyer’s Top 20 Cases of 2024 (see here), the trial of which is described in the British media as the “trial of the century” (example link here). He also appeared (led) in an appeal at the Privy Council in April 2024.
Aside from the reported cases below, his commercial experience also includes:
James has a keen academic interest in commercial law more generally: for instance, he has given a number of training sessions to leading international law firms on developments in the performance bonds sector with Alexandra Bodnar (Keating Chambers) and has taken part in various panel discussions on the recent case law on trial witness statements in the Business & Property Courts of England & Wales following the introduction of CPR PD 57AC. He is also a contributing editor to Wilmot-Smith on Construction Contracts (4th Edn) and has edited the first chapter dealing with issues relating to contract formation. Prior to practising at the Bar, he taught (amongst other subjects) contract law to undergraduate students at the University of Oxford.
James has substantial experience of offshore and international work with ranked industry leaders. He has gained a broad range of experience of international trust litigation, is used to working on high-profile matters and is regularly instructed to advise or assist with matters involving different jurisdictions such as The Bahamas, Guernsey and Bermuda.
He has a particular interest in trust arbitrations and how they operate in different jurisdictions such as The Bahamas. Indeed, he has been instructed in one of the leading decisions in The Bahamas on the question of the scope and application of the Arbitration Act 2009 (The Bahamas) to trust arbitrations: Volpi v Delanson Services Ltd & others, 2020/APP/sts/00013 (click here for reported judgment).
Alongside his practical experience, he is a co-author of the Chancery Bar Association’s response to Law Commission Consultation Paper 257 which reviewed the Arbitration Act 1996 and advocated adapting the provisions of the legislative framework to facilitate trust arbitrations in England & Wales (see here for the full paper).
Reported cases and recent experience:
James has substantial experience of international arbitration matters, including both ad hoc and institutional arbitrations as well as associated appeals and challenges to the supervisory court. He has built up particular experience of matters relating to a number of different jurisdictions across Europe, the Middle East and offshore jurisdictions such as The Bahamas.
He has a particular interest in trust arbitrations and how they operate in different jurisdictions. James has practical experience of trust arbitration (see below) and has co-authored the Chancery Bar Association’s response to Law Commission Consultation Paper 257 which reviewed the Arbitration Act 1996 and advocated (amongst other things) adapting the provisions of the Arbitration Act 1996 to cater specifically for trust arbitrations (full paper here).
Recent experience includes:
James has a broad range of experience in trust litigation and regularly acts with ranked industry leaders. He has acted or is currently acting in a number of high-profile matters and is particularly experienced in advising trust protectors in relation to trust settlements in different jurisdictions. He is regularly instructed in litigation with leading practitioners in the field (including Andrew Holden, the author of “Holden on Trust Protectors”, one of the first specialist practitioners’ text on the subject).
James also has a particular interest in trust arbitrations and how they operate in different jurisdictions such as The Bahamas. Indeed, he has been instructed in one of the leading decisions in The Bahamas on the question of the scope and application of the Arbitration Act 2009 (The Bahamas) to trust arbitrations: Volpi v Delanson Services Ltd & others, 2020/APP/sts/00013 (click here for reported judgment).
James has been involved in a number of high-profile cases and has gained experience of matters involving complex questions of constitutional law and European Union law.
‘James is very clever, thorough, diligent, bright, and a delight to work with.’ The Legal 500 Caribbean – The English Bar Offshore (2024)
James is bilingual in Italian and a native speaker. As a barrister, he is regularly instructed in commercial matters involving Italian language and with Italian speaking clients. Additionally he speaks French to a high level.
Lincoln’s Inn
Law Faculty, Oxford University
Jesus College, Oxford University
Previous Employment
Research Assistance and Italian Experience
James is bilingual in Italian and has worked as a:
During 2012 – 2013, James went on an academic exchange to the Università degli Studi di Siena, Italy. He undertook courses in constitutional law, institutions of private law, European law and comparative public law. The subjects were taught and examined in Italian.
Volunteering and further experience
James has previously volunteered at Liberty (2015 – 2016) as an advice and information volunteer. This involved responding to clients and providing practical advice.
In January 2018, James was a member of the winning team from 39 Essex Chambers in the Worshipful Company of Arbitrators Mediation Skills Competition 2018.