General Commercial Litigation and Arbitration

Craig acts in all areas of commercial litigation and arbitration. Examples of cases in which he has been instructed include:

• Palmali Shipping SA v. Litasco SA [2025] EWHC 1149 (Comm) – Craig acted for the successful Defendant (and counterclaimant) in a long-running dispute involving the enforceability of a Contract of Affreightment providing for the shipment of millions of tonnes of oil in the Black Sea and Russia’s inland waterways. Palmali sought damages of c.USD 200 million, while Litasco counterclaimed for c.USD 15 million. In the course of a six week trial Litasco successfully established that Palmali’s claim had been pursued by Palmali on a dishonest basis, and that the contract had (in any case) never been intended to be binding. Palmali’s claim was dismissed in its entirety and Litasco’s counterclaim succeeded in full.
• Thurrock Borough Council v. Kavanagh (2025, ongoing) – Craig leads for Thurrock in a high profile fraud claim arising out of the alleged misappropraition, by Mr Liam Kavanagh, of c.£150 million of funds invested by Thurrock in bonds linked to solar energy. The claim has received extensive press coverage and involves allegations of deceit, unlawful means conspiracy and breach of trust.
• IPJSC United Company Rusal v. Whiteleave Holdings Limited and Vladimir Potanin (2025, ongoing) – Craig acts for the Defendants in a very substantial dispute arising out of the ownership and management of Norilsk Nickel, the world’s largest nickel mining company. The dispute involves allegations of fraud on both sides, and a counterclaim by the Defendants alleging that Rusal was complicit in the hacking of their confidential data. A 14 week trial has been listed for 2027.
• Municipio de Mariana v. Instituto Brasileiro de Mineracao (“IBRAM”) (2025, ongoing) – Craig leads for IBRAM, a trade association representing the mining industry in Brazil, in an ongoing dispute with dozens of Brazilian municipalities arising from the collapse of a major dam in Brazil. The municipalities sought an ex parte injunction to prevent IBRAM from pursuing an action before the Brazilian Constitutional Court, which IBRAM now seeks to challenge. The case raises complex questions arising from the potential conflict between English anti-suit injunctions and constitutional rights in a foreign jursidiction
• MCCF (UK) Ltd v. British Polythene Industries Ltd (2024) – Craig led for the Claimant in a dispute arising from an unpaid ‘success fee’, alleged to be due as a result of the Claimant’s efforts to procure a sale of BPI (then a public company). The case settled shortly after oral closings, following a three week trial in which Craig cross-examined all the former leading executives of BPI over several days.
• BlackBerry Limited v. Optiemus Infracom Limited (2025, ongoing) – Craig leads for the Claimant, BlackBerry, in a claim for USD 10 million+ arising from breaches of a Master Licensing and Services Agreement, by which BlackBerry provided the technology for mobile phone handsets in India.
• Societe Africaine de Raffinage v Savannah SA [2024] EWHC 590 (Comm) – Craig led for the Claimant, the national oil company of Senegal, in a dispute arising from the sale of several cargoes of oil. Craig’s client alleged that the Defendant (a Swiss trading company) had misappropriated its cargoes, and that it had sought to defend the claim on a false basis.. During the pre-action stages it emerged that the Defendant’s General Counsel, who had sent key emails, did not exist: they were a fictional persona created by the Defendant’s CEO. The claim ultimately settled minutes before the Claimant’s summary judgment application was due to be heard.
• Toucan Energy Holdings Ltd v. Wirsol Energy Limited [2021] EWHC 895 (Comm) – Craig led for Wirsol in a long-running £40m dispute, arising out of the construction and maintenance of a large number of industrial-scale solar parks. Craig acted unled in the five week trial in the Commercial Court in October-November 2020, cross-examining numerous factual and expert witnesses. Wirsol succeeded in defending the claims against it and succeeded on its counterclaim, making a very substantial net recovery.
• The Ingenious Litigation – Craig acted for the principal Defendants in the Ingenious Litigation, a £200 million claim arising out of the marketing and operation of film production partnerships between 2002 and 2007. The dispute resulted in numerous High Court judgments, and a prominent recent decision in the Court of Appeal considering applications for security for costs against commercial funders ([2021] EWCA Civ 29).
• Minister of Finance (Inc) v. International Petroleum Investment Co [2019] EWCA Civ 2080; [2021] EWHC (Comm) 2949 – Craig has acted for several years for entities based in Abu Dhabi, in a dispute arising out of the notorious “1MDB” fraud. Craig appeared in the Court of Appeal and High Court in several hearings which raised important issues regarding the scope of a party’s right to challenge an arbitration award under ss.67-68 of the Arbitration Act 1996.
• Al Sadeq v. Dechert LLP and Quzmar v. Dechert LLP [2021] EWHC 1149 (QB) – Craig acted for the Defendants in two sets of claims arising out of a fraud investigation in the United Arab Emirates, which the Claimants allege were conducted in breach of UAE law. Craig appeared unled at numerous substantial interlocutory hearings in both sets of proceedings.
• Craig acted (unled) for a well-known telecommunications company in an international arbitration, in a dispute arising from a South East Asian joint venture. Following an LCIA trial Craig’s client was successful on all points.
• Leidos Inc v. Hellenic Republic [2019] EWHC 2738 – Craig acted unled for the state of Greece in its dispute with Leidos Inc, arising out of an attempt to enforce an arbitration award. The case raised important issues regarding the scope of the New York Convention, with Jacobs J upholding Greece’s argument that Leidos had failed to disclose an arguable defence to enforcement under the NY Convention when it made an ex parte application to enforce in England.
• Libyan Investment Authority v. Societe Generale – Craig acted for the LIA in its $1.5 billion claim against SocGen. The LIA sought damages arising out of transactions allegedly procured by fraud and bribery, including via links with the former Gaddafi regime. The case settled on the eve of trial, with SocGen paying a settlement of over $1 billion and apologising to the LIA.

Civil fraud 

Many of Craig’s cases involve serious allegations of fraud, and he regularly acts for both successful Claimants and Defendants. His cases include:

• Palmali Shipping SA v. Litasco SA [2025] EWHC 1149 (Comm) – Craig acted for the successful Defendant (and counterclaimant) in a long-running dispute involving the enforceability of a Contract of Affreightment providing for the shipment of millions of tonnes of oil in the Black Sea and Russia’s inland waterways. Palmali sought damages of c.USD 200 million, while Litasco counterclaimed for c.USD 15 million. In the course of a six week trial Litasco successfully established that Palmali’s claim had been pursued by Palmali on a dishonest basis, and that the contract had (in any case) never been intended to be binding. Palmali’s claim was dismissed in its entirety and Litasco’s counterclaim succeeded in full.
• Thurrock Borough Council v. Kavanagh (2025, ongoing) – Craig leads for Thurrock in a high profile fraud claim arising out of the alleged misappropraition, by Mr Liam Kavanagh, of c.£150 million of funds invested by Thurrock in bonds linked to solar energy. The claim has received extensive press coverage and involves allegations of deceit, unlawful means conspiracy and breach of trust.
• IPJSC United Company Rusal v. Whiteleave Holdings Limited and Vladimir Potanin (2025, ongoing) – Craig acts for the Defendants in a very substantial dispute arising out of the ownership and management of Norilsk Nickel, the world’s largest nickel mining company. The dispute involves allegations of fraud on both sides, and a counterclaim by the Defendants alleging that Rusal was complicit in the hacking of their confidential data. A 14 week trial has been listed for 2027.
• Societe Africaine de Raffinage v Savannah SA [2024] EWHC 590 (Comm) – Craig led for the Claimant, the national oil company of Senegal, in a dispute arising from the sale of several cargoes of oil. Craig’s client alleged that the Defendant (a Swiss trading company) had misappropriated its cargoes, and that it had sought to defend the claim on a false basis. During the pre-action stages it emerged that the Defendant’s General Counsel, who had sent key emails, did not exist: they were a fictional persona created by the Defendant’s CEO. The claim ultimately settled minutes before the Claimant’s summary judgment application was due to be heard.
• The Ingenious Litigation – Craig acted for the principal Defendants in the Ingenious Litigation, a £200 million claim arising out of the marketing and operation of film production partnerships between 2002 and 2007, in which the Claimants advanced extensive allegations of fraud and deceit. The dispute resulted in numerous High Court judgments, and a prominent recent decision in the Court of Appeal considering applications for security for costs against commercial funders ([2021] EWCA Civ 29).
• Minister of Finance (Inc) v. International Petroleum Investment Co [2019] EWCA Civ 2080; [2021] EWHC (Comm) 2949 – Craig has acted for several years for entities based in Abu Dhabi, in a dispute arising out of the notorious “1MDB” fraud. Craig appeared in the Court of Appeal and High Court in several hearings which raised important issues regarding the scope of a party’s right to challenge an arbitration award under ss.67-68 of the Arbitration Act 1996.
• Al Sadeq v. Dechert LLP and Quzmar v. Dechert LLP [2021] EWHC 1149 (QB) – Craig acted for the Defendants in two sets of claims arising out of a fraud investigation in the United Arab Emirates, which the Claimants allege were conducted in breach of UAE law. Craig appeared unled at numerous substantial interlocutory hearings in both sets of proceedings.
• Libyan Investment Authority v. Societe Generale – Craig acted for the LIA in its $1.5 billion claim against SocGen. The LIA sought damages arising out of transactions allegedly procured by fraud and bribery, including via links with the former Gaddafi regime. The case settled on the eve of trial, with SocGen paying a settlement of over $1 billion and apologising to the LIA.

 Breach of confidence, hacking and breaches of data rights

• Azima v. Dechert LLP [2023] EWCA Civ 507, [2023] EWHC 1923 (Ch), [2023] EWHC 2108 (Ch) – Craig acted for the Defendant in numerous hearings in the High Court and Court of Appeal in a claim raising serious allegations of alleged hacking, involving a former partner of the Defendant and a sovereign wealth fund in the UAE. The dispute ultimately settled shortly before trial.
• IPJSC United Company Rusal v. Whiteleave Holdings Limited and Vladimir Potanin (2025, ongoing) – Craig acts for the Defendants in a very substantial dispute arising out of the ownership and management of Norilsk Nickel, the world’s largest nickel mining company. The dispute involves allegations of fraud on both sides, and a counterclaim by the Defendants alleging that Rusal was complicit in the hacking of their confidential data. A 14 week trial has been listed for 2027.
• IBM UK Ltd v. LZLabs GmbH [2023] EWHC 2072 (TCC), [2025] EWHC 532 (TCC) – Craig acted for IBM in a dispute arising out of the attempt by the Defendant to develop a ‘software’ based alternative to IBM’s mainframe product. IBM successfully alleged that this software was developed as a result of reverse-engineering its own mainframes, giving rise to serious breaches of contract. IBM also established its claim for an unlawful means conspiracy between the corporate Defendants and their ultimate beneficial owner.
• Education Software Solutions Limited v. Capita Plc (2023) – Craig led for the Claimant in a claim for breach of contract and breach of copyright arising from the Defendant’s alleged misuse of the Claimant’s school information management software. The software was the leading product used in the United Kingdom, and the dispute raised particular issues regarding usage in Northern Ireland, ultimately resulting in the Northern Irish government intervening in the trial. The case was listed for a three week trial, and settled shortly after oral openings.
• The Racing Partnership v. Sports Information Services [2019] 3 WLR 779, [2021] Ch. 233 – Craig acted for Sports Information Services in its dispute with The Racing Partnership, a leading case on confidentiality and data rights arising from sporting events. The case has led to wide-ranging judgments from Zacaroli J and the Court of Appeal that considered important issues in the law of conspiracy, breach of confidence and copyright. The case settled shortly before a three day Supreme Court hearing.

Craig has been instructed in a significant number of cases involving energy or resource disputes in recent years. These include:

• IPJSC United Company Rusal v. Whiteleave Holdings Limited and Vladimir Potanin (2025, ongoing) – Craig acts for the Defendants in a very substantial dispute arising out of the ownership and management of Norilsk Nickel, the world’s largest nickel mining company. The dispute involves allegations of fraud on both sides, and a counterclaim by the Defendants alleging that Rusal was complicit in the hacking of their confidential data. A 14 week trial has been listed for 2027.
• Palmali Shipping SA v. Litasco SA [2025] EWHC 1149 (Comm) – Craig acted for the successful Defendant (and counterclaimant) in a long-running dispute involving the enforceability of a Contract of Affreightment providing for the shipment of millions of tonnes of oil in the Black Sea and Russia’s inland waterways. Palmali sought damages of c.USD 200 million, while Litasco counterclaimed for c.USD 15 million. In the course of a six week trial Litasco successfully established that Palmali’s claim had been pursued by Palmali on a dishonest basis, and that the contract had (in any case) never been intended to be binding. Palmali’s claim was dismissed in its entirety and Litasco’s counterclaim succeeded in full.
• Municipio de Mariana v. Instituto Brasileiro de Mineracao (“IBRAM”) (2025, ongoing) – Craig leads for IBRAM, a trade association representing the mining industry in Brazil, in an ongoing dispute with dozens of Brazilian municipalities arising from the collapse of a major dam in Brazil. The municipalities sought an ex parte injunction to prevent IBRAM from pursuing an action before the Brazilian Constitutional Court, which IBRAM now seeks to challenge. The case raises complex questions arising from the potential conflict between English anti-suit injunctions and constitutional rights in a foreign jursidiction.
• Toucan Energy Holdings Ltd v. Wirsol Energy Limited [2021] EWHC 895 (Comm) – Craig led for Wirsol in a long-running £40m dispute, arising out of the construction and maintenance of a large number of industrial-scale solar parks. Craig acted unled in the five week trial in the Commercial Court in October-November 2020, cross-examining numerous factual and expert witnesses. Wirsol succeeded in defending the claims against it and succeeded on its counterclaim, making a very substantial net recovery.

Craig has acted in numerous cases in the sports industry, often involving hard-fought rights disputes. Examples include:

• The Racing Partnership v. Sports Information Services [2019] 3 WLR 779, [2021] Ch. 233 – Craig acted for Sports Information Services in its dispute with The Racing Partnership, a leading case on confidentiality and data rights arising from sporting events. The case has led to wide-ranging judgments from Zacaroli J and the Court of Appeal that considered important issues in the law of conspiracy, breach of confidence and copyright. The case settled shortly before a three day Supreme Court hearing.
• Coupang Corp v. DAZN Limited (2025, Court of Appeal) – Craig acted for the successful Claimant, Coupang Corp, on an expedited appeal arising from a dispute over the rights to broadcast the FIFA Club World Cup in South Korea. Craig’s client established that DAZN had entered into a binding agreement to license the relevant rights, and that the High Court had been correct to grant orders for specific performance and (separately) to injunct DAZN from taking steps that would amount to a breach of the agreement. The appeal was listed on approximately 10 days’ notice, as the start of the Club World Cup was only days away.
• PT Services Malta Limited v. Caliplay (2024) – Craig acted for Caliplay, Mexico’s leading online betting company, in a dispute arising from the licensing of the IT techonology used in Caliplay’s platform. The dispute involved a substantial claim for breach of contract and threats of an injunction to prevent PT from restricting the functionality of Caliplay’s platform.
• Craig is acting for a leading boxing promoter in an ongoing complex rights dispute, involving contractual and competition law issues across multiple jurisdictions.

Education

2003-2006         B.A., Cambridge University (First Class, top first in the year)

2006-2007         LL.M., Cambridge University (First Class)

2007-2008         Supervisor in Commercial Law, Cambridge University

2007-2008         BVC, BPP Law School (Outstanding)

2008-2009         LL.M., Harvard University

2009-2010         Pupillage, Brick Court Chambers

2023                  Appointed King's Counsel

Scholarships and Prizes

UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE

Slaughter and May Prize (for the top first in the year in Part II)

Norton Rose Prize (for the top first in Commercial Law)

Gareth Jones Prize (for the top first in the Law of Restitution)

James William Squire Scholarship

ST. JOHN’S COLLEGE, UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE

The Winfield, Wright, Hughes and Malcolm Prizes

Prior Scholarship

MIDDLE TEMPLE

Winner of the Rosamund Smith Mooting Competition

Ede & Ravenscroft Prize (for speaking performance in the Rosamund Smith Competition final)

Certificate of Honour (for outstanding performance on the BVC)

Astbury Scholarship

Professional Memberships

Combar

South-Eastern Circuit

• "Craig is excellent. He's extremely clever and thoughtful, a pleasure to work with, a team player, and I expect him to become an outstanding silk." (Chambers & Partners 2025)
• "He is a super silk in the making – clever, diligent and commercial." (Chambers & Partners 2025)
• "Craig is impressively phenomenal on every call, yet wears it so lightly. He is so lovely to work with and just absolutely wonderful." (Chambers & Partners 2025)
• "Craig is extremely clever, thoughtful and a pleasure to work with." (Chambers & Partners 2025)
• "Craig is a pleasure to work with. His enormous intellect coupled with a great client manner makes him an asset to any team." (Chambers & Partners 2025)
• "Craig is clever, diligent and commercial." (Chambers & Partners 2025)
• "Extremely clever, thoughtful, a pleasure to work with and a great team player." (Chambers & Partners 2025)
• "He is personable and provides a brilliant level of service." (Chambers & Partners 2025)
• "Craig combines forensic attention to detail with a very relaxed and user-friendly manner. He will soon be one of the go-to barristers for banking and fraud work and is years ahead of his time." (Legal 500 2025)
• "Truly excellent - academic but also user-friendly and practical. Works exceptionally hard to get the right outcome for clients." (Legal 500 2025)
• "He is an assured, eloquent and persuasive advocate." (Legal 500 2025)
• "You want Craig Morrison on every team. He is the most incredible advocate, writer and general team player." (Chambers & Partners 2024)
• "Craig was the engine room of the case." (Chambers & Partners 2024)
• "Craig Morrison is a real intellectual powerhouse. He is able to identify issues and master huge amounts of information very quickly." (Chambers & Partners 2024)
• "His advocacy is very smooth and he really knows how to handle strategic decisions." (Chambers & Partners 2024)
• "He is very bright, calm and measured in how he thinks about things." (Chambers & Partners 2024)
• "He is a machine with the capacity of a computer but also a very smooth advocate. Craig Morrison provides the stardust."
• "He's bright, calm and very measured in how he thinks about things." (Chambers & Partners 2024)
• "Craig Morrison has phenomenal brain and thinking power. He is incredibly user-friendly and well liked by clients and solicitors." (Chambers & Partners 2024)
• "He's able to identify issues and grasp the huge amount of complex information very quickly." (Chambers & Partners 2024)
• "A legendary work ethic combined with a real joy and passion for the law – the perfect combination." (Legal 500 2024)
• "A first-rate legal mind who spots the key issues and is able to summarise them succinctly for courts and clients." (Legal 500 2024)
• "Highly responsive, very smart, and very quick to get to the point." (Legal 500 2024)
• "Craig is an absolute superstar. His work ethic is incredible, he is responsive and user-friendly and provides high-quality work and analysis." "He is positive, polite and responsive even when extremely busy. Nothing is ever too much trouble for him." "He is clever and analytical." (Chambers & Partners 2023)
• "Craig is very hard-working and responsive and highly commercial in his approach." "He produces high-quality work and analysis." "A Trojan work ethic and perfectly calibrated judgement combine in an incredibly user-friendly package." (Chambers & Partners 2023)
• "Craig Morrison's work ethic is incredible. He is responsive and user-friendly and both his work and analysis are high quality." (Chambers & Partners 2023)
• "A legendary work ethic combined with a real joy and passion for the law – the perfect combination." (Legal 500 2023)
• "Craig is a genuine superstar: monstrously clever and extremely hard-working while remaining very pleasant to deal with. He easily wins the trust of instructing solicitors and clients and is a go-to barrister for any complex commercial dispute. Always in demand." (Legal 500 2023)
• "From pupillage onwards, Craig has been on a stellar trajectory. A leading junior will surely be a leading silk soon." (Legal 500 2023)
• "Has an outstanding intellect and couples it with being a delightful person to work with. He is a future star." (Chambers & Partners 2022)
• "He is very responsive, easy to work with and works well with the team at all levels." "He has fearsome intellect, Trojan work ethic and perfectly calibrated judgement combined in an incredibly user-friendly package." (Chambers & Partners 2022)
• "Craig is super clever and on top of that he is an absolute delight to work with." (Legal 500 2022)
• "An exceptional junior – one of solicitors’ all time favourites. He has a very rare mix of qualities in that he is extremely clever, but also understands the client’s commercial reality and is a really fantastic team player." (Legal 500 2022)
• "He brings a level of supreme brightness but also supreme niceness; he's always easy to deal with." "Craig is astounding. His appetite for work is simply phenomenal." (Chambers & Partners 2021)
• "Very clever, diligent and easy to work with." "He is really outstanding: he is responsive, he writes well, he is clever, he knows the law really well and he has good judgement." (Chambers & Partners 2021)
• "Absolutely inexhaustible, a total super star." (Legal 500 2021)
• "He’s absolutely outstanding, and manages to combine it with being an absolute joy to work with." (Legal 500 2021)
• Craig Morrison is both “very clever and very easy to work with” and impresses clients and peers alike with his “hardworking and excellent team skills”. (Who's Who Legal - UK Bar: Banking & Finance 2020)
• "He has a razor-sharp brain and is incredibly courteous and charming - he's the complete package." "Craig thinks in a beautifully structured way and invariably has the right answer."  (Chambers & Partners 2020)
• "Extraordinarily smart and can master an enormous volume of documentation." "He's very clever and diligent, and he sees points that others don't necessarily see." (Chambers & Partners UK & Global 2020)
• "A superb junior and an up-and-coming star." (The Legal 500 2020)
• "A great advocate, excellent technical lawyer, and a great team member." (The Legal 500 2020)
• Craig Morrison has “outstanding intellect” and is described by peers as “one of the very cleverest juniors at the bar” when it comes to banking and finance disputes. (Who's Who Legal - UK Bar: Banking & Finance 2019)
• "Morrison combines a fearsome intellect, a Trojan work ethic and perfectly calibrated judgement in an incredibly user-friendly package." "An enormously industrious junior." (Chambers & Partners 2019)
• "Fearsome intellect, Trojan work ethic and perfectly calibrated judgement." (The Legal 500 2018-19)
• Craig Morrison is “a fantastic lawyer” who impresses commentators with “the speed and clarity of his advice”. (Who's Who Legal - UK Bar: Banking & Finance 2018)
• "An absolute delight to work with, he is really clever and incredibly personable." "He is exceptionally bright. If you want a significant analytical intellect applied to your case then he's your man." (Chambers & Partners 2018)
• "Super-hardworking, lightning-efficient and very user-friendly." (The Legal 500 2017)
• "Craig Morrison is “exceptionally accessible and client-friendly”, with experience of having been involved in some of the major banking litigation and regulatory disputes emerging from the credit crunch." (Who's Who Legal - UK Bar: Banking & Finance 2017)
• "Incredibly hard-working, utterly cheerful and a delight throughout." "His is a lively and versatile intellect." (Chambers & Partners 2017)
• "An absolutely standout junior with an encyclopaedic recall of both facts and law." (The Legal 500 2016)
• "He is very, very bright and hard-working. He really knows his way round complex derivatives." "A quick-thinking junior who is a delight to work with." (Chambers and Partners 2016)
• ‘Excellent strategically and astonishingly good for a relatively junior barrister.’ (The Legal 500 2015)
• "The 'enthusiastic' Craig Morrison is a 'real favourite' with both senior counsel and instructing solicitors and clients value his “modern approach and stellar commercial understanding" (Who’s Who Legal 2015)
• "An intellectual heavyweight with exceptional clarity of thought." (The Legal 500 2014)
• "He is active in a number of large-scale banking disputes and is regularly led by leading commercial silks at the Bar. Consistently impresses peers with his intellectual abilities and easy manner."  (Chambers & Partners 2014)