Ned Beale

  • Co-Head of Commercial Disputes and Partner
  • London
  • nbeale@hausfeld.com
  • +44 20 7665 5047
  • +44 7812 994450
  • https://www.linkedin.com/in/ned-beale-36955035/?originalSubdomain=uk
ned-beale.jpg

OVERVIEW

Ned Beale specialises in complex commercial litigation and international arbitration. He is Co-Head of the Commercial Disputes team in London. 

Ned was named UK's Litigator of the Year by Legal Week at their 2019 Litigation & Arbitration Awards, when his "innovation and creativity” were praised by the panel chaired by the LCIA's Director-General. Ned features in The Lawyer’s ‘Hot 100’ lawyers of 2025, which references his “distinctive pro-claimant, pro-social justice approach to premium commercial disputes”. The latest edition of The Legal 500 recognises him as a Leading Partner for "Commercial Litigation: Premium".  

Expertise

Ned has extensive experience dealing with contractual claims, including claims arising out of Brexit, COVID-19 and Russia related disruption, shareholder disputes, warranty, earn-out and other post-M&A claims and insurance and professional negligence claims. Much of his work is international and he has particular experience in cases involving Ukraine, the Middle East and West Africa.

He also has specific expertise in aviation disputes, particularly lease finance, manufacturing and aviation insurance claims. Instructions include advising Qatar Airways in its multi-billion dollar dispute with Airbus concerning its A350 and A321 Neo fleets, one of The Lawyer’s ‘Top 20 Cases’ of 2023.

Ned’s long track-record of acting in banking matters includes structured finance and retail banking disputes. These matters often have an insolvency context, including acting both for and against insolvency practitioners. He acted for the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Fair Banking in two Supreme Court Interventions and leads the group’s judicial review against the Financial Conduct Authority in relation to the IRHP redress scheme, one of The Lawyer’s ‘Top 20 Cases’ of 2024.

Ned regularly appears in international arbitration as counsel, advocate, and arbitrator, including before ICC, LCIA, UNCITRAL and ad hoc tribunals. He is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators and a member of the ICC UK National Committee and The Hague Court of Arbitration for Aviation's Mediation Committee.

Ned’s court work includes extensive experience in the Commercial Court and Chancery Division, the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court. This encompasses both contractual claims and commercial fraud, the latter often involving interim injunctions and insolvency processes, both in England and in offshore jurisdictions.

Ned has a longstanding commitment to access to justice and consumer protection.

EDUCATION

LPC and PGDL, BPP Law School, London
BA (Hons), Durham 

BAR ADMISSIONS

Solicitor, England and Wales, 2003

AFFILIATIONS

Fellow (FCIArb) - Chartered Institute of Arbitrators
Member - ICC UK Arbitration and ADR Committee. More info
Member - London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA)
Member - London Chamber of Arbitration and Mediation (LCAM) Commercial Rent (Coronavirus) Act 2022 Arbitrator Panel. More info
Member - The Hague Court of Arbitration for Aviation (HCAA) Mediation Standing Committee
Member - CEDR Commercial Arbitrators Panel
Honorary Member and Past President -of the Litigation Commission Association Internationale des Jeunes Avocats (AIJA)
Member and co-chair of disputes group - Legalmondo
Visiting Lecturer on International Arbitration - City Law School, University of London
Visiting Lecturer on Air and Space Law - University of Leiden

WHAT OTHERS SAY

Legal Week

Ned was named UK's Litigator of the Year – Private Practice at Legal Week's Litigation & Arbitration Awards 2019. He was lauded for his "innovation and creativity” by the panel chaired by LCIA Director-General Jacomijn van Haersolte-van Hof.   

Legal 500 UK

'Leading Partner', Ned is 'Simply the best litigator out there. My go-to solicitor.'.... 'Working with Ned is as working with old friend. Very easy and comfortable.’ and ‘Ned Beale is our main point of contact. He is smart, sharp and very responsive! Would recommend Ned without reservations!’....‘Ned Beale is an outstanding litigator. He has a first-class brain, thinks outside the box, is creative and thinks laterally. One of the rising stars in the profession. He fights his client's corner vigorously - but he is also very flexible and highly adept at changing approach when the facts change. He has excellent judgment and clients and associates like to work and be led by him.’ - Commercial Litigation, Premium, 2025

‘Ned Beale, Lucy Pert and Anthony Maton - the best in the market.’ - Banking Litigation, Investment and Retail, 2025

‘Ned Beale is nothing short of outstanding. He has a first-class brain, thinks outside the box, is creative, and thinks laterally. He fights his client's corner vigorously, but he is also very flexible and highly adept at changing approach when the facts change.’ - International Arbitration, 2025

'Ned Beale is great to work with – extremely clever, thoughtful and commercial in his approach.’ - Banking Litigation, 2024

‘Ned Beale is a great person to work with. He is super responsive and always eager to assist, suggesting several options of the way out and highlighting pros and cons of each.’; ‘very focused, efficient and on the ball. It’s very impressive indeed and I have found my experience of working with them to be second to none.’ and ‘a very talented individual who is a creative lawyer and also has excellent judgment. Great at the big picture, but equally on top of hunting down the detail. He is great at adjusting gears and approaches depending on the situation and context. He has the trust of clients and manages a great team by example.’ - Commercial Litigation: Premium, 2024

'Excellent' - Commercial Litigation: Premium, 2024

Ned Beale is not only solutions oriented, but also extremely pleasant to deal with and always accessible.’; ‘a hardworking and thoughtful lawyer who focuses on clients’ interests first.’ and ‘a very talented individual and creative lawyer with excellent judgement. Great at the big picture, but equally on top of hunting down the detail.’ - International Arbitration, 2024

"Ned Beale is an outstanding litigator. Most efficient and effective. He has excellent instincts, great judgement and knows which points to press home. One couldn’t be in better hands.” – Commercial Litigation: Premium, 2023

"Ned Beale is a first-class operator. Smooth and steely, he sets the route to victory and then delivers." – International Arbitration, 2023 

In addition, in previous years:

"Extremely experienced, navigated complex negotiations calmly and precisely". – International Arbitration 2021

“An excellent all-round commercial disputes lawyer. He is wonderful to work with, charming, approachable, and commercial. He is very good with international clients. I would have no hesitation in recommending him”.  – Commercial Litigation, 2021

"Fantastic". – International Arbitration, 2020

"Highly intelligent. He uses a layered approach to a case, building up each legal point over time until it becomes fortified against all attacks". – Commercial Litigation, 2020

"Flexible, realistic, hard-working and has excellent judgment". – Civil Fraud, 2020

Lawdragon

Ned was recognised by Lawdragon in 2021 and 2023 as one of the world’s Top 500 Global Lawyers for International Arbitration and Litigation. Since 2024, he has been commended as part of the Top 500 Global Plaintiff Lawyers for Complex Litigation inc. Financial and Aviation and ranked in the prestigious Top 500 Leading Global Litigators listing.

Lexology Index / Who's Who Legal

In 2023, Ned was highlighted as a 'Recommended Individual' in Commercial Litigation. 

Experience

Commercial & Financial Disputes

Examples of Ned’s commercial disputes work include acting for:

  • Qatar Airways, in a strategic leadership role in its multi-billion dollar dispute with Airbus concerning its A350 and A321 Neo fleets, one of The Lawyer’s ‘Top 20 Cases’ of 2023.
  • A group of Members of Parliament and Peers intervening in Pakistan International Airline Corp v Times Travel [2021] UKSC 40, in which the Supreme Court defined the test for economic duress.
  • US art lender Athena successfully obtaining the dismissal of English proceedings against it concerning the ownership of the artwork “Humidity” by Jean-Michel Basquiat (reported at [2020] EWHC 3527).
  • The EMEA legal team of a global business, in some of their most substantial disputes, including their exit from the Russian market, termination of a major contract for Covid force majeure and a very substantial claim against their MENA distributor.
  • Entrepreneur business founders successfully defending substantial breach of warranty claims made by their buyers after sale of the businesses. These claims typically involve heavy accountancy evidence.
  • Funders and investors in funded, collective and group claims, including advising on funding arrangements and providing guidance on strategy alongside existing advisers.

 

*Some of the above work took place at a previous firm.

Commercial Fraud

Ned’s commercial fraud practice encompasses many instances of obtaining and defending freezing injunctions in the English High Court and offshore jurisdictions, as well as pursuing enforcement and asset recovery claims, often with an insolvency element.  Examples includes acting for:

  • PJSC Pharmaceutical Firm "Darnitsa" obtaining a worldwide freezing order against pursuant to s.25 of the Civil Jurisdiction and Judgments Act 1982 in support of substantive Ukrainian derivative proceedings. The without notice injunction was successfully upheld after a fully contested set-aside hearing (reported at [2021] EWHC 1441).
  • The claimants in a dispute concerning the misappropriation of the profits of a family business. Included enforcing Bahraini judgments of c. £20 million in England, coordinating the freezing of an English country estate by the Jersey court and pursuing a claim under s.423 of the Insolvency Act 1986. The Jersey injunction was successfully upheld on a fully contested set-aside hearing (reported at [2019] JRC 23). The pleading of fraud in the s.423 claim was successfully upheld after the defendants’ strike-out application (reported at [2020] EWHC 3477). The matter was then resolved in mediation, concluding two decades of litigation in Bahrain and England.
  • A public sector body dealing with the theft of its assets by a member of its senior executive management, including handling the investigation phase, pursing claims, obtaining security, liaising with the police and negotiating the civil settlement. The matter was widely reported in the UK national press.
  • The widow of one of Yemen’s most prominent businessmen after a freezing injunction was granted against her. Successfully achieved discharge of the injunction, interim distributions, appointment of an independent administrator and an account of the deceased’s worldwide estate (reported at [2018] EWHC 372).
  • The lead defendant in the injunctive phase of the lead UK Madoff litigation, Madoff Securities v Raven & Ors [2011] EWHC 3102. A claim for £25 million was successfully dismissed for lack of jurisdiction.


*Some of the above work took place at a previous firm.

Financial Services & Banking

Ned’s experience includes acting for:

  • Advising an offshore bank on issues and claims regarding payment and FX services.
  • A Cayman Islands SPV successfully to obtain payments under an ISDA in a dispute arising out of the wind-up of a Lehman Brothers structure (reported at Europa Plus v Anthracite Investments (Ireland) [2016] EWHC 437).
  • A publicly funded body addressing issues which had arisen with its syndicate of lenders in connection with the operation of a 30-year, £200 million loan facility. These were successfully resolved when the threat of litigation led to the renegotiation and restatement of the facility.
  • The All-Party Parliamentary Group on Fair Business Banking in its application to challenge the lawfulness of the decision of the FCA not to establish a mechanism of redress following the exclusion of bank customers from the FSA’s IRHP redress scheme. Permission was won in June 2023 (reported at [2023] EWHC 1616) and the trial was one of The Lawyer’s ‘Top 20 Cases’ of 2024.
  • The All-Party Parliamentary Group on Fair Business Banking in its successful intervention in Sevilleja v Marex Financial [2020] UKSC 31. A landmark judgment, which reshaped the 'rule against reflective loss' and was the first ever intervention by Members of Parliament in the Supreme Court.
  • For the lead defendant successfully obtaining the dismissal of all claims made by a lender after a four-week High Court trial involving multiple factual witnesses (reported at Bibby v Magson & Ors [2011] EHWC 2495).
  • Business borrowers in disputes in respect of the provision of banking services, including dealing with ISDA valuation issues, push payment and phishing frauds and the withdrawal of banking services and related regulatory issues.


*Some of the above work took place at a previous firm.

Arbitration & International Arbitration

Ned has extensive international arbitration experience, including acting:

  • As lead advocate in a shareholder dispute in LCIA arbitration, with ancillary relief in Cyrus and Ukraine, concerning a transshipment terminal on the Black Sea coast of Ukraine. After the exchange of extensive factual and expert evidence, the claim was successfully settled.
  • For Irish airline CityJet against a Russian manufacturer and Italian service company in a substantial dispute in LCIA arbitration concerning CityJet's fleet of SuperJet 100 aircraft.
  • As lead advocate for an EU airline in an ICC arbitration against its Chinese wet lease customers. In 2023, the tribunal upheld claims asserted under a collateral oral contract, a duty of care and for inducing breach of contract and issued a final award granting 100% of the damages, interest and costs claimed.
  • As lead advocate in a Ukrainian oligarch dispute in LCIA arbitration featuring multiple interim applications and an evidential hearing involving 30 factual and expert witnesses.
  • As lead advocate for a Middle Eastern aerospace business in a dispute with its largest customer, including obtaining two eight figure LCIA awards. Those awards were recognised by the Colombian Supreme Court pursuant to the New York Convention 1958 (reported at Vertical de Aviación SAS v AAL Group Limited/49784) and were the basis of an English freezing injunction (reported at [2018] EWHC 2806).
  • For a US energy company in a dispute with one of its central European customers, a state-owned energy concern. Acted as advocate to obtain an eight figure LCIA award; then managed the enforcement of the award, including via parallel court proceedings and instructing investigation agents successfully to conclude a cash settlement.
  • In an ICC arbitration for a well-known figure in US politics against a UAE based property business in a dispute concerning a Caribbean hotel development.
  • In long-running LCIA and UNCITRAL arbitrations concerning the ownership of a Nigerian telecoms business.
  • At the outset of his career, as part of the trial team representing the Federal Republic of Nigeria in its boundary dispute with Cameron at the International Court of Justice, the longest ever ICJ hearing, which demarcated the states’ land and maritime boundaries, from Lake Chad to the Gulf of Guinea.


Ned has lectured on international arbitration at ICC, LCIA, CIArb, LIDW, PAW, ABA-SIL and AIJA conferences. He is a Visiting Lecture on International Arbitration at City Law School, University of London. He is the author of the Westlaw UK Insight Guide “Arbitration: Enforcement” and academic articles on international arbitration subjects.

*Some of the above work took place at a previous firm.

Aviation Disputes

Ned’s aviation experience includes acting for:

  • Qatar Airways, in a strategic leadership role in its multi-billion dollar dispute with Airbus concerning its A350 and A321 Neo fleets, one of The Lawyer’s ‘Top 20 Cases’ of 2023.
  • Irish airline CityJet against an Irish lessor, Russian manufacturer and Italian service company in a substantial dispute in LCIA arbitration concerning CityJet’s fleet of SuperJet 100 aircraft.
  • A Ukrainian airline and its lessors in The Non-Russian Operator Policy Claims, pursuing insurance claims of $110 million in respect of aircraft lost during the invasion of Ukraine by Russia (reported at [2024] EWHC 1365). 
  • For an EU airline in an ICC arbitration against its Chinese wet lease customers. In 2023, the sole arbitrator upheld claims asserted under a collateral oral contract, a duty of care and for inducing breach of contract and issued a final award granting 100% of the damages, interest and costs claimed.
  • Iris Helicopter Leasing successfully obtaining summary judgment against its lessee for unpaid rent, default interest and delivery up of the aircraft (reported at [2021] EWHC 2459).
  • TWC Aviation Capital successfully obtaining a Commercial Court judgment of $24 million against Indian airline Jet (reported at [2020] EWHC 1272).
  • The lessor and operator of a Boeing 737 which was a constructive total loss after a heavy landing to bring and successfully resolve a claim in the Commercial Court against its reinsurers pursuant to a cut-through clause.
  • The principal investor into a private airline to secure its assets in a shareholders’ dispute; successfully freezing an aircraft in England and coordinating further injunctive relief against aircraft in Europe and Africa.
  • The aviation division of a European bank, enforcing security to appoint a receiver successfully to sell a private jet, against the defaulting borrower’s wishes.

Insurance & Professional Negligence

Ned began his career as a specialist insurance and reinsurance litigator, including a secondment with St Paul Fire & Marine as coverage counsel.  He now regularly acts for insureds pursuing claims against insurers, as well as for claimants in professional negligence claims, which usually involve negotiating with insurers.  His experience includes:

  • A Ukrainian airline and its lessors in The Non-Russian Operator Policy Claims, pursuing insurance claims of $110 million in respect of aircraft lost during the invasion of Ukraine by Russia (reported at [2024] EWHC 1365).
  • Acting for West African mining company Sierra Rutile in a $40 million Commercial Court claim against its insurers and reinsurers following the loss of its bucket line dredger.  After extensive factual evidence including site trips to rural Sierra Leone, the claim was successfully settled in mediation. 
  • Acting for a global manufacturing group in a coverage dispute with its European insurer concerning an industrial fire in Mexico. This involved parallel proceedings in the English and US courts, before its successful settlement. 
  • Acting for the lessor and operator of a Boeing 737, which was a constructive total loss after a heavy landing, to bring and successfully resolve a claim in the Commercial Court against its reinsurers pursuant to a cut-through clause.
  • Pursuing professional negligence claims on behalf of public authority against a global firm of accountants in respect of tax advice.
  • Acting for a private equity group pursuing professional negligence claims against a major accountancy firm in respect of financial due diligence advice.


*Some of the above work took place at a previous firm.