Rayan has a diverse practice encompassing all areas of Chambers' expertise, with a particular focus on public and human rights law, commercial law and financial services, media and entertainment, competition law, public international law, and sanctions. He has appeared in most courts in the jurisdiction across a range of practice areas, including the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeal, the High Court, the Competition Appeal Tribunal, the Upper Tribunal, the First-tier Tribunal and the County Court.

Recent highlights of Rayan’s practice include the following:

  • Successfully representing the claimants in proceedings before the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeal, the High Court and the European Court of Human Rights challenging the Government’s policy of removing asylum seekers from the UK to Rwanda: AAA v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2023] UKSC 42; NSK v United Kingdom (Application No. 28774/22).
  • Successfully representing Ed Sheeran in a high profile copyright dispute in relation to the song ‘Shape of You’: Sheeran v Chokri [2022] EWHC 827 (Ch).
  • Successfully representing the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs in the first challenge to a sanctions designation made under the post-Brexit Russia sanctions regime (in both the Court of Appeal and the High Court): Shvidler v Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs [2024] EWCA Civ 172; [2023] EWHC 2121 (Admin).
  • Acting for the First and Second Defendants in a civil fraud claim in the High Court alleged to be worth in excess of USD $850m: Public Institution for Social Security v Al-Rajaan & Others [2024] EWHC 480 (Comm).
  • Acting for the Financial Conduct Authority in market abuse proceedings before the High Court raising significant issues concerning international comity and the use of evidence obtained through mutual legal assistance: FCA v Papadimitakopoulos and Gryparis [2022] EWHC 2793 (Ch).
  • Successfully representing the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs in a claim brought by a Russian former Formula 1 driver challenging his sanctions designation: Mazepin v Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs [2023] EWHC 1777 (Admin).
  • Acting for Scania in the ongoing Trucks cartel litigation in the Competition Appeal Tribunal and the High Court. 
  • Representing the claimant in judicial review proceedings in the Upper Tribunal challenging the Secretary of State's refusal to grant an application for a student visa on the grounds that the claimant's presence in the UK would not be conducive to the public good: R (Ashkar) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2024] JR-2022-LON-002069.
  • Acting for the Financial Conduct Authority in proceedings before the Upper Tribunal concerning allegations of a lack of integrity in relation to the creation and dissemination of a presentation which contained manipulative trading strategies aimed at creating a false or misleading impression as to the market in, or the price of, Qatari bonds, with a view to harming the economy of Qatar: FCA v Banque Havilland SA & Ors.
  • Advising a human rights organisation on a sanctions-related matter concerning alleged war crimes.  

Prior to undertaking his pupillage with Blackstone Chambers, Rayan worked as a Research Associate with Legal Agenda in Beirut, where he worked on civil liberties and social justice issues arising from the mass demonstrations of October 2019 and ensuing political crisis in Lebanon.

Rayan commenced full-time practice on completion of his pupillage in September 2021.

Experience

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Public & Regulatory

Rayan accepts instructions in all areas of public and regulatory law.

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Commercial

Rayan accepts instructions in all areas of commercial law.

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Civil Liberties & Human Rights

Rayan accepts instructions in all areas of civil liberties and human rights law.

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Competition

Rayan accepts instructions in all areas of EU law.

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Media & Entertainment

Rayan accepts instructions in all areas of media and entertainment law.

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Sanctions

Rayan accepts instructions in all areas of sanctions law.

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Financial Services & Banking

Rayan accepts instructions in all areas of financial services law. 

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Public International Law

Rayan accepts instructions in all areas of public international law.

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Achievements

Education

  • BA (Hons) Philosophy, Politics & Economics (Oxford, Double First)
  • Graduate Diploma in Law (City, Distinction)
  • Bar Professional Training Course (City, Outstanding)

Awards

  • William Rose Memorial Prize for Excellence in Drafting (BPTC, 2019)
  • Buchanan Prize for Outstanding mark in Bar examinations, Lincoln's Inn (2019)
  • Cassel Scholarship, Lincoln's Inn (2018)
  • BPTC Scholarship, City Law School (2018)
  • Wadham College prize for performance in Final Examinations (results in top 5 of 238 candidates in PPE graduating class of 2017)
  • Takashi Kisaki Prize in Philosophy (2017)


Publications

Separately from his work at the Bar, Rayan regularly writes for various publications (in both English and Arabic) on a range of social, legal, and cultural issues relating to the Middle East.

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