Ajay Ratan

Claim in the BVI Commercial Court concerning a joint venture in relation to various power generation and distribution assets in Russia. The sum claimed is approximately US$1 billion. Ajay is junior counsel for the Defendants and for most of the Claimants by way of Counterclaim and Ancillary Claim.

Successfully acted for the Claimant in this two-day Chancery Division trial before Mr Justice Marcus Smith (with Barbara Dohmann QC).

Successfully applied to strike out inadmissible expert evidence of New York and Ukrainian law in ongoing Chancery Division litigation (with Barbara Dohmann QC). 

Successfully obtained summary judgment on construction of a jurisdiction and choice of law clause in a contractual dispute over financial services. 

Acting for the claimant in a dispute stretching across several jurisdictions regarding a corporate reorganisation (with Barbara Dohmann QC). Successfully resisted the defendant's proposed amendments on estoppel and abuse of process grounds. 

Successfully resisted jurisdiction challenge raising novel points regarding the new ‘third country’ provisions in Articles 33-34 of the Brussels (Recast) Regulation (with Barbara Dohmann QC). 

Dispute between two Russian businesspeople concerning the operation of a €100m property investment in Morocco (assisting Barbara Dohmann QC, Andrew George QC and Tom Mountford for the Claimant).

US$1 billion Chancery Division claim by a sovereign wealth fund arising out of actions by Goldman Sachs in Gadaffi-era Libya which are alleged to constitute undue influence and unconscionable bargain (assisting Andrew George QC for the Claimant).

US$2 billion Commercial Court claim by a sovereign wealth fund involving allegations of bribery by a large French bank in Gadaffi-era Libya (assisting Andrew George QC for the Claimant).

Substantial Chancery proceedings alleging professional negligence in relation to Florida property investments (assisting Andrew George QC for the First Defendant).

Acting for the Claimant sports franchisor in an LCIA arbitration concerning payment for the provision of facilities and equipment (assisting Andrew George QC). 

Acting for the Respondent investment company in a large commercial arbitration concerning the corporate governance of a joint venture in the hospitality industry (assisting Andrew George QC).

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) imposed a financial penalty on Interactive Brokers (UK) in the amount of £1,049,412 for failings in its post-trade systems and controls for identifying and reporting suspicious transactions. Ajay acted for FCA Enforcement and presented the case to the Regulatory Decisions Committee. 

Acted for the FCA in successfully defending a judicial review challenge to the new deadline for bringing complaints about payment protection insurance (with Monica Carss-Frisk QC and Iain Steele). The claim raised a number of issues including as to the effect of the ADR Directive. 

Acted for the claimants in this judicial review challenge to the issuing of a warning notice under the Pensions Act 2004 (with Michael Fordham QC and Iain Steele).  

Ajay drafted the FCA Handbook provisions for partly contested cases and expedited references to the Upper Tribunal while on secondment in the FCA Enforcement Division (working inter alia on FCA Consultation Paper 16/10). One version of the consulted-upon proposals has since been adopted (FCA Policy Statement 17/1) and came into force on 1 March 2017.  

Advising firm with interim permission to conduct consumer credit activities on application for full permission under Part 4A FSMA (with Monica Carss-Frisk QC).

Advising lender on Article 36H of the Regulated Activities Order (with Javan Herberg QC).

Acting for the FCA in an important case that will determine whether an independent reviewer in a banking redress exercise is amenable to judicial review when appointed as a ‘skilled person’ under section 166 FSMA (assisting Monica Carss-Frisk QC, Daniel Burgess and Kerenza Davis).

Acting for a former finance director defending a claim under section 90 FSMA concerning a prospectus for a rights issue (assisting Andrew George QC).

Advising a partner exercising an FCA-controlled function on a number of issues of contractual interpretation in the context of an internal investigation (assisting Javan Herberg QC and Diya Sen Gupta).

Advising a director on potential urgent applications for interim relief in a dispute at an FCA-regulated firm (assisting Diya Sen Gupta). 

Appeared in the High Court as sole counsel for the Parole Board and successfully resisted the application against it. The Court dismissed the application as an abuse of process seeking to litigate public law matters by private law process.

Acted for the Appellant who sought asylum under the Refugee Convention and Articles 3 and 8 ECHR based on fear of persecution on the grounds of religion and sexuality. 

Acted for National Association of Head Teachers and its members who gave information to the public investigation into Birmingham schools after the ‘Trojan Horse’ letter. Successfully intervened before a disciplinary panel which had ordered disclosure of 50 interview transcripts. The panel accepted the NAHT’s submissions on confidentiality and narrowed its order to cover only 4 transcripts.

Acted for the FCA in successfully defending a judicial review challenge to the new deadline for bringing complaints about payment protection insurance (with Monica Carss-Frisk QC and Iain Steele). The claim raised a number of issues including as to the effect of the ADR Directive. 

Acted for the claimants in this judicial review challenge to the issuing of a warning notice under the Pensions Act 2004 (with Michael Fordham QC and Iain Steele).  

Advising SME on potential judicial review of a decision by a domestic public body administering EU funding.

Pending Court of Appeal cases concerning (1) the circumstances in which a Fitness to Practise Panel can proceed in the absence of a doctor and (2) the admissibility of fresh evidence on appeal to the High Court (assisting Ivan Hare for the GMC in relation to Visvardis).

Court of Appeal decision establishing that NHS bodies are entitled to take account of the fact that accommodation may be provided from other sources in cases where accommodation may form part of a patient’s continuing health needs (assisting Ivan Hare for the Secretary of State for Health).

Court of Appeal decision giving obiter consideration to whether and when findings of non-serious misconduct can permissibly be taken into account to justify a disciplinary sanction against a medical practitioner (assisting Ivan Hare for the GMC).

Advising on the procedural aspects of an intended commercial judicial review of a decision by a stock exchange (assisting Andrew George QC).

Appeal in which the Appellant sought to rely on the negligent representation he had received from his then Counsel as the main ground for overturning the Panel’s determination (assisting Ivan Hare for the GMC).

Advising a professional regulatory body as to the powers and procedures of its investigating committee (assisting Ivan Hare).

Appeal under section 40 of the Medical Act 1983 against a disciplinary finding of dishonesty and consequent erasure from the Medical Register (assisting Ivan Hare for the GMC).

Advising a non-departmental public body on a judicial review claim concerning its investigation of alleged misconduct. The case raised issues over the limits of the functus officio doctrine (assisting Ivan Hare).

Acted for the Appellant who sought asylum under the Refugee Convention and Articles 3 and 8 ECHR based on fear of persecution on the grounds of religion and sexuality. 

Acted for National Association of Head Teachers and its members who gave information to the public investigation into Birmingham schools after the ‘Trojan Horse’ letter. Successfully intervened before a disciplinary panel which had ordered disclosure of 50 interview transcripts. The panel accepted the NAHT’s submissions on confidentiality and narrowed its order to cover only 4 transcripts.

Two Article 5 ECHR challenges to the Secretary of State’s policy on release of prisoners with a whole life tariff or (as in Du’s case) a tariff which is likely to extend beyond their lifetime (assisting Ivan Hare, with James Eadie QC in Vinter, for the Secretary of State for Justice).

Two cases challenging decisions on behalf of the Secretary of State for Justice regarding the security categorisation of prisoners (assisting Ivan Hare for the Secretary of State for Justice).

Appeal by the Department of Health against the First-tier Tribunal’s decision to require disclosure of parts of the ministerial diaries of Andrew Lansley MP when he was Secretary of State for Health in the run-up to the enactment of the Health and Social Care Act 2012 (assisting James Eadie QC and Ivan Hare for the Department of Health).

Instructed by global bank with Paul Goulding QC. 

Significant case before the Court of Appeal concerning the scope of a qualifications body’s liability under the Equality Act 2010 in the Employment Tribunal (assisting John Bowers QC and Ivan Hare for the GMC).

Advising on the relationship between the rules on costs shifting and costs sharing in the Employment Tribunal, on the one hand, and the Tax Chamber of the First-Tier Tribunal, on the other (assisting Ivan Hare).

Pro bono appeal alleging apparent bias in circumstances where the Employment Judge was a governor of another school in the same county as the defendant school (accompanying Ivan Hare for the Appellant).

Acting for the First Defendant in a substantial High Court employment dispute concerning an alleged team move and alleged diversion of acquisition opportunities (assisting Paul Goulding QC and Diya Sen Gupta).

Acting for the Respondent in a claim alleging discrimination arising from disability and failures to make reasonable adjustments under the Equality Act 2010 (assisting Diya Sen Gupta).

Acting for the Respondent in unfair and wrongful dismissal claims arising against the backdrop of an FCA investigation (assisting Diya Sen Gupta). 

Advising an employee on potential claims for unfair dismissal, whistleblowing detriment and discrimination following his dismissal purportedly on the grounds of redundancy (assisting Diya Sen Gupta).

Advising a senior director on the interpretation and enforceability of non-dealing and non-solicitation covenants in his contract of employment under Jersey law (assisting Diya Sen Gupta). 

Advising an employer facing a claim for constructive dismissal and potential claims under the Jersey (Discrimination) Law 2013 (assisting Diya Sen Gupta).

Advising SME on potential judicial review of a decision by a domestic public body administering EU funding.

Challenge by a campaigning body to the legality under EU and public international law of the Fisheries Partnership Agreement between Morocco and the EU. The claim raises novel questions concerning the justiciability of claims which impugn the conduct of foreign states (assisting Brian Kennelly for the Secretary of State). 

Parallel challenge to the legality of the UK’s implementation of the EU-Morocco Association Agreement under EU and public international law (assisting Brian Kennelly for HMRC). 

Private damages actions by various large retailers against Visa alleging anti-competitive behaviour in the setting of multi-lateral interchange fees (assisting Dinah Rose QC and Brian Kennelly for Visa Inc).

Judicial review of the remote gambling tax regime contained in Part 3 of the Finance Act 2014 on the basis that it is an unjustified interference with the EU freedom to provide services under Article 56 TFEU (assisting Dinah Rose QC and Brian Kennelly for GBGA).

Preliminary reference concerning inter alia the classification of benefits as social assistance for the purposes of the EU Citizenship Directive (attending the CJEU with Brian Kennelly for the UK as intervener).

LCIA arbitration raising competition issues in a dispute in the EU air transport sector (assisting Brian Kennelly).

Advising HM Treasury on a number of issues concerning the compatibility of its licensing system with EU sanctions regimes (assisting Brian Kennelly). 

Advising HM Treasury on information sharing pursuant to EU sanctions regimes and the relationship of such regimes with EU data protection law (assisting Brian Kennelly).

Advising the Secretary of State for Transport on an intended Francovich claim concerning the implementation of the EU Motor Insurance Directives (assisting Brian Kennelly).

Successfully resisted jurisdiction challenge raising novel points regarding the new ‘third country’ provisions in Articles 33-34 of the Brussels (Recast) Regulation (with Barbara Dohmann QC). 

Pending Court of Appeal cases concerning (1) the circumstances in which a Fitness to Practise Panel can proceed in the absence of a doctor and (2) the admissibility of fresh evidence on appeal to the High Court (assisting Ivan Hare for the GMC in relation to Visvardis).

Court of Appeal decision giving obiter consideration to whether and when findings of non-serious misconduct can permissibly be taken into account to justify a disciplinary sanction against a medical practitioner (assisting Ivan Hare for the GMC).

Appeal in which the Appellant sought to rely on the negligent representation he had received from his then Counsel as the main ground for overturning the Panel’s determination (assisting Ivan Hare for the GMC).

Advising a professional regulatory body as to the powers and procedures of its investigating committee (assisting Ivan Hare).

Appeal under section 40 of the Medical Act 1983 against a disciplinary finding of dishonesty and consequent erasure from the Medical Register (assisting Ivan Hare for the GMC).