John Higham, QC has a broad commercial, contentious and noncontentious practice with particular experience and expertise in the fields of banking, company law, insolvency, financial services, insurance and reinsurance, professional negligence, oil and gas, foreign exchange and commodities transactions.

John has acted as an advocate in both litigation and commercial arbitration in England and Wales as well as internationally. He has acted in disputes across a range of industries, including banking, insurance, reinsurance, shipping, construction, telecommunications, utilities, oil and gas, mining, and financial services, and in numerous shareholder disputes and multi-jurisdictional disputes concerning fraudulently misappropriated assets. He is an acknowledged expert in the field of insolvency and has acted in many of the major insolvencies of the last 30 years, including Maxwell, Polly Peck, Leyland DAF, Olympia & York, TXU and Lehmans. He has a formidable list of reported cases to his name in the Queen's Bench and Chancery Divisions of the High Court of Justice, including the Commercial Court and the Companies Court, and in the Court of Appeal, the House of Lords and the Privy Council.

John joined the Firm as a partner in March 2004. He was appointed Queen's Counsel in 1992. From 1999 to 2004 he was a partner with a leading law firm. Between 1978 and 1999 he practised as a barrister at 3-4, South Square, Gray's Inn, leading commercial and insolvency chambers in London.

John is listed as an expert in the Arbitration, Commercial Litigation and the Insolvency and Corporate Recovery sections of Legal Business' Legal Experts 2008 and as an expert in both the Commercial and Banking Litigation sections of The Legal 500, 2008, in which John has been variously described as "carrying an exceptionally high individual reputation," "highly reputed" and "highly recommended".



"John Higham QC…makes White & Case one of the few firms to have a commercial silk in-house."—Chambers UK, 2009

"Highly recommended for commercial litigation"—UK Legal 500, 2007

"Named as a leading individual for banking litigation"—The UK Legal 500, 2006

Reported cases include: 

• Gater Assets Ltd v NAK Naftogaz Ukrainiy (Field J, Court of Appeal, Tomlinson J and Beatson J)[2007] 1 Lloyds 522, [2007] 2 Lloyds 588, [2008] 1 Lloyds 479, [2008] 2 Lloyds 259
  Enforcement of Russian arbitration award – security for costs – whether obtained by fraud – interest on judgment 
• Reeves v Sprecher (Lewison J) [2007] 2 BCLC 614
  Derivative action – whether English Court should permit action to proceed in relation to offshore Nevis Incorporated company 
• Re Sendo Ltd (Etherton J) [2006] 1 BCLC 395
  Administration order –Cayman Islands incorporated company – centre of main interests 
• Societe Eram Shipping Co Ltd v Compagnie Internationale de Navigation [2004] 1 AC 260 (House of Lords)
  Enforcement of judgments – whether English Court has jurisdiction and/or should exercise jurisdiction to attach credit balance on bank account in Hong Kong 
• ISTIL Group Inc v Zahoor (Lawrence Collins J) [2003] 2 All ER 252
  Practice – whether injunction should be granted for delivery up of privileged documents where the documents tended to show that there had been forgery and that misleading evidence had been put forward 
• Insured Financial Structures Ltd v Elektrocieplownia Tychy SA (Court of Appeal) [2003] QB 1260
  Conflict of laws – effect of non-exclusive jurisdiction clause under the Lugano Convention 
• Totalise PLC v Motley Fool Ltd (Court of Appeal) [2002] 1 WLR 1233
  Norwich Pharmacal Order – whether defendant should be ordered to pay claimant's costs 
• Kemper Reinsurance v Minister of Finance (Privy Council) [2000] AC 1
  Judicial review – whether appeal lies against order setting aside leave to apply for judicial review 
• Re Maxwell Communications Corporation Plc (No 3) (Vinelott J) [1995] 1 BCLC 521
  Insolvency – private examination – oral examination of former solicitors 
• Re Olympia & York Canary Wharf Ltd (No 3) (Nicholls V-C) [1994] 1 BCLC 702
  Insolvency – discharge of administration order 
• Leyland DAF Ltd v Automotive Products Ltd (Nicholls V-C) [1994] 1 BCLC 245
  Insolvency – European law – alleged abuse of dominant position 
• Barclays Bank Plc v Homan (Hoffmann J and Court of Appeal) [1993] BCLC 680
  Insolvency – English administration order – US Chapter 11 proceedings – anti-suit injunction 
• Bank of Baroda v Panessar (Walton J) [1987] Ch 335
  Company – Debenture – Time for compliance with demand for payment 
• Precision Dippings Ltd v Precision Dippings Marketing Ltd (Court of Appeal) [1986] Ch 447
  Company – recovery of unlawful dividend 
• Viscount of the Royal Court of Jersey v Shelton (Privy Council) [1986] 1 WLR 985
  Company – whether article exonerating director from liability applied to ultra vires acts 
• Re Rudd & Son Ltd (Court of Appeal) [1986] BCC 98,955
  Mortgage – whether securing contingent liabilities 
• Carreras Rothmans Ltd v Freeman Mathews Treasure Ltd (Peter Gibson J) [1985] 1 Ch 207
  Insolvency – special purpose trust to pay creditors 
• Standard Chartered Bank Ltd v Walker (Court of Appeal) [1982] 1 WLR 1410
  Banking – liability of Bank for acts of receiver

Other representations include: 

• Acting for an Eastern European bank in arbitration proceedings brought by the bank’s former legal advisers for an alleged success fee; 
• Advised a major UK bank in relation to expert determination of prices for the supply of electricity and gas under an energy supply agreement; 
• Acting for a major Turkish corporation in proceedings in the BVI claiming damages against two BVI companies for conspiracy to defraud in the procurement of Russian arbitration award; 
• Acted for a syndicate of banks in proceedings in Bermuda relating to the winding up of the Bermudian parent of an insurance group; 
• Acted for a major petroleum company in multi-jurisdictional litigation and UNCITRAL arbitration proceedings relating to options and shareholder interests in a Russian oilfield; 
• Acted for a major UK bank and a major Asian bank in the defence of proceedings commenced in England by a Hong Kong debtor claiming a declaration of non-liability; 
• Acting for a major petroleum company in proceedings to enforce in England a multi-million Euro judgment given in France by the French criminal courts against a UK based tycoon; 
• Acted for an Indian steel magnate in a dispute concerning a joint venture in Zambian copper mines; 
• Acted for a major French bank in the successful defence of preference proceedings brought in the British Virgin Islands by the liquidators of an insolvent investment fund; 
• Acted for the administrators of Sendo International Limited in fraud and asset tracing proceedings commenced in Hong Kong against former employees; 
• Acted for an international financial institution in the successful defence of two successive LCIA arbitrations relating to a breach of warranty claim with respect to the sale of shares in a Georgian water company; 
• Acted for a major UK bank in relation to the insolvency of the TXU group of companies; 
• Acted for a Dutch cable television operator in an LCIA arbitration against a joint venture company owned by major US film producers; and 
• Acted for Republic Bank Ltd of Trinidad in its successful opposition to an appeal to the Privy Council relating to enforcement of its security over the assets of a corporate borrower.

Examples of representations prior to joining White & Case include: 

• Acted for the Hong Kong & Shanghai Banking Corporation in a successful appeal to the House of Lords on the question whether the English Court has jurisdiction and/or should exercise jurisdiction to attach a credit balance on a bank account in Hong Kong; 
• Acted for the Swedish liquidator of a Swedish incorporated reinsurance company in liquidation in Sweden and provisional liquidation in England on a successful application to approve the remission of English assets to Sweden; 
• Acted for the liquidator of an insolvent judgment debtor on a successful appeal to the Privy Council on the question whether a judgment creditor was entitled to the benefit of a 'blanket charge' over the lands of the judgment debtor; 
• Acted for the successful respondent in resisting a mandatory injunction for the delivery up of privileged documents which showed that there had been forgery and misleading evidence put forward on behalf of the claimant; 
• Acted for the successful appellant in a Court of Appeal case concerning the effect of a non-exclusive jurisdiction clause under the Lugano Convention; 
• Acted for a major banking group in a successful multi-million pound claim under its Bankers’ Blanket Bond insurance policy arising out of the bank's lending against fictitious accounts receivables; 
• Acted for a syndicate of banks led by Standard Bank London Ltd in a successful claim to enforce a US$10 million performance guarantee/restitution claim in a trade finance dispute arising out of the Solo Industries affair (an alleged multi-million US$ fraud perpetrated against banks worldwide); 
• Acted for a major European Bank in defence of claim that director's signature had been forged on debenture charging the claimant's assets; 
• Acted for the successful appellant to Privy Council in relation to an application for Judicial Review to quash on grounds of alleged fraud a Bermudian certificate of continuance granted to a Massachusetts corporate insurer; 
• Acted for the former central bank of a foreign state in successful strike out of winding up petition on jurisdictional grounds; 
• Acted for shareholder in English company in dispute regarding the unlawful purchase by the company of its own shares; 
• Acted for leading UK merchant bank in defence of proceedings in England, Cayman Islands and Norway concerning the alleged offshore assets of a deceased Norwegian ship-owner; 
• Acted for directors of failed UK merchant bank in defence of action brought by note-holders alleging misleading statements in listing particulars; 
• Acted for Turkish Bank in defence of proceedings brought by administrators of Polly Peck claiming that Bank was a constructive trustee of assets alleged to have been stolen by Asil Nadir; 
• Acted for Gulf State in various worldwide actions to trace and recover misappropriated oil revenues in excess of US$100 million; 
• Acted for company in liquidation in action to recover unlawfully paid dividends from shareholders; 
• Acted for Johnson Matthey Bankers following its near collapse and takeover by the Bank of England in various actions relating to the Bank's lendings to the Sipra Group of companies; 
• Acted for the trustees of the estate of a deceased Norwegian ship-owner in world-wide proceedings to recover hidden off-shore assets; and 
• Acted for major oil company in fraud claim against contractor employed in the construction of a North Sea gas terminal.

Bars and Courts
Recorder (Crime and Civil) Midlands Circuit, 2000
Solicitor Advocate, 1999
Assistant Recorder (Crime) Midlands Circuit, 1998
Appointed Queen's Counsel, 1992
Called to the Bar of England and Wales (Lincoln's Inn), 1976
Called to the Bars of Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Isle of Man and Gibraltar for specific cases

Education
Lincoln's Inn (Hardwicke Scholar, Tancred Scholar, Hubert Greenland Scholar)
LLM, Churchill College, Cambridge, (Hons), 1976
MA (Hons), Churchill College, Cambridge, (Prize Scholar, Squire Scholar), 1974
Shrewsbury School

Publications
Corporate Administrations and Rescue Procedures (Joint Editor First Edition published under the title The Law and Practice of Corporate Administrations, 1994; Second Edition 2004
Practitioner's Guide to Corporate Insolvency and Corporate Rescues (1991) (contributed chapter on receiverships)
Loose on Liquidators (Joint Editor, 1981)

Languages
English

Citizenship
British