Andrew Rigney KC is joint Head of Chambers.
Andrew has an extensive domestic and international practice, which encompasses a wide range of civil and commercial work. He specialises in large-scale disputes arising out of very substantial projects involving complex factual and technical evidence, leading large multi-disciplinary (and often multi-national) teams of lawyers and experts.
Andrew’s areas of expertise include (i) construction and engineering disputes (both in the TCC and in domestic and international arbitration) including, amongst other things, large infrastructure projects, ports, shipbuilding, power plants, a number of international airports, the de-commissioning of a nuclear power station, a naval base, a co-location headquarters for the Ministry of Defence, hotels, roads, rail, process plants, water treatment plants, de-salination plants, sewerage plants, (ii) energy and natural resources (both onshore and offshore) including waste energy plants, CHP and the largest renewables plant of its kind in the world (iii) international arbitration (iv) insurance and reinsurance (v) professional indemnity work (in particular engineers, architects, surveyors, solicitors and accountants) (vi) property damage and (vii) commercial litigation including sale of goods, financial instruments, aviation leasing agreements and product liability.
He is familiar with a wide range of standard forms (including JCT, ICE, NEC, FIDIC, IChemE, PPC, TPC, ACE, RIBA etc) and PFI contracts, and a wide range of arbitral rules (ICC, LCIA, UNCITRAL, EDF and LMAA etc); and he has acted in relation to claims concerning projects in the United States, the Caribbean, Russia, Central and Eastern Europe, the Indian sub-continent, Africa, Turkey, Hong Kong and the Middle East (including the UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman and Saudi Arabia) as well as in the United Kingdom.
So far as coverage work is concerned, he has wide experience of disputes involving CAR/EAR policies (including, in particular, the operation of DE and LEG clauses (and clauses based on them)) and Public Liability, Product Liability and Employers’ Liability policies (including Business Interruption); and he has acted in relation to some of the largest domestic and international losses. He has advised in relation to the effect of COVID-19 in the context of a number of worldwide Business Interruption and Material Damage wordings, and was instructed by Zurich in the FCA coronavirus test case (FCA v Arch et al), a landmark insurance claim to determine whether certain non-damage BI wordings provide cover in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic. The first instance judgment of Flaux LJ and Butcher J is at [2020] EWHC 2448 (Comm) and [2020] Lloyds Rep IR 527, and the judgment of the Supreme Court is at [2021] UKSC 1.
Andrew also has substantial experience of conflicts of laws and jurisdictional challenges (including cases involving the Brussels Regulation and Rome Regulations), and of civil law systems in the Middle East, including issues of Egyptian, UAE, Qatari, Kuwaiti, Saudi and Omani law.
Rankings
Andrew is listed as a global and national leader in Who’s Who Legal 2022 (in 2020, he was described as “undoubtedly one of the smartest barristers at the Bar””), and is listed in Chambers Global 2022, and Legal 500 EMEA 2022. In addition, he is recognised as a Leading Silk by Chambers UK 2023 and Legal 500 2023 in the fields of:
- International Arbitration
- Construction
- Energy & Natural Resources
- Insurance & Reinsurance
- Property Damage
- Professional Negligence
Andrew was shortlisted by Chambers UK for Construction Silk of the Year in 2017 and by Legal 500 for the award of Construction and Energy Silk of the Year for 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020, and he was shortlisted by Chambers UK for International Arbitration Silk of the Year for 2021.
He is described in these Directories as
“a fantastic QC” , an “eminent” and “go-to” silk who is “sought after by clients around the globe”, “exceptional”, “phenomenal”, “fantastically user-friendly”, “a brilliant mind”, “supremely clever”, “an intellectual heavyweight”, “incredibly intellectual”, “fiercely and exceptionally intelligent”, “extremely bright”, “incredibly gifted”, “charm personified”, “impeccably-mannered”, “one of the top QCs”, “absolutely first-rate”, “unflappable”, “an absolute pleasure and a delight to work with”, “exceptionally hard-working”, with “incredible legal skills and commercial acumen” and a “truly impressive”, “brilliant”, “exceptional”, “superb”, “incredibly effective” and “top class” advocate who is “absolutely at the top of his field”, with a “razor-sharp intellect”, and a “devastating” and “ruthless” cross examiner who “gets the law right first time, every time”.
View full profile »Awards
News
- Members of Chambers recognised by the Legal 500 EMEA 2023 for their construction expertise in the Middle East
- Thanks to Richard Lynagh QC – New Joint Heads of Chambers
Events
Qualifications
- 1986-1989 Christ’s College, Cambridge, MA, English Tripos
- 1989-1990 Japan Exchange and Teach (“JET”) Programme: British Government/Japanese Government programme teaching English near Tokyo
- 1990-1991 The City University, Diploma in Law (Distinction)
- 1991-1992 Gray’s Inn: Uthwatt Scholar, Mooting Award, United States Moots Tour (1993)
Memberships
- Commercial Bar Association
- Technology and Construction Bar Association (former Committee member)
- Society of Construction Law
- Society of Construction Law (Gulf)
- London Common Law and Commercial Bar Association
- Professional Negligence Bar Association
- LCIA
Recommendations
“Andrew is extremely bright, exceptionally hardworking, incredibly charming and an absolute pleasure to work with. He has a rare quality of being very charming in his dealings with the tribunal so as to command respect at all times, yet at the same time conducting cross-examination robustly and aggressively as required… His work is meticulous, considered and precise, and solicitors and lay clients really value what he has to say… Andrew is detail oriented and an excellent communicator. He is also charming; the sort of silk who you want to introduce to clients as you know they will warm to him…Happy to roll his sleeves up, he is extremely bright and grasps the technical detail of energy disputes incredibly quickly, and his advocacy is impressive…Great to work with and meticulous in his analysis. Andrew becomes a real team member and there are no airs and graces.”
Legal 500, 2023
“.. eminent silk…sought after by clients around the globe…a brilliant mind with a great eye for detail. A delight to work with…fiercely intelligent, can recite case law in his sleep…an exceptional and superb advocate…very impressive when cross-examining expert witnesses … absolutely at the top of his field… incredibly responsive and very on top of the detail… a true gentlemen – very hard-working and charming while also being a very effective cross-examiner…”
Chambers & Partners, 2023
“Exceptionally intelligent, extremely hard-working, impeccably mannered, a brilliant advocate, a wise strategist, and a thoroughly decent human being…”… “Extremely personable, focused and brilliant, supportive and thoughtful of instructing counsel, a pleasure to work with.”… “Attentive, thoughtful, commercially-minded, intelligent and very easy to work with, he commands great respect from his peers.”
Legal 500, 2022
“an eminent” and “go-to” silk with an “unbelievable interest in the detail of a case”. “He is phenomenal…exceptional team player..” “ Andrew is fantastic….very experienced advocate….pleasure to work with” “… an exemplary QC with.. incredible legal skills and commercial acumen” “…an incredibly effective advocate” and “fantastically user-friendly”
Chambers & Partners, 2022
“Tremendous: enthusiastic, hardworking, smooth with clients and imbued with a calm authority.”
Legal 500 EMEA, 2021
“…extremely thorough and clever…a ruthless cross-examiner… phenomenally good with clients… gives them comfort and confidence…an absolute pleasure to work with, extremely accommodating and willing to go the extra mile…very impressive, calm and intellectual… respected lawyer who is well liked by judges…his standout strength is his technical ability and his breadth of knowledge across insurance, construction and arbitration issues… a superb command of the subject matter of any case…”
Chambers & Partners, 2021
“Extremely bright and meticulous – a first-class silk!”; “He is ferociously hardworking, utterly charming, forensic, responsive and eloquent.”; “A fantastic QC with a great eye for detail”
Legal 500, 2021
“…extremely clever, invariably charming, incredibly hardworking and a persuasive advocate”; “a fantastic QC with a great eye for detail; his client care is second to none”; “unfailingly diligent, charm personified, willing to roll his sleeves up and get in the trench with you…”
Legal 500, 2020
“Eminent silk…incredibly intellectual, phenomenally hard-working and accessible…phenomenal in his client handling and willingness to roll his sleeves up; a superb advocate…very thorough, very rigorous, very clear and a delight to work with…he is sought after by clients around the globe…very bright, easy to work with and a team player…unflappable and an excellent advocate…”
Chambers & Partners, 2020
“Eminent silk who regularly acts in high-value litigation and arbitration in the UK and internationally. His work on construction cases in the energy sector elicits particular praise…exceptional service…real team player… a considerable intellect, great attention to detail and very incisive cross-examination…A truly impressive advocate”
Chambers & Partners, 2019
