Stephen Du

Stephen Du

A real star in the makingLegal 500 2020

Practice Profile

Stephen practises in commercial law, with a particular focus in insurance and reinsurance, shipping, commodities, private international law and civil fraud. He is equally comfortable being instructed as sole counsel or as part of a team, and has also provided expert evidence on English law in foreign proceedings. He is fluent in Mandarin Chinese, and is interested in expanding his practice to jurisdictions in the Far East such as China, Hong Kong and Singapore. If you are interested in instructing Stephen, please contact our clerks to discuss the requirements of the case and his availability. If you would like to download Stephen’s CV in Chinese, please click here.

Areas of Expertise

Civil Fraud

Acted with Richard Southern QC on behalf of an Italian insurance company against its investment managers who had allegedly misappropriated in excess of €26m of securities belonging to their principal.
Entertainment One Limited v Monex and Anr: Acted as sole counsel on behalf of a former senior executive alleged to have received bribes in exchange for entering forex contracts which resulted in losses in excess of £17m.
Republic of Djibouti v Boreh: acting (as junior counsel) for Mr Boreh in defending claims by the Republic of Djibouti in the Commercial Court alleging abuse of his position as Chairman of the Djibouti Ports and Free Zones Authority.

Commercial Litigation and International Arbitration

Acted as sole counsel in a LCIA arbitration concerning a dispute worth over US$120m arising from the provision of a customised mobile phone web browser.
GFG 737 Limited v Odyssey Aviation Ltd: Instructed on appeal in a dispute regarding an Aircraft Sale and Purchase Agreement concerning a Boeing Business Jet.
HKN Energy Ltd v Hart Security Limited: Acted with James Drake QC on behalf of a security services company in a Commercial Court dispute relating to the provision of security guards for an oil company in Kurdistan.

Commodities

Acted with Peter MacDonald Eggers QC on behalf of a commodities trader based in Dubai in a GAFTA arbitration regarding a contract for the sale of wheat, the cargo having been rejected by inspectors from the Egyptian government.
Appeared as sole counsel in a HKIAC emergency arbitration hearing in Hong Kong on behalf of a buyer seeking urgent interim relief in a dispute regarding the sale of coal.
Acted as sole counsel on behalf of Chinese buyers in a CIETAC arbitration regarding a series of contracts for the purchase of US corn and DDGS.

Insurance & Reinsurance

Acted with Sioban Healy QC in a SIAC arbitration concerning a US$8.5m claim by a commodities trader under a credit insurance policy.
Acted with Richard Waller QC, James Brocklebank QC and Jocelin Gale in a LCIA arbitration concerning a claim by a factoring company under a credit insurance policy.
Acted on behalf of an investment bank in a claim under two professional indemnity policies arising from various investigations by the Autorité des Marchés Financiers.
Advised on coverage issues arising from various insurance policies, including professional indemnity, fidelity, life insurance and household policies.

Shipping & Transport

Glory Wealth Shipping Pte Ltd v Flame SA [2016] EWHC 293, [2016] 1 Lloyd’s Rep 571. Appeared with Richard Southern QC in an arbitration appeal concerning breach of a contract of affreightment and whether the owners had suffered substantial loss.
Acted for various parties in actions arising from the collapse of OW Bunker, including the plaintiffs in Newocean Petroleum Co Ltd v OW Bunker China Ltd (“The Cosco Felixstowe”) [2016] HKCFI 492, the leading case in Hong Kong on claims by physical suppliers against shipowners.
Acted with Stephen Hofmeyr QC in a dispute arising from US sanctions against Venezuela, for shipowners whose oil tankers were delayed in Venezuela for over 6 months.
Acting with Alistair Schaff QC, Stephen Phillips QC and John Bignall in a multi-million dollar arbitration concerning a dispute under three shipmanagement agreements involving a major Greek shipping family.
Appeared as sole counsel against a QC in a LMAA arbitration hearing concerning the chartering of a Floating Storage Regasification Unit and a claim for over US$45 million in hire and related expenses.
Acting as sole counsel for a buyer in a LMAA arbitration concerning the construction of a crane vessel claiming damages in excess of US$16m.

Education

2007-2010 Trinity College, University of Oxford BA Jurisprudence (First Class Honours)

2010-2011 Trinity College, University of Oxford BCL

2011-2012 College of Law, Birmingham BPTC (Outstanding)

Awards

Lady Astbury Memorial Prize, Trinity College, Oxford 2008 (best College performance in first year exams)
Colin Nicholls QC Prize, Trinity College, Oxford 2008 (best College performance in Criminal Law paper)
Lovells Prize, Trinity College, Oxford 2009
Mowat Scholarship, Trinity College, Oxford 2009
Finals Prize, Trinity College, Oxford 2010
RA Knox Memorial Prize, Trinity College, Oxford 2010
College of Law prizes for best performance in Civil Litigation and Criminal Litigation papers
Hardwicke Entrance Scholarship, Lincoln’s Inn
Lord Denning Scholarship, Lincoln’s Inn
Buchanan Prize, Lincoln’s Inn
Sunley Scholarship, Lincoln’s Inn

Interests

Violin (Grade 8 Distinction); former member of the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain Languages: Mandarin Chinese (fluent)

Directories

A real star in the making. Legal 500 2020
A Chinese-speaking barrister instructed in shipbuilding arbitrations. Legal 500 2020 Asia Pacific
He is very bright and able. Legal 500 2018
A Chinese speaker instructed directly by Mainland firms. Legal 500 2018 Asia Pacific
Exceptional. Legal 500 2017

General Information

Articles

Stephen Du and Steven Zhou, King & Wood Mallesons co wrote an article called "Maritime Injunction: a proper weapon against the anti-suit injunction?". To view the full article please click here.

Bernie Hyatt	bhyatt@7kbw.co.uk	+44 207 910 8312
Greg Leyden	gleyden@7kbw.co.uk	+44 207 910 8314
Eddie Johns	ejohns@7kbw.co.uk	+44 207 910 8311
Gary Rose	grose@7kbw.co.uk	+44 207 910 8313
Joe Clayton	jclayton@7kbw.co.uk	+44 207 910 8378
Sean Hulbert (Arbitrators’ clerk)	shulbert@7kbw.co.uk	+44 207 910 8379

Year of Call:	2012
Email:	Sdu@7kbw.co.uk

Practice Profile