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Print4 October 2021: The leading legal directory the Legal 500 has just published its guide to the UK legal profession for 2022, recognising more lawyers at Cooke, Young & Keidan as experts in their fields than ever before, and promoting the firm up the rankings in a number of practice areas. It describes CYK as “one of the very best boutique litigation firms”.
For the first time founding partner Philip Young is included in the Legal 500 Hall of Fame, which recognises lawyers ‘who are at the pinnacle of the profession’, and who is described as a ‘brilliant strategic thinker’.
There is also recognition for all of CYK’s other partners. Sinead O’Callaghan is described as ‘simply brilliant’, Stephen Elam is a ‘great strategist’, Lydia Danon is ‘gutsy and straight-talking’, while Daniel Burbeary is described as ‘an experienced, no-nonsense arbitration specialist’ and new partner Sam Roberts is marked out as a ‘rising star’.
There are also recommendations for a number of CYK’s other lawyers, including new hire counsel Mikhail Vishnyakov.
The firm’s dispute resolution capabilities are ranked in a broad range of categories, including Banking Litigation, Commercial Litigation (Premium), Financial Services: Contentious, Civil Fraud, Professional Negligence, and International Arbitration.
Commenting on the rankings, Managing Partner Robert Coffey said: “We are delighted by our rankings and are extremely grateful that so many of our clients and industry colleagues have taken the time to provide feedback to the Legal 500. We are very pleased indeed that Philip Young has been given the Hall of Fame accolade, and that also the directory recognises the strength and breadth of our team.”
Comments from clients and other legal professionals quoted in the Legal 500 included:
‘One of the very best boutique litigation firms….CYK recruit well, operate well and win cases. Their work product is often significantly superior to that of their competitors or opponents.‘
‘Cooke, Young & Keidan rightly have a first-class reputation in this area.’
‘Highly innovative thinking. Brilliant ability to produce well-thought through and strategic approaches to cases.’
‘Much more broad-ranging knowledge and skills than comparable firms’.
‘CYK remains groundbreaking in its fearlessness in bringing claims.’
The detailed rankings for CYK can be read here or below:
BANKING LITIGATION: INVESTMENT AND RETAIL TIER 3
Praised for its ‘highly innovative thinking‘, litigation boutique Cooke, Young & Keidan LLP is a popular choice for claimants against banks and other financial institutions and counts fintech disputes among its areas of growth. The ‘brilliant strategic thinker‘ Philip Young, the ‘simply brilliant‘ Sinead O’Callaghan and Lydia Danon have broad litigation experience. ‘Great strategist‘ Stephen Elam is particularly strong for claims involving complex financial products while Daniel Burbeary excels in cross-border disputes involving China, Russia and the CIS region. ‘Emerging star‘ Sam Roberts and Rosie Wild are among the associates to note.
Sinead O’Callaghan – Cooke, Young & Keidan LLP
Philip Young – Cooke, Young & Keidan LLP
Stephen Elam – Cooke, Young & Keidan LLP
Other key lawyers:
Sinead O’Callaghan; Philip Young; Lydia Danon; Stephen Elam; Sam Roberts; Daniel Burbeary; Rosie Wild
Testimonials
‘One of the very best boutique litigation firms. And a go-to firm for Banking disputes (claimant side). No fuss, high client engagement, lower cost but on a par if not better than much larger firms. CYK recruit well, operate well and win cases. Their work product is often significantly superior to that of their competitors or opponents.‘
‘Philip Young – a really good lawyer and a really good person to look after your case. Sensible, clever and easy to work with. Excellent judgment.‘
‘Sam Roberts – new partner – very good indeed. Daniel Burbeary – knows how to run a heavy arbitration or commercial court action. Rosie Wild – one of the best litigation associates in London – very broad shoulders for a very young lawyer.‘
‘Highly innovative thinking. Brilliant ability to produce well-thought through and strategic approaches to cases.‘
‘Philip Young – Brilliant strategic thinker. Lydia Danon- gutsy and straight-talking. What every client wants in a fight. Rosie Wild – Goes the extra mile, all the time. The associate every partner wants. Daniel Burbeary – Great client skills. Sees the way through to a good commercial result.’
‘Stephen Elam has the ability to explain the most complex concepts clearly so that rational decisions can be made. He is always available to discuss issues and he is a great strategist.‘
‘Cooke, Young & Keidan rightly have a first-class reputation in this area.’
‘Sinead O’Callaghan – Sinead is simply brilliant. Sam Roberts – a real class act, and emerging star in this area.‘
Key clients
Grove Park Properties
Mary Ward House Limited and Timothy Murphy
Daniel and Toby Ward
The ECU Group Plc
Cheyne Capital International Limited
Oliver Morley, trading as Morley Estates
Reliantco
Robson Asset Management Manco Limited
Bitfinex
ThinkMarkets
CMOC
COMMERCIAL LITIGATION: PREMIUM TIER 3
Praised for its ‘highly innovative thinking‘, litigation boutique Cooke, Young & Keidan LLP is particularly popular among high net worth individuals, SMEs, as well as, increasingly, corporates and investment companies. ‘Brilliant strategic thinker‘ Philip Young is a key contact for claims requiring urgent injunctive relief while Sinead O’Callaghan and the ‘gutsy and straight-talking‘ Lydia Danon have broad practices. Stephen Elam has a specialism in financial services and regulatory disputes. It continues to build its technology practice, particularly in fintech and venture capital-related disputes. Arish Bharucha joined Howard Kennedy LLP.
Sinead O’Callaghan – Cooke, Young & Keidan LLP
Philip Young – Cooke, Young & Keidan LLP
Lydia Danon – Cooke, Young & Keidan LLP
Stephen Elam – Cooke, Young & Keidan LLP
Other key lawyers:
Philip Young; Sinead O’Callaghan; Stephen Elam; Lydia Danon; Daniel Burbeary
Testimonials
‘Philip Young – Brilliant strategic thinker. Lydia Danon- gutsy and straight-talking. What every client wants in a fight. Rosie Wild – Goes the extra mile, all the time. The associate every partner wants. Daniel Burbeary – Great client skills. Sees the way through to a good commercial result.‘
‘Highly innovative thinking. Brilliant ability to produce well-thought through and strategic approaches to cases.’
‘This team knows its onions extremely well. They possess not only a great knowledge of the law, but also of the technicalities surrounding the use of the law.’
‘The service, knowledge, professional attitude, and process are very well done.’
Key clients
Reliantco Investments Limited
Derek Quinlan
Shaun Barnard
The ECU Group Plc
Grove Park Properties
Infund LLP and Mr Hector Juan Jose Garcia Quevedo Topete
ThinkMarkets
CMOC
Oliver Morley, trading as Morley Estates
Robson Asset Management Manco Limited
Bitfinex
FRAUD: CIVIL TIER 3
Cooke, Young & Keidan LLP is regarded as ‘one of the very best boutique litigation firms and a go-to firm for fraud disputes‘. The practice focuses on complex commercial fraud work, handling domestic and multijurisdictional matters for corporate and private clients. The ‘brilliant strategic thinker’ Philip Young is a key name in the area and specialises in banking and commercial litigation.
Other key lawyers:
Philip Young; Lydia Danon; Rosie Wild
Testimonials
‘This team knows its onions extremely well. They possess not only a great knowledge of the law, but also of the technicalities surrounding the use of the law. This gives their clients a huge advantage as the firm will always be looking a number of steps ahead, working out what the consequences of taking a particular path now might be in a year or two’s time’.
‘Best known initially for taking on the banking world, now firmly established in the Civil Fraud market, involved in some of the bigger cases before the Commercial Court’.
‘Philip Young is a bit of a legal “geek”, who is genuinely deeply interested in the law and has a great depth of knowledge of the areas in which he practises. Sometimes it seems as if neurons are flying out of his brain as he goes off on what appears to be a tangent, but which he ties back to the very core of the issues he is dealing with’.
‘Lydia Danon invokes trust in clients from the off. Takes no nonsense from opponents, from counsel or from clients, who love her style. Her plain speaking is a breath of fresh air. Clients know that they will get good straightforward and correct advice’.
‘Rosie Wild is a superb senior associate surely on the brink of partnership. Has hugely detailed knowledge of the issues in every piece of litigation she is involved in. Appears to be tireless, never too busy to deal with whatever is put before her’.
‘Massively supportive of counsel in every case, the importance of which cannot be overstated. Highly innovative thinking. They come up with well-thought through and novel approaches to tricky issues. Much more broad-ranging knowledge and skills than comparable firms’.
‘Philip Young is always looking for the unseen angle in a case. Brilliant strategic thinker. Lydia Danon – gutsy and straight talking. Exactly who a client wants next to them in a fight. Rosie Wild – willing to go the extra mile. The associate every partner wants with them on a case’.
Key clients
VP Bank
Grove Park Properties
The ECU Group Plc
Mr Yoshiki Ohmura
CMOC
Infund LLP
Reliantco
Shaun Barnard
ThinkMarkets
FINANCIAL SERVICES: CONTENTIOUS TIER 5
Cooke, Young & Keidan LLP, a commercial and financial disputes boutique, is known for handling contentious financial regulatory work, acting for corporates and regulated firms in FCA investigations and disputes, as well as advising on supervisory and enforcement issues. Key contacts are Stephen Elam, an expert in financial products, and Sinead O’Callaghan, whose clients include funds and high-net-worth individuals. In March 2020, founding partner Marc Keidan left to start Keidan Harrison.
Other key lawyers:
Stephen Elam; Sinead O’Callaghan
Testimonials
‘Extremely careful and considered litigators. Very aware of the workings of financial markets.’
‘Steve Elam is the top choice for litigation involving exchanges or trading.’
‘CYK Law are a small firm which punches well above their weight. This is down to their ability to source litigation funders to support cases, and draw on a pool of good subject matter experts.’
‘An excellent and client focused team. Clients can be assured of day to day contact with the senior members of the team. A forward thinking approach to costing for clients.‘
‘Stephen Elam has excellent management skills, especially in large scale litigation.’
‘The team at the firm are excellent – efficient, pro-active and intelligent – and a pleasure to work with.’
‘Stephen Elam has the ability to explain the most complex concepts clearly so that rational decisions can be made. He is always available to discuss issues and he is a great strategist.’
‘Sinead O’Callaghan is good. Knows her stuff, commercial, personable.’
Key clients
iFinex Inc (Bitfinex)
The ECU Group Plc
Reliantco Investments Limited
Grove Park Properties Ltd
ThinkMarkets
Oliver Morley, t/a Morley Estates
Daniel and Toby Ward
Cheyne Capital International Limted
Mary Ward House Limited and Timothy Murphy
INTERNATIONAL ARBITRATION TIER 5
Cooke, Young & Keidan LLP specialises in commercial and financial disputes, with key growth areas for the boutique firm including commercial arbitrations, enforcement of awards, and bringing and defending challenges to awards; it is also increasingly active on the claimant side in investor-state disputes. Daniel Burbeary specialises in commercial disputes, particularly those involving China, Russia and former CIS countries; Sinead O’Callaghan is gaining a significant profile in arbitrations; and Philip Young has over 25 years’ experience in the field.
Other key lawyers:
Daniel Burbeary; Sinead O’Callaghan; Philip Young; Robert Coffey; Irina Buydova; Mikhail Vishnyakov
Testimonials
‘CYK is a boutique disputes firm, so every member of the team is specialised in disputes.‘
‘They attract strong employees, often from Magic Circle law firms, and they are focused on high-value and complex disputes in litigation and arbitration.‘
‘The individuals I have worked with in the field of international arbitration are of very high quality – an excellent blend of keeping an eye on the big picture while keeping a firm grip on the details.‘
‘CYK is one of the most respected boutique litigation firms in the London market. They offer cutting-edge City law firm expertise, relative absence of conflicts, and very competitive fee rates.‘
‘The team has an excellent leader in Daniel Burbeary, and it has recruited high-quality associates who offer a very good proposition in the arbitration space.‘
‘Daniel Burbeary is an experienced, no-nonsense arbitration specialist, who comes up with effective strategies for complex disputes, and delivers them efficiently and effectively to a very high standard.‘
‘Daniel Burbeary is always thinking strategically.‘
‘My go-to person is Philip Young, who is tenacious, and has good judgement and excellent client-handling skills – he is utterly committed to securing the client’s objectives and results driven.‘
Key clients
Eastern European Engineering
GUTA Group
PROFESSIONAL NEGLIGENCE TIER 5
Cooke, Young & Keidan LLP advises on complex, high value claims against bankers, financial service providers, accountants and architects. Sinead O’Callaghan is skilled in commercial litigation, and has experience handling claims against real estate valuers and financial institutions. Stephen Elam acts for both claimants and defendants in professional negligence mandates involving financial services and banking professionals. Marc Keidan departed to establish Keidan Harrison LLP in 2020.
Practice head(s):
Sinead O’Callaghan
Other key lawyers:
Stephen Elam
Testimonials
‘Fantastic team, always a pleasure to deal with. Efficient, energetic and always happy to pitch together with new clients from different jurisdictions.’
‘CYK remains groundbreaking in its fearlessness in bringing claims.’
‘The team at the firm are excellent – efficient, pro-active and intelligent – and a pleasure to work with.’
‘This is a good team which takes care of its clients.’
‘Sinead O’Callaghan is brilliant to work for and very approachable. Stephen Elam is very popular. Lydia Danon has fantastic energy, a real team player, great with clients.’
‘Steve Elam is an extremely thoughtful lawyer whose measured approach reassures clients and flusters opponents.’
‘I am impressed by Sinead O’Callaghan who has instructed me and is careful and thoughtful and works well with clients.’
‘Stephen Elam has the ability to explain the most complex concepts clearly so that rational decisions can be made. He is always available to discuss issues and he is a great strategist.’
Key clients
Mary Ward House Limited and Timothy Murphy
