William Frain-Bell
Called to bar 2000
Email William Frain-Bell
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Areas of practice Commercial & Business, Sports and media, Professional Negligence, Fraud & Extradition, Employment & Discrimination, Pensions, Personal Injury, Discipline and Regulatory, Public Access
William Frain-Bell has 10 years experience of advocacy gained in courts at every level all across the country in both civil and criminal cases. William started life as a Scottish solicitor before calling to the Scottish Bar (Faculty of Advocates) in 1999 and then to Bar of England & Wales in 2000.
William acts for a range of clients from international construction companies, property developers, limited companies, trade unions, land owners, professionals and individuals. Regardless of the client he brings a pragmatic and effective approach to problem solving and advocacy. William has an enormous capacity for work and can assimilate information quickly, turning it where required into attractive submissions and effective lines of cross examination. He has extensive experience in cross examining people at all levels from expert witnesses to government officials and is known for adopting a highly effective almost Siren-esque velvet glove iron fist approach to the extraction of information.
He has a particular interest in international commercial arbitration and dispute resolution and is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators. In this arena he is carving out a niche practice in the Middle East where he has been involved in several large arbitrations in Dubai under the Dubai International Arbitration Centre's (DIAC) Rules. He has a solid grasp of UAE law and the construction industry. He has particular experience with EOT claims, programming issues, concrete and dewatering (of notable importance when building on sand). He is also a registered practitioner in the Dubai International Financial Centre Courts. William is also able to be instructed by members of the public directly.
Recent cases include
Sole Counsel for the Claimant in a DIAC AED 200m breach of contract arbitration (wrongful termination). Issues included local UAE building regulations, delay, programming.
Junior Counsel for the Claimant in a DIAC AED 120m wrongful termination arbitration. Key issues in this case related to the quality of concrete works in the largest structure of its kind in the world.
Joint Counsel for the Claimant in an ICC US$40m breach of contract arbitration brought by the Korean manufacturer of television components against a Saudi Arabian trading house. Issues in relation to breach of contract including the freezing of assets in Saudi Arabia and other GCC states.
Joint Counsel for the Claimant in a £15m adjudication relating to EOT issues stemming from the placing of off-shore wind turbines.
Sole Counsel for a senior executive in a FTSE 250 company in the ET who was claiming US$2,500,000 USD of unpaid bonus.
Sole counsel for the developer at a full public inquiry involving the construction of a wind turbine development.
Represented a medical professional in an action following a TV documentary which falsely branded her as a liar following a whistle-blowing disclosure relating to the deliberate manipulation of hospital waiting lists.
Acted for the guarantor in a High Court action where it was alleged that the lender had failed to ensure that the guarantor, a Korean national, was aware of what was being signed. Guarantee involved security over £1m worth of classic cars.
Areas of Practice
Commercial and Business, Tribunals (Employment, Medical, Financial), Proceeds of Crime, International Commercial Arbitration, Defamation and Media Law, Planning and Insolvency.
What the Directories Say
Described as "reliable" by Chambers & Partners and noted as a leading junior in commercial law, with "excellent client handling skills", by the Legal 500, William is a versatile and effective advocate, with a wide range of experience in many different areas of the law. He is particularly attuned to the best interests of his clients and is well regarded by solicitors for his often innovative approach to problem solving.
