Christopher Withers SC

Silk 2020
Call 2006
Email withers@banco.net.au
Phone +61 2 9376 0676
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Christopher was appointed Senior Counsel in 2020 after 14 years practise at the Bar in Sydney. Prior to that, he spent six years working as a commercial litigator at Davis Polk & Wardwell in New York and two years at Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer in London. He has a BCL from Oxford University.

Christopher practises in a range of commercial law proceedings including trials and appeals in the Supreme and Federal Courts. His practice includes financial services litigation, trust litigation, insolvency and corporations matters, contract disputes, civil penalty and regulatory proceedings.

Christopher regularly acts for both plaintiffs and defendants, including in representative proceedings. He acted for the plaintiffs in various successful actions brought against the ratings agencies Standard & Poor's and Fitch. He is the lead counsel for Bianca Rinehart and John Hancock in the Rinehart family trust litigation in the Supreme Court of NSW and the WA Supreme Court. He regularly represents individual defendants in civil litigation relating to directors' duties and regulatory proceedings brought by ASIC. He has acted for a number of large corporations, including banks, mining and energy companies, and airlines.

A CV is available on request.

Rankings

The Legal 500 Guide 2023 – Tier 2 Leading Silk in Commercial Disputes

Chambers & Partners Asia Pacific Guide 2023 – Band 4 Dispute Resolution - "Christopher is described as being 'very able, very determined, and never takes a step backwards'."

Chambers & Partners Asia Pacific Guide 2022
– Band 4 Dispute Resolution Senior Counsel - "Chris is particularly noted for his familiarity with financial services, insolvency and regulatory matters and, increasingly, as an advocate on behalf of plaintiffs in prominent class actions. He is described by one interviewee as 'an impressive, natural silk who's across the detail and gives confidence to both instructors and funders,' while another calls him 'strategically brilliant, with an ease and assuredness in his manner and in dialogue with judges, who have confidence in his legal reasoning.'"

Doyles Guide 2023 (Australia-wide) – Leading Class Action Senior Counsel

Best LawyersRanked in Commercial Litigation and for Insolvency & Reorganisation