Atkin Chambers - A leading set of commercial barristers
Home / People / Olivia Anderson
Olivia Anderson Barrister

Olivia Anderson

Call: 2022

For enquiries call: +44 (0)20 7404 0102
Download CV (PDF)
Emailoanderson@atkinchambers.com
Print
Download vCard
Save Profile
Linkedin

David Barnes

CEO & Director of Clerking

Details

Justin Wilson

Senior Clerk

Details

Rick Bulaitis

Senior Practice Manager

Details

Freddie Buckle

Practice Manager

Details

Overview Expertise Related Insights, Events & Cases

Olivia Anderson specialises in Chambers’ core practice areas of construction, engineering and infrastructure, energy and utilities, and technology.

Olivia has experience in a broad range of construction and general commercial work at all stages of litigation and arbitration and has worked with a variety of bespoke and standard form contracts including JCT, NEC, RIBA and FIDIC forms.

Olivia graduated from the University of Oxford with a First-Class degree in History. Prior to joining Atkin Chambers, Olivia worked as an Associate Solicitor in the Global Projects, Energy and Infrastructure team at a London-based US law firm. As a barrister, Olivia applies that experience to provide client-focused and commercial advice.

Expertise

Olivia has acted in a range of construction and engineering disputes, including in claims over workmanship defects, design, variations and payment in respect of residential and commercial projects. Olivia is familiar with all standard forms, including JCT contracts, RIBA and NEC forms, as well as bespoke contracts.

Recent experience includes:

  • Acting as junior counsel in technically complex High Court proceedings concerning an energy to waste plant. Issues included the correct interpretation of a PFI contract profit sharing mechanism.
  • Acting as junior counsel in two different sets of High Court proceedings concerning fire safety defects in various blocks of flats. Relevant issues included the liability of an architect and/or sub-contractor in relation to the defects.
  • Drafting Particulars of Claim for High Court proceedings regarding non-payment for works and/or allegations of defective works in a residential development.
  • Drafting an Amended Defence and RFI as junior counsel in High Court proceedings concerning fire safety defects alleged against multiple defendants.
  • Drafting a Defence for a contractor against allegations of defective workmanship.
  • Successfully acting as sole counsel in a number of applications for summary judgment and/or strike out on behalf of a major transport network and/or homeowners in various County Courts.
  • Acting as sole counsel on behalf of homeowners and/or contractors in various County Courts as regards allegedly defective works and/or allegations of non-payment.
  • Producing a number of advices for developers, homeowners, contractors and/or insurers regarding the merits of potential claims. Issues have involved limitation, the quality of the evidential basis underlying a potential claim, the need for or quality of expert evidence, the application and interpretation of the Defective Premises Act 1972, contribution proceedings, and/or the strength of allegations of professional negligence and/or of breach of contract.
  • Drafting pre-action correspondence in High Court proceedings concerning fire safety defects
  • Successfully acting in a number of adjudications as sole counsel and/or as junior counsel, involving drafting all adjudication submissions. Olivia has acted in a number of related County Court claims arising out of the need to enforce / defend enforcement of adjudication decisions and/or to re-litigate the underlying dispute decided in an adjudication.

Olivia’s energy and natural resources experience at Atkin Chambers includes drafting advice on the availability of adjudication in respect of a wind farm project.

Prior to starting pupillage, Olivia worked for three years as an Associate in the Global Projects, Energy and Infrastructure team of a US law-firm. There, her experience in energy and natural resources included advising lenders (including export credit agencies and/or banks) and project owners on the development and financing of power (renewable energy and conventional power), infrastructure (e.g. metro systems), and oil & gas projects. Olivia drafted and negotiated security and finance documents used in wind farm financings, LNG projects and airports, for example.

Olivia has extensive experience acting in complex and high-value adjudications, both contractual and statutory. Recent experience includes:

  • Successfully acting in a series of back-to-back adjudications as sole counsel for the contractor responding party. The adjudications involved a dispute over the jurisdiction of the adjudicator, a true value dispute, and allegations of negligence.
  • Successfully acting for a contractor in an adjudication regarding allegations of defective cladding. The issues involved the appropriateness of a claim for declarations, contractual interpretation, the application of the Defective Premises Act 1972 to adjudication proceedings and/or the scope of alleged design obligations on the part of the contractor.
  • Successfully acting on behalf of a contractor in an adjudication concerning allegations of defective design and/or workmanship, in a c.£100,000 true value dispute.
  • Acting for employers and/or contractors in a range of true value and/or smash and grab adjudications, including in relation to a c.£2m “smash and grab” claim.

Olivia has experience in a number of international arbitrations including:

  • Attending and assisting with an arbitration in relation to a claim by a contractor against a sub-contractor for alleged breaches of contract in respect of design, construction and inspection matters (during pupillage) in the Middle East.
  • Prior to joining Chambers, drafting a Statement of Claim in relation to Dutch Binding Advice Proceedings
  • Drafting an advice on the availability of adjudication to a factor under an invoice discounting agreement in respect of a charge/ assignment to the factor of the benefit of a construction contract, and further advising whether that construction contract fell within the remit of the Housing Grants, Construction and Regeneration Act 1996 at all.
  • Drafting advices on the merits of challenges to the enforcement of an adjudication decision on the basis of breaches of natural justice and/or jurisdictional challenges.

Olivia has experience of a range of commercial disputes:

  • Sitting as a part-time secondee in the construction disputes team of a major international law firm for four months in the course of her first year of tenancy at Atkin Chambers.
  • Drafting advice regarding the merits of a claim for unlawful means conspiracy and/or for repudiatory breach of contract.
  • Drafting advice on the formation of a contract in circumstances where a new party was incorporated in the midst of negotiations.

Additional Information

  • Qualified as a Solicitor (2019)
  • BA History at the University of Oxford (First Class) (2012)
  • Mary Somerville Prize (University of Oxford) (2015)
  • Somerville College Coombs Exhibition for Modern History (University of Oxford) (2014)

Related Insights

Camille Slow KC, Edmund Neuberger and Olivia Anderson to present to The Adjudication Society

Camille Slow KC, Edmund Neuberger and Olivia Anderson will present an ‘Adjudication Case Law Update’…

Discover more

WEBINAR: JCT 2024 – 10 Key Changes in the New Suite of Contracts – Thursday 26th September

In this webinar, Mathias Cheung and Olivia Anderson will consider the changes introduced by the JCT…

Discover more

Get in touch

For more information please contact our clerks on
+44 (0)20 7404 0102 or clerks@atkinchambers.com

Portfolio Builder

Select the expertise that you would like to download or add to the portfolio

Download    Add to portfolio   
Portfolio
Title Type CV Email

Remove All

Download

Click here to share this shortlist.
(It will expire after 30 days.)