Lucy Garrett KC
Call: 2001
Silk: 2018
"Lucy is an out-and-out star, a gifted legal mind and persuasive advocate who can cut through endless legal and technical complexities to get to what really matters."
Legal 500 2024
Clerk Details
Practice Summary
Lucy is a leading KC specialising in construction, engineering, energy and shipbuilding, with a particular focus on projects involving complex factual, technical and contractual disputes. She has extensive experience of high value, high profile litigation and arbitration in relation to major infrastructure projects, including PFI, and energy projects from windfarms to nuclear. Her practice includes claims for and against construction professionals in these sectors and project-related issues such as insurance, bonds and guarantees. She is also instructed in relation to Building Liability Orders and Remediation Contribution Orders. Lucy also advises on and acts in adjudications, from referral stage to enforcement. She is described in the directories as “an out-and-out star”, “a dream to work with”, “a gifted legal mind” and “a brilliant advocate with a superb way of persuading judges”.
She is always in demand for her forceful advocacy, commercial approach and “stellar” intellectual ability. Lucy has extensive experience in the Business and Property Courts (both TCC and Commercial Court) and has appeared at appellate level. She divides her practice approximately equally between UK litigation and international arbitration. She has acted in multiple disputes in civil code jurisdictions and is familiar with the standard forms often used internationally such as FIDIC and, increasingly, NEC, and with international parties and tribunals.
Lucy’s energy and shipbuilding practice and her experience of the offshore standard forms are reflected in her co-editorship (with Mr Justice Constable) of the leading text in its field, Keating on Offshore Construction and Marine Engineering (3rd Edn., published August 2024). She is also co-editor of the looseleaf Keating on JCT and author of the Construction Professionals chapter in Keating on Construction Contracts.
Lucy is nominated in 2024 for the Legal 500’s Professional Negligence Silk of the Year. She was elected a Bencher of Gray’s Inn in 2023 and was one of The Lawyer’s “Hot 100” in 2021. She has been top ranked in Chambers & Partners, Legal 500 and Who’s Who Legal in construction, energy, international arbitration and professional negligence for many years and is a Who’s Who Legal Thought Leader in Construction in 2023 and 2024. As a junior, she won Chambers and Partners’ Construction Junior of the Year in 2013 and was nominated again in 2015.
Practice Areas
Construction & Engineering
Acting for a parent company in one of the first BLO cases.
Acting for the main contractor in a number of disputes arising out of the construction of Battersea Power Station.
Acting for the management company in disputes relating to East Village (formerly the athlete’s village for the London 2012 Olympics).
Multiple major disputes arising out of cladding issues on apartment blocks, acting variously for residents, developers, contractors and members of the professional team.
Acting for the employer in relation to a prestigious development procured on a construction management basis.
Acting variously for the Trust, Project Co, the Contractor, the Facilities Manager or the Independent Tester in a series of PFI disputes relating to hospitals in the UK.
Acting for a major engineering firm in relation to the design of three hospitals.
Acting for an oil & gas major in relation to the expansion of a supergiant oil field.
Acting for the D&B contractor against structural engineers in relation to a care home development
Acting for the construction manager in in a series of disputes relating to a major commercial property development.
Acting for a nuclear engineering firm in relation to supply of equipment to a nuclear power station.
Commercial Court litigation in a shipbuilding dispute: the reported decision is now one of the leading cases on delay and the prevention principle.
Multi-billion US$ ICC arbitration relating to the construction of a hospital complex in Qatar.
£100m plus high profile Cambridgeshire Guided Busway litigation in the TCC. This case was the first dispute on the NEC2 form to come to Court.
Multi-million pound claim arising out of the Pinnacle project in the City of London.
Multi-million AED DIAC arbitration arising out of the construction of Dubai airport (under UAE law).
Acting for employers, contractors and subcontractors on many other final account disputes on UK and international projects.
Numerous adjudications and enforcements representing employers, (sub)contractors and professionals including a number of reported cases on points of law.
Energy & Natural Resources
Acting for two subcontractors in separate disputes arising out of the construction of Hinckley Point C.
Acting for the contractor in a dispute arising out of the construction of a solar farm.
Acting for an oil & gas major in relation to the expansion of a supergiant oil field.
Acting for an oil & gas major in relation to the design and construction of a gas platform.
Acting for a contractor in a dispute arising out of the Dorset Visual Impact Project.
Acting for an oil & gas major in relation to an oil pipeline in Yemen.
Acting for a nuclear engineering firm in relation to supply of equipment to a nuclear power station.
Several separate LMAA arbitrations arising out of the termination of various drilling rigs, each involving disputes of several hundred million US$.
Commercial Court litigation relating to the performance of a semi-submersible drilling rig and including issues of consequential loss.
Acting for reinsurers in cUS$300m ICC arbitration involving a DSU claim relating to a hydroelectric power plant.
Counsel for the engineers in an LCIA arbitration relating to the foundation design of a meteorological mast.
Acting for the employer in multi-million pound dispute arising out of the renovations of a gas terminal.
US$200m ICC arbitration arising out of the construction of a desalination plant in Qatar.
Multi-million euro TCC litigation relating to the decommissioning and dismantling of platforms in the North Sea.
Two major (US$100m and US$8m respectively) ICC arbitrations relating to the construction of the BTC oil pipeline.
Infrastructure & Utilities
Acting for a subcontractor in a dispute arising out of the construction of the Qatar metro.
Acting for two subcontractors in disputes arising out of the construction of Hinckley Point C.
Acting for the contractor in a dispute arising out of the construction of a solar farm.
Acting for a contractor in a dispute arising out of the Dorset Visual Impact Project.
Various disputes arising out of the Crossrail project.
Acting for a nuclear engineering firm in relation to supply of equipment to a nuclear power station.
Acting for reinsurers in cUS$300m ICC arbitration involving a DSU claim relating to a hydroelectric power plant.
£100m plus high profile Cambridgeshire Guided Busway litigation in the TCC. This case was the first dispute on the NEC2 form to come to Court.
Multi-million US$ ICC arbitration arising out of the construction of Qatar port.
Multi-million dollar ICC arbitration arising out a desalination plant in Qatar.
Multi-million AED DIAC arbitration arising out of the construction of Dubai airport.
Multi-billion dollar arbitration relating to the construction of the new metro in Dubai.
Numerous road and rail cases in the UK and internationally.
International Arbitration
Hong Kong arbitration relating to the construction of a pharmaceutical factory.
ICC arbitration arising out of the construction of the Qatar metro.
Acting for an oil & gas major in relation to the expansion of a supergiant oil field.
Acting for an oil & gas major in relation to the design and construction of a gas platform.
Acting for a major engineering firm in relation to the design of three hospitals.
Acting for a nuclear engineering firm in relation to supply of equipment to a nuclear power station.
Several separate LMAA arbitrations arising out of the termination of various drilling rigs, each involving disputes of several hundred million US$.
Multi-billion US$ ICC arbitration relating to the construction of a hospital complex in Qatar.
Multi-million US$ ICC arbitration arising out of the construction of Qatar port.
Counsel for the engineers in an LCIA arbitration relating to the foundation design of a meteorological mast.
Acting for reinsurers in cUS$300m ICC arbitration involving a DSU claim relating to a hydroelectric power plant in Brazil.
Multi-million dollar ICC arbitration arising out a desalination plant in Qatar.
Multi-million AED DIAC arbitration arising out of the construction of Dubai airport.
Multi-billion dollar arbitration relating to the construction of the new metro in Dubai.
Offshore Construction & Marine Engineering
Acting for an oil & gas major in relation to the expansion of a supergiant oil field.
Acting for an oil & gas major in relation to the design and construction of a gas platform.
Several separate LMAA arbitrations arising out of the termination of various drilling rigs, each involving disputes of several hundred million dollars.
Dispute arising out of the sinking of a cruise ship.
Multi-million dollar ICC arbitration relating to the performance of mega sea-going suction-cutter dredgers.
Commercial Court litigation relating to the performance of a semi-submersible drilling rig and including issues of consequential loss.
Commercial Court litigation in a shipbuilding dispute: the reported decision is now one of the leading cases on delay and the prevention principle.
Counsel for the employer in a technical shipping dispute arising out of a project for the design and construction of 30 ships.
Counsel for the engineers in an LCIA arbitration relating to the foundation design of a meteorological mast.
Multi-million euro TCC litigation relating to the decommissioning and dismantling of platforms in the North Sea.
PFI/PPP
Acting variously for the Trust, Project Co, the Contractor, the Facilities Manager or the Independent Tester in a series of PFI disputes relating to hospitals in the UK.
Acting for the Independent Certifier in relation to a social housing development.
Acting for the D&B contractor against structural engineers in relation to a care home development.
Acting for a contractor in a PFI dispute in relation to a prison in the UK.
Advising on multiple other PFI/PPP contracts.
Professional Negligence
Counsel for the engineer in a dispute with the Environment Agency.
Acting for the D&B contractor in a claim against engineers involving complex structural and geotechnical engineering issues.
Acting for a major engineering firm in relation to the design of three hospitals.
Multiple major multi-party disputes arising out of cladding issues on apartment blocks, acting variously for residents, developers, contractors and members of the professional team.
Counsel for the D&B contractor against structural engineers in relation to a care home development.
Acting for the construction manager in a series of disputes relating to a major commercial property development.
Acting for a nuclear engineering firm in relation to supply of equipment to a nuclear power station.
Counsel for the engineers in a dispute relating to the innovative foundation design of a meteorological mast.
Acting for the employer in a high-value dispute relating to the design of factory processing equipment.
Counsel for the architect in the Walter Lilly v Mackay litigation, originally involving seven parties. The reported decision on the dispute between the contractor and employer includes guidance on the law relating to delay and global claims.
High profile multi-party multi-million pound litigation in the Guernsey High Court arising out of the Royal Chambers and Royal Terrace development, acting for the engineers.
Counsel for the employer in a technical dispute involving a professional negligence claim against engineers and conflicts of law arising out of the construction of an oil platform.
Numerous fees claims acting for architects, engineers and other construction professionals.
Other information
Education & Career
Queen’s Counsel 2018
Tenancy at Keating Chambers 2004
Tenancy at 2 Temple Gardens 2002
Called to the Bar 2001
Postgraduate Diploma in Law 2000
BA English Language and Literature (First Class) University of Manchester 1998
Privacy Policies
Additional information
Lucy enjoys reading. Her current recommendations are Birnam Wood by Eleanor Catton, Skippy Dies by Paul Murray (The Bee Sting is also very good but not as good as Skippy) and I, Claudius by Robert Graves. Sadly the 2019 and subsequent Reachers are to be avoided at all costs but all the previous ones remain excellent.
Lucy took a sabbatical from the Bar between June 2018 and December 2019 to work as a Senior Advisor for the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change. She spent 18 months in Sierra Leone working closely with the Mayor of Freetown, the extraordinary Yvonne Aki-Sawyerr OBE. Her blog describing her experiences is here.
Appointments & Awards
Nominated for Legal 500 Professional Negligence Silk of the Year (2024)
Bencher at Gray’s Inn (2023)
Nominated for Chambers & Partners Diversity and Inclusion Outstanding Contribution (2023)
The Lawyer Hot 100 (2021)
Nominated for Chambers & Partners Construction Junior of the Year (2015)
Chambers & Partners Construction Junior of the Year (2013)
Prince of Wales Scholar, Gray’s Inn (2001)
Seminars & Publications
Co-editor of Keating on Offshore Construction and Marine Engineering (3rd Edition) and author (1st and 2nd Editions)
Co-editor of Keating on JCT Contracts [Looseleaf & CD-Rom]
Contributor, Keating on Construction Contracts (current and previous Editions)
Co-author of Litigation in the Technology and Construction Court (1st Edition)
Contributor, The Technology and Construction Court by Mr Justice Coulson (1st Edition)
Numerous seminars and papers