International Dispute Solicitors in London

Cross-border disputes can involve competing courts, different legal systems, overseas assets and parties located thousands of miles apart. Nath Solicitors is a boutique London law firm advising businesses and commercial stakeholders on complex international disputes involving England and Wales and other jurisdictions. We also act for shareholders, directors, investors, senior professionals and individuals where significant international legal or commercial interests are involved.

If you are facing a cross-border dispute, call 020 3983 8278 or complete our online contact form to discuss the available options.

We act in international litigation, arbitration, shareholder disputes, contractual claims, reputation matters and enforcement proceedings. Our work frequently involves parties, assets or proceedings across Europe, the Middle East, North America, Asia and other regions.

International disputes require early strategic decisions. Before starting proceedings, it may be necessary to establish which court or tribunal can hear the case, which country’s law applies, how documents can be served abroad and whether any judgment or award can ultimately be enforced against relevant assets.

Nath Solicitors can act as a central point of contact, coordinating with overseas lawyers where local legal advice or proceedings are required.

What is an international dispute?

An international dispute is a legal disagreement with a material connection to more than one jurisdiction.

Examples include:

• a UK business in dispute with an overseas customer, supplier or joint venture partner;
• an international contract involving parties in several countries;
• shareholders based in different jurisdictions;
• assets or defendants located abroad;
• proceedings taking place or being threatened in more than one country;
• an arbitration arising from an international agreement;
• an English judgment that needs to be enforced overseas;
• a foreign party seeking to enforce a judgment or arbitral award in England;
• intellectual property or ownership disputes involving international businesses; and
• defamatory publications affecting reputations across several countries.

A dispute does not become an English case simply because one party has a connection with the UK. Jurisdiction, governing law, service and enforcement require separate assessment.

What will an international dispute solicitor assess?

Cross-border disputes can raise several legal and practical questions at the same time.

Before deciding where or how to proceed, we may need to consider:

• jurisdiction;
• governing law;
• jurisdiction, arbitration and other dispute-resolution clauses;
• service outside England and Wales;
• the location of parties, witnesses and evidence;
• the location and ownership of assets;
• whether urgent interim relief may be required;
• existing or threatened proceedings overseas;
• the likely cost and practical implications of parallel proceedings; and
• how any successful judgment or award could ultimately be enforced.

The strongest legal forum is not always the most commercially effective forum. Strategy should take account of enforceability, cost, speed, available assets and the effect of proceedings across every relevant jurisdiction.

Jurisdiction

Jurisdiction concerns whether a particular court has authority to hear the dispute.

Contracts may contain clauses specifying the courts in which proceedings should be brought. Where there is no effective jurisdiction agreement, the position may depend on statutory rules, international conventions and common law principles.

Claims against overseas defendants can raise additional procedural questions. Under CPR Part 6 and Practice Direction 6B, some claims may be served outside England and Wales without court permission, while other cases require permission under the relevant jurisdictional gateways.

Where permission is required, the court will also consider whether England and Wales is the proper place in which to bring the claim.

A jurisdiction challenge can have significant consequences for cost, timing and litigation strategy.

Governing law

The law governing a dispute is a different question from jurisdiction.

A contract may state that English law applies, another country’s law may govern the relationship, or the applicable law may need to be established from the circumstances and relevant conflict-of-laws rules.

The chosen court and governing law are not necessarily the same. This distinction should be considered before proceedings are issued.

Service outside England and Wales

Serving court documents on an overseas defendant can involve formal procedures under the Civil Procedure Rules, international conventions or the domestic law of the country where service is taking place.

The correct method will depend on the defendant’s location, the nature of the claim and the applicable procedural framework.

An ineffective attempt at service can lead to delay, additional cost or a challenge to the proceedings.

Overseas assets and enforcement

Winning a case has limited commercial value if there is no realistic route to recovery.

The location, ownership and accessibility of assets should therefore form part of the early case assessment.

A judgment may need to be recognised and enforced in a different jurisdiction from the one in which the proceedings took place. This can materially affect decisions about forum, litigation strategy and settlement.

Our dedicated international judgment and arbitral award enforcement service covers these issues in greater depth.

Urgent applications in international disputes

Cross-border disputes sometimes require action before the underlying claim can be determined.

Depending on the circumstances, urgent measures may need to be considered where:

• assets are at risk of being moved or dissipated;
• confidential information is being disclosed;
• contractual restrictions are being breached;
• evidence may be lost;
• proceedings are being pursued in another jurisdiction; or
• other conduct threatens the client’s commercial or legal position.

International interim relief can involve difficult questions of jurisdiction and enforceability.

Where urgency is genuine, the available court or arbitral options should be assessed at an early stage rather than after the position has deteriorated.

International commercial disputes

Businesses and commercial stakeholders are at the centre of our international disputes practice.

We advise on cross-border contractual claims, joint ventures, business acquisitions, investment disputes, ownership conflicts, fraud allegations and other substantial commercial disagreements.

The appropriate strategy may involve High Court proceedings in England, proceedings overseas, arbitration or coordinated action in more than one jurisdiction.

Our international business disputes page provides more detailed guidance for companies involved in cross-border commercial claims.

Complex claims involving proceedings in England and Wales also form part of our wider commercial litigation practice.

International arbitration and mediation

International contracts frequently contain arbitration clauses requiring disputes to be determined by an arbitral tribunal rather than a national court.

Nath Solicitors has experience representing clients in substantial international arbitration proceedings, including matters conducted under the LCIA Rules.

Arbitration can offer privacy, procedural flexibility and an internationally established framework for recognising and enforcing awards. The appropriate forum will depend on the contractual arrangements, the seat of the arbitration and the circumstances of the dispute.

Mediation may provide a route to a negotiated settlement where the parties want to avoid a final hearing, control costs or preserve a commercial relationship.

Read more about our International Arbitration and Mediation practice.

Cross-border shareholder disputes

International businesses may have shareholders, directors, companies and valuable assets spread across several countries.

A shareholder dispute can therefore raise questions concerning company law, jurisdiction, ownership, governance, intellectual property and overseas enforcement.

Nath Solicitors advises founders, investors, majority and minority shareholders and business owners in these disputes.

Our published experience includes a substantial shareholder conflict concerning valuable intellectual property, trademarks and commercial assets across the Middle East, Europe and the United States, involving coordination with overseas lawyers.

Our Cross-Border Shareholder Disputes page covers this area in greater detail.

International reputation disputes

Online publications can create reputational harm across several countries at once.

Questions may arise about where publication occurred, where the claimant’s reputation is established, the location of the publisher and whether England and Wales is an appropriate forum.

Our dedicated International Defamation and Cross-Border Reputation Protection page explains international reputation disputes, online attacks and cross-border publication issues in greater detail.

Recognition and enforcement of international judgments

A judgment obtained in England and Wales does not automatically produce payment from a defendant holding assets abroad.

The recognition and enforcement route depends on factors including:

• the countries involved;
• the type of judgment;
• the date of the proceedings or judgment;
• any applicable international convention;
• reciprocal enforcement legislation; and
• the domestic law of the country where enforcement is sought.

The Hague 2019 Judgments Convention entered into force for the United Kingdom on 1 July 2025.

Where its scope and requirements are met, it provides a framework for recognising and enforcing qualifying civil and commercial judgments between contracting states.

The Hague 2005 Choice of Court Convention can also apply to qualifying judgments arising from exclusive choice-of-court agreements.

Other cases may depend on bilateral arrangements, domestic legislation, common law rules or the law of the country where enforcement is sought.

Our International Judgment and Arbitral Award Enforcement page provides more detailed guidance.

Enforcement of international arbitral awards

Court judgments and arbitral awards are subject to different international enforcement regimes.

The New York Convention provides a widely used framework for recognising and enforcing qualifying international arbitral awards.

The Arbitration Act 1996, which was amended by the Arbitration Act 2025, contains the statutory framework for recognition and enforcement of New York Convention awards in England and Wales.

Under the 1996 Act, a qualifying New York Convention award may, with the court’s permission, be enforced in the same manner as a court judgment or order.

Where assets are located overseas, separate recognition or enforcement proceedings may be required in the country where those assets can be found.

The realistic prospect of recovery should form part of the strategy before substantial costs are committed to an international dispute.

What should you do when an international dispute arises?

1. Preserve the key documents

Secure the contracts, correspondence, corporate records, transaction documents and other evidence connected with the dispute.

Record where the relevant parties, businesses, witnesses and assets are located.

2. Review the dispute-resolution clauses

Check the relevant agreements for governing law, jurisdiction, arbitration and mediation provisions.

These clauses may materially affect where and how the dispute should proceed.

3. Map the jurisdictions involved

Identify where the parties, witnesses, businesses, evidence and assets are located and whether proceedings have already been started or threatened in another country.

4. Assess urgent risks

Consider whether assets could be moved, evidence lost, confidential information disclosed or parallel proceedings commenced.

Urgent court or arbitral relief may be relevant in some cases.

5. Choose the most effective forum

The available options may include English litigation, overseas proceedings, arbitration, mediation or coordinated action involving more than one jurisdiction.

The best forum should be assessed by reference to both the legal position and the practical outcome required.

6. Plan for enforcement from the start

Identify where a successful judgment or award would need to be enforced and what assets may realistically be available.

This can influence decisions about forum, procedure, settlement and the overall economics of the dispute.

Our international disputes experience

Nath Solicitors has more than 30 years of litigation and advisory experience, with Director Shubha Nath overseeing major matters.

Our published international work includes successfully defending a mining company in a complex multi-million-dollar LCIA arbitration involving contractual claims and allegations of negligence, fraud and breach of fiduciary duty. All claims against our client were dismissed, with costs awarded in our client’s favour.

We have represented a senior executive of a major international accounting practice in LCIA proceedings concerning significant partnership and pension issues, leading to a negotiated resolution.

Our work has also included advising a senior accountant based in Saudi Arabia in a dispute concerning almost US$1 million in outstanding contractual entitlements, which was resolved through mediation.

We have acted in cross-border shareholder disputes concerning valuable intellectual property, trademarks and ownership interests spanning the Middle East, Europe and the United States, coordinating with overseas lawyers where local proceedings or advice were required.

These matters reflect a central feature of international dispute work: the strategy must account for what is happening in every relevant jurisdiction, not simply the proceedings taking place in England.

Why clients instruct Nath Solicitors for international disputes

Clients instruct Nath Solicitors because we offer:

• more than 30 years of litigation and advisory experience;
• experience in complex cross-border commercial disputes;
• published experience in multi-million-dollar LCIA arbitration;
• experience coordinating matters involving Europe, the Middle East, North America and Asia;
• direct access to senior lawyers;
• a London-based point of contact coordinating with overseas counsel where required; and
• the reassurance of instructing an SRA-regulated boutique London law firm.

Our strategy considers not only how to pursue or defend the underlying claim, but where proceedings should take place, where relevant assets are located and how any successful outcome can ultimately be enforced.

We advise businesses and commercial stakeholders as a priority, while also acting for shareholders, directors, investors, senior professionals and individuals involved in substantial cross-border disputes.

Our international disputes work is ordinarily undertaken on a privately funded basis.

This page contains general information about the law in England and Wales. It does not constitute legal advice in relation to any particular matter.

Reviewed by Shubha Nath, Solicitor and Director
Last reviewed: October 2026

Nath Solicitors Limited is authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. SRA number 608014.