22/03/21

Carey Olsen continues to grow BVI office and BVI dispute resolution and litigation practice with two new hires.

Press release from Carey Olsen on Monday 22 March, 2021.

Carey Olsen is adding to its dispute resolution and litigation team in the British Virgin Islands (BVI) with the appointments of associates Catherine O'Connell and Izabella Prusskaya.

The latest arrivals reflect the continued build-out of the BVI dispute resolution and litigation team under Alex Hall Taylor QC and follow the appointments in December of partner Tim Wright and counsel Simon Hall. They also coincide with the expansion of the firm's Tortola office premises with the addition and new fit-out of additional space on the top floor of the Rodus Building, which is intended for the sole use of the litigation team.

Catherine, who joins Carey Olsen after more than two years at Walkers in the BVI, advises on a broad range of contentious and non-contentious dispute resolution and insolvency matters, including general financial services litigation, trusts and shareholder disputes. Prior to moving offshore, Catherine spent five years working for leading Irish firm A&L Goodbody.

Catherine O'Connell

Izabella is a multi-lingual Russian national educated in Russia, Germany and the United States who joins the firm having trained with Hogan Lovells in Moscow, and practised previously in France, Switzerland and the UK. She is admitted as a solicitor in England and Wales, is a New York state attorney, and has experience advising in a broad range of complex and multijurisdictional litigation and arbitration cases across several sectors.

Commenting on the new arrivals, Alex Hall Taylor QC, partner and head of the BVI dispute resolution and litigation practice, said: "The appointments of Catherine and Izabella reflect the significant and increasing client demand we are experiencing for our services in the British Virgin Islands. We have grown the team substantially since last year, starting with the excellent senior hires of Tim and Simon. These and planned further associate hires not only demonstrate the attractiveness of our offering in the jurisdiction to high quality potential recruits but also underline our commitment to building a strong and talented team."

Managing and corporate partner, Clinton Hempel, added: "We are delighted to welcome these litigators to the Carey Olsen BVI team as part of the continuing plan to build upon the excellent disputes resolution legacy and reputation of Ben Mays which Alex took up and advanced on his move to join us last year. Carey Olsen's commitment to that plan and to the jurisdiction is also shown by the considerable investment now being made in taking on and outfitting further top quality office space in our existing building, allowing for improved working conditions for all fee earners and staff and future growth in all areas of our business."

Carey Olsen has 30 BVI-qualified lawyers working across its international network of offices, providing advice to clients in Asia, Europe, North America and the Caribbean in their own time zone.