Ela Barda

Commercial litigation and digital platform law 

• Representing a major US company operating an online platform for short and long-term homestays in various regulatory and civil liability disputes before the French courts against individuals, companies and local authorities.
• Representing a European premium television channel in a dispute valued in excess of EUR 300m concerning alleged breaches of competition law relating to allocation rights for popular entertainment programmes.
• Representing a French video-sharing platform against a French distributor of independent movies in a dispute arising from the presence of illegal content on the platform.
• Advising a video sharing platform in a commercial dispute following a termination of talks with a multinational IT company.
• Representing a multinational financial services group in relation to two separate complex and multi-disciplinary coverage claims against pools of leading insurers arising from class action claims filed in North America and Europe and involving the so-called IBOR and Gold Fixing investigations. The value of each claim is several hundreds of USD millions.
• Representing a leading US online payment platform in a dispute following the termination of a French company’s account.
• Representing a US mobile game developer in pre-trial discovery proceedings before French courts as part of a significant cross-border dispute concerning IP rights over the design and development of a mobile game.
• Representing a Hong Kong construction company before the French commercial courts in a EUR multi-million dispute with a contractor arising from the alleged wrongful performance of engineering contracts relating to LNG terminals in Indonesia and the Philippines.
• Representing company directors in a number of related disputes before the French commercial courts concerning their personal liability for the company’s insolvency and involving allegations of mismanagement.
• Representing Turkish companies in the textile sector in multiple separate disputes before French commercial courts arising from the termination of commercial agency contracts relating to the distribution of their products on the French market.

Civil Fraud, Asset Tracing and Recovery

• Representing a CIS bank in separate but related high-profile proceedings against the bank’s former owner in a EUR 1bn judgment enforcement proceedings involving piercing the corporate veil and attachment of numerous high-value assets located on the French Riviera and in the French West Indies.
• Representing an international group providing industrial services in pre-emptive actions to prevent the enforcement of an adverse US-decision, exposing them to damages of several billion USD, and in the recognition and enforcement in France of an English High Court judgment.
• Representing a French video-sharing platform in connection with the enforcement in France of unfavourable judgments handed down by the Italian courts and obtaining the release of several protective attachments with up to EUR 100m at stake.
• Representing a French bank in enforcement proceedings against CIS counterparties arising out of a EUR 20m civil fraud dispute and involving asset tracing, piercing the corporate veil and attachment of overseas assets.
• Representing a company associated with a HNW individual in enforcement proceedings exceeding USD 20m against a high-profile businessman in relation to an LCIA award. The underlying claim involved allegations of fraud. The enforcement strategy involved obtaining various injunctive reliefs in England (such as worldwide freezing orders, asset disclosure orders and subsequent contempt proceedings), as well as enforcement actions in other jurisdictions.
• Representing a BVI investment fund and former affiliated shareholders in French enforcement proceedings against a French investment entity as part of global debt recovery, which involved obtaining interim measures against the debtor’s assets leading to a successful settlement.
• Representing an Italian construction company in enforcing an arbitration award against Ukrainian state entities’ assets in France.
• Representing high-net-worth individuals against their former business partner in French enforcement proceedings following an English High Court decision.

Aviation disputes

• Representing a US aircraft manufacturer in defending against personal injury claims arising from major aircraft accidents before the French courts. The total value of claims was hundreds of USD millions.
• Representing an international aircraft engine manufacturer in a EUR 30m dispute arising from a plane incident.
• Representing a global technology and manufacturing company in expert proceedings initiated by a French business aviation company in a dispute arising from allegations of misdiagnosis following the repair and replacement of aircraft engines.
• Advising an aircraft manufacturer in a French investigation following an aircraft accident.