Global law firm Clyde & Co has today announced the appointment of Roger Whipp as Partner in its global aviation practice.
Roger joins from Kennedy's where he led its commercial aviation team having previously spent ten years as in-house counsel for British Airways, which included working on the suspension, reinstatement and ultimate retirement of the BA Concorde fleet. He has advised clients, which include airlines, aircraft operators, and (re)insurers in the US, UK, Europe, India, China and the Middle East and Africa on a range of commercial issues including fleet replacement projects, aircraft leasing and has a particular focus on engine-related work.
Roger will form part of Clyde & Co's Aviation Plus offering which encompasses its regulatory, non-contentious commercial, financing, leasing, fleet procurement, debt recovery and commercial dispute resolution offerings worldwide.
Rob Lawson QC, partner and Chair of Clyde & Co's global aviation practice group, says: "Roger is a leading figure in commercial aviation law and has held senior in house and private practice roles. Our clients are increasingly looking for help with commercial and regulatory matters across the world and Roger, alongside other recent hires and promotions, provides significant strength to the practice, especially in the field of engine purchasing and leasing, where he is the undisputed leader in his field.
Roger Whipp, says: "I'm delighted to be joining what is the world's leading aviation legal practice and look forward to working with colleagues around the world to help clients address the challenges and opportunities the highly competitive and rapidly developing aviation market presents them."
Over the past three years Clyde & Co has expanded its commercial aviation capabilities to reflect growing demand for these services from global airlines, suppliers and insurers. This expansion has included the hire of Rob Lawson QC from Quadrant Chambers in 2016, as well as the hire in Hong Kong in 2019 of Peter Coles, Alastair Long (Registered Foreign Lawyer) and Julie Marchese (Legal Manager). Three aviation practice group legal directors were also promoted to the partnership in May 2019 in Victor Yang (Shanghai), Michael Nelson, (Dubai) and Thomas van der Wijngaart (London). In addition the firm has added aviation strength through mergers and the opening of offices in Miami (2016) and Mexico (2018).
Clyde & Co's Aviation practice has extensive experience of a wide range of aviation, space, insurance and reinsurance issues, and has resolved aviation disputes worldwide, comprises of over 100 lawyers operating in twenty cities across six continents. It has been named by Who's Who Legal as the world's top aviation law firm every year since 2005 and is ranked in Band 1 in both Chambers and Partners and Legal 500. The firm also provides additional services to airlines, including: employment, immigration & pensions, insolvency & reorganisation, cyber, data protection & privacy, arbitration and litigation, sanctions, real estate, intellectual property and corporate work.