Jane Colston's practice focuses on complex and high-value commercial banking, contract and tort disputes as well as company, shareholders and partnership disputes. Jane has acted in numerous complex fraud cases and has extensive experience of forensic investigations, most of which have involved working with teams of investigators and accountants, and coordinating lawyers in multiple jurisdictions to trace and freeze assets. She has managed numerous cases involving freezing, search, disclosure, gagging and delivery up injunctions as well as breach of confidence claims.
Who's Who Legal named her a 2020 “Global Elite Thought Leader" and stated "the excellent Jane Colston is one of the titans of the asset recovery market. Peers impart that she is an outstanding lawyer."
The Legal 500 UK lists Jane as a Leading individual and clients have described her as "everybody’s favourite litigation partner. Indefatigable. Driven. Humane. Efficient. Regular speaker at many conferences – strong thought leader.” Jane was part of the team which won The Legal 500 UK Award for Crime, Fraud and Licensing in 2018 (Firm Specialism of the Year) and 2019 (Firm of the Year).
Jane is ranked Band 1 in Chambers & Partners UK for Civil Fraud with clients stating that she is "one of the top fraud lawyers in London" and "incredibly clear in her strategic thoughts and knowledgeable about civil fraud procedure." The guide stated her as "tactically shrewd with an incredible intellect" and "a real class act."
Jane acts as a Supervising Solicitor appointed by the Courts of England and Wales in regard to the execution of search and door-step delivery up orders and is part of Brown Rudnick’s Supervising Solicitors team. She also lectures at conferences such as the International Bar Association and C5 on topics including AI. Jane is a committee member of the International Bar Association Litigation Committee and the Commercial Fraud Lawyers Association.
Jane serves as Equity, Inclusion and Diversity Partner ("EID Partner"), along with her counterpart Chelsea Mullarney in the New York office. As an EID Partner, Jane works alongside the Director of Equity, Inclusion & Diversity to develop and implement the Firm's strategy for maintaining an inclusive work environment. In this role, Jane is a visible champion for the Firm's efforts to recruit, hire, develop and promote diverse and women lawyers, and actively engages Firm leadership to ensure equity and inclusion remain strategic business priorities.
Jane's passion for inclusion extends beyond her role as EID partner to her practice and external activities. Since 2016, Jane has organized the Firm's Women in Business speaker series, bringing together women lawyers and business professionals from across industries to discuss their careers. Jane also serves as the Diversity & Inclusion Officer for the International Bar Association Litigation Committee and has spoken at several diversity-related conferences on topics related to inclusion in the legal profession.
Prior to joining Brown Rudnick, Jane trained and then qualified into Hogan Lovells’ litigation department. She then joined Baker & McKenzie. In 2004 she co-founded the litigation boutique Masseys which was described by The Times as "go to" for banking disputes. Masseys merged with Stewarts Law in 2010.
Awards
Representation
Jane has successfully represented a diverse range of major domestic and international commercial organisations, plcs, State entities and individuals. These include:
Arbitration proceedings relating to a fraud claim against an accessory.
Enforcing an arbitration award.
A £100m commercial fraud and breach of trust case including search and freezing orders.
Advising the former owners of an ex-CIS State oil company in multi-million U.S. dollar litigation arising from the financing and sale of the company, including defending and obtaining injunctions and coordinating proceedings in several jurisdictions.
Advising on substantial banking-related claims involving banks such as Credit Suisse, JP Morgan, HBOS and BNP Paribas.
Acting for one of the defendants in a $300 million fraud claim, one of several pending before the High Court, allegedly perpetrated on JSC BTA Bank of Kazakhstan by its former chair and majority shareholder, Mukhtar Ablyazov (JSC BTA-v-(1) Solodchenko (2) Ereshchenko [2012] EWHC 550 (Ch), JSC BTA-v-(1) Solodchenko (2) Ereshchenko [2012] EWHC 1891 (Ch) and JSC BTA Bank-v-Anatoly Ereshchenko [2013] EWCA Civ 1961).
Acting for the Liquidators of Stanford International Bank Limited, Marcus Wide and Hugh Dickson of Grant Thornton in regard to the fraud perpetrated by Robert Allen Stanford and others, which resulted in Stanford International Bank Limited losing an estimated $4.4 billion by the time it failed in February 2009.
Defending two Defendants in a $287million alleged oil trading fraud (Arcadia Petroleum Ltd v Peter Bosworth [2015] EWCH 3025).
Acting for the mezzanine lenders challenging a restructuring and advancing claims against the security trustee (Saltri III Limited-v-MD Mezzanine SA [2012] EWHC 1270).
Acting for an Australian Mining Co in a contract dispute with an Indonesian mining company (PT Thiess Contractors Indonesia-v-PT Kaltim Prima Coal [2011] EWHC 1842 (Comm)).
Acting for a Plc pursuing breach of confidential information claims including obtaining emergency injunctions.
Education
Bar Admissions
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