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ANNELIESE BLACKWOOD

LL.B. (First Class), BCL
CALL DATE: 2007

SUMMARY

Anneliese advises and represents clients in a number of fields including Competition, European, Human Rights, Public and Administrative, Utilities Regulation and VAT/Direct Tax law. She has been instructed as a junior in a number of high profile cases and has personal advocacy experience in the High Court, the Finance and Tax Tribunal, the Information Tribunal and the County Courts.

Anneliese has a particular interest in human rights law, having been a Teaching Fellow at University College London on the LLB Public Law II course (2006-2007), and has worked on a number of ECtHR cases.

Anneliese is a member of the European Committee of the Bar Council and is on the editorial committee of the European Advocate. She is also a co-contributor, with Paul Lasok QC, to Atkin's Court Forms: European Courts and will be contributing to the Seventh Edition of Bellamy & Child, European Community Law of Competition.

 

COMPETITION LAW AND REGULATION

Anneliese has advised both private clients and regulators on a broad range of competition law issues which include:

  • Article 101 TFEU
  • Article 102 TFEU
  • Vertical agreements affecting supply
  • Merger Control
  • State Aid

She has experience of long, document heavy trials in the Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT) and has advised a several high profile commercial clients on competition law matters. She also has a particular expertise in competition cases with an intellectual property aspect.

Notable cases include:

  • 2Travel Group Plc (in liquidation) v Cardiff City Transport Services Limited (Trading as Cardiff Bus) (CAT - Claim for damages under section 47A of the Competition Act 1998), led by Michael Bowsher QC.
  • Tobacco Appeals (CAT - Appeal against the OFT's decision that there was a breach of the Chapter I prohibition by certain tobacco manufacturers and supermarkets in relation to the pricing of tobacco products ), led by Paul Lasok QC
  • Plus Markets Plc v The London Stock Exchange (High Court - Settled - Issues of abuse of dominance and barriers to entry), led by Peter Roth QC (now Mr Justice Roth).

Anneliese has also been involved in advisory work including:

  • Advising a commercial client on competition issues in a patent litigation settlement agreement.
  • Advising a commercial client on the terms of a selective distribution system of a luxury product.
  • Advising a commercial client on the application of the Vertical Block Exemption (Commission Regulation 330/2010) to trading agreements, in particular in relation to online sales.
  • Advising a commercial client on competition issues relating to license agreements for the online distribution of films, raising a number of issues including exhaustion of rights and the permissibility of geoblocking provisions.
  • Advising a commercial client on making a reference to the OFT.
  • Advising the OFT in its ongoing investigation into the Construction Industry
  • Advising the OFT in relation to the potential reference of a merger to the Competition Commission
  • Secondment at Ofgem in the Enforcement and Competition Policy Team
  • Advising OFWAT in relation to the introduction of competition into a sector of the industry
  • Advising an organiser of music and performing arts festivals in relation to the possible abuse of dominance by another festival organiser

 

EUROPEAN COMMUNITY LAW

Anneliese has advised in relation to a wide range of EU law issues from the fundamental freedoms to discrimination and the scope of the Marleasing principle.

Notable cases include:

  • Metaalhandel Broerson BV v Rank Metal Vo Limited (High Court  QBD - Stay of execution against a European Payment order).
  • Worldwide Tradin Services (UK) Limited v AJS Developments Limited (High Court ChD -Freezing Injunction).
  • R (Ibrahim) v Secretary of State for the Home Department  (High Court - This concerned the interpretation and application of  the Dublin II Regulation)
  • Advising an NGO on vulnerability of decisions of the European Investment Bank to challenge.
  • Advising on the application of fundamental freedoms and the prohibition of discrimination to the structure of a scholarship fund of a major university.

Anneliese has also assisted in drafting numerous written observations and speeches for the European Court of Justice ("ECJ") and has accompanied Tim Ward QC to the ECJ in Luxembourg.

Notable cases include:

  • Case C-520/06 & C-350/06 Stringer and Schultz-Hoff (Directive 2003/88/EC; whether workers on sick leave are entitled to annual leave), during pupillage led by Tim Ward.
  • Case C-54/07 Centrum Voor Gelijkheid (Equal Treatment Directive), during pupillage led by Tim Ward.
  • Case C-523/07 A v Perusturvalautakunta (Brussels IIa Regulation), during pupillage led by Kassie Smith.
  • Case C-357/07 R (TNT Post UK Limited) -v- HMRC ("public postal services" in the Sixth VAT Directive), during pupillage led by Paul Lasok QC.

 

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY

Anneliese has worked on cases involving IP issues and is particularly interested in the intersection between IP and competition law.

Notable cases include:

  • Telstra v Phone Directories Company [2010] FCA 44 - Working with Natalie Hickey's team in Mallesons Stephen Jaques, Melbourne. This case concerned whether or not copyright could subsist in the Yellow Pages and White Pages produced by Sensis and Telstra.
  • Advising on competition issues relating to license agreements for the online distribution of films and music, raising a number of issues including exhaustion of rights and the permissibility of geoblocking provisions.
  • Advising on competition issues in a patent litigation settlement agreement.
  • Advising on the application of Article 101 TFEU to a licence granting IP rights relating to a cartoon character.

 

PROCUREMENT LAW

Anneliese is happy to take instructions on all aspects of procurement. She also has experience of arbitration proceedings in this area.

Notable cases include:

  • Letting International Limited -v- London Borough of Newham (High Court and Court of Appeal), during pupillage led by Rupert Anderson QC and Elisa Holmes.

In that case Anneliese worked on the challenge to the award of a contract by a local Authority on the basis that it had failed to act with the requisite degree of transparency under the Public Contracts Regulations 2006 when handling a tender process.

 

PUBLIC & ADMINISTRATIVE LAW AND HUMAN RIGHTS

Anneliese has a particular interest in human rights law, having been a Teaching Fellow at University College London on the LLB Public Law II course (2006-2007). She has had experience advising large commercial entities on human rights issues, including the implications of proposed legislation, and has also been involved in several cases where references have been made to the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR).

Notable ECtHR cases include:

  • Acted for a religious organisation challenging the confiscation of religious materials, and the prohibition of their dissemination, by a State. In particular this raised Article 8, 9, 10 and Article 1, Protocol 1 issues.
  • Acted for an individual detained pending trial for criminal charges who required medical treatment. This raised issues relating to Articles 5(3) and 3.
  • Acted for an individual challenging the fairness of his criminal convictions. In particular this raised Article 6 issues relating to the fairness of the trial and the impartiality of the Tribunal.

In addition, she has been involved in a number of judicial review and Freedom of Information Act 2000 cases.

Notable cases include:

  • R (Ibrahim) v Secretary of State for the Home Department (High Court - This concerned legal issues arising in relation to the Dublin II Regulation)
  • United Halal Meat v UK Border Agency (County Court - Civil penalty under Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006)
  • Voges v Information Commissioner and Transport for London EA/2011/0076 (Information Tribunal - This case concerned the application of section 14 of the FOIA.)
  • Lampert v The Information Commissioner and the Financial Services Agency EA/2010/0203 (Information Tribunal - This case concerned the application of sections 14 and 40 of the FOIA)
  • Public and Commercial Services Union v The Information Commissioner and the Ministry of Justice EA/2009/0123 (Information Tribunal - The case concerned the application of section 30(2)(b) of the FOIA)
  • David Fergusson v The Information Commissioner and the Electoral Commission EA/2010/0085 (Information Tribunal - The case concerned the application of the section 40(2) exemption and the application of the public interest test in relation to section 30(1)(a) of the FOIA)

 

SPORTS LAW

Anneliese is happy to take instructions on sports matters.

Notable cases include:

  • Assisting a member of chambers who was acting for a Premier League Football club in a very high profile contract dispute with a player.

 

TAX

Anneliese has advised in both indirect and direct tax matter and has dealt with related issues of fiscal neutrality and restitution. She has been involved in multiparty disputes in the Finance and Tax Tribunal and the High Court.

Notable cases include:

  • UBS v HMRC [2010] UKFTT 266 (First Tier Tax Tribunal - The case concerned liability to pay income tax and National Insurance contributions where bonuses had been paid bonuses through a specifically developed scheme and involved the interpretation and application of provisions of the Income Tax (Earnings and Pensions) Act 2003), on appeal to the Upper Tribunal, led by Paul Lasok QC.
  • Deutsche Bank v HMRC (First Tier Tax Tribunal - This case raised very similar issues to UBS v HMRC), on appeal to the Upper Tribunal, led by Paul Lasok QC.
  • Watermark (Windrush) Limited v HMRC (Finance and Tax Tribunal - Resisting a stay application and seeking an unless order).
  • Littlewoods v HMRC (First Tier Tax Tribunal - This case concerned the rate of interest to be paid on overpaid VAT and raised issues of restitution and fiscal neutrality), led by Andrew Macnab.
  • WM McLauglin & Sons Limited v HMRC (First Tier Tax Tribunal - Tax liability under the Aggregates Levy Credit Scheme), led by Mario Angiolini.
  • Advising on the application of Low Value Consignment Relief.
  • R (Oriel Support Limited) v HMRC (High Court), during pupillage led by Peter Mantle.

 

EDUCATION AND PRIZES

  • Bar Vocational Course (Outstanding) - Inns of Court School of Law
  • Bachelor of Civil Law - Brasenose College, Oxford
  • 2001-2005 L.L.B. Laws (First Class) - University College London
  • Pegasus Scholarship 2009 - Worked in Mallesons Stephen Jacques, Melbourne and in the chambers of Chief Justice Black of the Federal Court of Australia.
  • Bar European Group Phoenicia Scholar 2008
  • Lady Templeman Anglo-Indian Goodwill Award 2007 (Middle Temple) - Visited various courts and tribunals in Delhi, India hosted by the late Mr L.M. Singhvi.
  • Astbury Scholarship 2006-2007 (Middle Temple)
  • University College London Dean's List 2004-2005