The Team

Quentin Bargate qualified as a solicitor in 1981 and has since spent his entire career in top City of London law firms. He is head of the firm’s Superyachts group and is an expert in yacht contracts and other commercial contract work. Quentin also leads the firm’s Dispute Resolution practice.

Quentin was a partner for over 14 years in Simmons & Simmons, one of London’s premier law firms. He was head of the firm’s International Trade and Shipping Group and a member of the Litigation Department and Arbitration Groups. At Simmons & Simmons, Quentin developed his specialised skills in superyacht/megayacht contracts and disputes as well as commercial shipping and trade.

In 2004, Quentin fulfilled a lifetime ambition when he set up his own law firm, Quentin Bargate & Co. (renamed Bargate Murray in 2006).

In Chambers and Partners High Net Worth guide 2018, Quentin is praised as someone who has“enormous experience and information in the industry.” as well as being “a pleasure to work with”. Chambers recognises that Quentin is “extremely knowledgeable, knows every aspect of yacht law that there is and a real joy to work with,” adding that “He is good at looking at things from different angles. He is very progressive.” 

Quentin is an advocate for alternative dispute resolution (ADR), but he also deals with cases in court when required. He occasionally sits as an arbitrator.

Quentin is a member of the Maritime Authority of the Cayman Islands yacht committee. He holds a Master’s degree in Marine law, is a member of the LMAA, a Member of the Nautical Institute, a member of the IOD, a member of the Royal Thames Yacht Club, and a Freeman of the City of London.

His other interests include photography (Elsevier has published a technical book on stock photography “Microstock Photography” written by Quentin under his pen name Douglas Freer), music and his family.

Some recent cases managed by Quentin include:

• Consolidated Contractors (Oil and Gas) Company SAL (acting by Mr. Lee Manning as receiver) v Canadian Nexen Petroleum Yemen & Others [2011] EWHC 837 (QB).Cross border receivership litigation involving Yemeni, Lebanese and English law (amongst others), concerning the unprecedented attempt by an English court-appointed receiver to gain control of foreign assets located in the Middle East. The case eventually settled
• Gamit Ltd v Saudi Arabian Airlines Corp & Anor [2011] EWHC 989. Successfully defending the maintenance division of a jet engine manufacturer in a dispute over title to replacement jet engine parts
• Madoff Securities International Ltd (In liquidation) v Raven & Ors [2013] EWHC 3147. Defending a director allegedly involved in a global Ponzi scheme in litigation brought by the liquidator of an English Company
• Street v Larkins [2013] EWHC 1408 (Ch). Representing the Defendants in their successful defence of an interim application for a freezing injunction and the Defendants successful application for wasted costs. The Defendants were awarded their wasted costs on the basis of the Claimants’ unreasonable refusal to consent to an adjournment of the trial date. Claimants’ application for freezing injunction was dismissed on the grounds of failing to establish a “good arguable” case during the trial window
• Charterparty dispute advice
• Successfully litigating and eventually settling on favourable terms a highly complex and fractious corporate dispute between shareholders, where the majority shareholders sought to exclude our clients from their share of the profits in a real estate investment vehicle by devising elaborate commercial structures across a number of European jurisdictions. The settlement included payment to our clients of a substantial cash payment and the agreement on the part of the Defendants to pay our client’s costs on an indemnity basis
• Successfully settling a professional negligence action brought by a high net worth individual with considerable real estate investments which were exposed by the repeated failures of a renowned top 20 law firm

Some of Quentin’s recent transactions include:

• $200m new build contract advice for an award-winning superyacht
• Advice on Seafarer Employment Agreements, including in regard to the first yacht successfully to pass an MLC audit for the Cayman flag.
• Advice in importation of several yachts in to the European Union for VAT purposes, and on Temporary Admission matters.
• Sale of a 61m superyacht to a Russian buyer
• Purchase of a 48m Superyacht and its commercial registration and use
• Yacht management agreements for leading yacht managers
• Aviation and maritime advice in regard to a UHNW individual
• Acting for a yacht builder in regard to construction agreements

For more information, or to get in touch with Quentin, please email quentin@bargatemurray.com

Following a spell as the Firm’s Managing Partner (September 2015 – February 2019), Adam Ramlugon now heads up the Firm’s new Private Wealth Department.
 
Adam has extensive experience in superyacht and a wide range of other luxury asset and commercial matters. His client base includes UHNW individuals, family offices, private banks and investment funds, yacht and aviation management firms and other law firms that require English legal advice in connection with superyachts or other luxury asset classes. His practice covers both transactional and contentious work.
 
His role as Head of Private Wealth reflects the broad network of contacts that Adam has across the numerous industries that work with UHNWI’s and their Family Offices, and Adam’s increasingly broad practice which now also includes advisory work in alternative asset classes such as Blockchain backed utility tokens.  
 
Clients praise Adam’s attention to detail and his ability to advise on a wide array of legal issues in a clear and approachable way. Here are some of the things Adam’s clients say about him:
 
“…. brilliant strategic mind…”
“… charming, perceptive and always quick to grasp what a client needs…”
“… has the unique ability to calm things down and dissect a situation…”
 
Adam is a member of the Royal Thames Yacht Club and a regular contributor to industry publications such as Yacht Investor and The Superyacht Report.
 
Examples of Adam’s work include: 
 
Superyachts and Luxury Assets

• Superyacht construction, sale and purchase, tax and regulatory advice
• Jet and superyacht finance
• VAT advice as it pertains to superyachts and other luxury assets
• Advising on the applicability of the EU Temporary Admission regime (among other forms of tax/customs duty) relief as they apply to both yachts and aircraft
• Advising on the security measures to be implemented on a €200m superyacht
• Yacht registration and ownership matters
• Company re-domiciliation
• Advising on the effects of the Maritime Labour Convention 2006 (MLC). Adam and the team enjoyed the privilege of working with the first Cayman flagged yacht to be awarded its MLC certificate of compliance.
• Preparing MLC-compliant Seafarer Employment Agreements.

 
Commercial Dispute Resolution
 

• Large commercial arbitration work, pursuant to LMAA rules (among others)
• Resolving disputes pursuant to expert determination procedures
• Warranty claims under construction contracts
• Insurance based litigation
• Dispute resolution including arbitration work under LMAA Rules and ad hoc references

 
Reported cases with which Adam has been involved include:
 

• Consolidated Contractors (Oil and Gas) Company SAL (acting by Mr. Lee Manning as receiver) v Canadian Nexen Petroleum Yemen & Others
• Acting for a court-appointed receiver of a judgment debtor company. The international arbitration was expedited and heard over a two day hearing in Geneva, and involved complex multiple systems of law including Yemeni, Lebanese, and English law in what was a ground-breaking attempt by an English court-appointed receiver to gain control of foreign assets (in this case oil situate in Yemen).
• Gamit Ltd v Saudi Arabian Airlines Corp & Anor [2011] EWHC 989
• Defending the maintenance division of German jet engine manufacturer MTU in a dispute over title to replacement jet engine parts of some $20m

Nicholas is a highly regarded residential property lawyer, specialising in Ultra High Net Worth and High Net Worth client portfolios within the London Property Market. He has held partner positions for the majority of the last eighteen years. After studying in London, he joined a Regional Essex Law firm where he subsequently became an Equity Partner and Head of Residential Property. He joined a top 100 Law firm with over 25 offices in 2013, and was responsible for setting up two new Central London Flagship offices in London Bridge and Westminster – acting as Head of Residential Property for both offices.

He is a highly proficient business developer, with considerable expertise in the Prime Central London Property Market acting for both domestic and international clients.
In his most recent role, Nicholas was partner in a London HNW Law firm, specialising in HNW International clients and purchases in Central London, often off plan. Nicholas has a strong track record in successfully maintaining high levels of service, and prides himself in providing a bespoke, tailored approach to achieve client’s demands.

Over the period of the last 20 years, Nicholas has brokered and maintained long standing relationships with numerous Estate Agents, Brokers and Banking Institutions operating in this sector. Although he specialises in UHNW and HNW property he deals with all types of Residential Property.

Examples of Nicholas’ high end residential transactions include:

• A £11.5 million purchase in Kensington
• Sale of the individual flats in a New Build Development worth over £25 million in North London
• A number of prime new build developments in Central London including Chiltern Place, Prince of Wales Drive, The Vista and West Gate House.
• Sale of a £8 million + Country Estate in Surrey
• Outside of London he acted for a property investor who purchased a several block of flats in Southampton.

Outside of work, Nicholas enjoys keeping fit, cooking, reading and travelling.

Graham had a long career in banking starting in 1970. He spent 44 years in various roles and managerial positions.

During his career, Graham held positions in Marketing & Sales, organising representation at such profile events as Dunhill British Masters Golf, Burghley Horse Trials and East of England Show.

He went onto to become a successful Relationship Manager / Director working with SME businesses and Corporate Clients.

During this time he specialised in a wide number of sectors including :

• Property development / house building .
• Accountancy and Legal Professions .
• Restaurant and Pub Trade.
• Manufacturing
• Nuclear Industry

Personal Highlights of his career included presenting a daily financial report for local radio and specialist training as a presenter for one of the banks major national change programmes.

Graham retired from banking in 2014 and shortly after established a consultancy business with his wife. He has undertaken project work which has included:

• Establishment of a Hong Kong Office for a London based company.
• Board representation for a High Tech print business which included assisting with an eventual merger .
• Working with an accountancy firm providing a banking perspective for its clients, along with overseeing various projects.

Outside of work, Graham likes to keep fit and active He enjoys walking and gardening .

His hobbies include photography / reading and ultimately would like to write a book (Perhaps finishing the one he started when he retired) He and his wife enjoy travelling.

Ilona Avramenko joined Bargate Murray as a Superyacht and Aviation Associate in October 2016. She focuses on advising UHNW individuals, companies, family offices and banks on various yachting and aviation matters, particularly within the executive jet sector.

Ilona has over ten years experience in the maritime industry having both worked in a shipping company and a private equity fund.

She grew up in both Canada and Ukraine and maintains strong ties to the Black Sea region.

Examples of Ilona’s work include:

• Sale and purchase, construction, registration and VAT/importation of yachts

• Sale and purchase of corporate aircraft including financing, registration and VAT/importation

• Construction of new aircraft

• More generally, advising clients on a wide range of commercial documents including share acquisition agreements, business and asset sale and purchase agreements, share transfer agreements, guarantees and security agreements

• Advising companies and banks on the sale and purchase, mortgage registration and enforcement of security documents
• Advising on various contractual matters both contentious and non-contentious including aircraft repossession

Ilona assisted in the founding of Black Sea Shipowners’ Club which is a non-profit organisation established by the major ship owners in Russia, Ukraine and Turkey with the aim of protecting and promoting ship owners’ interests.

Dom is an associate in the firm’s superyacht, dispute resolution and aviation teams and is based in London. Dom’s superyacht practice comprises representing builders, buyers, sellers, managers and owners in respect of the construction, modification, sale and purchase and management of new and pre-owned yachts.
Having started his career at Clyde & Co, Dom’s experience also covers the commercial shipping and trade and commodities sectors, having represented clients in both contentious and non-contentious matters and spent time in-house at an international commodity trader based in London. Dom has experience acting for international banks and corporates advising in relation to structured trade finance as well as traditional loan transactions.
Dom has a personal passion for sailing and has owned and renovated a number of boats over the last 18 years. When he is not in the office, Dom can often be found sailing on the south coast of England or enjoying the warmer climes of the Mediterranean and Caribbean seas and will be taking part in the 2019 Fastnet Race.
 
Examples of Dom’s work include:

• Acting for a yacht builder in the sale of a pre-owned 33m yacht taken in part-exchange for a new-build.
• Acting for purchasers in the purchase of pre-owned and new build yachts.
• Advising a yacht designer following the total loss of the subject yacht during construction.
• Acting for yacht builders in relation to new-building contracts and associated sale and trade-in agreements for various vessels.
• Acting for the Owner for the sale of a fleet of seven commercial vessels.
• Advising Owners in the novation of charters upon vessel sale.

Hannah Faulkner joined Bargate Murray as a Paralegal in August 2018 and has been a Trainee Solicitor at the firm since November 2018.

Hannah graduated from the University of Westminster with a degree in European Legal Studies (LLB); minoring in French. Hannah completed the LPC at City University in London.

Prior to joining Bargate Murray, Hannah worked within the Commodities and Shipping industry, specialising in the negotiation of commercial chartering and physical commodity contracts.

Ayesha Akhtar joined Bargate Murray as a Paralegal in October 2018. Prior to joining Bargate Murray, Ayesha has gained experience in various departments at other law firms.

Ayesha graduated from City University of London (LLB) and studied the LLM LPC at BPP University in London.

Outside of work, Ayesha enjoys reading, travelling and spending time with her family.

Lauren Stephens is Head of Administration, and enjoys a high profile role as one of the firm’s compliance officers and manages the firm’s finances. Additionally, Lauren is ILex trained.  She assists the directors in the management of the Firm.

Lauren, who joined Bargate Murray in 2009, is in charge of the smooth day to day operation of the firm and works alongside the CEO and directors to ensure that each client receives the high level of client care that epitomises Bargate Murray.

Lauren also assists with the organisation and preparation of a number of key events, a number of which have been held over consecutive years at the prestigious Monaco Yacht Show.

For more information, or to get in touch with Lauren, please email lauren@bargatemurray.com

Edd Bargate joined Bargate Murray in May 2013 as a part-time office assistant after studying for his business diploma. He assists with the everyday running of the firm by fulfilling clerical and administrative duties such as filing, copying and managing supply levels and equipment maintenance procedures.

Edd has also been involved with a number of promotional projects such as our own annual networking event in Monaco as well as partnerships with other events.

Outside of work, Edd is a keen car enthusiast and DJ.

For more information, or to get in touch with Edd, please email edd@bargatemurray.com

Jemma Robinson joined Bargate Murray in September 2018 as a receptionist, and works front of house, meeting and greeting clients and visitors to Bargate Murray Head Office.   Jemma also assists the Head of Administration and Fee Earners in the daily operation of the Firm.

Jemma has extensive experience in other front of house roles, including at a busy London airport.

In her spare time Jemma enjoys listening to an array of music, acting, and taking care of her horse.

Alex Bargate joined the firm in September 2013 after completing his undergraduate degree in Biology at the University of Warwick. His mission is to raise the online profile of Bargate Murray through a diverse range of marketing tactics.

In his spare time, Alex is a keen classical and fingerstyle acoustic guitarist, as well as a budding entrepreneur in the tech start-up world, to which his web development skills make him ideally suited.

For more information, or to get in touch with Alex, please email alex@bargatemurray.com