Carol Cheng

Carol Cheng practises in the civil team and accepts instructions in all areas, including the following:

Breach of Contract
Company and commercial disputes
Consumer Credit Act 1974/PPI claims
Credit Hire
Debt recovery
Employment
Personal and Corporate Insolvency
Personal Injury/RTA
Property
Sports Law

Carol is a qualified solicitor in Hong Kong (2018), England and Wales (2019) and the Republic of Ireland (2021) and previously practised as a solicitor in the banking department at Linklaters in both its London and Hong Kong offices (including 5 years as an associate solicitor). She has spent time in the Leveraged Acquisition Finance legal team at HSBC. She was also a Judicial Assistant to Mr Justice Calver and Mr Justice Jacobs in the High Court (Commercial Court).

Carol has been granted rights of audience before the Astana International Finance Centre (AIFC) Court in Kazakhstan and is included on various panels of arbitrators including the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA, London) and the Pacific International Arbitration Centre (PIAC, Vietnam). She is a member of the Attorney General’s Junior Junior panel and the AIFC Academy of Law Academic Pool. She is also a member of the Commercial Bar Association (COMBAR), Chancery Bar Association (ChBA), Technology and Construction Bar Association (TECBAR), London Bar Association (LBA), Employment Lawyers Association (ELA) and Personal Injuries Bar Association (PIBA). She also previously coached the team representing the Center for Transnational Legal Studies (CTLS) at the 25th Willem C. Vis International Commercial Arbitration Moot 2020.

In addition to speaking fluent English, Cantonese, and Mandarin, Carol also speaks French and Spanish.

Carol read law at an undergraduate level (BA in law) at the University of Cambridge before going on to obtain a Master of Laws (LLM) degree from the University of Pennsylvania and a Postgraduate Certificate in Laws (PCLL) from the University of Hong Kong.

Expertise

Business & Commercial

Carol is happy to undertake work in all areas of commercial law including contractual disputes, corporate as well as personal insolvency, director’s duties, company law, partnership, agency, unjust enrichment and contentious trust matters. She has also undertaken mediations in commercial disputes as an advocate.

She regularly appears in claims involving breach of contract, misrepresentation and duress, represents creditors in bankruptcy and winding up petitions, and drafts pleadings (including in claims for breach of contract). She has also acted in various application hearings, including seeking an injunction; strike-out and summary judgment; Norwich Pharmacal and Bankers Trust relief; extensions of an administration; and permission to re-use a prohibited company name.

She has assisted Oba Nsugbe KC as junior counsel on MSC v Interglobal, acting for the consignees against one of the largest global container shipping companies in a Commercial Court dispute relating to the carriage of containers and involving urgent applications for interim anti-suit and anti-anti-suit injunctions.

As an associate solicitor at Linklaters, Carol acted for the following clients whilst assisting in the below key cases:

The underwriters on the US$1.1bn (HK$8.74bn) global offering and listing of BOC Aviation Limited on the Main Board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange
Goldman Sachs Investments Holdings (Asia) Limited on its subscription for a majority stake in a newly established private BVI-incorporated special purpose company, Active Industries International Limited, which indirectly wholly owns certain real estate property in Chengdu and Wuhan, PRC
LafargeHolcim Group on a KRW560+bn (c. US$480m) disposal of their cement production operations in South Korea consisting of Lafarge Halla Cement Corporation and LAKO Ltd. to Glenwood Private Equity Co., Ltd (a Korean PE investor) and Baring Asia Private Equity
Steinhoff, the South African retail conglomerate, in connection with the corporate and financial restructuring of its European operating business by way of two parallel English law CVAs (together with the associated restructuring of the group’s US arm, Mattress Firm, through a Chapter 11 process and the refinancing of the French retail goods supplier, Conforama, by way of conciliation proceedings in France)
The sponsors in respect of the £1.3bn financing and subsequent refinancing of the 402MW Dudgeon offshore windfarm
The Mandated Lead Arrangers in relation to a number of acquisitions and upsizes by Apax Partners LLP of the ADCO Group, the global market leader in the mobile sanitary unit sector
A Big 4 accounting firm in parallel proceedings in Hong Kong and China arising in connection with the administration of the estate of a high net worth individual
A Hong Kong-listed bank in a high-profile shareholder dispute with a US hedge fund and related court proceedings in Hong Kong

Employment & Discrimination

Carol is happy to undertake work representing both Claimants and Respondents in all areas of employment law including:

Unfair dismissal;
Discrimination;
Harassment;
Victimisation;
Whistleblowing;
Contractual disputes;
Restrictive covenants;
Injunctions;
TUPE transfers;
Holiday pay disputes;
National minimum wage disputes; and
Costs

Carol has appeared in the Employment Appeal Tribunal, including acting for the respondents in appeals against final hearing judgments and case management decisions. She has also represented parties at judicial mediations.

She also regularly appears in the Employment Tribunal including in preliminary hearings as well as the following notable final hearings:

11-day final hearing involving claims of direct race discrimination, harassment related to race and wrongful dismissal, acting for the respondent (a nationwide charity which provides drug and alcohol rehabilitation services to vulnerable people).
10-day final hearing involving claims of wrongful dismissal, direct race discrimination, harassment related to race, unlawful deduction from wages, outstanding business expenses, and outstanding payment, acting for the respondent (a luxury car dealership group).
5-day final hearing involving claims of automatic unfair dismissal, direct race discrimination, harassment related to race, victimisation, and unlawful deduction from wages, acting for the respondent (a lighting and electrical supplies retailer).
4-day final hearing involving claims of constructive unfair dismissal, direct sex discrimination, harassment related to sex, and victimisation, acting for the respondent (England’s largest privately-owned motor group).
3-day final hearing involving claims of unfair dismissal, unfair dismissal under regulation 7 of TUPE, discrimination arising from disability, direct disability discrimination, and automatic unfair dismissal, acting for the respondent (an education and training provider).
A final hearing involving claims of unpaid wages, holiday pay and bonus pay, acting for the respondent (the UK’s biggest online-only supermarket).
A remedy hearing involving claims of failure to make reasonable adjustments, disability-related harassment and constructive unfair dismissal, acting for the respondent (a national bus operator).

She regularly drafts pleadings and provides written advice on merits, and also has experience in drafting letters of instructions to experts.

Personal Injury

Carol regularly appears in the County Court and has acted in fast track trials, small claims hearings, MOJ Stage 3 hearings and interlocutory applications.

She has experience in road traffic accident trials (including credit hire claims and claims where fraud concerns have been raised involving low velocity impact); public liability claims (including claims for breach of statutory duty under s.41 Highways Act 1980); employers’ liability claims; and infant settlement approval hearings.

She also provides advice on merits and quantum in a range of personal injury claims, including claims arising from employers’ liability.

Property Law

Carol is happy to undertake work in respect of commercial and residential landlord and tenant matters. She has recently acted for landlords and tenants in possession hearings, charging order hearings, housing disrepair claims and claims for failure by the landlord to deal with the tenancy deposit in accordance with an authorised scheme.

Sports Law

Carol has experience and expertise in respect of Employment Tribunal discrimination claims, personal injury, commercial and contractual disputes, and regulatory work which means she is well-placed to advise and act in sports issues which frequently interact with these areas of law. She is happy to advise and represent individuals (professional and amateur athletes) and organisations (sports governing bodies and institutions) in sports law matters.

Carol has recently represented an international-level athlete (runner) in relation to anti-doping charges.

She maintains various links in the wider sporting community, having competed nationally (in Hong Kong) in windsurfing and swimming at youth level. She is a keen athlete, having completed three full marathons, and is particularly passionate about squash, surfing and skiing.

Would you like to know more?

To instruct Carol or if you require help or advice please contact our clerking team.

Call +44 (0)20 7353 0711 or email clerks@pumpcourtchambers.com.

Additional Information

Qualifications

MA (Law), the University of Cambridge
LLM, the University of Pennsylvania
PCLL, the University of Hong Kong

Appointments & Memberships

Called to the Bar (2022)
Admitted as a Solicitor in Hong Kong (2018)
Admitted as a Solicitor in England & Wales (2019)
Admitted as a Solicitor in the Republic of Ireland (2021)
Panel of arbitrators – London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA, London)
Panel of arbitrators – Pacific International Arbitration Centre (PIAC, Vietnam)
Rights of audience before the Astana International Finance Centre (AIFC) Court in Kazakhstan

Languages

English
Cantonese (Chinese)
Mandarin (Chinese)
French
Spanish

Professional Associations

Commercial Bar Association (COMBAR)
Chancery Bar Association (ChBA)
Technology and Construction Bar Association (TECBAR)
The London Bar Association (LBA)
Employment Lawyers Association (ELA)
Personal Injuries Bar Association (PIBA)
Attorney General’s Junior Junior Panel Counsel
AIFC Academy of Law Academic Pool

Outside Interests

Carol loves spending time outdoors and staying active. She is a keen athlete, having completed three full marathons, and is enthusiastic about playing squash and attending the Wimbledon Tennis Championships. Surfing in the summer and skiing in the winter is her idea of fun!

Carol is also a keen pianist and singer. She loves going to concerts and watching theatre and musicals.