Elizabeth Farrell

“Her ability to apply first-rate technical legal knowledge to real-world transactions and disputes in high-pressure situations is extremely impressive.”
Chambers UK, Commodities: Physicals client

“Elizabeth has unparalleled market experience and knowledge. She is client- and commercially focused. She provides invaluable specialist advice on complex matters.”
Chambers UK, Commodities: Physicals client

"She is very reliable, intelligent and sharp. She always knows the right thing to say and is a safe pair of hands."
Chambers UK, Commodities: Physicals client

“She is an incredible practitioner for physicals knowledge.”
Legal 500 UK, Dispute Resolution: Commodities disputes

“Elizabeth combines technical legal strength with quick commercial understanding and a pragmatic approach to problem-solving.”
Legal 500 UK, Commodity Disputes client

Elizabeth is the global co-chair of Reed Smith’s Energy & Natural Resources Group. She advises clients in the energy and natural resources and commodities sectors on dispute resolution and transactional matters. She has extensive experience in the international trade and transportation of a wide range of commodities, including biofuels, coal, precious and base metals, iron ore, LNG, crude oil, and oil products.

Elizabeth has received accolades from the following independent publications:

Ranked by Chambers 2026 for Commodities: Physicals. Chambers 2026 notes that Elizabeth’s client list “boasts some impressive names across trading houses, mining companies and energy firms”
Ranked by The Legal 500 2026 as a Leading Partner for Commodity Disputes
Recognised by the 2025 edition of Best Lawyers UK for International Trade Law
“Elizabeth combines technical legal strength with quick commercial understanding and a pragmatic approach to problem-solving.” (Chambers 2025)
“She is very reliable, intelligent and sharp. She always knows the right thing to say and is a safe pair of hands.” (Chambers 2025)
“She is an incredible practitioner for physicals knowledge.” (Chambers 2025)
A “standout practitioner”. (The Legal 500 2025)
A “highly respected litigator”. (The Legal 500 2024)
“Elizabeth is very prompt in understanding the issues at stake and adapting sharply to the client’s interests.” (The Legal 500 2023)

Elizabeth understands the interplay between strategic, compliance, and legal issues in the commodities and energy industries, in part through her experience on secondment to clients. In 2018, she spent six months in a senior in-house role, as acting head of legal for a large commodities marketing and trading business. She was previously seconded to lead a legal team responsible for establishing a commodities trading business. Earlier in her career, she was seconded to Morgan Stanley’s Asia commodities business.

A significant part of Elizabeth’s practice involves dispute resolution, including both international arbitration and proceedings before the English Commercial Court. She has represented clients in numerous cases involving a wide range of issues, including fraud, sanctions, and deadlocked joint ventures. Her experience in disputes arising under sale contracts and offtake agreements is extensive, including issues concerning price reopener clauses, force majeure, late shipments, quality problems, late payments, letters of credit, and the transportation and storage of dangerous goods. She has also represented clients in a number of trade credit and marine cargo insurance claims. Elizabeth frequently advises clients at the initial stages of disputes to help achieve early resolution.

Elizabeth has extensive transactional experience. She works closely with Reed Smith’s trade finance team on complex structured transactions, often involving long-term offtake arrangements, repos, flash title transactions, and other agreements relating to the sale, storage, and transportation of commodities. She has significant experience documenting commercial arrangements relating to mergers and acquisitions and business restructurings in the commodities and energy sectors. She has also drafted numerous general terms and conditions for the sale of commodities and is experienced in dealing with industry standard form documents.

Experience

Representative matters

Representing numerous clients in respect of claims or potential claims arising out of the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

Represented Vitol in its successful claim against JE Energy Ltd in the Commercial Court. The case arose from the disputed termination of a FOB crude sale contract, and involved issues relating to the interpretation of a “laycan” clause in a FOB contract, termination and late opening of a letter of credit. [2022] EWHC 2494 (Comm)

Represented Quadra in its successful insurance claim in the English High Court and Court of Appeal following the misappropriation of commodities following the Agroinvest Group “fraud” and bankruptcy. [2023] EWCA Civ 432

Dispute Resolution Experience

Representing numerous clients in respect of claims or potential claims arising out of the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

Represented a commodities financier in an LCIA arbitration arising from fraudulent conduct of a counterparty to a trade finance facility. Successfully obtained a worldwide freezing order from the English High Court in support of that arbitration.

Represented a commodities trader in a successful claim in SIAC arbitration arising from a long term coal sale contract. The case involved various issues connected to quality, letters of credit and termination.

Represented a financial institution in defending an English High Court action in connection with commodities market research, trading and investment arrangements.

Representing a commodities trader in an ongoing LCIA arbitration arising from the alleged non-payment in respect of a long term agricultural commodities contract following the imposition of sanctions.

Representing a commodities trader in an ongoing SIAC arbitration arising out of a long term coal sale contract.

Represented an oil major in a LCIA arbitration arising from a joint venture dispute. Successfully opposed an application in the English High Court for an anti-suit injunction in connection with that joint venture.

Represented a commodities trader in a LCIA arbitration arising from a long term coal sale contract terminated due to force majeure.

Represented a commodities trader in a LCIA arbitration arising from the alleged repudiation of a long term contract for the sale of Russian-origin coal following imposition of sanctions.

Represented a commodities trader in an ongoing LCIA arbitration concerning the trader’s claim under a trade credit insurance policy, in connection with a number of repo trades.

Represented a commodities trader in a SIAC arbitration relating to a gold concentrate contract.

Advised in connection with a multibillion dollar mining dispute and LCIA arbitration.

Obtained a worldwide freezing order and related contempt and committal orders in the English High Court.

Transactional Experience

Advising on long-term prepayment and offtake contracts relating to crude, metals and iron ore.

Drafting numerous sets of GTCs and template sale and purchase contracts for the sale of commodities, including base metals (LME and non-LME), precious metals, iron ore, coal, sulphur, oil and oil products.

Advising global banks on repo transactions involving the sale and purchase of various commodities, ranging from oil and metals to sugar, biofuels and lithium hydroxide.

Advising a trade finance provider on flash title transactions, again involving various commodities.

Advising a bank as to the agreements necessary to establish an allocated and unallocated precious metals trading business.

Drafting and negotiating base and precious metals leasing, tolling and processing agreements for mining companies and metals traders.

Leading due diligence exercises for clients storing hydrocarbons and metals in various locations worldwide.

Conducting due diligence on joint operating agreements and concession agreements relating to offshore oil projects.

Advising on intra-group commodities offtake contracts between mine owning entities and marketing entities for iron ore, coal and metals concentrates.

Advising on intra-group crude oil sale agreements and refined products sale agreements between upstream oil producing/refining entities and marketing entities.

Drafting and negotiating consignment stock agreements.

Drafting and negotiating storage agreements, port services agreements and related documents.

Drafting and negotiating numerous commodities marketing agreements, sourcing agreements, and profit sharing arrangements.

Advising on offtake agreements as part of a structured transaction for a greenfield mining project.

Drafting and negotiating agreements for the supply of condensates, and negotiating a condensates storage contract for a national oil company.

Amongst other biofuels experience, advising a power plant regarding the termination and then the renegotiation of a feedstock agreement for the sale of biomass.

Preparing numerous tender documents, offtake agreements and long term sale contracts for the sale of ethylene, benzene, toluene and other aromatics.