"Ad Hoc" Chinese Walls

Harry McVea

Lecturer in Law, University of Bristol.

jcls Vol 2 Issue 1 (July 2002)

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Abstract

Following the House of Lords’ decision in Prince Jefri Bolkiah v KPMG, doubt has been cast on the use of ad hoc Chinese walls by professional firms. This has given rise to concerns that legal developments which are antagonistic to the ad hoc approach will undermine the City’s international competitiveness. Laddie J’s more recent support for ad hoc Chinese walls in Robson Rhodes has been heralded by the City Disputes Panel as a "welcome clarification" of the law. However, Laddie J’s remarks and those of Neuberger J in the Halewood International decision, run counter to the general tenor of Lord Millett’s speech in Bolkiah and raise doubts as to the sustainability of the ad hoc approach as a general legal principle.

Keywords

Chinese walls, ad hoc, city disputes panel, city regulations, client confidentiality, company law, investor protection, standard of misuse