The Financial Courts
Adjudicating Disputes in Derivatives Markets
International Corporate Law and Financial Market Regulation Series

In The Financial Courts, Jo Braithwaite analyses thirty years of cases involving the global derivatives markets, exploring the nature of these legal disputes and assessing their impact on financial markets and on commercial law more broadly. Weaving together this substantial body of cases with theoretical insights drawn from the growing literature on the internationalisation of financial law, Braithwaite offers readers a detailed and highly original contribution to the debate about the role of private law in international financial markets. This important work should be read by lawyers, economists and regulators in the field.

Introduction; 1. The modern derivatives markets; 2. Global markets and the English courts; 3. Interpreting the ISDA master agreement; 4. The regulatory framework for mis-selling claims; 5. Private law claims for mis-selling; 6. The effects of defensive drafting; 7. Challenging decision-making; 8. Challenging choice of jurisdiction; 9. Challenging choice of law; 10. The future of the financial courts.

Jo Braithwaite is an Associate Professor of International Commercial Finance Law at the London School of Economics and Political Science and an Associate Academic Fellow of the Honourable Society of the Inner Temple. Her areas of expertise relate to the use of private law in international financial markets, including the post-crisis reform of the OTC derivatives markets. She has published widely on such topics, winning awards for both her research and teaching in this field. Before undertaking her doctorate, Jo practised as a solicitor in a City of London law firm, where she specialised in litigation.