Erik Bodden

Overview

Erik Bodden is a Partner in the Litigation and Trust & Private Client departments in the Cayman Islands office of Conyers. Prior to joining Conyers, Erik qualified and practiced as a Barrister in England.

Erik’s practice covers all areas of international commercial, insolvency and private client litigation.

He regularly advises banks, investment funds, fund managers and administrators, public and private companies, shareholders, directors, insolvency practitioners, and various professional service providers. He frequently appears before the Grand Court both on his own and as part of a large team, including in the course of large-scale cross-border and multi-party disputes. Additionally, he acts in various winding up proceedings and other disputes involving Cayman Islands companies.

Erik has recently been involved in a series of Section 238 dissenting shareholder appraisal cases, and has extensive experience acting for both companies and dissenting shareholders in this context. He has also acted in contentious trust matters, acting for office holders such as trustees, beneficiaries, and protectors.

Erik has co-authored a number of articles on developments in companies law and trust law in the Cayman Islands. He is a visiting lecturer at the Cayman Islands Law School, a Consultant Editor of the Cayman Islands Law Reports, a contributor to the Cayman Islands Law Review, and a contributor to the text book Civil Litigation in the Cayman Islands (3rd Edition).

Erik is president of the Cayman Islands Legal Practitioners Association, a member of the Cayman Islands Legal Advisory Council and a member of the Grand Court Financial Services Division User’s Committee.

Erik was awarded the RISA (INSOL International) Rising Star Award in 2015 and was also a member of the RISA education subcommittee from 2014 to 2019.

He has been ranked in Legal 500 Caribbean since 2017, most recently as a “Rising Star” in 2020 and as a “Next Generation Partner” in 2021, and has been described as an “outstanding lawyer”.

Experience

Experience Highlights

Acted for RC Cayman Holdings, lender to the companies that owned the Ritz Carlton Grand Cayman Resort against the developer to enforce a personal guarantee when the companies defaulted on their loan.
Acted for Ernst & Young in relation to claims of auditor negligence and fraud brought against them by the liquidators of Weavering Macro Fixed Income Fund Limited.
Acted for RMF Market Neutral Strategies (Master) Limited against a clawback claim by the liquidators of DD Growth Premium 2X Fund for redemption payments made to RMF at a time when it subsequently shown the fund was insolvent.
Acting for the Joint Official Liquidators, Grant Thornton Specialist Services (Cayman) Limited, in the ICP master and feeder funds liquidation proceedings.
Acted for Torchlight Fund LP in its successful defence against a just and equitable winding up petition.
Acting for companies and dissenters in various s.238 merger appraisal proceedings in Cayman.
Acted for trustees, beneficiaries, protectors and other office holders on a variety of Cayman Islands contentious trust and private client matters.

Qualifications

Professional Background

Visiting Lecturer, Conflict of Laws, Cayman Islands Law School
Secondment, Disputes Team, Farrer & Co., London
Pupillage, Ten Old Square and Serle Court, London
UBS Fund Services (Cayman) Ltd.

Education

BPP Law School, BPTC, 2012
University of Liverpool, LLB, 2011 (First Class – ranking 1st overall)
Wilfrid Laurier University, BA, 2006

Bar Admissions

British Virgin Islands, Barrister, 2018
Cayman Islands, Attorney, 2013
England & Wales, Barrister, 2012

Awards & Accolades

Recognised as “up and coming” in the 2022 edition of Chambers Global (dispute resolution)
Recognised and ranked as a “Next Generation Lawyer” in the 2021 edition (and recognised generally since 2017) of Legal 500 Caribbean (dispute resolution)
Recognised in the 2020 edition (and 2019) of Global Restructuring Review 100
Recipient of the Rising Star Award from Restructuring and Insolvency Specialists Association (RISA)

Associations

Cayman Islands Legal Practitioner’s Association (President)
Cayman Islands Legal Advisory Council (member)
FSD User's Committee (member)
Former Deputy Chairman of the Planning Appeals Tribunal
Accredited Civil & Commercial Mediator (ADR Group, UK)
INSOL International
STEP

Publications

STEP Journal: Principle Progressions and Getting the Deal Through – Cayman jurisdiction analysis (November 2018)

Offshore Cases

In the matter of Qunar Cayman Islands Ltd: Cayman Islands Appraisal Actions – Moving Towards Standard Directions?, International Corporate Rescue, Vol 15 (2018) Issue 1

Contributor - Cayman Islands Law Review, 2016-2017 (various case summaries)

Contributor - Civil Litigation in the Cayman Islands, 3^rd edn, 2016 (chapter on Mareva Injunctions)

Divide and Conquer: A New Chapter in the History of the Cayman Islands Judicial System, IFC Caribbean Review, 2011

Area(s) of Expertise

Legal Services

Asia Disputes & Restructuring
Cayman Islands Litigation & Restructuring
Insurance & Reinsurance
Litigation & Restructuring
Mergers & Acquisitions
Private Client & Trust
Real Estate & Property Development
Restructuring

Client Services

Trust Services

Other Services

Employment & Immigration

Featured Content

The offshore case digest offers readers a high level summary of the major commercial cases decided in Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands and the Cayman Islands.