History

CDG was established in 1996 when our senior partner Simon Curtis decided to break away from a well known City shipping law firm to build his vision of a new kind of maritime law firm.

The foundation stone was his recognised expertise in marine construction, both in the shipping and the offshore oil and gas sectors. 

During the next decade the firm grew steadily, establishing an international reputation and blue-chip client base.

 In 2003 our dispute resolution team was asked to replace a major City firm representing a large Singaporean shipyard in relation to a dispute with European shipowners concerning the conversion of a bulk carrier into the dynamically positioned pipelaying vessel “SOLITAIRE”.  By the time CDG took over this case the arbitration had been running for five years and was the largest LMAA arbitration ever held in London. 

The success the firm enjoyed in its first decade, culminated in being named in 2005 as UK "Boutique Law Firm of the Year" by "Legal Business" Magazine.

This award is given each year to a specialist law firm that has excelled in its chosen industry sectors. "Legal Business" described CDG as "absolutely flying ahead". The award was a clear vindication of our founding partner's view that, in specialist industry sectors, it is quality and experience, not size, that is important.