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Vanessa C. Edwards

Partner
LondonBrussels
+44.(0).20.7360.8293
Fax +44.(0).20.7648.9001
+32.2.336.1920

Primary Practice

Secondary Practices

Education

  • LL.M., London School of Economics Law, 1989, (merit)
  • LSF, College of Law, 1981
  • CPE, College of Law, 1980
  • B.A., University College London, 1977

Admissions

  • Solicitor, England and Wales
  • Biography Overview
  • Additional Background
  • Representative Work
Vanessa Edwards is a partner in our London office. Her experience means that she is uniquely placed to advise on the implications of European Union regulation for business and on strategies to influence the legislative process. Ms Edwards focuses her practice on trade and regulatory matters involving EU law, with particular emphasis on EU trade law including sanctions, customs and export controls, on EU environmental legislation including REACH (Regulation on the registration, evaluation, authorization and restriction of chemicals), and on EU competition, public procurement and State aid law.

Professional Background

Ms. Edwards joined K&L Gates in 2008 after 15 years at the European Court of Justice (“ECJ”) in Luxembourg, the ultimate arbiter for ruling on the interpretation of EU law. At the ECJ, she was involved in several hundred cases in a wide variety of areas, including anti-dumping, capital movements; competition; consumer protection; cross-border trade;, customs classification, duties and procedures; environmental regulation; import controls and duties; parallel imports; public procurement; quotas; state aid and waste. Before working at the ECJ, Ms. Edwards had spent 10 years in practice at an international law firm in London. She is also Visiting Professor of EU Company Law at King’s College London and European Case-law Editor for the Oxford Journal of Environmental Law.

Professional/Civic Activities

  • Visiting Professor, King's College London
  • Editorial Board Member of Buckley on the Companies Acts
  • European Case Law Editor, Journal of Environmental Law
  • UK European Law Association (Member)
  • Law Society's Competition Group (Member)
  • UK Environmental Law Association (Member)
  • Procurement Lawyers Association (Member)
  • Law Society's EU Law Committee (Member)

Speaking Engagements

Ms. Edwards lectures on European and Comparative Company Law as part of the Masters course at King’s College London and has been guest lecturer in EU company law at Loyola University School of Law, New Orleans, as. She has spoken at numerous national and international conferences and Webinars on various areas, including:
  • “Global Export Controls Webinar: A Snapshot of the U.S., EU and PRC” (Webinar)
  • "EU and nanoregulation" (Webinar)
  • “Greenhouse Gas Reporting and Trading – An EU Perspective” (Webinar)
  • “How to Give the Edge to Your EU Procurement Practice” (London)
  • “ABA Antitrust Update – EU and International Developments” (Webinar)
  • "Applying the EU procurement rules to major projects" (London and Brussels)
  • "Enforcement and infringement of intellectual property rights in the EC" (Brussels and Zurich)
  • "The 'in-house exception' to the application of the EU public procurement rules" (Brussels)

Additional Information

In addition to authoring numerous K&L Gates alerts, updates and newsletters on public procurement, REACH, international trade and competition law, Ms. Edwards has written:
  • EC Company Law (OUP)
  • Chapter on the European Company Statute for Buckley on the Companies Acts (Lexis Nexis)
  • Chapters in Gore-Browne on EU Company Law and Gore-Browne on Companies (Jordans)
  • Sections on public procurement and State aid in Croner’s Europe
  • Numerous journal articles on EU company law
  • A series of articles on "Nanosubstances and REACH" in the NanoBusiness Alliance Newsletter

She was also a contributor to The Oxford Encyclopaedia of EC Law (OUP) and the EU case-law editor for the Oxford Journal of Environmental Law.
  • Advising on EU sanctions against Iran, Syria, Libya, Ivory Coast and Myanmar
  • Advising on EU anti-dumping duties and quotas. 
  • Advising on EU customs classification, import duties and export controls.
  • Representing a subject of an EU cartel investigation.
  • Representing clients before EU/UK institutions in the context of draft legislation on accounting standards; derivatives reform; common fisheries policy; chemical accidents.
  • Advising on the application and interpretation of REACH in numerous contexts and sectors.
  • Advising on the interpretation of the Toy Safety Directive.
  • Advising on numerous distributorship and sales agreements.
  • Advising a Chinese private equity fund on the EU regulation of pesticides.
  • Advising on visa requirements for the EU and Schengen area.
  • Advising on numerous aspects of the EU public procurement legislation, including remedies.
  • Advising an applicant to the European Court of Human Rights on rights and remedies under the European Convention on Human Rights.
  • Advising on EU legislation governing the sale of goods.
  • Advising on the scope of the block exemption from EU State aid rules for aid for environmental protection.
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