Carla Fischer

Carla has a significant interest in all areas of commercial law, including contract claims, shareholder disputes and civil fraud claims. During her pupillage, she has been exposed to a wide range of commercial work.

Her experiences include:

• Assisting (Adam Solomon KC and Alexander Halban) with preparation of a three-week trial against the government in the Chancery Division involving issues of tort, breach of contract and allegations of misfeasance of public office and fraud including drafting a section of closing submissions addressing an allegation of fraudulent data manipulation involving complex statistical evidence, highlighting and summarising 8 days of trial transcripts, conducting legal research and drafting notes for cross-examination;
• Conducting research on the enforcement and recognition of foreign judgments pursuant to Dicey Rule 45, the impeachability of foreign judgments for fraud pursuant to Dicey Rule 51 and the rules governing registration of foreign judgment, the definition of debt under s267 IA 1986 and the application of the revenue rule in preparation for an appeal before the Court of Appeal (Charles Samek KC and James Bickford Smith);
• Drafting a Reply in a commercial dispute alleging breach of contract and unjust enrichment for the refusal to pay commission to brokers for the introduction of investors to a mining project in Brazil;
• Drafting a skeleton argument for Part 8 proceedings seeking disclosure of documents under a shareholders’ agreement;
• Conducting research on whether an exclusion clause in a contract between a company and an LLP could successfully exclude the liability of an LLP member who had been appointed as liquidator for the company;
• Drafting an Unfair Prejudice Petition on behalf of two minority shareholders;
• Drafting a Defence and Counterclaim in a commercial dispute, denying the validity of subsequent agreements allegedly entered into by the parties and challenging the Claimant’s proposal to submit to the Shorter Trials Scheme;
• Drafting an advice notes on the merits of several defences in a commercial dispute about the validity of a series of agreements, including mistake, misrepresentation, lack of actual and deemed authority, economic duress and lack of consideration;
• Drafting an advice note on whether credits/ write-offs can constitute assets for a claim in knowing receipt;
• Drafting a skeleton argument opposing the grant of a mandatory injunction in a commercial dispute;
• Conducting research on contingent claims for the purposes of bringing a claim under jurisdictional gateway 3.

Featured cases:

• Drelle v Servis Terminal [2025] EWCA Civ 62
• Marples v Secretary of State for Education
• Safe Transport (South West) Ltd v Pallet Network Ltd
• Lugani v Prabhu and others
• DMA Resources Ltd v Brazilian Nickel Ltd

Carla is acting in a speedy trial in the King’s Bench Division of the High Court (led by Gavin Mansfield KC) for a director defending claims for breaches of restrictive covenants and fiduciary duties.

During pupillage, Carla was involved in several employment cases covering a breadth of issues. Examples include:

Statutory Employment

• Drafting a skeleton argument for an EAT appeal concerning indicrect sex discrimination and victimisation;
• Drafting an advice on pregnancy and maternity discrimination contrary to the Employment Rights Act 1996 and the Equality Act 2010;
• Drafting notes for cross-examination in unfair dismissal proceedings as well as in a case on disability discrimination;
• Drafting an opinion on the jurisdiction of the ET to make a declaration on whether a mandatory retirement policy constitutes age discrimination;
• Drafting a note on discrimination on the grounds of sex contrary to the Equality Act 2010;
• Drafting a letter before action (arbitration) concerning contractual discrimination and breach of the implied term of equal pay;
• Drafting a research note on ways in which the ET may make adjustments/ deductions to a partner’s pecuniary loss for age discrimination.

High Court Employment

• Drafting a letter before claim concerning breach of contract and breach of the implied term of anti-avoidance. The letter argued that two parties of a service agreement had an employment relationship on the terms of an appointment letter and/or on the terms of the agreement;
• Drafting injunctions/ spingboard injunctions for alleged breaches of covenants and breaches of confidence in several business protection cases;
• Writing an opinion concerning the existence of an employment relationship pursuant to the principles of Ready Mixed Concrete, the implied term of anti-avoidance and fetters on contractual discretion;
• Drafting an advice on the merits of multiple causes of action in a case concerning breaches of post-termination restrictions and the misuse of confidential information, namely breach of contract (including breach of the implied term of fidelity), breach of restrictive covenants, breach of confidence, procuring a breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty and unlawful means conspiracy;
• Drafting a note on the law of restrictive covenants in England, specifically legitimate interest and reasonableness, and the differences between non-compete, non-solicitation and confidentiality covenants;
• Drafting a defence/ jurisdictional challenge and a reply to the claimants’ response to the defence/ jurisdictional challenge against two claimants on separate grounds (DIFC). The claim concerned restrictive covenants within DIFC employment contracts. The defence argued that the English doctrine of restraint of trade does not apply in the DIFC and that the SCT does not have jurisdiction over the dispute.

During pupillage, Carla has worked on several LLP and traditional partnership cases. Examples include:

• Drafting a note on the employee status of LLP members, the elements of a detriment claim by a worker contrary to s47B ERA 1996, reasonable expectation of privacy pursuant to Art. 8 ECHR, the causation of an LLP partner resigning (Roberts (respondent) v Wilsons Solicitors LLP and others (appellants) [2018] EWCA Civ 52, [2018] IRLR 1042), injury to feelings and psychiatric injury;
• Drafting a note on the liability of the LLP compared to individual members under LLP agreements;
• Drafting several emails to instructing solicitors outlining advice on removing an LLP member from the LLP and amending the LLP agreement;
• Conducting research on whether an LLP member could have dual status if s4(4) LLPA 2000 did not exist;
• Drafting an advice on partnership law and estoppel by convention, specifically about the potential liability of a company after transfer of the business from a dissolved partnership.

Carla has a keen interest in international arbitration and has gained extensive experience in international commercial and investment arbitration prior to commencing her pupillage with Littleton.

As a research associate with CMS Hasche Sigle, she regularly worked on investor-State disputes concerning direct and indirect expropriation representing different States. She is familiar with UNCITRAL, LCIA, ICC, PCA and ICSID administered arbitrations. During her time at CMS, Carla also undertook work for members of arbitral tribunals including drafting interim orders on behalf of the Tribunal president in a PCA and an ICSID arbitration and drafting parts of arbitral awards with the Tribunal Secretary, for example summarising the position of the parties and outlining the Tribunal’s reasoning on the application of the law on State responsibility.

Carla has been a coach for the Willem C Vis international arbitration mooting competition with Edinburgh University and Gray’s Inn, helping her teams win several prices during pre-moots and the final competition in Vienna, including the award for best oralist at the 30th Vis Moot competition. She has also served as an arbitrator at pre-moots in London and Paris as well as the Vis moot in Vienna for the past three years.

During pupillage, Carla worked on multiple arbitrations. Examples include:

• Drafting a research note and a speaking note on the law of frustration for an international commercial arbitration;
• Drafting a letter before action in contemplation of domestic arbitration proceedings under the Arbitration Act 1996.

Carla has a keen interested in developing an international practice. During pupillage, Carla has been involved in several DIFC and ADGM cases. Examples include:

• Conducting research on the following areas of ADGM law and applicable English common law principles to answer detailed questions by the instructing solicitors ahead of a conference: unlawful deduction of wages contrary to Art 14 ADGM Employment Regulations, available remedies under ADGM law, applicable procedural rules, breach of contract, English common law on unlawful deduction of wages, the implied term of reasonable expectations, the availability of reputational damages, carried interest as wages, effect of constructive dismissal on deduction of wages claim and constructive trusts;
• Drafting a letter before claim (ADGM) concerning an unlawful deduction of wages claim. The letter argued that carried interest under a discretionary plan constituted wages within the meaning of the ADGM Employment Regulations and that the withdrawal of the plan amounted to unlawful deduction of wages considering the implied term of mutual trust and confidence and the implied term of reasonable expectations;
• Drafting a defence/ jurisdictional challenge and a reply to the claimants’ response to the defence/ jurisdictional challengeagainst two claimants on separate grounds (DIFC). The claim concerned restrictive covenants within DIFC employment contracts. The defence argued that the English doctrine of restraint of trade does not apply in the DIFC and that the SCT does not have jurisdiction over the dispute;
• Drafting a note on the costs for non-party disclosure in English and DIFC law;
• Drafting a note on the applicability of the Aldi guidelines in DIFC law; availability of gains-based remedies in DIFC law; inducement to breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty, dishonest assistance and the equitable remedy for account of profits in English and DIFC law.
• Additionally, Carla has worked on several commercial cases involving complex conflict of laws issues such as the enforcement and recognition of foreign judgments pursuant to Dicey Rule 45, the impeachability of foreign judgments for fraud pursuant to Dicey Rule 51 and the rules governing registration of foreign judgments.

Featured Cases:

• Drelle v Servis Terminal [2025] EWCA Civ 62

Carla is instructed by a Championship football club assisting (Joel Wallace) in case preparation and strategy.

Carla has a keen interest in sport. She has played several sports at competition level including traditional Taekwon Do, Latin Ballroom dancing and slalom skiing. She won a silver and bronze medal at the German National Taekwon Do Champtionships in 2011. She also won a gold medal and several silver and bronze medals with her skiing club in Austria. Carla is a keen tennis player and has taught Ballroom and Latin Ballroom lessons at Gray’s Inn over the last two years.

2023 – 2024 Bar Training Course (BTC), BPP University London Holborn, Distinction (82.5)

Since 2021 PhD (Part-Time), Edinburgh University School of Law

2020 – 2021 Postgraduate Diploma in English Law (PGDL), BPP University Leeds, Distinction

2019 – 2020 LLM in International Law, Edinburgh University School of Law, Distinction

2018 – 2019 MLitt Terrorism and Political Violence, St Andrews University, Merit

2015 – 2018 BA International Relations and History, University of Erfurt, First-Class equivalent (1.5) with one semester at St Andrews University, First-Class

Carla Fischer, “White Hate: The FBI’s Counter-Terrorism Strategy Against the Ku Klux Klan, 1964 to 1971”, in, Gray’s Inn Student Law Journal, Vol 16 (2024):

Co-authored a paper on the International Court of Justice’s power to grant provisional measures which has been accepted for publication after a peer review in the German Yearbook of International Law (Upcoming 2025/26)

Scholarships

• Bedingfield Scholarship, The Honourable Society of Gray’s Inn (2023)
• BTC Excellence Scholarship, BPP University (2023)
• Career Development Scholarship, Edinburgh University (2022)
• Careers Commitment Scholarship, BPP University (2020 & 2023)
• Admissions Bursary, BPP University (2020)
• Erfurt University International Office Grant, Scholarship to Study Abroad (2017)
• PROMOS Scholarship, Deutscher Akademischer Auslandsdienst, DAAD (2016)

Awards

• James Hunt Price for Best Advocacy, The Honourable Society of Gray’s Inn (2025)
• Career Support Commendation Award, BPP University (2024)
• Pro Bono Student Director of the Year, BPP University Pro Bono Awards (2021)
• Outstanding Contribution Award, BPP University Pro Bono Awards (2021)
• Model UN Best Delegate Award, Every Conference Attended as Delegate (2015-2018)
• Silver and Bronze Medal, German National Teakwon Do Championships (2011)
• Ostrich Riding License, Oudtshoorn, South Africa (2008)
• Gold Medal, St Oswald Ski Club Tournament, Austria (2008)

German (Native)

Croatian (Native)

French (Advanced)

Italian (Basic)

Arabic (Basic)