Vanessa's practice focuses on contracts and disputes relating to oil and gas and offshore, shipbuilding and ship design, and superyachts, as well as shipping disputes. She acts in complex commercial court disputes and international arbitrations and advises on contract wordings, including drafting and renegotiating shipbuilding contracts, charterparties and refund guarantees.

She advises oil companies and JV partners on disputes under plans of development for offshore fields, JV agreements and production sharing agreements and has extensive experience of drilling / rig contract disputes, including recently acting for Tullow Ghana Limited, as operator, in a commercial court dispute regarding termination of a long term semi-sub contract for force majeure (Seadrill Ghana Operations Ltd v. Tullow Ghana Ltd [2018] EWHC 1640 (Comm)).

She also has significant experience of contracts for the design, construction and use of rigs, drillships, FPSOs, FSRUs and offshore service vessels and equipment, as well as other commercial ships and super, mega and giga yachts. She has acted in a large number of arbitrations relating to these contracts.