Year of Call: 2003

Profile

Richard joined Maitland on the completion of his pupillage in September 2004, and after a career as an Oxford academic. Since then he has developed a lively and wide-ranging commercial Chancery practice. He appears frequently in the High Court, both led and unled, and also regularly accepts instructions to appear in civil courts outside London. He is instructed by firms of solicitors both large and small, from all over the country and beyond. Richard already has experience in most of Maitland’s major areas of practice, in particular general commercial and Chancery litigation, real property and landlord and tenant, company and partnership, and corporate and personal insolvency. Many commercial Chancery cases defy simple categorisation, and these often provide the most interesting and enjoyable challenges. Richard’s recent cases have included: a substantial and long-running series of interrelated disputes arising from the restructuring of the Brown & Jackson retail group in 2002-3 (alleged breaches of directors’ duties and ultra vires acts, disputes in relation to a share purchase agreement, construction / rectification of repair indemnities for a portfolio of retail properties, disputed expert determination, applications in an administration); contractual disputes between a large high-street retailer and its overseas suppliers; and litigation over a major property development in Surrey.

Areas of practice and notable cases

Commercial and Commercial Chancery disputes

Richard acts and advises in a broad range of commercial disputes, often (though by no means always) with a Chancery flavour.

Cases include:
Progress Property Company Ltd v Moore et al [2008] EWHC 2577 (Ch), [2008] All ER (D) 141 (Oct) (Chancery Division; instructed by Eversheds). Interlinked claims relating to the restructuring and partial sale of the property subsidiaries of the substantial retail group formerly known as Brown & Jackson plc. The lead claim concerned alleged breaches of a director’s duties, and whether a sale of a subsidiary was ultra vires a company as an unlawful distribution; this was tried together with two further claims relating to a share purchase agreement.

KPMG LLP v Network Rail Infrastructure Ltd [2006] EWHC 67; (2006) 6 EG 171; (2006) NPC 11 (Chancery Division; instructed by Linklaters). Dispute over the lease of a large office building in London, involving construction / rectification of the break clause.

Greenwoods Menswear Ltd v Rice 2 Ltd; Greenhaven Ltd v Greenwoods Menswear Ltd (Mercantile Court, Leeds; instructed by Portner & Jaskel). Substantial contractual disputes between a major high-street menswear retailer and its suppliers from India and the Far East.

Crest Nicholson (South) Ltd v Regional Investments (Guildford) Ltd (Chancery Division; instructed by K&L Gates). Dispute over a large property development in Surrey, involving breach of contract and rectification claims.

Re Tradegro (UK) Ltd [2009] All ER (D) 73 (Sep) (Chancery Division; instructed by Eversheds). Application to serve proceedings on a Bermuda company, exploring the inter-relationship between CPR 6.36-37 and 6.15.

Real property / landlord and tenant litigation

Richard advises and litigates over a wide range of property matters, for example lease / licence disputes, claims under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954, dilapidations claims and disputes over easements.

Cases:
Tradegro (UK) Ltd v Progress Property Company Ltd (Chancery Division; instructed by Eversheds). Rectification claims in respect of repairing indemnities given in the context of a sale of the freehold reversions to a portfolio of retail properties.

The Crown Estate v Philips Electronics UK Ltd (Cambridge County Court; instructed by Bird & Bird). Dilapidations claim in relation to substantial commercial premises in Cambridge.

Toombs v Pubfolio Ltd (Leicester County Court; instructed by Kimbells). Claim by pub tenants alleging unlawful eviction by their landlord.

Insolvency (corporate and personal)

Advises on and appears in a wide range of cases, including disputed bankruptcy petitions, statutory demands and winding up petitions, applications to restrain presentation or advertisement of petitions, applications by company administrators, and applications by trustees in bankruptcy. He has advised landlords in a number of cases involving insolvent tenants.

Sample cases include:
Tradegro (UK) Ltd v Wigmore Street Investments Ltd [2010] EWHC 1693 (Ch), [2010] All ER (D) 139 (Jul) (Companies Court; instructed by Eversheds). Applications in the administration of a Bermuda company, involving the construction of a solicitors’ undertaking and of an indemnity given in the context of a corporate restructuring.

Duckworth v Dawes & Wilson (Chancery Division (Bankruptcy)); instructed by Smithson Clarke). Trial of a claim by a trustee in bankruptcy in relation to jointly owned property, raising constructive trust and exoneration issues.

Peter Cox Ltd v Stingray Properties Ltd (Companies Court; instructed by SLS). Trial of disputed winding up petition.

Company and partnership law

Has acted and advised in a number of cases involving allegations of breach of directors’ duties or ultra vires, and in a number of partnership disputes.

Cases include:
Progress Property Company Ltd v Moorgarth Group Ltd [2009] EWCA Civ 629, [2009] Bus LR 1535, [2010] 1 BCLC 1 (Court of Appeal; instructed by Eversheds). Acting for the respondent in an appeal on the question of whether the sale of a subsidiary was ultra vires a company as an unlawful distribution. Currently subject to appeal to the Supreme Court.

Chilukuri and others v Kansagra and others (Royal Court of Jersey, Samedi Division; instructed by Appleby). Claims and cross-claims brought in Jersey by groups of directors alleging breaches of fiduciary duties in relation to a company involved with the development of a luxury hotel in Morocco.

Freshbake Foods Ltd v Wilson Braithwaite Scholey and others (Chancery Division; instructed by Brabners Chaffe Street). Claims by liquidators against former directors and auditors of a company. A three-day application sought to strike out the claim as an abuse of process on the basis that proceedings were issued with no present intention to pursue them and no knowledge of a valid claim.

Ahmed & Ahmed v Islam (Chancery Division, Newcastle District Registry; instructed by Stockdale Reid). Six-day trial (unled) of claims relating to Tyneside restaurant and property businesses, raising issues of partnership law and trusts of land.

Bewley & Bewley v Bewley (Winchester County Court; instructed by Wansbroughs). Long-running litigation between undertakers, involving partnership law, dilapidations claims, and allegations of wrongful interference with business.

Emergency procedures and interim remedies

Richard is experienced in obtaining interim remedies, often on an urgent basis, including injunctions in relation to winding up petitions, and injunctions restraining harassment under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997.

Sample case:
Dacre & Terravent Ltd v Rundle (Swindon County Court; instructed by Wansbroughs). Emergency injunctions to restrain interference with a company website and interception of customer emails in the context of a dispute over intellectual property rights.

Professional liability

Frequently instructed in claims against professional advisers, in particular solicitors and surveyors / valuers.

Cases:
Re Sellar Properties (London 2) Ltd (Commercial Court; instructed by Clifford Chance). Substantial solicitors’ negligence action resulting from a dispute over a high-profile and prestigious property development in central London.

Regional Investments (Guildford) Ltd v Lawrence Stephens (Chancery Division; instructed by K&L Gates). Solicitors’ negligence claim in relation to a dispute over a large mixed-use development in Surrey.

Trusts, estates and probate

Richard is regularly instructed in relation to disputes or potential disputes over wills and trusts. He has also acted in claims under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975.

Insurance

Has acted for a number of insured parties in claims against insurers under various types of policy, including buildings and contents insurance.

Sample case:
Pointer et al (as trustees of the Pointer Settlement) v Royal and Sun Alliance plc (Norwich County Court; instructed by Hatch Brenner). Disputed claim on buildings insurance policy following subsidence of a row of houses in Norwich into old chalk workings.

Seminars

Richard regularly gives seminars on topical issues, most recently:

A Property Litigator’s Introduction to Insolvency; and
Recovery without Distress? Enforcement under the Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007.

Education and personal

Richard went to King Edward’s School, Birmingham, and then read Greats at Oxford, where he secured a Double First and won the Craven Scholarship and the Arnold Ancient Historical Essay Prize. He was also a Casberd Scholar of St John’s College. Richard remained in Oxford to write a doctorate in Ancient History, for which he received British Academy funding, and as a doctoral student he won the Craven Fellowship, which allowed him to continue his research by visiting ancient sites in the Middle East. Thereafter he was British Academy Postdoctoral Fellow at Oriel College, Oxford, and Stipendiary Lecturer in Ancient History at Oriel and Jesus Colleges for a number of years. He completed the CPE (Diploma in Law) at City University and the BVC at the Inns of Court School of Law, before undertaking pupillage at Maitland, where his pupil supervisors were Jonathan Russen, Nicholas Peacock (both now QC), Amanda Tipples, Michael Gibbon, and James Aldridge.

When not at work, Richard enjoys cricket, rowing, the theatre, and travel, especially to ancient sites around the Mediterranean, the Middle East and Central Europe. He has published a number of academic articles on Classical topics.

Richard litigates exclusively in English. He does however have some competence in French (A level), Russian (GCSE), Italian, German and Arabic (basic).

Notable Cases
Tradegro (UK) Ltd v Wigmore Street Investments Ltd (2010)
Tradegro UK v Wigmore St Investments (2009)
Progress Property Co Ltd v Moorgarth Group Ltd (2009)
Progress Property Co Ltd v Cornus Moore (2008)
KPMG LLP v Network Rail Infrastructure Ltd (2006)

Memberships
COMBAR
Chancery Bar Association

Qualifications
MA (Hons) First Class (Oxon), DPhil (Oxon)