Areas of Expertise

• Commercial Dispute Resolution

  John deals with a range of commercial disputes and is sensitive to the wider business implications of litigation.  He is noted for his straight-talking demeanour and giving pragmatic, direct and tactically astute advice to companies from the board level down.

  He acts for companies of all sizes as well as partnerships, unincorporated associations and private individuals in consumer disputes.

  While a robust and fearless trial advocate, John “thinks on his feet and sees all possible solutions in a case” (Legal 500) and is committed to finding a positive outcome for clients outside the courtroom wherever he can.

  Examples of recent work include:

  • Acting for a household name in the retail industry defending a £5m claim for destruction of business, negligence and unjust enrichment
  • Successfully defending a commercial landlord in a £330,000 claim by a tenant for conversion of goods and damage to property
  • Acting for an international IT consultancy in a long running dispute, including on appeal, involving a claim for breach of “tapping up” restrictions.

• Property & Real Estate

  Property and real estate work makes up more than half of John’s practice.

  He has a considerable following of specialist practitioners in the Midlands and beyond and enjoys a thriving and busy paper-based practice.

  John is frequently instructed to advise in complex matters involving easements, covenants, boundary disputes and adverse possession.

  He also deals with a range of contentious actions, particularly in co-ownership/cohabitation disputes in the courts and Property Tribunal involving constructive and resulting trusts, severance, proprietary estoppel and equitable accounting.  He also has considerable experience in actions for rectification and/or alteration of the register.

  Examples of recent work include:

  • Successfully representing a landlord of a block of apartments at first instance and on appeal in a claim for disrepair brought by a tenant which turned on whether, on the proper construction of the relevant lease, a roof terrace was part of the landlord or tenant’s repairing covenant
  • Acting for the successful appellant in an appeal before the Residential Property Tribunal against the decision of a local housing authority declaring that a hotel housing asylum seekers was an HMO
  • Successfully representing a well-known entertainment company at trial and on appeal in a long-running dispute over prescriptive easements.

• Housing

  John is a seasoned practitioner for both claimants and defendants in claims for possession, disrepair, matters relating to deposit protection, forfeiture, leasehold enfranchisement and anti-social behaviour, including contested committal proceedings.

  He regularly deals with residential and commercial landlord and tenant disputes in both the private and public sectors, as well as homelessness appeals in the County Courts and the full range of service charge and property management disputes in the Property Tribunals.

• Planning & Environmental

  John maintains a busy practice in contentious planning matters and has wide-ranging experience of appeals, public inquiries and applications for statutory or judicial review.

  He appeared on a Direct Access basis in the High Court on a statutory review concerning the scope and limits of a “conversion” for the purpose of permitted development rights – Hibbitt v Secretary of State for Communities & Local Government [2016] EWHC 2853 (Admin).

  He also recently acted for the successful Rule 6 Party in a high profile 6 day public inquiry concerning a proposed 75 hectare solar farm in Alfreton (APP/M1005/W/22/3299953).

• Insolvency

  John’s insolvency practice encompasses the full range of litigation from simple petitions for bankruptcy and winding up to more convoluted matters involving annulment, statutory demands, validity of service, appointment and supervision of trustees/receivers and disposal of property, including transactions at an undervalue and/or defrauding creditors.

• Wills, Probate & Inheritance

  John’s contentious probate practice is busy and on the grow.  He regularly appears in the High Court Chancery Division in cases involving intestacy, challenges to the substantial validity of wills, allegations of fraud, incapacity, undue influence and other CPR Part 64 claims.

  He acts for both professional and lay executors and administrators, as well as beneficiaries in contentious and non-contentious matters and has a busy advisory practice.

  He is also frequently instructed to draft and appear in proceedings under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975.

• Professional Negligence

  John is frequently instructed in professional negligence actions on behalf of both claimants and defendant insurers, predominantly in the business services sector and the construction industry.

About

• Notable Cases

  Hibbitt v Secretary of State for Communities & Local Government[2016] EWHC 2853 (Admin)

• Appointments

  • Attorney General’s Regional B Panel from 2020
  • Direct Access

• Qualifications

  • LLB (Hons), University of Leicester