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Area of Law: James Mather
The Court of Appeal has handed down its judgment in Ntzegkoutanis v Kimionis [2023] EWCA Civ 1480.
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James Mather and Mark Wraith appeared for the successful appellant in Malik v Hussain [2023] EWCA Civ 2, in which the Court of Appeal held that where there was a term requiring contracts to be exchanged within seven days of payment of the deposit by a successful bidder that only required the bidder to exchange within seven days of being presented with a contract in a form capable of being present with a contract in a form capable of being executed and exchanged. The issue arose in the context of a long-running partnership and company dispute concerning the ownership of a prominent restaurant business in Manchester. In previous trials James and Mark successfully established the disputed existence of the partnership and that the claimant was entitled to require an open market sale of the relevant assets rather than a buy-out at a valuation determined by the court.
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Philip Marshall QC, Jonathan Harris QC (Hon.) and James Mather are acting for Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank in State of Qatar v Emirates NBD Bank, one of the largest claims to be brought in the English High Court, in which claims are brought against the bank by the State of Qatar in conspiracy said to arise out of an alleged international scheme to manipulate the value of Qatari currency and bonds connected with the so-called ‘blockade’ of Qatar by neighbouring Gulf states causing the Qatari Central Bank to have to deposit US$13 billion.
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In Attorney General v Zedra Fiduciary Services (UK) Ltd [2020] EWHC 2988 (Ch), Will Henderson acted for the Attorney General. This involved ‘The National Fund’ which was settled with £500,000 of cash and securities in 1928 on trust to accumulate income and profits until the date fixed by the trustee as being the date when, either alone or together with other funds then available for the purpose, the fund was sufficient to discharge the National Debt. The fund was then to be transferred to the National Debt Commissioners to be applied by them in reduction of the National Debt. The Fund is now worth about £0.5 billion. Zacaroli J held that there was a valid charitable trust and that the court had jurisdiction to order a cy-pres scheme. He adjourned the question of what (if any) scheme to order.
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In Ward v Savill [2020] EWHC 1534 (Ch), James Mather acted for the successful defendant in the determination of a preliminary issue on whether declarations obtained in earlier proceedings to which the defendant was not a party that property was held on constructive trust for the claimants could be relied on in future proceedings for purposes of asserting a tracing or following claim against her. The case is due to be heard by the Court of Appeal in March 2021.
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James Mather acted for the Joint Administrators of an insolvent FCA-regulated international payment services provider in Re Supercapital Ltd [2020] EWHC 1865 (Ch). This involved the first application to seek a court’s approval for a distribution plan under the Payment Services Regulations 2017, on the basis of statutory trust principles applied in the context of other financial services regulations.
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James Mather acted for the respondent fund management company in Lady Moon v Petricca, in which an SPV of the American private equity firm Cerberus sought to wind up a substantial Italian investment fund. This was the first claim of its kind in which an allegedly insolvent foreign fund was sought to be wound up in the English Court on the basis that it is analogous to an English trust. Petricca successfully disputed the English Court's jurisdiction to hear the claim.
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Lance Ashworth QC and Jamie Randall are representing the Defendants in Wright v Hill & Impact Property Development, a property development dispute concerning development sites in Rickmansworth worth up to £25 million. The Claimants are represented by James Mather.
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James Mather, instructed by Cooke, Young & Keidan’s Sinead O’Callaghan, successfully obtained the dismissal of an injunction application brought by Schillings against a former partner of the firm and an indemnity costs order against Schillings, which was ordered to pay the full amount of the respondent’s costs on summary assessment. The Judge held that the application was in breach of a binding arbitration clause and reaffirmed the principle that costs will be awarded on the indemnity basis against a party who brings court proceedings in breach of an arbitration agreement. Schillings was represented by Jeremy Callman, instructed by Fox Williams.
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