SERLESHARE - Key Persons
Arron Snipe provides excellent service." Chambers and Partners 2024
"Arron Snipe..in particular, is always available, responsive and an excellent communicator." Chambers and Partners 2024
"Arron Snipe is an absolute star. He gets things sorted quickly, perfectly and with no fuss." Legal 500 2024
Daniel Lightman KC: "Daniel is excellent; he's responsive and works hard."
Job Titles:
- Member of the Practice Management Team
- Practice Director
Elizabeth Jones QC, Justin Higgo, Gareth Tilley, Paul Adams, Zahler Bryan and Oliver Jones continue to act for Sir Owen Glenn and his company, Kea Investments Limited in their dispute with New Zealand businessman Eric Watson, following the judgment in Glenn v Watson [2018] EWCH 2016 (Ch) in which Kea suceeded in establishing its entitlement to set aside agreements relating to a joint venture etween Sir Owen and Eric Watson on the baiss of (i) fraudulent misrepresentations made on behalf of Mr Watson, (ii) breach of Mr Watson's fiduciary duty to Kea. The court gave an important decision on equitable interest, awarding interest of 6.5% compounded annually, at [2018] EWCH 2016 (Ch). Litigation continues as Kea seeks to enforce its judgment againts Mr Watson's assets in the UK and internationally.
Job Titles:
- Assistant
- Practice Manager
Job Titles:
- Member of the Practice Management Team
- Deputy Practice Director
Gareth Tilley acted as junior counsel for the Official Receiver in Re Keeping Kids Company; Official Receiver v Atkinson, the disqualification proceedings arising from the collapse of the charity Kids Company. These are believed to be the first-ever proceedings for disqualification of charity trustees as company directors and they raise questions about the standard to be applied to unpaid trustee directors, whether a remunerated charity CEO can or ought to be classified as a de facto company director, and what degree of latitude the trustee directors have in relation to the pursuit of charitable objects when the company is of doubtful solvency.
Job Titles:
- Assistant
- Practice Manager
James Mather acted for the successful Appellant, instructed by Tim Elliss, Jonas Habert, Alex Jenkins, and Maria Boutovitskai at Enyo Law LLP.
The appeal, arising in a shareholder dispute concerning a cryptocurrency business, raised the issue of the relationship between the unfair prejudice remedy and the derivative claim and in particular when it is legitimate for an unfair prejudice petition to claim relief in favour of the company to which the petition relates. The Court of Appeal held that, contrary to a suggestion made in the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal in Re Chime Corp Ltd, the position under English law is not that only in a rare and exceptional case will relief be permitted to be sought by way of an unfair prejudice petition which could otherwise be sought by way of a derivative claim. In the present case, where the petitioner alleged that the respondent shareholder had stripped the company's assets, he had a genuine interest in seeking reconstitution of misappropriated assets and damages for the company alongside other relief and in consequence the petition was not abusive. The Court of Appeal also rejected an argument that, whatever the common law position, the provision made by the Companies Act 2006 for derivative claims precluded the seeking of corporate relief within a petition, although Snowden LJ reached a different conclusion from the majority (Newey LJ and Whipple LJ) on how the 2006 Act provisions apply in this area.
Jonathan Adkin QC acted for a number of dissenting shareholders in two high-value company share appraisal actions arising under s.238 of the Cayman Islands Companies Law. In Re Qunar Cayman Islands Ltd he appeared in a three-week trial in the Grand Court of the Cayman Island for the determination of the fair value of a Chinese web-based travel company's shares. In Re: Nord Anglia Education Inc he acted in a three-week trial in the Grand Court for the determination of the fair value of shares in the world's leading private school business.
Job Titles:
- Operations Assistant ( Reprographics & IT )
Lance Ashworth KC: "Lance's strength is that he gives robust advice. He is client-friendly and efficient with his paperwork."
Lance Ashworth QC acts for the claimant in Kelly v Baker & Braid, a commercial court claim for damages for fraudulent misrepresentation and/or breach of fiduciary duty leading to the sale of a group of companies at an undervalue of over £110m.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Practice Management Team
- Practice Director
Philip Jones QC was successful in the Privy Council in Ocean Sino, a case which involved a claim by one joint owner of a BVI company to wind it up on the just and equitable ground. He had previously acted at the original trial and before the BVI Court of Appeal.
In this case, Thomas Braithwaite blended IP and company law when he appeared in the IPEC for the defendants who were accused of breach of a trade mark licence. A summary judgment application was defeated on the grounds that the claimant arguably did not have good title to the trade mark, having acquired it by way of an unlawful return of capital and disguised distribution by a company to its shareholder.