Stuart has a broad commercial chancery practice covering most areas of Chambers’ work. Stuart’s main areas of practice include:

• Commercial and contractual disputes (including warranty, guarantee and misrepresentation claims)
• Commercial and civil fraud claims
• Corporate, partnership, shareholder and director disputes (including director disqualification proceedings)
• Banking and finance litigation
• Breach of employee, partner or director restrictive covenants including breach of confidence
• Insolvency (corporate and personal)
• Professional liability (including claims against solicitors, surveyors, architects, accountants and financial advisers and regulatory/disciplinary proceedings)
• Property litigation (including real property, landlord and tenant, mortgages and trusts)
• Contentious probate, trusts and inheritance disputes
• Sports law regulatory/disciplinary proceedings
• Employment law disputes

Stuart regularly appears in the High Court and the County Court (both at first instance and on appeal), the Court of Appeal and on appeals to the Supreme Court.  In addition, Stuart regularly appears at commercial arbitrations and in a wide range of regulatory tribunals and hearings. Stuart is happy both as sole counsel and being led by or as part of large legal team.

Prior to coming to the Bar, Stuart was a solicitor for 14 years and a partner and solicitor-advocate in the commercial litigation team of leading national law firm based in the Midlands.

Terms of Business

Unless otherwise agreed in writing, Stuart accepts instructions under the Standard Conditions of Contract for the Supply of Legal Services by Barristers to Authorised Persons 2020, a copy of which can be found here.

Stuart is prepared to consider acting on different terms, such as the COMBAR Terms, by mutual agreement.

Public Access

Stuart undertakes Public Access work. Please see the Bar Standard Board’s Public Access Guidance for Lay Clients here.

Upon accepting instructions, Stuart or his Clerks will agree the basis upon which the Public Access client is to be charged for the work to be done. In direct access cases, fees (plus VAT) will be charged on a stage by stage fixed fee basis, which will be set by reference to the nature and complexity of the case, the amount of reading and research involved, the likely length of any hearing, and Stuart’s experience in that area of law. The agreed fee (together with the VAT) must be paid as soon as Stuart accepts instructions on the case.

Stuart is not authorised to conduct litigation. This means that Public Access clients will need to do certain things themselves. That includes issuing proceedings, filing documents at Court, and serving documents on other parties.

VAT

Stuart is registered for VAT. His number is 502782602.