Areas of expertise

Cases

Intellectual Property, Media and Entertainment:

Page v The Information Commissioner and School of Sexuality Education UA-2023-001104-GIA
John-Paul advised the Second Respondent, a charity, in its successful response to an appeal to the Upper Tribunal (Administrative Appeals Chamber). John-Paul advised on breach of confidence and copyright issues. The case has generated media interest, for instance in The Times.

Matthew Shaw v Excalibur Furniture Limited
John-Paul represented the Defendant from pleadings through to trial in this IPEC small claim for copyright infringement in 11 images. John-Paul took points on ownership in the Defence and cross examined the Claimant on the same. He succeeded in having the claim dismissed on the basis that the Claimant did not own the copyright.

John-Paul argued for and obtained a rare costs order against the Claimant, on the grounds of unreasonable behaviour. John-Paul teed up the arguments by advising on and drafting pre-trial correspondence which grounded his submissions on costs. 

Sheroze Nadeem v Wasime Patel, Mubarack Issa, Centurion Traders Limited and Hana Design Limited (IP 2023 000017)
See:The Trademark Lawyer
John-Paul acted for each of the four Defendants in this trade mark and passing off claim. It concerned the use of the sign “V2” in relation to clothing. The Claimant’s passing off case was curious: he claimed to own goodwill in the V2 sign based on his father’s use of it in the early 2000s, through a limited company which was wound up in 2006 as part of a carousel fraud. John-Paul drafted the Defence and Counterclaim for revocation of the trade mark. He advised on and drafted a successful application to transfer up from the IPEC small claims track to the IPEC multi track. John-Paul drafted applications for strike out/ summary judgment and appeared as sole counsel before HHJ Hacon, securing judgment, an order for the revocation of the trade mark and a generous costs order for his clients. 

WKA Worldwide K. Actionsports GmBH and Klaus Nonnemacher v Paul Ingram
The Claimants had obtained costs orders in Germany arising from trade mark litigation in the German courts and EU IPO. John-Paul appeared for the Defendant in the English Courts and was successful in obtaining a stay of execution on the basis of cross claims in Germany.

IPO Opposition O/0041/23 – EPIC RIDER and EPIC EQUESTRIAN
John-Paul drafted the written submissions for the successful Defendant in opposition proceedings, based on 5(1), (2) and (3) of the Trade Marks Act 1994.

As a pupil:

Kelly-Marie Smith v Kesi Dryden & Ors [2021] EWHC 2277 (IPEC)
John-Paul assisted Hugo Cuddigan QC for the Claimant at the trial of her copyright action against members of Rudimental.

Claire Stone v Alexandra Wenman [2021] EWHC 2546 (IPEC)
John-Paul assisted Christopher Hall in the settling of evidence for the successful Defendant in this trade mark action.

Facebook Ireland Limited v Voxer IP LLC [2021] EWHC 1377 (Pat)
John-Paul assisted Brian Nicholson QC and Christopher Hall for the Defendants in this trial to determine whether the Defendant’s patent was valid and whether Facebook’s instant messaging service had infringed it.

Original Beauty Technology & ors v Oh Polly & ors [2021] EWHC 294 (Ch)
John-Paul assisted Chris Aikens in the Defendants’ case from trial through to the damages inquiry.

Commercial and Insolvency:

Cook, Young & Kiedan v Oliver Morley
John-Paul represented a firm of solicitors in their dispute with a former client. He appeared as sole counsel in a series of hearings concerned with the enforcement of his client’s judgment debt and a bill of sale with respect of three motor cars, including two race cars. John-Paul obtained a freezing order against the debtor at the without notice hearing and successfully resisted the debtor’s efforts to have it discharged at the return date. 

The National Bank of Ras Al Khaimah (P.S.C) v John Bamidele Adetiba
John-Paul represented the UAE Bank in this appeal, successfully overturning the County Court’s decision to refuse summary judgment and obtaining summary judgment in turn. 

Windrush Alliance UK Community Interest Company v Fothergill and others
As junior counsel to Ian Mayes KC, John-Paul represented the Claimant in a trial to determine the identity of the Company’s lawful directors. They successfully resisted eight pre-trial applications brought by the various Defendants in the week of trial and obtained a resounding victory on the claim. John-Paul appeared as sole counsel in consequential hearings and in a subsequent bankruptcy action brought against one of the Defendants, in which John-Paul obtained a bankruptcy order before the ICC Judges.

Re Nanwani
John-Paul represented the husband and wife debtors in their defence of two identical bankruptcy petitions for the sum of c.£320k. The debtors paid the debt but not the costs of the petition. At the costs hearing, John-Paul persuaded the Court that his clients were entitled to their costs of the petition on the indemnity basis, notwithstanding the Petitioner’s success on the petition. He persuaded the court to find for his clients on two broad points: that the petitioner had refused a reasonable offer of settlement and that his conduct throughout had been shambolic, due in no small part to him having instructed a solicitor who practised from a limited company that was not authorised to conduct litigation.

RS Online Distributors Ltd v CK Morgan Ltd
John-Paul obtained summary judgment against the Defendant in this ‘pandemic case’ about whether or not the Defendant’s sale of face masks complied with the relevant law. This involved argument about the EU Regulations on Personal Protective Equipment and national guidance on the relaxation of those regulations during the Pandemic.

Collins (Contractors) Ltd v Evergreen Marine (UK) Ltd HT-2022-000376
John-Paul drafted pleadings and a summary judgment application on behalf of the Claimant in this adjudication enforcement claim, worth circa £350,000. The parties settled in the days leading up to the hearing. 

Symark Building Contractors Romsey Ltd (in Liquidation) v Trevor Holmes and Ors CR-2022-002116
John-Paul represented the liquidators in their claim for preference, transactions at an undervalue and misfeasance against company directors. John-Paul secured debarring orders and costs orders against the defendants which allowed for a favourable settlement on the eve of the liquidators’ application for summary judgment.

Education

• BA in International Relations, Queen Mary, University of London (First Class, second in year group)
• MA in History of Political Thought and Intellectual History (Distinction)
• GDL, University of Law, London
• BPTC with LLM in Legal Practice, University of Law, London (Distinction)

Awards

• Princess Royal Scholarship 2016 (Inner Temple)
• Major Exhibition Scholarship 2017 (Inner Temple)
• GDL award 2016 (University of Law)
• BPTC award 2017 (University of Law)
• Best Dissertation Award, for paper graded 93% (Queen Mary, University of London 2016)
• Draper’s Company Prize for Outstanding Academic Achievement (Queen Mary, University of London 2016)
• Exemplary Essay (Queen Mary, University of London 2015)
• Sir Henry Brooke Essay Prize (Society for Computers and Law 2017)

Publications

• John-Paul is a Senior Writer at IP Harbour, where he has contributed many articles on IP and technology matters.
• Do social network providers require (further) regulation?, Society for Computers and Law, published July 2019.

Personal Interests

Playing the guitar, rock climbing, mountaineering.