Practice overview

Harriet Holmes is a property litigator, whose practice covers property disputes before the domestic courts and tribunals and, from time to time, from other jurisdictions.

Harriet has been recommended by the leading directories as a leading real estate practitioner since she was three years into practice. She has been repeatedly noted for being a formidable advocate who brings with her both technical ability and commercial astuteness. In 2021, Harriet was one of three finalists for Real Estate Junior of the Year at the Chambers & Partners Bar Awards.

Her practice comprises: real property; landlord and tenant; property insolvency; trusts of land and settled land; and professional negligence cases arising from those areas. Harriet enjoys, and is known for, being a specialist in some more unusual or niche areas of land law, such as mines, minerals and manorial rights and rights of light, as well as for dealing with complex commercial property / development-related disputes. Fossicking around archives is something she has had cause to do (and enjoys). She is an expert in rights of light and in the property aspects of telecommunications law and is regularly instructed by household name mobile phone operators and infrastructure providers.

Harriet has appeared in her own right in a range of domestic courts and tribunals, including the Court of Appeal, and has acted in disputes before the Privy Council and Supreme Court.

She sits on the Bar Council as part of the Regulatory Review Working Group and is a contributor to Hill & Redman’s Law of Landlord and Tenant.

Harriet's expertise

Download Property CV

Property

Harriet is a well-known property junior, who advises on and acts as sole counsel or as part of a counsel team in a wide range of real estate disputes.

She was recognised as an ‘up and coming’ junior for real estate litigation after only three years in practice and has since been ranked as a leading property practitioner by all the leading directories – Chambers & Partners, Legal 500 and Who’s Who Legal.

Harriet was, by some margin, the most junior of the three finalists for Real Estate Junior of the Year at the Chambers & Partners Bar Awards 2021.

She is a specialist property litigator with extensive experience of the ‘usual’ issues which arise (such as 54 Act matters, break clauses, easements and freehold land covenants etc.) but one who has experience of some more unusual or niche areas of land law (such as mines and minerals, pre-1925 Act land law, and rights of light) and is used to dealing with property cases which stray into other areas, such as property insolvency and trusts of land matters.

Harriet acted as junior counsel for the successful parties in the two important recently reported Court of Appeal cases of Bath Rugby v. Greenwood, which concerned annexation of restrictive covenants, and Wynne-Finch v. Natural Resources Body for Wales, a case concerning the interpretation of mines and minerals reservations and inclosure acts (and awards) and adverse possession of sub-strata.

More recently, she has been acting (with John McGhee KC) for the developer of a large office building in the City of London in a rights of light dispute, Adjoin Limited v FortyTwo House Sarl. She is also instructed as sole counsel for a claimant alleging infringement with rights of light to a commercial building in Birmingham. These cases build on Harriet’s previous experience of rights of light, acting in Beaumont v Florala at the interlocutory stages and for the developer in a rights of light dispute concerning a tower development in Leeds.

Harriet has acted in property disputes in the main domestic courts and tribunals through to the Supreme Court and Privy Council. She also has experience of property disputes from the Caribbean jurisdictions and on the Channel Islands.

She is a member of the Chancery Bar Association and the Property Bar Association. She sat on the PBA’s committee (and as the association’s Bar Council representative) for a number of years and is a contributor to Hill and Redman’s Law of Landlord and Tenant.

Her experience includes:

  • Commercial and residential landlord and tenant, including ’54 Act renewals, rent review litigation and arbitration, forfeiture, break clauses etc.
  • Contracts of sale, options and rights of pre-emption
  • Development contracts, overage and construction disputes
  • Joint ventures, and claims in contract and equity arising out of them
  • Easements, land covenants and boundary disputes
  • Adverse possession
  • Land registration and conveyancing
  • Mortgages, charges and other securities, including matters involving LPA receivers
  • Property-related torts: nuisance, trespass
  • Property insolvency
  • Rights to light
  • Other title issues, such as mines and minerals and commons
  • Trusts of land including settled land
  • Proprietary estoppel
  • Agricultural tenancies

Her recent cases of note include:

  • Adjoin Ltd v Fortytwo House SarL [2022] EWHC 2710 (Ch) (rights of light) – acted for the developer in this rights of light dispute; this application concerned amendments and alleged misuse of confidential information (led by John McGhee KC) (case settled at trial)
  • Cornerstone Telecommunications Infrastructure Ltd v. Hackney LBC [2022] UKUT 210 (LC) (interim code rights, health and safety) – acted as sole counsel for operator.
  • Quay House Admirals Way v Rockwell Properties Ltd [2022] EWHC 545 (Ch) (land registration, removal of restrictions) (led by Jonathan Seitler KC).
  • Bath Rugby Ltd & Anr v. Greenwood & Ors [2022] 1 P & CR DG25 (restrictive covenants, annexation) – acted for successful intervener and second appellant (led by Martin Hutchings KC).
  • Wynne-Finch v. Natural Resources Body for Wales [2022] 3 All ER 162 (mines and minerals, inclosure, manorial rights, adverse possession of sub-strata) – acted for successful defendant and respondent at first instance and on appeal (led by Mark Wonnacott KC).
  • ARC Aggregates Ltd v. Branston Properties Ltd [2021] 2 P & CR 1 (corporeal vs incorporeal right, mines and minerals) (led by Mark Wonnacott KC).
  • Whitacre Management Limited Sainsbury’s Supermarkets [2019] EWHC 13 (Ch) (conditional contracts for sale; termination) – acted for the successful defendant in this multimillion-pound claim (led by Mark Wonnacott KC).
  • Gaia Ventures Ltd v. Abbeygate Helical (Leisure Plaza) Ltd [2019] EWCA Civ 823 (overage; contracts for sale; reasonable endeavours) – acted for the successful respondent on appeal (and at first instance: [2018] EWHC 118 (Ch)) (led by Mark Wonnacott KC).

Current work and other recent experience includes:

  • Acting for the landlord and owner of the Centre Point site in relation to a multimillion-pound scheme of works to replace the façade of the residential flats on that site (led by Martin Hutchings KC).
  • Acting for the mineral owner in a claim against a developer for trespass into mines and mineral sub-strata.
  • Advising a developer during the acquisition of a multimillion-pound site on various title issues, including mines and mineral reservations.
  • Representing a well-known charity in a claim for a vesting order of property under the Trustee Act 1925.
  • Acting as sole counsel in a claim for £6.5m in damages for terminal dilapidations.
  • Advice and representation in various applications for vesting orders following disclaimer.
  • Representing (with Martin Hutchings KC) the landlord of the Brunswick Centre in Lazari v. London Borough of Camden in a claim for declarations in respect of the obligations to repair the drainage system of the c.£150m building (case settled on first day of trial).
  • Advising a private bank on various strict settlements and trustee obligations relating thereto.
  • Advising a group of leaseholders in relation to liability for costs of remedying defective / dangerous cladding.
  • Acting as junior counsel (led by Mark Wonnacott KC) for the defendant in a claim for £11 million damages for alleged unlawful termination of a conditional development agreement, alternatively for damages for the tort of misfeasance in public office.
  • Acting as junior counsel (led by Joanne Wicks KC) for the defendant in a claim for specific performance of an alleged agreement for lease of a valuable railway sidings site.
  • Acting for a retail bank in a claim involving mortgage fraud and a claim to sub-subrogation.

Download Property CV

  • Quote symbolIntellectually outstanding and very thorough on the papers. Always gives sound, commercial and helpful advice.

    The Legal 500 2024

  • Quote symbolHarriet is a key member of the team, she can anticipate the court's reaction and hone the strategy to fit.

    Chambers & Partners 2024

  • Quote symbolHarriet is very communicative and will provide regular updates. She balances the client's commercial objectives versus when to protect their position, which is greatly appreciated.

    Chambers & Partners 2024

  • Quote symbolOne of the best junior barristers at the property Bar and a silk in the making. Harriet is extremely bright and a tenacious advocate.

    The Legal 500 2023

  • Quote symbolHarriet is extremely thorough, she is never underprepared. She understands what the clients are doing and gets their aims and objectives.

    Chambers & Partners 2023

Property insights & events View all thought leadership View all events

  1. PlaceholderJoanne Wicks KC and Harriet Holmes

    External Conferences

    PLA 2023 Autumn Training Day

    Thursday 2nd November 2023
    The Royal Society of Medicine, London

    Speakers:
    Joanne Wicks KC | Harriet Holmes

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    Events / Webinars

    Leeds Property Seminar & Drinks Event 2023

    Thursday 15th June 2023 | 3.15pm - 6pm, followed by drinks and pool at Pinnacle
    Leeds Marriott

    Free to attend | 1.75 CPD

    View more
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    Events / Webinars

    Manchester Property Seminar & Drinks Event 2023

    Wednesday 14th June 2023 | 3.15pm - 6pm, followed by drinks and shuffleboard at Box Deansgate
    The Edwardian Manchester (A Radisson Collection Hotel)

    Free to attend | 1.75 CPD

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    News

    Wilberforce features in two of Estates Gazette’s Top 10 Cases of 2022

    EG (Estates Gazette) has released its annual podcast, discussing the most significant property law cases of the past year, and we are pleased to announce that Wilberforce members appear in case number 1 and case number 3 on the 2022... Read more

    Friday 6 January 2023

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Professional liability

Harriet regularly accepts instructions in professional indemnity matters, particularly those with a property dimension. She acts both on her own account, or as junior in more substantial matters.

In the year between bar school and pupillage, Harriet worked at a solicitors’ firm as a fee earner in group litigation against various conveyancing solicitors’ firms for failure to adequately advise on right-to-buy conveyances. This, together with her experience as a property litigator who has considerable experience of development disputes, makes her well-placed to deal with solicitors’ negligence claims involving conveyancing.

Notable recent instructions include:

  • Acting for the developer claimants in a multimillion-pound claim against three firms of solicitors (and the administrators of an estate of a solicitor) relating to a development of residential flats which had been sold off-plan and a ‘scheme’ which attempted to avoid unilateral notices placed on the title to the development site by the flat purchasers (led by Martin Hutchings KC).
  • Acting for and advising a claimant suing for damages relating to an alleged failure to properly terminate an agreement with a telecommunications operator (led by Martin Hutchings KC).
  • Acting as sole counsel for the claimant developer in a claim against transactional solicitors concerning advice given in respect of a development agreement and conveyance of the development site.
  • Advising on the prospects of a claim against conveyancers for failure to advise on various title issues, including rights of way and services easements, over a residential development site.
  • Acting for defendant solicitors in a multimillion-pound professional negligence claim concerning alleged failures to advise of risks of a non-party costs order in a multimillion-pound claim in deceit and for breach of public procurement rules (led by Jonathan Seitler KC).
  • Acting for the tenant of commercial premises in a multimillion-pound claim against their solicitors for failing to exercise a break clause in a lease of the tenant’s headquarters (led by Jonathan Seitler KC).

Download Professional liability CV

  • Quote symbolIntellectually outstanding and very thorough on the papers. Always gives sound, commercial and helpful advice.

    The Legal 500 2024

  • Quote symbolHarriet is a key member of the team, she can anticipate the court's reaction and hone the strategy to fit.

    Chambers & Partners 2024

  • Quote symbolHarriet is very communicative and will provide regular updates. She balances the client's commercial objectives versus when to protect their position, which is greatly appreciated.

    Chambers & Partners 2024

  • Quote symbolOne of the best junior barristers at the property Bar and a silk in the making. Harriet is extremely bright and a tenacious advocate.

    The Legal 500 2023

  • Quote symbolHarriet is extremely thorough, she is never underprepared. She understands what the clients are doing and gets their aims and objectives.

    Chambers & Partners 2023

Professional liability insights & events View all thought leadership View all events

  1. Placeholder

    Events / Webinars

    Wilberforce Professional Liability Conference 2020

    Thursday 13 February 2020
    One Moorgate Place, Chartered Accountants' Hall, London EC2R 6EA

    £75 + VAT | 3.0 CPD

    View more

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Harriet's Details

BSB/VAT information

Registered name: Miss Harriet Teresa Holmes
VAT number: 170750321

Privacy Notice pdf

Qualifications and appointments

  • BPTC, City Law School
  • LLM (Public law and human rights), University College London
  • LLB(Hons), University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne

Memberships

  • Chancery Bar Association, and sits on the Association’s Publications Sub-committee
  • Property Bar Assocation
  • Pyramus & Thisbe Club
  • Women in Property

Publications

  • Contributor to The Law and Practice of Party Walls by Nicholas Isaac, 1st Edition (2014: Property Publishing)
  • Contributor to the Service CBaharges and Management: Law and Practice, 3rd Edition (2013: Sweet & Maxwell)

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