James McCreath

Pensions

James undertakes a range of pensions litigation and advisory work, where he is instructed on his own as sole counsel and as junior counsel as part of a larger team.  He has experience acting for employers, trustees, and members, and in cases across a range of areas in pensions law, including  regulatory matters.

His recent experience includes:

• Acting (with Brian Green KC and Sebastian Allen) for the targets in regulatory proceedings in which TPR is seeking a contribution notice.

• Acting (with Brian Green KC) for the corporate targets in the regulatory proceedings relating to the Carrington Wire Pension Scheme.

• Assisting as part of the multi-jurisdictional team for the UK Pension Claimants and the PPF in the proceedings in Canada the US, and the UK in the US $7bn Nortel insolvency.

• Acting and advising in various matters concerning S75 debts, including in multi-employer schemes (including as junior to Paul Newman KC and to Jonathan Hilliard KC), and in matters involving the proposed use of regulated agreements to seek to minimise any debts arising.

• Acting (as junior to Paul Newman KC) for the employer in Briggs v Gleeds [2014] EWHC 1178 (Ch). The case raised a variety of important issues in pensions law, including whether a link to final salary is an ‘accrued’ benefit, whether estoppels binding the trustees can bind members, and when contracts with individual members can override contrary provisions in scheme rules. It also raised issues of wider importance, including whether documents which do not comply with statutory formalities can be made valid by estoppel, and whether representations of law can found estoppels.

• Acting (as junior to Paul Newman KC) for the rep ben in rectification proceedings.

• Successfully obtaining an order striking out a claim for over £3m brought by a former trustee for benefits he claimed were due to him under the scheme.

• Acting (as junior to Michael Furness KC) for the defendants in a substantial professional negligence claim relating to an alleged failure validly to effect equalisation in four schemes.

• Acting (as junior to Michael Tennet KC) for the employer and trustees in proposed rectification proceedings.

• Acting in a multi-million pound proceedings for breach of trust and professional negligence brought against the former trustees and professional advisors of a scheme.

• Advising employers, trustees, and the PPF on various questions of statutory construction or interpretation of schemes’ governing documentation.

• Acting (as junior to Paul Newman KC) in proceedings for fraudulent breach of trust threatened against a former trustee.

• Acting (as junior to Michael Tennet KC) for the trustees in Danks & Others v Qinetiq Holdings Ltd & Another, [2012] EWHC 570 (Ch) [2012] Pens LR 131, which considered whether a switch to CPI from RPI was prohibited by s.67 of the Pensions Act 1995.

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Professional liability

James has considerable experience of disputes involving areas of professional liability in the context of property, estates, and pensions, where he has acted for both defendants and claimants. His recent cases include:

• Acting (as junior to Joanna Smith KC) in the defence of a liquidator accused of having sold millions of pounds worth of assets belonging to third parties (Euromex Ventures Ltd v BNP Paribas & Others [2013] EWHC 3007 (Ch)). The defence was wholly successful, and the claimants were ordered to pay indemnity costs.

• Acting (as junior to Michael Furness KC) for the defendants in a substantial professional negligence claim relating to an alleged failure validly to effect equalisation in four pension schemes.

• Acting for the claimant in multi-million pound proceedings brought against the solicitors and investment advisers to a pension scheme for advice given regarding the scheme’s investment strategy.

• Acting (as junior to Joanna Smith KC) for the Claimant in a multi-million pound claim against solicitors for allegedly negligent drafting and advice in relation to the overage provisions in an agreement for the purchase of a substantial London office building.

• Acting as sole counsel in a wide range of matters, including in matters relating to solicitors (for negligence in among other things conveyancing, inheritance matters, and the conduct of litigation), barristers, financial advisors, surveyors and managing agents, and architects.

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Property

James has a substantial and wide-ranging property practice which encompasses all aspects of real property and landlord and tenant related litigation and advice. He is regularly instructed on disputes in the County Court, High Court and property Tribunals.

James’ landlord and tenant practice includes residential and business tenancies, service charge disputes, terminal dilapidation claims and disputes with managing agents.

Real property related cases in which he has been involved include:

• Easements
• Restrictive covenants
• Boundary disputes
• Town and Village Greens
• Adverse possession
• Mortgages
• Nuisance
• Land registration issues

His recent cases include:

• Acting for the tenants of a City wine bar in complex proceedings including a contested 1954 Act renewal claim, a claim for adverse possession, and a claim for rectification of the register.  James acted unled against Martin Hutchings KC in a number of interim hearings, and was led by Kirk Reynolds KC for the trial (the matter settled very shortly before the trial was due to begin).

• Acting in the First-Tier Tribunal for an applicant to be registered as proprietor of an estate on the basis of adverse possession.  Prior to James’ instruction, the matter had gone to the Court of Appeal, which had held that the criminalisation of squatting did not prevent title from being acquired through adverse possession (R(on the application of Best) v Chief Land Registrar [2015] EWCA Civ 17, [2016] QB 23).

• Acting for United Utilities (as junior to Jonathan Karas KC and Julian Greenhill KC) in defending a claim brought by the Manchester Ship Canal Company about the lawfulness of the use of a very substantial amount of infrastructure. Among the issues raised by the case are questions relating to statutory authorisation, construction of local statutory provisions, compulsory purchase powers and compensation, and issues under the 1954 Act. James was part of the successful team in UU’s successful appeal to the Supreme Court on its summary judgment application ([2014] UKSC 40, [2014] I WLR 2576), and its recent successful opposition to the claimant’s attempt to amend its pleadings to avoid the consequences of that judgment ([2016] EWHC 259 (Ch)).

• Acting (as junior to Jonathan Karas KC) successfully resisting an application to register part of the grounds of the University of Kent as a town or village green.

• Acting and advising in a considerable number of matters concerning the powers and duties of various statutory undertakers, including in particular sewerage and water undertakers.

• Acting (as junior to Ian Croxford KC) in the re-trial of Barr v Biffa Waste Services, a group litigation claim alleging that odours from a landfill site constituted a nuisance.

• Acting in a number of disputes relating to the construction of development agreements.

• Acting (as junior to Martin Hutchings KC) in a claim for breach of contract and for breaches of duty of confidence arising out of a bid for a development site.

• Acting (as junior to Joanna Smith KC) for the claimant in a multi-million pound claim against solicitors for allegedly negligent drafting and advice in relation to the overage provisions in an agreement for the purchase of a substantial London office building.

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Trusts, probate and estates: contentious

James practices across a range of contentious trust and estate matters. He is involved in matters relating both to onshore and offshore structures, and  recent cases include:

• Instructed in a large Hong Kong Trusts & Probate dispute with Brian Green KC – ongoing.
• Acting in a number of applications to remove trustees and executors (including as junior to Brian Green KC in a matter relating to a substantial BVI trust).

• Acting and advising on allegedly ‘sham’ trusts in divorce proceedings.

• Acting and advising in cases relating to dispositions of trust property (including challenges to those dispositions).

• Acting in various proceedings against trustees for breach of trust.

• Acting in various proceedings against solicitors for allegedly negligent advice relating to estate and inheritance tax matters.

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