Thomas Grant KC

International arbitration

Recent work includes:

• Currently acting in claim for $0.5billion in international arbitration proceedings arising out of alleged breach of a shareholders agreement.
• Acted in a HKIAC arbitration relating to ownership of certain shareholdings in US listed company; claim worth approximately $200m.
• Appearing for defendant in application for stay under s.9 Arbitration Act and under a foreign jurisdiction clause: Melford Capital Partners (Holdings) LLP v Digby [2021] EWHC 872 (Ch).
• Appeared in an ICC arbitration arising out of a claim to indemnity in respect of alleged borrower defaults in Hong Kong receivables financing facilities.

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Commercial disputes

Recent work includes:

• Currently instructed in very substantial patent proceedings against biotech company. Successfully resisted recent two day application to amend to plead claims in breach of fiduciary duty/breach of alleged implied terms: Hill v Touchlight [2024] EWHC 1913 (Pat). Trial in November 2024.
• Appeared for respondent in litigation concerning the meaning of property under s.436 Insolvency Act in relation to the government scheme to compensate postmasters following the group litigation against the Post Office: Secretary of State for Business and Trade v Abdulali & Anor [2024] EWHC 1722 (Ch), [2024] WLR(D) 330.
• Appeared in Derma Med v Ally [2024] EWCA Civ 175, an appeal concerning interim injunctions to restrain breach of confidence and non-compete clauses arising out of a share purchase agreement.
• Appeared in Peabody Housing Trust v National House-Building Council on accrual of cause of action in insurance cases ([2024] EWHC 2063 (TCC)).
• Acted in multiple proceedings in litigation brought by David Rowland against Kevin Stanford, including Norwich Pharmacal application and later contempt application: Rowland v Stanford [2021] EWHC (Ch) 1713; [2021] EWHC 988 (Ch); [2022] EWHC 1436 (Ch); [2022] EWHC 2135 (Ch); [2022] EWHC 2490 (Ch).
• Recently instructed in £6million warranty claim arising from sale of engineering company.
• Advising claimants in potential group litigation relating to secret commissions being paid to agents in a particular sector.
• X v Y – very substantial Hong Kong arbitration, ongoing.
• Mars Capital Ltd v Hussain [2021] EWHC2416 (Ch) – trial of action concerning validity of assignment of mortgage portfolio; Cypriot banking issues.
• Digby v Melford Capital Partners [2021] 1 WLR 1553 (CA) – examining what is the proper costs order to make when an interim injunction application succeeds.
• Stokoe Partnership Solicitors v Robinson [2020] EWHC 3312 (QB) – Norwich Pharmacal orders; cross-examination on affidavits; private investigators.
• UK College of Business and Computer Ltd v Bath Spa University [2021] EWHC 2157 (Comm) – interim injunction; force majeure; estoppel.
• Mousavi-Khalkali v Abrischamchi [2020] EWCA Civ 1493 – forum conveniens, risk of injustice in foreign forum.
• Christoforou v Christoforou & Anor [2020] EWHC 1196 (Ch) – order limiting cross-examination at trial; similar fact evidence.
• HML PM Ltd v Canary Riverside Estate Management Ltd & Anor [2019] EWHC 3496 (QB) – breach of confidence and standing to bring claim; interim injunctions; striking out.
• Addlesee v Dentons Europe LLP [2019] 3 WLR 1255, Court of Appeal – whether legal professional privilege still persists after dissolution of a company).
• Gwinnutt v George [2019] Ch 471 (CA) – a decision which has attracted considerable attention concerning the question of whether barristers’ expectation of fees is “property” within the meaning of the Insolvency Act.
• Galazi v Christoforou [2019] EWHC 670 (Ch) – the leading decision on what constitutes a partial discontinuance of claims for the purpose of CPR Part 38, indemnity costs.
• Re Dores, 8 February 2019, BVI Commercial Court, fortification of cross-undertaking in damages.
• Cunico Resources v Daskalakis [2019] 1 WLR 2881; [2019] EWHC 57 (Comm); [2019] EWHC 345 (Comm) – multi-jurisdictional dispute, Lugano Convention; leading decision on default judgment.
• Company 1 v Company 2 [2018] 1 Lloyds Rep 115 – Arbitration Act, freezing orders, jurisdiction of the English court to make orders under section 44 in relation to foreign arbitrations.
• Galazi v Christroforou [2017] EWHC 2042 (Ch) – capacity to act/indemnity costs.
• J Toomey Motors Ltd v Chevrolet [2017] EWHC 276 (Comm) – claims by car dealerships for alleged repudiatory breach of distribution agreements: 5-day trial.
• Agents’ Mutual v Moginie James [2016] EWHC 3384 (Ch) and [2016] EWHC B34 (Ch) – misrepresentation, disclaimers, property portals.
• Thomas appeared in the Court of Appeal in Aeroflot v Berezovsky [2014] EWCA Civ 20 (enforcement of foreign judgments), In Re the Estate of Platon Elenin (Aka Boris Berezovsky) [2014] CA (confidential information).
• Appeared at trial for defendant in Everton Football Club v Sail Group [2011] EWHC 126 (QB) in breach of warranty claim concerning a football tournament in South Africa.
• Instructed by Joltid Limited in claim relating to ownership of the Skype source code (led by Mark Vanhegan KC) – Skype v Joltid (2009).
• Acted for the claimant in the IPCO v NNPC litigation, concerning the enforcement of a New York Convention award [2009] 1 Lloyd’s Rep 89 (led by Michael Lyndon-Standford KC).

Contempt Applications

Recent work includes:

• Instructed on behalf of Oleg Deripaska in the trial of the contempt proceedings brought against him by Vladimir Chernukhin: Navigator Equities v Deripaska [2023] EWHC 788 (Comm). An appeal was heard in March 2024 – [2024] EWCA Civ 268; [2024] BCC 526.
• Ongoing contempt proceedings arising out of alleged breach of freezing injunction in Mex Group Worldwide v Ford [2024] EWHC 1486 (KB).
• Kea Investments Ltd v Watson [2020] EWHC 2599 (Ch); [2020] EWHC 2796 (Ch); [2022] EWHC 5 (Ch), [2022] 4 WLR 14 (contempt application arising out of long running dispute between two well-known New Zealand businessmen; longest committal trial ever in England, before Nugee LJ).
• Newson-Smith v Al Zawawi [2017] EWHC 1876 (QB) (requisite mens rea when respondent alleged to have made a false statement).
• Acted in Sectorguard plc v Dienne plc [2009] EWHC 2693 (Ch), a successful application to strike out a committal application in the context of a confidential information case.

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Company law

Recent work includes:

• Recently appeared in lengthy trial of unfair prejudice petition raising questions of minority discount, quasi-interest, date of valuation, nature of unfair prejudice: Re Transwaste Recycling and Aggregates [2024] EWHC 330 (Ch) and [2024] EWHC 970 (Ch).
• Currently instructed in very high-value Cayman Islands proceedings concerning the value of shareholdings in a Chinese social media company in s.238 proceedings: In the matter of the Sina Corporation 6 February 2024.
• X v Y – LCIA arbitration concerning validity of expulsion from an LLP.
• Instructed in very substantial unfair prejudice proceedings concerning Dualit companies: Milton v Milton (2017-2019).
• 5-day hearing in July 2017 in Storca Intertrans and others v Norvalo (Overseas) Ltd, BVI Commercial Court.
• Appeared in the appeal in Ashdown v Griffin [2018] EWCA Civ 1793 in which the Court of Appeal considered the allocation of costs after unfair prejudice proceedings had succeeded but had led to a buy-out order.

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Banking and financial services

• Recently acted in Mars Capital Finance Ltd v Hussain [2021] EWHC 2416 (Ch), where claimant sought declarations that it had acquired good title to a substantial loan book from a Cypriot Bank. Issues of Cypriot banking law arising (Teacher Stern).
• Acting for UBS in a long-running claim against the Indian billionaire Dr Vijay Mallya relating to his Regents Park mansion: UBS v Rose Capital [2019] 2 BCLC 47 (Herbert Smith Freehills).
• Acting for a claimant seeking specific performance of obligation to grant a charge securing lending of £10m plus over Mayfair development: Folgender Holdings Ltd v Letraz Properties Ltd [2019] EWHC 2131 (Ch) (Dechert).
• Acting in some of the leading cases on issues relating to secured lending: Scullion v Bank of Scotland [2011] 1 WLR 3212; Zinda v Bank of Scotland [2012] 1 WLR 728; Skelwith (Leisure) Ltd v Armstrong [2016] Ch 345.

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Professional liability

Recent work includes:

• Acted in accountants’ negligence case where indemnity costs awarded where claim in fraud was discontinued:  Stubbins Marketing Limited v Rayner Essex LLP & Anor [2023] EWHC 515 (Ch).
• Currently acting in claim for injunction against solicitor who is said to have breached his duty of confidentiality to his client.
• Acted for defendant solicitors in claim in negligence arising from alleged mishandling of application to serve out of the jurisdiction in underlying claim against Russian mining company; claim said to be worth £7m. Application to strike out entire claim succeeded: see Harrington Scott v Coupe Bradbury [2022] EWHC 2275 (Ch).
• Acted for well-known firm of solicitors in bringing application to strike out claim against it on basis that claimant had failed to mitigate its loss. The application was settled before the hearing on very advantageous terms.
• CNM Estates (Tolworth Tower) Ltd v VeCrREF [2018] EWHC 2838 (Comm) (and thereafter). Successfully represented estate agency firm (Knight Frank) in claim for (allegedly) over £16 million arising out of the sale by receivers of an iconic London tower block.
• Acted for leading firm of valuers in relation to alleged overvaluation of high-end London town houses (claim worth approx £20m).
• Addlesee v Dentons Europe LLP [2019] 3 WLR 1255, Court of Appeal – whether legal professional privilege still persists after dissolution of a company).
• Acted for claimant in solicitors’ negligence claim arising from alleged mishandling of previous litigation reported at First Tower Trustees Ltd v CDS (Superstores International) Ltd [2018] EWCA Civ 1396.
• Barclays Bank plc v TBS&V Ltd [2016] EWHC 2948 (QB). Valuers’ negligence, relating to complex valuation of a care home (8-day trial).
• Santander v R A Legal [2014] PNLR Court of Appeal, breach of trust by solicitor, section 61 of the Trustee Act).
• Appeared for appellants in case concerning defendant’s vicarious liability for the wrongs of its agent in Frederick & Ors v Positive Solutions (Financial Services) Ltd [2018] EWCA Civ 431. Appeal to Supreme Court compromised.

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Property

Recent work includes:

• South Warwickshire v Littler [2019] L&TR 19 (Landlord and Tenant Act 1954, section 30(1)(f), appeal).
• Folgender v Letraz Properties Ltd [2019] EWHC 2131 (Ch) – specific performance of obligation to grant charge over commercial property.
• UBS v Rose Capital Ventures [2019] 2 BCLC 47 – high-value mortgage proceedings; abuse of process; extent to which Braganza principles apply to lenders.
• Fuller v Kitzing [2017] Ch 485; [2016] EWHC 804 (Ch) – shooting rights; injunctive relief.
• Hawk Recovery v Hall [2016] BPIR 169 and (on appeal) [2017] 4 WLR 40 – bare trusts, possession orders, insolvency.
• Skelwith (Leisure) Ltd v Armstrong [2016] 1 Ch 345 – multi-party proceedings concerning mortgagees’ remedies in case relating to alleged sale by mortgagee to an associate.
• Bank of Scotland plc v Forrester [2014] EWHC 2036; [2014] 2 P&CR DG19 (mortgage, implied trusts). 

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Media and entertainment

Recent work includes:

• Instructed by Valentino Rossi’s manager in claim brought by Mr Rossi concerning termination of the management contract.
• Instructed by Joltid Limited in claim relating to Skype (led by Mark Vanhegan KC) – Skype v Joltid.
• Appeared on behalf David and Victoria Beckham in relation to their claim for breach of confidence against their former nanny, Abbie Gibson.
• Acted for Archbishop of Westminster in relation to application for third-party disclosure in the Ivereigh v Associated Newspapers libel case.
• Instructed by the Saatchi Gallery in a claim brought against a well-known painter for breach of contract.
• Instructed by the Marlborough Gallery (led by Michael Briggs KC) in defending a very substantial undue influence and breach of fiduciary duty claim brought by the estate of the artist Francis Bacon: Clarke v Marlborough Fine Art Ltd (No 2) [2002] 1 WLR 1731 and Clarke v Marlborough Fine Art Ltd (No 3) [2002] EWHC 11 (Ch). The claim was settled shortly before a three-month trial was due to commence.
• Acted for 118 118 in relation to claim made by the runner David Bedford arising out image rights issues relating to the two 118 118 runners.
• Acted for owners in claims to recover various high-value Mesopotamian artefacts.
• Instructed by Glynn Williams in relation to a claim for damage to certain of his sculptures lent to a museum.
• Acted for Mike Nolan in the litigation concerning the pop band “Bucks Fizz”.

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