Tchenguiz brothers’ legal bill hits £5.1m in court battle against Grant Thornton

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The drawn-out legal battle between property billionaires, Vincent and Robert Tchenguiz, and those they hold responsible for the Serious Fraud Office (SFO)’s botched investigation into their business dealings has proved a costly affair. It has emerged they have already paid out a collective £5.1m legal bill to date in their £3bn litigation against Grant Thornton and others, surpassing the SFO’s £4.5m settlement to the pair two years ago.

First filed by Vincent Tchenguiz after a settlement with the watchdog in 2014, the pair allege defendants, includingGrant Thornton, conspired to pass information, dishonestly, to the SFO in order to instigate and encourage an investigation by the watchdog into his relationship with collapsed Icelandic bankKaupthing, and that they did so for their own commercial gain.

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Financials 2015/16: Disputes specialist Stewarts a standout performer with double digit revenue and PEP growth

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Litigation powerhouse Stewarts Law has posted a second consecutive year of double digit revenue growth for the 2015/16 financial year, with revenue increasing 18.5% to £62.1m while profit per equity partner rose by 25% to £1.6m.

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‘Harry Potter’ lawyer Lord Harley banned from legal profession and hit with £86,000 costs

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A lawyer who styles himself as senior counsel Lord Harley and was criticised for dressing ‘like something out of Harry Potter’ has been kicked out of the profession after a two day hearing at the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal.

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Trusts and estates disputes – Back on board

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With high-profile trust and estates disputes providing a rich diet to private client specialists for some time, City firms have recently made the push to get in on the act.

If the mass retreat of City firms from private client work in the 1980s and 1990s looked like folly when Mishcon de Reya, Forsters and others began to leverage their practices with commercial success during the recession, it looks like even more of a mistake today. With trusts and estates at the heart of some of the biggest global disputes currently, firms with significant commercial litigation practices have taken note.

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‘Do we believe in Africa?’

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As we reported in our dispute resolution Insight ‘Clause and effect’ last year, Africa has become a disputes hotspot. With a fall in commodities prices leading to abandoned projects, disputes work is becoming even more plentiful.

Discussing dispute resolution in a developing continent comprising 54 disparate jurisdictions can lead to huge generalisations, but when it comes to arbitration there seems to be a case for a pan-African focus. The UNCITRAL Model Law on International Commercial Arbitration has been implemented in a number of African countries, while the Organisation for the Harmonization of Business Law in Africa (OHADA) – covering 17 states in west and central Africa – has created a legal community with unified arbitration legislation and a common arbitration court. There has also been a proliferation of arbitration institutions throughout Africa. However, many of these institutions remain untested and do not have the support of the court system. Continue reading “‘Do we believe in Africa?’”