There will be times when things go wrong and disputes arise
If this does happen, the Keelys litigation team will not only give you our expert opinion on your case from a legal perspective, we will also advise how to resolve the dispute as quickly and as economically as possible. We will work with you to seek and meet your needs; keeping disruption to a minimum for businesses for example is just one of the factors we take into consideration.
We are committed to Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) procedures for resolving disputes as there are very obvious benefits in comparison to the traditional court route. If, however, ADR does not work or is not appropriate for you, we will pursue your claim through Court action as robustly as possible in order to achieve the outcome you are looking for.
With a strong and team of experienced litigators, we provide dispute resolution and litigation advice over the following areas
Commercial agreements and contractual disputes
Disputes can often arise in
respect of agreements or other contractual arrangements between businesses and
their suppliers or customers.
Keelys’ litigation team can
guide you through all types of commercial litigation, advising you on ways to
avoid litigation in this first place and taking you through the litigation
process from the start of the dispute to a final hearing at trial.
We have the expertise to assist
with all types of commercial disputes, including:
- Breach of warranty claims
- Breach of confidentiality clauses
- The supply of goods and services and all types of commercial
agreements
- Breach of franchise and agency agreements
- Data protection issues
- Software claims
- Fraud
Shareholder, director and partnership disputes
For whatever reason, disputes
can arise between shareholders, directors or partners.
Keelys can help either the
company, the director, partner or shareholder pursue or defend a claim with a
focus on resolution, whether through Alternative Dispute Resolution or
litigation. We can handle all types of disputes relating
to management and ownership or organisations including:
- Company board disputes
- Shareholders’ agreement disputes
- Claims for unfair prejudice against minority shareholders
- The winding up of companies
- Problems relating to corporate acquisitions
- Partnership disputes
- Claims by/against directors arising out of breach of their duties
Property Disputes
Disputes can often arise
over issues relating to land, frequently between a landlord and tenant, whether
of commercial or residential premises. We can prepare and serve the necessary
notice to recover possession of your premises and will issue proceedings to
obtain a court order if necessary. We will also work with you to enforce any
possession order obtained.
We have specialist experience
in a wide range of property litigation and disputes in the following areas:
- Contentious and non-contentious business lease renewals
- Termination of leases
- Recovery of rent arrears,
- Forfeiture and relief claims and other breaches of covenants
- Service charge disputes
- Dilapidations claims
- Exercising break options
- Recovery of land from trespassers
- Rights of way and other easement disputes
- Boundary disputes
Will and Contested probate disputes
Disputes can often arise at
the hardest time when someone you love has passed away and disputes arise over their will. Problems sometimes arise because
there is concern that the deceased was not mentally fit to make a will or
perhaps they changed it when they ought not to have done. Other times, the testator may have been,
unfairly, under the influence of another person which caused them to change
their will. It is also possible that although the will itself is valid, the
deceased failed to leave anything to someone who was dependant on the deceased and
that can give rise to a claim against the deceased’s estate.
We know that this can be a
very difficult and emotional time for the parties involved in this type of
dispute. At Keelys, we have the
knowledge and expertise to guide you through the issues that will have to be
dealt with and to support you as much as we can and as sensitively as can
through the complications of this area of law.
We have specialist
experience in a wide range of contested probate litigation and other trust and
estate disputes.
Debt Recovery
Getting invoice paid is high
on the list of priorities for any business and here at Keelys we provide our
clients with a specialist debt recovery service.
If the debt is not contested
and is less than £10,000, we offer fixed charges that not only give you
certainty about legal fees but also offer value for money in getting debts
paid. For debts that are contested or
above £10,000 different fee structures apply, although we still look to work
with you and will offer fixed fees where appropriate.
Interest can be claimed
either in accordance with the rate specified in your contract or through legislation,
namely the Late payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998, which also
provides for compensation to be paid to your business by the debtor.
Our debt recovery service
includes:
Clear and simple advice on
the merits of pursuing your claim along with the likelihood of recovery from
the debtor. We will consider if there
are any informal methods of recovering the debt.
We can send a letter before
action and if payment is still not made, we can issue proceedings and enforce
any judgment we obtain. We also offer a fixed fee for our enforcement services.
Intellectual Property Disputes
Intellectual property rights
include copyright, unregistered design right and database rights. Other rights can be registered, such as patents,
trademarks and registered design rights.
Those rights can be at risk
whether from unknown cyberattacks, competitors or even your own employees who
may use your company’s database to set up a competitive business.
Keelys can advise on disputes and litigation concerning:
- breach of copyright
- passing off
- breach of design rights
- patent and trade mark infringement
Professional negligence
You should expect your
professional advisers to get it right when they advise you and act on your
behalf. Those professional have a duty
to you but regrettably, sometimes things can go wrong and they fall short of
this duty. When this happens, Keelys
specialist team of litigators can help you to asses if there has been any
negligence on the part of the professional and if so, whether that has caused
loss. We will take into account the strength of the evidence and likelihood of
success of bringing a claim.
Our team has pursued claims
for negligence against:
- solicitors
- architects
- accountants
- surveyors
We will used both Court
proceedings and ADR where we can.
Insolvency
Keelys can provide expert
advice on all aspects of insolvency law.
If your business is
suffering financial difficulties remember that early action can often pay
dividends. Remember also that trading
whilst insolvent can lead to personal liability.
In the event of your company
entering insolvency, you may face a claim from a liquidator or the company’s
former bankers, in which case Keelys can advise you on all aspects of
insolvency, including trading whilst insolvent, transactions at an under value,
preferential payments and bank guarantees.
Our specialist team can
assist you in providing early commercial advice in relation to issues such as:
- Getting your unpaid goods back by enforcing retention of title clauses
- Participating in the creditor’s meeting to maximise the return to unsecured creditors
- Defending any claims against you by the liquidator or administrator
You will find certain additional information which may assist you in making an informed choice of your litigation solicitor here.
Litigation and Dispute Team
Partner
Joanne Davies
Experience
Joanne is a PArtner and Head of the Litigation and Dispute Resolution Department. Joanne is a solicitor with over 20 years’ experience in litigation matters. Having trained and qualified in 1994 at Wragge & Co, she also spent several years at Martineau Johnson, as well as having experience of working as in-house Counsel in the finance leasing industry.
Practice Area
Joanne headed up the dispute resolution and litigation team at her previous firm before joining Keelys LLP in January 2018. Joanne has extensive experience of all nature of commercial and contractual disputes, having handled minority shareholders’ disputes, professional negligence claims and overdrawn directors loan account claims. In addition she also handles landlord and tenant cases (both commercial and residential) and trust and contested probate claims. Joanne prides herself on taking a hands on approach to cases and will always take in to consideration the commercial issues that arise in any dispute.
Interests
When not in the office, Joanne enjoys walking the family dog, reading, history and travel (and if they can all be combined then so much the better).
Partner
Michael Phillips
Experience
Michael is a Partner, qualified as a solicitor in 1986, and joined Keelys in 1999, having been a partner at Eversheds before then. He gained a first class degree in law at Cambridge. He spent many years with Freshfields, some in Hong Kong.
Practice Area
Michael handles all types of commercial disputes, ranging from debt recovery to more complex contract disputes, employee restrictive covenant and confidentiality disputes, shareholder and partnership disputes, warranty disputes under share sale agreements, property disputes and professional negligence claims against solicitors, valuers and accountants.
Highlights
- In a legal career spanning over 35 years, he has handled some large and high profile commercial disputes, including large scale banking fraud and cross-border disputes, and has dealt with major public and private institutions.
- More recently at Keelys, he has successfully managed two cases which have gone to the Court of Appeal involving major commercial enterprises.
