Barrister Profile

Main Areas of Practice

Administrative Law or Judicial Review
Commercial Law
Insolvency
Professional Negligence

Biography

My practice is predominantly in the Chancery Court and the Commercial Court.

My main practice areas in these courts include banking, corporate insolvency, personal insolvency, professional negligence and property.

I also appear in the Judicial Review Court, acting on behalf of Government Departments and other public bodies.

Since around 2000 I have been, and I continue to be, a member of the panel of counsel instructed by the Education and Library Board Solicitors to advise and undertake litigation on their behalf.

In April 2004 I was appointed to the Government Civil Panel of Junior Counsel, members of which are retained by the Crown Solicitor’s Office and the Departmental Solicitor’s Office to represent the Northern Ireland Office, Northern Ireland Government Departments and the Police Service of Northern Ireland. I was re-appointed to this panel in 2012.

In 2010, I was appointed to the Panel of Counsel engaged by the Directorate of Legal Services (Health Service). I remain on that panel to date.

In June 2010, I was appointed by the Northern Ireland Judicial Appointments Commission to be a Legal Member of the Charities Tribunal for Northern Ireland. This Tribunal was established by the Charities Act (Northern Ireland) 2008 and will determine matters pertaining to the registration and administration of charities in Northern Ireland.

In 2012, I was appointed to the panel of counsel retained by Her Majesty’s Attorney General for Northern Ireland in matters relating to the public law and the law of charities.

Since 2008 I have been invited to give one of the lectures which form part of the SLS lecture series entitled An Introduction to Chancery Practice. In 2013 I delivered a lecture on current developments in the law of insolvency to Chartered Accountants Ireland.

I am a member of the Chancery and Probate Liaison Committee. This is a committee, chaired by the Chancery Judge, which comprises the Chancery Master, the Bankruptcy Master, members of the Bar, the Solicitors’ profession, and representatives of the insolvency service. The committee considers matters pertaining to the conduct of chancery and probate practice in the Chancery Division of the High Court.

Qualifications

LLB (Hons) University of Nottingham,1993 Certificate in Professional Legal Studies

1994 Called to the Bar of Northern Ireland

1994 Called to the Bar of the Republic of Ireland

2004 Appointed to the Chancery and Probate Liaison Committee

2004 Appointed to the Charity Tribunal for Northern Ireland

Experience

Cases:

Patrick v De Zeeuw and another; in re Patrick’s estate [2000] NICh 37 [2000] NI 506 - administration of estates

Northern Bank Ltd v Mallett & another [2001] NICh 7 (22 March 2001) - mortgages and repossession

Weir v Hermon [2001] NICh 8 [2001] NIJB 260 (22 March 2001) - injunctions and clubs and associations Levy

Levy McCallum Ltd v Allen (Liquidator of Fulford Hyman Ltd) [2007] NICh 3 (1 May 2007) - insolvency and transaction at undervalue

Mad Projects Ltd v Salvatore Liberante [2008] NICh 1 (7 January 2008) - rectification of contracts

Peifer, James Robert v Castlederg High School & another [2008] NICA 19

Re BS [2009] NIFam 5 (18 February 2009) - property and human rights

Cusp Ltd v Toni & Guy (Ireland) Ltd [2010] NIQB 90 (6 September 2010) - cross -border insolvency

Clear Homes v Sarcon (No 177) Ltd [2010] NICh 16 (15 September 2010) - contracts for the purchase of land

Murdock v South Eastern Education & Library Board [2010] NICh 18 (9 November 2010) - contracts of employment

Marcus Ward Ltd v Anglo Irish Bank Corporation Ltd [2011] NICh 7 (15 April 2011) - banking and injunctions

Curistan v Keenan & another [2011] NICh 23 (10 November 2011) - banking and administrators

Walsh & others v Bank of Scotland Plc [2012] NIQB 36 (25 April 2012) - banking and injunctions

Irish Bank Resolution Corporation Ltd v Curistan [2012] NIQB 47 (29 June 2012) - banking

Walsh, David Christopher & others v Bank of Scotland plc; in re discovery (no 1) [2013] NIQB 26 (20 January 2013) - commercial - banking - discovery - commercial sensitivity

Walsh, David Christopher & others v Bank of Scotland plc; in re discovery (no 2) [2013] NIQB 51 (28 February 2013) - commercial - banking - discovery - commercial sensitivity

Friends Life Company Limited (formerly AXA Sun Life plc) v Grummett, Gilbert John George Halliday [2013] NIQB 121; [2015] NIJB 1 (24 October 2013) - commercial - rectification of contracts

Nash, Thomas Christopher; in re application for judicial review [2014] NIQB 76 (10 June 2014) - judicial review - prisons - challenge to decision of probation board

Bateman, Geoffrey & others v Birchall Blackburn LLP [2014] NIQB 112 (30 June 2014) - commercial - professional negligence - solicitors - jurisdiction - international law

United Dairy Farmers Limited v Department of Agriculture and Rural Development & another [2014] NICh 22 (27 August 20140 - chancery - pensions - statutory construction

J & N Cowden LLP & others v Ulster Bank Ltd & others [2014] NIQB 138 (16 October 2014) - commercial - banking - injunctions

Conway, John v Cavanagh, John acting as Liquidator of Meteor Control Ltd (in liquidation); The Governor and Company of the Bank of Ireland v Cavanagh, John acting as Liquidator of Meteor Control International Ltd (in liquidation) [2014] NIQB 141 (5 November 2014) - chancery - insolvency - liquidator - assignment of choses in action

GMJ; in re application for judicial review [2014] NIQB 135 (23 December 2014) - judicial review - firearms

Dunnes Stores (Bangor) Limited v New River Trustee 11 Limited & another [2015] NICh 7 (24 February 2015) - chancery - landlord and tenant - injuctions - derogation from grant

Nash, Thomas; in re application for judicial review [2015] NICA 18 (21 April 2015) - judicial review - prisons - challenge to decision of probation board

Boyd, Arthur as Administrator of the Presbyterian Mutual Society Limited v Stott, Adrian & others practising as J & E Shepherd Chartered Surveyors and WYG Engineering Ltd [2015] NIMaster 10 (10 June 2015) - commercial - banking - jurisdiction - international law

Belfast International Airport Limited v Aer Lingus Limited [2015] NIQB 80 (25 June 2015) - commercial - aviation - contract

Cavanagh, John J v Dolan, William John; in re Latlorcan Developments Ltd (in administration) and in re WL Dolan Construction Ltd (in administration) [2015] NICh 14 (15 June 2015) - chancery - insolvency - administrator - centre of main interests - estoppel

Cavanagh, John Joseph, as Liquidator of Meteor Controls (International) Ltd v Conway, John & another [2015] NIQB 69 (1 July 2015) - chancery - insolvency - liquidator - assignment of chosess in action

Morrow, William John v Attorney General for Northern Ireland [2015] NICA 69

Governor and Company of the Bank of Ireland v McFeely, Conal Derek & anor [2016] NICA 34

Governor and Company of the Bank of Ireland v McFeely, Gerard Noel & another [2017] NIMaster 1

Holden, William; in re application for judicial review [2017] NIQB 7