Stewarts Law LLP

Geoff specialises in resolving troublesome issues relating to trusts and estates, whether domestic or international. He has experience with cases involving the UK, US, Channel Islands, Cayman Islands, BVI and Hong Kong, among other jurisdictions. Geoff is equally at ease dealing with purely domestic matters. Unusually for a litigator, Geoff acts as a trustee, which gives him a first-hand view of the issues facing trusts and trustees.

Partner in Trust and Probate department

Geoff specialises in resolving troublesome issues relating to trusts and estates, whether domestic or international. Geoff is dual-qualified in England and Wales, and California. He was a litigator in San Francisco before cross-qualifying and relocating to London.

Geoff’s experience consists entirely of dealing with complex litigation relating to trusts and estates, often with an offshore element. He has experience with cases involving the UK, US, Channel Islands, Cayman Islands, BVI and Hong Kong, among other jurisdictions. Geoff is equally at ease dealing with purely domestic matters. Unusually for a litigator, Geoff acts as a trustee, which gives him a first-hand view of the issues facing trusts and trustees.

Geoff’s experience includes:

• Acted for the successful party in Grand View v Wong, where the Privy Council gave helpful guidance regarding the proper exercise of trustees’ powers
• Representing one of the parties in what is considered to be the largest (by value) claim in Bermudian legal history which went to trial for 19 weeks during 2021
• Acting for the successful beneficiaries in AB v CD, an unusual case where trustees surrendered their discretion to an English court
• Defending a proprietary estoppel claim relating to one of a handful of privately-owned villages in England
• In the Cayman Islands, defending trustees against claims of breach of trust through material non-disclosure and successfully arguing that a beneficiary had forfeited her interest in the trust
• Acting for the minors and unborn children in Inheritance Act proceedings, involving a successful application for non-party disclosure in the Family Division: AB v B & Ano

Geoff joined Stewarts in 2020. He originally qualified in San Francisco and cross-qualified as an English solicitor in 2008. On moving to London, he was at Withers and then at Bircham Dyson Bell, where he headed up the will and trust disputes team.

The Association of Contentious Trusts and Probate Specialists (ACTAPS) The Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP) Trusts and Estates Section of the State Bar of California

Geoff enjoys the occasional run at a medium pace. When he lived in California, he was a passionate deep sea, big game fisherman. He is now learning how to pursue rather smaller fish while standing in the English rain.