Liam Tolen > Ashfords LLP > Exeter, England > Lawyer Profile

Liam Tolen

+44 (0)1392 333806 l.tolen@ashfords.co.uk

Work Department

Comercial Litigation

Position

Associate

Career

Liam is an experienced Associate in the Dispute Resolution Team and advises on business disputes focusing on contractual disputes including in relation to franchising and restrictive covenants in commercial contracts. Liam also has significant experience in resolving shareholder disputes.

Liam advises a range of businesses and individuals from sole traders to government departments, local authorities and limited companies. Liam has developed a practice in contractual disputes arising out of franchise relationships, working closely with Andrew Perkins, a Partner in the team specialising in franchise disputes. Increasingly, Liam’s work has included acting for shareholders in both pursuing and defending claims for unfair prejudice.

Liam’s practice includes advising on the enforcement of restrictive covenants in a variety of contracts including consultancy agreements, franchise agreements and share purchase agreements. Liam has extensive experience both in enforcing and defending restrictive covenants disputes with significant experience in achieving settlement without the need for legal proceedings.

Liam also has experience in a wide variety of procedural applications often leading to the conclusion of legal proceedings, including, applications for the striking out of a claim and seeking summary judgment.

RELEVANT EXPERIENCE

• Multi-national private company: Assisting a Partner with a multi-million pound dispute in relation to the sale of a Russian property development which included assisting with proceedings in the Commercial Court.
• Shareholder: Acting in relation to the defence of a claim for unfair prejudice, with a complex corporate structure. Reaching very favourable terms of settlement.
• Shareholder: Advising on merits of a claim for unfair prejudice in circumstances in which the minority shareholder had been excluded from the business.
• Franchisee: Advising following purported termination by franchisor of the franchise agreement. Advising on various breaches of the franchise agreement by the Franchisor.
• Franchisee: Advising in relation to exit from Franchise Agreement in relation to a national retail franchise following a breakdown of the relationship with the Franchisor.