Guildhall Chambers

Property, Trusts, Wills & Estates, Commercial Dispute Resolution, Regulatory & Discipline

Nicholas Evans is a member of the Guildhall Chambers Commercial and Property & Estates teams.

Called in 2018

Nicholas is regularly instructed to appear as sole counsel in the High Court, County Court and First-tier Tribunal, and is also often instructed to act as junior counsel in more complex matters.

Along with Commercial and traditional Chancery work, Nicholas also has considerable advisory and litigation experience in Financial Services, regularly helping to advise the Financial Conduct Authority, firms and private individuals on consumer credit and retail banking issues.

Nicholas has been ranked as ‘Rising Star’ in Chancery, tax and probate in the 2025 Legal 500.

Recent cases in his specialised fields include:

Tucker v Felton-Page [2025] EWHC 530 (Ch) - Nicholas successfully argued that, following discontinuance of the Claimant’s probate claim seeking that a later will be propounded for, no order as to costs should be made pursuant to CPR 57.11(2)(a) for the period up until the expert’s report which considered that the deceased lacked capacity. The court was persuaded that the one of common law exceptions to the general costs rule applied, namely that it had been reasonable for the Claimant to pursue the matter, as recently set out in Leonard v Leonard [2024] EWHC 979 (Ch). Further, that this rule applied to a Claimant, rather than just a Defendant.

Khilji v Mehers & Ors [2025] EWHC 548 (Ch) - Nicholas acted for the successful Second Respondent. The case gives helpful guidance on what it means for a bankrupt to inform their trustee in bankruptcy (“TiB”) of an interest in a property, or for that TiB to become aware of the interest pursuant to s.283A(5) of the Insolvency Act 1986 (“IA 1986”) under the so called “use it or lose it” provisions. In dismissing the appeal, Richards J approved the decision of DICC Judge Curl KC below in Khilji (In Bankruptcy), Re [2023] EWHC 298 (Ch) that under s.283A(5) there is no single guide to the sufficiency of information necessary that could be applied in all cases and that a fact-sensitive enquiry is needed.