Thomas More Chambers

Practice overview

Client work – Richard specialises in Family financial remedy cases and professional negligence.
He qualified as a Mediator in 2003: he mediates solicitors’ negligence claims arising in financial remedy cases as well as inheritance and contentious probate disputes.
He also undertakes Client work on trusts disputes and inheritance claims, areas of law where he acts as a Mediator.
His work includes cases with an international element and, of necessity, cases where a detailed understanding and application of property, commercial and trust law is required.

Family

Richard’s family work is a cornerstone of his practice. He has advised and represented the significantly wealthy and those challenged by illiquidity and debt from the Family Court to the Court of Appeal. His clients have come from all walks of life: banking, politics, television, international music performance, entrepreneurs, and the world of the footballer’s wife. However, the more challenging cases are often those where the liabilities threaten the stability of life after divorce or partnership dissolution, where he can be strategically adept and innovative.

Family – Finances

Richard’s expertise in relation to family breakdown and finance includes:

• Matrimonial finance
• Civil partnership
• Pre-nuptial & post-marriage/civil partnership agreements
• Cohabitation and property disputes – TOLATA cases
• Conflicting law cases – particular where family money disputes overlap with third party claims and Chancery disputes such as trusts, inheritance, wills, insolvency, partnership, companies, and professional negligence.
He has acted in a positive advisory role for parents before their adult child’s marriage.

Family – Children

Richard is occasionally asked to act for a client in children matters when related to financial remedy disputes, particularly when they are or have been difficult or acrimonious.
• Residence and contact issues.
• Removal from the jurisdiction.
• Children’s property rights issues.
• Schedule 1 Children Act 1989 claims.

Legal professionals

Fast, detailed analysis and urgency in pressing a client’s case against the other side in correspondence, negotiation, and litigation.
Richard specialises in lawyers’ liability cases; almost exclusively involving solicitors’ negligence disputes in “family” money cases – divorce financial remedy claims and inheritance or family trust disputes (including claims between trusts and trustees).

Contentious Probate & Inheritance Act claims

Contemporaneously with his lawyers’ liability practice and his work as a Mediator, Richard undertakes Contentious Probate and Inheritance Act cases. Compassionate understanding, with sound legal and strategic advice is required when taking a strong position in these often-difficult cases.

Related work
• Disputing DNA testing
• Variation of wills
• Presumption of Death
• Disputes about the body of the deceased
• Preserving estate assets.