Dere Street Barristers

Jonathan practises in Chancery, Contractual and Commercial Disputes, Court of Protection and Mental Health, Credit Hire, Motor Insurance Fraud, and Personal Injury and Clinical Negligence

Areas of Emphasis

Chancery
Including easements, rights of way, boundary disputes, adverse possession, landlord and tenant (residential and commercial).

Contractual and commercial disputes
Consumer and commercial contractual disputes, sale of goods, credit hire, partnership law and shareholder disputes, factoring agreements and disputes surrounding commercial agents.

Court of Protection and Mental Health
Instructed in financial matters (particularly in relation to issues surrounding Enduring Powers of Attorney, Lasting Powers of Attorney and the appointment/ removal of Deputies) under The Mental Capacity Act 2005.

Instructed in applications brought to displace nearest relatives under The Mental Health Act 1983.
Instructed in applications for writs of habeas corpus following alleged unlawful detention under the Mental Health Act 1983, in particular issues surrounding the alleged failure to consult the Nearest Relative.

Experienced in advising and representing both Applicants and Respondents in applications seeking injunctive relief against mentally incapacitated adults/children.

Care home fees, PCT and Local Authority funding obligations and recoverability of fees.

Credit Hire

Has a niche practice in matters arising out of credit hire including mitigation and the need, impecuniosity, basic hire rates, credit repair, consumer credit arguments and common law enforceability and more recently issues surrounding the applicability of the Cancellation of Contracts made in a Consumer’s Home or Place of Work etc Regulations 2008.

Motor Insurance Fraud

Instructed in cases alleging staged accidents, organised fraud rings, induced ”slam on” accidents, fictitious accidents, phantom passenger claims, low velocity impacts, grossly exaggerated injuries out of proportion to the extent of the impact, alleged or suspected malingering.
Advising on committal for contempt of court against dishonest claimants/witnesses and third party costs orders
Instructed to advise in conference and draft proceedings where fraud is in issue.

Personal Injury and clinical negligence (including dental negligence)

Instructed by both Claimants and Defendants in virtually all types of personal injury work, with particular emphasis on mid to high value claims arising from road traffic accidents, highway claims, occupiers’ liability and employers’ liability (including industrial disease claims – asbestos exposure, deafness, HAVS, dermatitis and asthma).
More recently specialised in employers’ liability, fatal accident claims and those arising out of allegations of motor insurance fraud. Experienced with claims involving injuries of the utmost severity, brain damage, death and dependency.

Instructed in clinical negligence cases including negligent treatment and surgery, failure to investigate, failure to diagnose, misdiagnosis, misreporting of scans, failure to obtain a patient’s consent and failure to warn of the risks of surgery / treatment. In addition he is familiar with cases involving failed sterilisations and failure to diagnose cancer as well as Dental Negligence claims.

Interest in the drafting of schedules/ counter–schedules involving Ogden Tables calculations and pension loss.

Personal Injury Bar Association; North Eastern Circuit.

Durham School; Newcastle University (LLB (Hons)).