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'An exceptional young barrister'
Sam has a broad chancery practice, with particular emphasis on trusts and probate, contentious tax, and the work of the Court of Protection. He was appointed to the Attorney General’s “C” Panel in 2018. In Chambers and Partners, HNW 2020, he is ranked as “Up and coming” in the field of Traditional Chancery.
Recent reported cases include:
- The Pensions Regulator v Payae & Ors [2018] EWHC 36 (Ch) – trial of a claim by the Pension Regulator for the recovery of £13.7 million lost in a pensions liberation fraud. It was the first time that the Regulator has obtained an order for statutory restitution under s.16 Pensions Act 2004. Sam acted for the The Pensions Regulator (led by Jonathan Hilliard QC)
- Gaskin v Chorus Law Limited & Anor [2019] EWHC 616 (Ch) – decision concerning the incidence of costs arising in connection with long running contentious probate and removal proceedings. Sam acted for Chorus Law (sole counsel)
- Clark v HMRC [2020] EWCA Civ 204 – important Court of Appeal decision on the meaning of “payment” in the context of the unauthorised payment legislative regime relating to registered pension schemes. Sam acted for HMRC (led by Jonathan Davey QC)
- Ingenious Games & Ors v HMRC [2019] UKUT 226 – since 2015, Sam has acted for HMRC (led by Malcolm Gammie CBE QC and Jonathan Davey QC) in this high profile and long running tax litigation concerning the investment by various limited liability partnerships in films and games. Six-day Court of Appeal hearing scheduled for March 2021
Other experience includes:
- Three-month secondment with a leading law firm in the Channel Islands
- Acting (as sole counsel) in multimillion-pound Jersey proceedings against the directors of an offshore company
- Acting in numerous claims under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975, and contentious probate claims concerning the formal or substantial validity of wills
- Acting in numerous High Court claims for the removal of trustees or executors
- Acting for HMRC (as sole counsel) in connection with a large-scale tax avoidance scheme designed to extract monies from companies without a charge to tax. Proceedings currently progressing in the First-tier Tribunal
- Acting for HMRC (led by Jonathan Davey QC) in the leading case on Business Premises Renovation Allowances (“BPRA”), including conducting cross-examination of expert valuation witness: see London Luton Hotel BPRA Property Fund LLP v HMRC [2019] UKFTT 212. Three-week appeal in the Upper Tribunal scheduled for Autumn 2020
- Numerous cases involving financial abuse, involving both Court of Protection elements (claims for removal of deputies and attorneys) and High Court elements (for recovery of assets, or setting aside vulnerable transactions)
- Regularly instructed by the Official Solicitor and the Office of Public Guardian in Court of Protection proceedings
- Regularly instructed in rectification / rescission proceedings concerning trusts and wills, and also in numerous applications under the Variation of Trusts Act 1958