Matthew Maddison

Matthew’s practice includes all aspects of commercial litigation, including contractual disputes, sale of goods and partnership disputes. He frequently acts in claims against guarantors, and has given a number of seminars concerning such claims.

Matthew’s cases include:

• Acting for the claimants in the major reported commercial/competition law action, Electrical Waste Recycling Group Limited and another v Philips Electronics UK Limited and others [2011] EWHC 3747 (Ch); [2012] EWHC 38 (Ch)
• Acting for claimant in claim for damages and indemnity against contractors in respect of contamination of land
• Acting for a utility services provider in a claim for a performance bonus
• Appearing for the Claimant in a nemo dat dispute concerning a Maserati sports car
• Appearing for the Claimant in an admiralty claim for work carried out to a floating nightclub.

Matthew is experienced in a broad range of company disputes, including shareholder disputes, unfair prejudice petitions and just and equitable winding up petitions.

Matthew’s cases include:

• Acting for a group of shareholders of the Darlington Farmers Auction Mart seeking to challenge irregular substantial bonus payments to two directors, including questioning the board of directors at the company’s AGM (which led to the resignation of most members of the board).
• Acting for a director of a soft-play company against co-director in an equitable winding up-petition based on breakdown of a quasi-partnership with his ex-partner
• Advising director of haulage company in respect of unfair prejudice petition and equitable winding up petition based on breakdown of quasi-partnership with his ex-wife

Insolvency accounts for a significant proportion of Matthew’s practice. He has considerable experience in a broad range of insolvency matters, including:

• Transaction at undervalue (TUV), preference, misfeasance and unlawful distributions claims;
• Sham trusts;
• Disputes as to the bankrupt’s share in jointly owned property, including the application of the principle of equity of exoneration;
• Administration orders;
• Applications to extend administrations;
• Applications to make distributions to unsecured creditors;
• Applications in respect of office-holder’s fees and expenses;
• Directors disqualification.

Matthew’s cases include:

• Acted on behalf of a successful applicant creditor in what is understood to be the first Part 26A Restructuring Plan to be sanctioned outside of London.
• Acting for liquidator of a payroll company in multi-million-pound misfeasance claim against former directors, and a Quincecare claim against the Company’s bank for failing to prevent the misappropriation of the Company’s funds;
• Acting for supervisor of an IVA in long running litigation by bankrupt and one of his creditors against his trustee in bankruptcy the Supervisor of his IVA, involving allegations of fraud against officeholders.
• Acting for liquidator in a substantial misfeasance / preference claim against a former director for diverting payment of the proceeds of sale of the Company’s “client bank” to a third party controlled by the director.
• Advising the administrators of well-known former records company on issues arising with FCA, in respect of alleged breach by the Company of section 21 FSMA 2000 regarding the sale of shares to investors.
• Obtaining permission for a director subject to a disqualification undertaking to act as a director of a domiciliary care company providing care to vulnerable adults.

Matthew deals with all aspects of Property law, including conveyancing, charges, easements and restrictive covenants. He has acted in a number of cases concerning the application of section 2 of the Law of Property Act 1989 and the issue of whether the vendor is obliged to return a deposit.

Matthew’s cases include:

• Acting for Claimant in long-running and hotly contested possession proceedings based on the assignment of a substantial secured loan, which the Claimant sought to enforce by way of sale (including application to appeal).
• Acting for Claimant in an unjust enrichment claim concerning an extension to the Defendant’s house which was paid for by the Claimant on the understanding that he would live there indefinitely;
• Acting for Defendant to a claim for rectification of the register of title on the ground that the Claimant’s signature to the Deed of Transfer (executed many years ago) had been forged by the Defendant’s late father;
• Acting for lessee of commercial premises, in a claim brought by the landlord’s personal representative claiming rectification of the lease based on alleged fraud by lessee;
• Acting for local authority opposing claim for right of way intended to thwart development of land;
• Acting for the landlord in an appeal before Mrs Justice McGowan in Lingfield Point No. 2 Limited -v- Hodgson and Reid, concerning whether a deposit had been “been returned to the tenant in full” for the purpose of s. 215(2A) Housing Act 1988 in circumstances where the Landlord had sent the tenants a cheque which was purportedly returned.

Matthew accepts instructions in all aspects of Trusts and Probate. His experience includes:

• Traditional probate disputes (allegations of lack of testamentary capacity, want of knowledge and approval, undue influence);
• Claims under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975;
• Advising on the construction of wills;
• Advising in potential professional negligence claims, including issues concerning inheritance tax;
• Applications to remove personal representatives;
• Applications for accounts against intermeddling executors;
• Applications to revoke probate on the ground that the will was a false document.

Highlights include:

• Acting for Defendants to a claim by an alleged lovechild of the deceased, who claimed to have been treated by the deceased as a child of the deceased, and to therefore fall within definition of “children” on a true construction of the Deceased’s Will.
• Successfully claiming revocation of a grant of probate on the ground that the will was a false instrument.
• Acting for executors in a claim for recovery of farm land from farm business tenants, who asserting a right to the land by virtue of proprietary estoppel based on representations allegedly made to them by the deceased.
• Advising wife of deceased on professional negligence claim against solicitors appointed by executors for failing to distribute property held on discretionary trust within two years of the deceased’s death to take advantage of tax benefits conferred by section 144 of the Inheritance Act 1984.
• Acting for claimant in a 1975 claim under the 1979 Act, in which the deceased had allegedly run two households (with different partners) for a number of years.
• Acting for executor in application for his removal for breach of duty by failing to distribute amount due to successful claimant to a 1979 Act claim.