David Peachey

Areas of expertise

• Property
  • Commercial landlord & tenant

    Commercial landlord & tenant

    David handles a wide range of commercial landlord and tenant issues including break clauses, dilapidation, 1954 Act renewals, forfeiture and covenants.

    Recent cases:

    • • Successfully opposed a 1954 Act renewal of a lease alleged to be held on trust for the occupier.
      • Citroens@Romney Limited -v- AA Clifton: urgent injunction obtained to prevent eviction from commercial premises.
      • Zash Properties Limited v Mayworth Properties Limited: forfeiture claim in relation to long lease of commercial premises which have been converted to residential flats.
  • Development & planning

    Development & planning

    David has particular experience in the issues relating to development of land.

    Recent cases:

    • Acted in a case dealing with contested investment via an agent in a multi-million pound redevelopment of a library to create a new library and a number of luxury flats.
    • Lederer & Others -v- Lendy Limited [2019] EWHC 554 (led by David Halpern KC of 4 New Square): represented a peer-to-peer lending platform in a claim brought by a developer in relation to a purchase and development loan.
  • Housing (social & privately rented)

    Housing (social & privately rented)

    Housing work, both in the social and privately rented sectors, has always formed an important part of David’s practice.

    Recent cases:

    • £25m dispute with a local authority in respect of the provision of Central London affordable housing.
    • London Borough of Southwark -v- London District Housing Association (led by Zia Bhaloo KC): representation and advice to a housing association in a claim by the local authority against them for breach of a section 106 agreement.
    • Successfully established through cross-examination at trial that an alleged handwritten notice of disrepair had never been served.
  • Leasehold & leasehold management

    Leasehold & leasehold management

    David handles a wide variety of leasehold related work including enfranchisement, service charge disputes Building Safety Act issues and breach of covenant.

    Recent work:

    • • Kensquare v Boakye [2021] EWCA Civ 1725: David acted for the landlord in the interpretation of a costs clause in a lease, where the Court of Appeal held it enabled recovery of litigation costs from an unsuccessful leaseholder.
      • Re: 4 Southampton Road, Belsize Park: collective enfranchisement claim; disputed freehold valuation before the First Tier Tribunal (Property Chamber).  Cross-examination of expert valuation surveyors, requiring detailed cooperation with client’s surveyor.
      • Advising on a claim involving alleged concealment of the true ownership of flats by way of trusts, giving the false impression that collective enfranchisement criteria were satisfied.
      • A dispute between a leaseholder-beneficiary and the trustees of a high-value riverside development in Central London.
  • Real property & mortgages

    Real property & mortgages

    David covers all real property related issues such as restrictive covenants, easements and charges relating to beneficial ownership of land.  He has particular expertise in relation to mortgage related work.

    Recent work:

    • • Kay v Cunningham [2023] UKUT 251 (LC): David successfully procured the modification of a covenant restricting use of a 17^th Century mansion, formerly Florence Nightingale’s home. The modification allowed the meticulously restored house to be used as a bed and breakfast.
      • Brem v Clark [2023] EWHC 1358: High Court appeal against the strike out of a claim relating to a property purchase.
      • High Court injunctive proceedings against a cafe owner who was obstructing the replacement of highly combustible cladding on a 17-storey residential block in central Birmingham.
      • Possession trial by receivers in relation to a c.£10m penthouse on Clarges Street, Green Park. Issues included subrogation, unjust enrichment and undue influence.
      • Case involving flooding caused by drainage works on neighbouring property.
      • Advising a museum in relation to water ingress from adjoining property.
      • Adverse possession of a large area of woodland.
      • £5 billion group action relating to damage from the collapse of a dam in Minas Gerais, Brazil.
      • Advising in relation to oversailing by a crane.
  • Trusts of land

    Trusts of land

    David is regularly instructed by insolvency practitioners, contesting alleged trusts of the home in bankruptcy cases and in relation to TLATA and proprietary estoppel claims (in contentious probate claims and in cohabitation cases).

    Recent work

    • Advised on the distribution of high-value private family trust.
    • Baber –v- Begum: successfully recovered six figure sum allegedly gifted by daughter to mother when daughter was 21. David successfully set aside the gift on the basis of undue influence.
    • Represented a borrower in a claim by a local money lender to enforce a charge over property, where the property was said to be held on trust for his father.
    • Represented the owner of an offshore property-owning company in possession proceedings, where the tenant claimed that the property was held on trust for them.
• Commercial dispute resolution
  • Commercial litigation

    Commercial litigation

    David has experience of a wide range of commercial disputes, often with an international element, whether it be in respect of conflict of laws, transnational contracts, disputes over assets located abroad, or disputes over UK assets owned by offshore companies.

    David has worked on cases involving clients, assets or contracts based in other EU countries, Africa, the USA and the Middle East.

    Recent work:

    • Multi-million pound dispute relating to the construction of a monorail in Dubai.
    • Drafting grounds of appeal of a summary judgment decision, the effect of which was to state that UAE citizens could not enter into trust agreements in common law jurisdictions.
    • Acting in a claim relating to reclaim loan monies secured over a property in Florida that was foreclosed whilst in negative equity.
    • Represented a claimant in a contract claim against an individual defendant who entered into negotiations and subsequently incorporated a company. The promoter’s defence was that the contract was with the (by then insolvent) company and not with him.
  • Companies, joint ventures & partnerships

    Companies, joint ventures & partnerships

    David handles a wide variety of contentious and non-contentious company matters, involving both public and privately held companies.

    Recent work:

    • Acting for a company’s advisor in an application for a direction under s.1032 of the Companies Act 2006 that limitation should not run in respect of a claim against him by the company, whilst that company dissolved.
    • Advised in relation to a buyer’s retention after purchase of company shares.
    • Advising as to a board meeting in a family company where one of the directors had a conflict.
    • Advising a parent company as to how to prevent the sole director of a subsidiary taking an irreversible step on behalf of the subsidiary, contrary to the parent company’s wishes.
    • Advising and acting in reduction of capital procedures for public companies.
    • Acting for a company with respect to a dismissed director and previous shareholder who claimed he was still in post, and that he was still a shareholder of the company.
    • Represented a company in a claim against the third party, where it was claimed that the company’s claims were excluded by virtue of a deed entered into between a director and the third party in an attempt to defraud the company.
• Personal insolvency

  Personal insolvency

  David handles the full range of personal and company insolvency applications and procedures.

  Recent work:

  • Successfully represented the trustees in bankruptcy in an appeal relating to the relevance of exceptional circumstances in the sale of the bankrupt’s home.
  • Acting for liquidators and trustees in bankruptcy for numerous claims, such as transactions at under value and void transactions.
  • Acted for a liquidator in a transaction at under value claim, where there were issues of limitation.
  • Acted for a liquidator in relation to a debenture which was entered into over the company’s property, an application which was made challenging as the respondent was in prison.
  • Carrying out examinations of bankrupts and their relatives.
  • Successfully rescinded a winding-up order against a company despite the order having been properly made.
• Professional liability
  • Property & construction professionals

    Property & construction professionals

    David is instructed in professional negligence claims against property professionals, and recently advised in relation to a negligence claim against a conveyancer, relating to the purchase of a home that was built by a NHBC builder but did not have a valid NHBC guarantee.

  • Financial professionals, insolvency professionals, directors & officers

    Financial professionals, insolvency professionals, directors & officers

    David recently represented an Insolvency Practitioner in a claim where it was alleged that he had improperly put a company into administration and sold the business as a going concern to a shareholder of the company.