Jaysen Sharpe

Areas of expertise

• Property

  Property

  Jaysen has a busy property practice and accepts instructions in all areas of real property, trusts of land disputes, and commercial & residential landlord and tenant law.

  He frequently appears on behalf of private and institutional landlords, pub companies, and financial institutions, in possession hearings, applications, CCMCs, committals, and trials.

  Recent work includes:

  • obtaining a 16 month immediate custodial sentence as sole counsel in a two day complex committal application where an earlier committal application had resulted in a successful appeal to the Court of Appeal;
  • obtaining strike out of an adverse possession defence in possession proceedings bought by a major charity;
  • obtaining civil restraint orders to prevent the frustration of warrants of possession;
  • being led in the Court of Appeal for the successful respondent in Kerr v Poplar Housing and Regeneration Ltd Community Association [2024] EWCA Civ 1260;
  • being led by Brie Stevens Hoare KC in a boundary dispute and emanation of sewage nuisance claim concerning high value luxury properties and basement re-development;
  • obtaining possession at trial on behalf of fixed charge receivers of a company where the defendant alleged the grant of a tenancy in lieu of salary;
  • obtaining a favourable settlement at mediation for the owner of an equestrian property in a boundary and water supply from a private reservoir easement dispute;
  • advising a commercial tenant on the validity of section 25 notices under the 1954 Act and the identity of the competent landlord;
  • advising the new owner of a residential property who found a tenant in occupation after completion;
  • acting for a member of the Qatari royal family to recover a property in sensitive high value possession proceedings;
  • settling a claim under the Access to Neighbouring Land Act 1992 at trial and still obtaining a costs order in favour of the Defendant;
  • successfully opposing pre-action disclosure applications brought against a water and sewerage undertaker following flooding to a property;
  • successfully establishing at trial that a purported sale of part of the land did not amount to an overriding interest binding on a subsequent purchaser;
  • varying a suspended possession order to rely on mandatory ground 7A where the tenancy pre-dated the introduction of ground 7A and contained restrictions on the grounds for possession;
  • advising on and drafting pleadings in various boundary and rights of way disputes relating to commercial premises, residential neighbour disputes, and a large Estate; and
  • drafting particulars of claim for recession following misrepresentation in a luxury property purchase.
• Commercial dispute resolution

  Commercial dispute resolution

  Jaysen has a strong commercial practice and has experience of a wide variety of commercial work as a junior and in his own right, and recently appeared unled in the High Court in a successful and rare application for a freezing order against a solicitor’s client account.

  Jaysen has experience of working in large teams on major commercial disputes and was instructed as disclosure counsel in a 5 month disclosure exercise for Vale S.A in the $36bn claim brought by 732,000 claimants following the collapse of the Fundão Dam in Brazil.

  Jaysen was led by PJ Kirby KC in Norsand Consultancy Ltd v Anandanadarajah & Ors [2022] EWHC 89 (Ch) and successfully obtained a £6 million judgment for unpaid commission for introductions in the oil and commodities broking sector, where the defendant director was found to have procured breaches of contract by his own company.

  Jaysen has experience of unfair prejudice petitions and as a pupil assisted Emily Betts in advising the majority shareholder of Cardiff City FC in his successful defence in Isaac v (1) Tan (2) Cardiff City Football Club (Holdings) Ltd [2022] EWHC 2023.

  Other recent work includes:

  • obtaining summary judgment against a director for breaches of his duties under the Companies Act 2006 and recovering £300,000 in equitable compensation;
  • successfully setting aside transactions defrauding creditors under s.423 of the Insolvency Act 1986;
  • drafting particulars of claim to recover a £500,000 directors’ loan;
  • assisting David Lewis KCin advising on estoppel by convention relating to the termination of a franchise agreement;
  • striking out a defence to a claim for tortious conversion of a rare high value classic Porsche undergoing restoration;
  • appearing as sole counsel in the High Court in James-Perry v Governor and the Company of the Bank of Ireland [2022] 10 WLUK 182where he was successful in striking out the claim against the bank and obtained an extended civil restraint order against the claimant;
  • assisting John de Waal KCin advising on delays to shipments of PPE during the pandemic in Pharmapac (UK) Ltd v HBS Healthcare Ltd [2022] EWHC 23 (Comm)
  • advising, drafting, and appearing in various applications to extend time of the registration charges at Companies House;
  • successfully opposing CPR Part 85 third-party claims to controlled goods;
  • obtaining contested third-party debt orders under CPR Part 72 where funds were alleged to be held on trust;
  • obtaining permission 7 weeks before trial to amend particulars of claim to plead fraudulent  misrepresentation in a share purchase agreement;
  • appearing for a successful Claimant at trial where the Defendant was found to have made “a deliberate attempt to produce false evidence” and indemnity costs were awarded;
  • striking out vexatious claims brought against financial institutions and their directors;
  • defending financial institutions in PPI claims brought under the Consumer Credit Act 1974 in interim hearings and trials; and
  • instructed as a junior in a successful application for a multi-million pound post-judgment worldwide freezing order.

   

• Insolvency & restructuring

  Insolvency & restructuring

  Jaysen regularly appears in winding up and bankruptcy petitions in the High Court and County Court and has a good knowledge of personal and corporate insolvency. He has experience of applications for possession and sale, applications to restrain the advertisement of winding up petitions, applications to set aside statutory demands, applications to extend the appointment of administrators, and applications to annul.

  Notable recent work includes:

  • successfully defending a challenge to a trustee’s renumeration and expenses under IR. 10.134;
  • obtaining summary judgment in a claim for breach of directors’ fiduciary duties securing equitable compensation of over £300,000;
  • voiding fraudulent transfers of land under s.423 of the Insolvency Act 1986;
  • advising a landlord who brought possession proceedings against an insolvent tenant without leave;
  • obtaining a validation order under s.284 of the Insolvency Act 1986 on behalf of the supervisors of a failed IVA; and
  • drafting the petition for the winding up of an unregistered partnership under the Insolvent Partnerships Order 1994.

  Jaysen is a regular contributor to Gatehouse’s Junior to Junior Insolvency programme and to Lexis Nexis’ Corporate Rescue and Insolvency Journal and volunteers for the COIN Scheme and Bankruptcy Representation Scheme to assist litigants-in-person in the Insolvency and Companies Court.

• International

  International

  Jaysen has advised on whether permission to serve out of the jurisdiction is required and drafted an application for permission to serve out of the jurisdiction.

  Jaysen particularly welcomes instructions in commercial disputes concerning Seychelles and is eligible for temporary admission to appear before the courts of Seychelles, where there are no restrictions on his right to work.

  Jaysen is familiar with the enforcement of foreign judgments in England and recently spoke at Gatehouse’s J2J Globalised Disputes: Bringing International Claims to England and Wales.