George has a broad commercial practice which falls into three principal areas: commercial litigation, professional liability claims (including disciplinary work) and financial services.

George’s experience of commercial litigation and arbitration encompasses a wide variety of disputes, ranging from civil fraud, insurance and reinsurance to commercial agency. He is also developing a particular expertise in financial services claims – whether acting for or against financial institutions, companies, individual financial services practitioners or regulatory bodies. His interest in and familiarity with financial markets stems from time spent working as an intern analyst at a major bank in the City and his LLM in New York which included courses on corporate finance and accounting (taught in conjunction with Columbia’s highly respected MBA course).

His professional liability work involves claims for and against accountants and auditors (including claims involving tax related issues), barristers, financial services professionals, insurance brokers & agents, solicitors and surveyors & valuers. He also has experience of construction related professional liability matters.

Reported cases include: 

• Webb v (1) JMQC (2) Dakers Green Brett [2010] EWHC 93 (Ch); (2010) NPC 12: successfully acting for defendant solicitors in summary judgment application before Vos J concerning their involvement in underlying insolvency/banking dispute.

• Crowson v HSBC Insurance Brokers Ltd (LTL 25/2/10); acting for defendant insurance broker in strike out application concerning duty of care owed to directors of a limited company.

• Courtaulds (UK) Ltd v Birgi Dis Ticaret [2009] EWHC 1166 (Comm); LTL 2/6/09 (successfully acting for Claimant company in security for costs application against a Turkish company in context of an international sale of goods dispute). 

• Littlewood v Wilkinson Woodward [2009] PNLR; [2009] WTLR 1189 (successfully defending firm of solicitors in High Court Chancery Division trial in a disappointed beneficiary claim).
• Devers v Electricity Direct (UK) Ltd DR (7/11/08); LTL 10/6/09 (successfully acting for ED (UK) Ltd in High Court trial in claim by former agent under (amongst other things) the Commercial Agents (Council Directive) Regulations 1993).
• Reader v Molesworths Bright Clegg [2007] EWCA Civ 169; [2007] 1 WLR 1082 (Led by Bernard Livesey QC in Court of Appeal, successfully defending a firm of solicitors in claim involving issues relating to the FAA 1976). 
   

Other recent experience of note includes acting for the Claimant metal trader against a former employee and various competitor companies in a claim worth up to £4.25m involving allegations of civil fraud which settled just before trial in the Chancery Division, acting regularly for the Chartered Institute of Taxation in various disciplinary tribunals and assisting one of the Defendant cohorts in Winterthur Swiss Insurance Company v The Accident Group Plc (Commercial Court).

 
Before commencing practice George read history at Oriel College, Oxford where he was a scholar and won the John Shannon prize for modern history. After converting to law, George obtained a Masters in Law (LL.M) from Columbia University, New York where he was a Stone Scholar. Whilst in New York George focused on international commercial law. During this time he competed in the Willem C Vis International Commercial Arbitration Competition.

More detail on George’s practice can be found by following the links in “areas of practice” above.