Hannah Daly

Hannah is regularly instructed in a broad range of commercial disputes, a number of which involve allegations of fraud. Her recent work includes:

• Acting for defendant in the SKAT litigation brought by the Danish tax administration alleging it was defrauded out of £1.5bn under allegedly false claims for withholding tax refunds (Junior to Paul Mitchell QC): Skatteforvaltningen v Solo Capital Partners and others [2021] EWHC 1222 (Comm).
• Acting for claimant in a multi-million pound IT dispute under an LCIA arbitration, alleging fraudulent misrepresentation and breach of contract in the disasterous deployment of a complex healthcare software (Junior in team led by Roger Stewart QC).
• Acting for successful defendant in Cayman Islands trust dispute: In the matter of Lilly Lea Perry et al. v Lopag and others (Unreported judgment, 27 May 2020). The claim, together with related probate proceedings in the High Court in London, concerned the rescission of the transfer of a Cayman company into a Liechtenstein trust. Other issues included double-derivative claims under Cayman law and inconsistency and affirmation/election as defences to a claim for rescission (as Junior in team led by Justin Fenwick QC.
• Acting in a claim for fraudulent misrepresentation and unlawful means conspiracy in connection with a mobile home investment business suspected to be a ponzi scheme (Junior to Graham Chapman QC).

Hannah has experience of IT disputes, which is complemented by her experience working with Accenture where she was involved at all stages of complex implementations, from writing/responding to RFPs to high-level design to UAT. Her recent experience includes:

• Acting for main contractor against a systems integrator in a complex contract dispute over a large utilities systems implementation in Turkey (LCIA arbitration). Claims were brought for misrepresentation and negligent misstatement, together with allegations of repudiatory breach arising out of delayed and  poor quality delivery (2021).
• Acting for the claimant in a multi-million pound LCIA arbitration arising out of a failed public-sector healthcare IT implementation. Claims were brought for fraudulent misrepresentation and breach of contract. Hannah’s focus was on the technical features of the system, which was the subject of expert evidence (Junior in team led by Roger Stewart QC) (2020).
• Acting for claimant inventor of mobile app against developers where developers failed to identify a key technical limitation of the Android/iOS operating systems until very late into the development of the product (2021).

Hannah is regularly instructed in claims for profesisonal liability, and in particular claims concerning solicitors, accountants, financial advisers, insurance brokers and IT professionals. Example of the range of work undertaken include:

• Successfully defending a firm of accountants in multi-million pound claim for negligence and deliberate wrongdoing following 4-week trial in the High Court (as Junior to Clare Dixon QC): De Sena v Notaro [2020] EWHC 1366 (Ch)
• Defending solicitors in claim for negligence by Irish investors arising out of allegedly defective property investment schemes: Edith Leslie & Ohrs v Punch Robson Solicitors (led by George Spalton QC) (2021, ongoing)
• Claims against financial advisers in connection with: Employee Benefit Trust schemes; mortgage mis-selling; investment advice.
• Acting for legal claims handlers in multi-party dispute brought by Danish insurers for negligent claims-handling of thousands of motor claims (as Junior to Helen Evans): Qudos and anr v Staveley Head and others (2021)
• Successful strike out of a claim against a legal expenses insurer for fraud and negligence arising out of insurer’s refusal to fund insured’s employment dispute: Ukegheson v (1) Gresham (2) Arc Legal Assistance Limited (3) Russell Kent [2020] EWHC 2903.
• Claims against pensions advisers for negligence/fraud in relation to offshore pension schemes.
• Claims against professional trustees, including claims for/against beneficiaries under trusts, misapplication of trust funds, exoneration clauses, Trustee Act 1925/2010 claims and s.61 defences.
• Solicitors’ negligence claims arising out of failed or defective conveyances of commercial and residential properties; and failed commercial property developments.

Hannah is regularly instructed in a range of insurance work, including:

• Claims arising out of legal expenses insurance policies: including the assesment of the prospects of success of underlying claims and the legal responsibility of claims handlers, brokers, panel firms and insurers.
• Successful strike out of a claim against a legal expenses insurer for fraud and negligence arising out of insurer’s refusal to fund insured’s employment dispute: Ukegheson v (1) Gresham (2) Arc Legal Assistance Limited (3) Russell Kent [2020] EWHC 2903. 
• Advising PII insurer on coverage issues arising out of contractor’s poor workmanship carried out under a design and build contract.
• Advising on coverage issues under property insurance contracts.

Hannah regularly undertakes cases which involve chancery work. Her experience includes:

• Successfully applying for a vesting order under s.320 of IA 1986 over a property following disclaimer by a trustee in bankruptcy in 1994, together with successful application for an extension of time under s.376: Kew v Crown Estate Commissioners (5 July 2021, unreported)
• Defending claim against professional trustees brought by a disgruntled beneficiary alleging breach of trust/duty for failure to supervise co-trustee and misapplication of trust funds. Issues included powers under Trustee Act 1925/2010, defences under s.61 and scope of an exoneration clause in the trust instrument.
• Making an application to strike out a claim brought against liquidators for bringing bankruptcy proceedings against former company director who had taken out a substantial director’s loan.
• Assisting Tim Chelmick and Justin Fenwick QC in a contested probate application addressing issues under s.50 of the Administration of Justice Act 1985: Perry v Neupert [2018] 7 WLUK 445 (Ch)

Hannah has acted in domestic and international human rights cases, including:

• Junior Counsel to Can Yeginsu in an application to the European Court of Human Rights by Wikimedia, the owners of Wikipedia, in an effort to have the ban on Wikipedia lifted in Turkey. Turkey’s Constitutional Court ruled the ban was a violation of the right of freedom of expression in December 2019 and the ban was subsequently lifted on 15 January 2020.
• Hannah was called “a brilliant young barrister” by the Sunday Times in 2018 for her winning essay on protecting the anonymity of defendants accused of committing sexual offences which was submitted to the Bar Council’s Law Reform Essay Competition in 2017.