Counterfactuals, concealment and contributory negligence: what the latest instalment in the Primeo litigation has to tell us about loss and limitation
On 15 November 2023, the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (“the…
legal 500
“Benjamin is hugely talented with a sharp eye for detail. His advocacy is cogent and eloquent.”
Benjamin Fowler has a broad commercial practice with a particular focus on construction and engineering, professional liability and costs.
Ranked as a Leading Junior in the Legal 500 for Construction and Professional Negligence and nominated for Construction junior of the Year at the Legal 500 Bar Awards 2024, Benjamin has been described as:
“…hugely talented with a sharp eye for detail. His advocacy is cogent and eloquent.” – Legal 500
“Extremely hardworking and astute. He is very collected, and will advise when a case is weak and needs to be strengthened, as well as when a more aggressive and expansive approach is required. These qualities are unusual for someone of his call.” – Legal 500
“Technically gifted both in writing and orally.” – Legal 500
Benjamin is an experienced junior advocate with significant experience in litigation, arbitration and adjudication as well as disciplinary tribunals. He has appeared in the Court of Appeal and High Court (led and as sole counsel) as well as the SCCO and County Court on a wide variety of matters encompassing general commercial litigation, construction, professional negligence, professional disciplinary and regulatory, insurance and costs. He has substantial advocacy experience as sole counsel in numerous trials and appeals.
Benjamin has a significant construction practice, encompassing TCC litigation, arbitration and adjudication. Examples of Benjamin’s work include:
Benjamin has considerable experience of professional liability disputes, in particular claims against solicitors and construction professionals (including disciplinary and regulatory matters).
Examples include:
Benjamin has a growing costs practice, and regularly appears in the SCCO and County Courts on detailed assessment proceedings and related hearings. Recent work includes:
In other matters, outside of the above specialist areas, Benjamin deals with a wide range of commercial disputes across a variety of industry sectors, including insurance, insolvency, company and partnership disputes, directors’ duties, fraud, conspiracy and breach of confidence. He is regularly instructed as sole counsel in multi-day trials and has extensive experience of freezing injunctions, security for costs and other such applications. Benjamin acted for the successful claimant in Arora v Moshiri [2021] EWHC 2230 (Ch) (10 August 2021), a commercial claim involving issues of real property and partnership.
Benjamin has given many talks over the last two years on the disclosure scheme and regularly advises on issues arising from Practice Direction 57AD.
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Commercial litigation is at the heart of Benjamin’s practice. He deals with a wide range of commercial disputes across a variety of industry sectors addressing issues such as contractual disputes, negligence claims, breach of fiduciary and directors’ duty, breach of trust (including accessory liability), banking disputes, shareholder disputes, breach of confidence and misuse of private information. He has experience of advising on jurisdictional matters and conflicts of laws, which in turn formed a significant part of his academic legal studies.
Benjamin also has experience of pre-action and interim applications including freezing injunctions and security for costs.
Recent instructions
Featured Commercial cases
“Benjamin is excellent at cutting to the core of an issue. First-class drafting skills. He is a confident, coherent and charismatic advocate. He is adept on his feet and intuitively knows when to seek instruction.” – Legal 500
Construction comprises a significant proportion of Benjamin’s practice, acting and advising for employers, contractors and subcontractors in disputes in the High Court (in particular the Technology and Construction Court) and the County Court as well as adjudication and arbitration. He has been instructed in relation to several high-profile construction and engineering projects in the UK, including cladding claims, motorways, nuclear-implicated and marine installations and commercial and residential property.
Benjamin has acted on claims for and against construction professionals, including architects, structural engineers, concrete suppliers and interior designers involving standard form and bespoke contracts. He has experience of the major forms of construction and engineering contracts, including JCT and NEC3. He has experience of litigation and arbitration where the underlying issues include mechanical and electrical engineering, civil and marine engineering, concrete, subsidence, traffic flow modelling, public procurement and nuclear safety and engineering.
Benjamin has extensive experience of adjudication and adjudication enforcement proceedings, including disputes as to jurisdiction.
In addition to acting as a junior on high value disputes, a significant proportion of Benjamin’s construction practice has been as sole counsel. He regularly acts for both employers and contractors and is comfortable appearing before any tribunal whether led or not.
Recent instructions
Featured Construction & Engineering cases
“Benjamin is extremely thorough in his work, and is very user friendly and commercial with his advice, cutting through the most difficult points on a case to get to the crux. He is a stand-out amongst his peers.” – Legal 500
“Benjamin is hugely talented with a sharp eye for detail. He advocacy is cogent and eloquent.” –Legal 500
“Extremely hardworking and astute. He is very collected, and will advise when a case is weak and needs to be strengthened, as well as when a more aggressive and expansive approach is required. These qualities are unusual for someone of his call.” – Legal 500
Benjamin has experience in all aspects of professional liability and regularly advises and acts on behalf of both claimants and defendants in claims against lawyers, construction professionals (including architects and structural engineers), surveyors and valuers, insurance brokers, accountants and financial professionals. In lawyers’ claims, Benjamin has experience of cases including conveyancing, lost litigation, underlying family proceedings, probate, mortgage lending, corporate transactions and tax advice. Benjamin has also acted for defendant solicitors and planning consultants in a claim arising from a lost chance to obtain planning permission and appeal an enforcement notice and refusal of planning permission.
Recent instructions
Featured Professional Liability cases
Benjamin has extensive experience of arbitration, in particular large-scale construction arbitration. Most recently, he has acted (led by Roger Stewart KC and Neil Hext KC) in an ICC arbitration in relation to a petrochemical plant in Saudi Arabia.
Featured cases
Benjamin has a busy practice in costs work. He has been instructed on a variety of costs matters, which include the following:
Benjamin has extensive experience of dealing with costs management in both the County Court and High Court.
Benjamin has significant experience of regulatory and disciplinary matters acting for architects, surveyors and surveyors before their respective professional disciplinary tribunals. Recent instructions include:
Benjamin’s commercial and property practice regularly involves consideration of issues of a chancery nature such as breach of directors’ duties, breach of fiduciary duties, breach of trust and proprietary remedies. Benjamin has significant experience of trusts of land, including claims under the Trusts of Land and Trustees Act 1996.
Benjamin has experience of and has given talks on issues of will preparation, probate and administration in a professional liability context, including claims from disappointed beneficiaries.
Benjamin regularly advises and acts for high street banks and other lenders in various aspects of mortgage law, appearing in the Court of Appeal, High Court and County Court. Benjamin regularly deals with complex possession matters and rectification (including subrogation claims and vesting orders).
Recent instructions
Featured cases
Benjamin acts for and advises private individuals, corporate bodies and insolvency practitioners on bankruptcy and corporate insolvency. His recent work includes disputed bankruptcy petitions and advising a trustee in bankruptcy on costs recovery.
Benjamin was sole counsel in Access Flooring Services (Special Works) Limited v Pither & Or [2019] EWHC 1243 (Ch), an application under ss. 212, 238 and 239 of the Insolvency Act 1986.
Successfully resisting winding-up petitions brought against an LLP and limited company in the context of a derivative claim brought by a partner/director.
In line with Chambers’ expertise, Benjamin’s practice encompasses insurance work, particularly in the context of professional indemnity insurance. He has experience of a wide range of coverage issues and often advises on matters of policy construction.
Recent instructions
Benjamin’s property damage work involves damage to domestic and commercial properties arising from flood, fire, and subsidence (including tree root removal). Much of Benjamin’s construction practice is involved with fire claims and cladding and other defect claims. He is regularly instructed to defend liability claims or act in subrogated recovery actions.
Recent instructions
Benjamin has dealt with many product liability claims including recovery actions arising out of flooding and fire damage. He is currently acting for insurers in a recovery action arising from a fire caused by a defective anti-burglary device.
Benjamin acted for a leading international manufacturer of engineered metal components, in a claim against a manufacturer of plant which exploded in their premises causing extensive damage. He acted for a distributer of dehumidifier units alleged to have caused fire damage in a claim under the Consumer Protection Act 1987. He has recently acted and advised in claims concerning biodigestive heaters (under the renewable heat incentive scheme) and defective boilers.
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Before coming to the Bar, Benjamin ran his own travel company, led tours and lectured on art history in Italy and around Europe.
Benjamin holds a BA in Art History with First Class Honours from Peterhouse, Cambridge. He received a distinction on the GDL at City University, winning the Maitland Advocacy Prize, and a distinction on the BCL at St Catherine’s College, Oxford, winning the prize for Advanced Property and Trusts. Benjamin was called to the Bar by Lincoln’s Inn where he was awarded Hardwicke, Lord Bowen and Lord Denning Scholarships.
Benjamin is a member of IBA, COMBAR, TECBAR, SCL and PNBA.
On 15 November 2023, the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (“the…
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