Simon Mortimore QC

 

Contact details:

3-4 South Square, Gray’s Inn, London WC1R 5HP. 

Telephone +44 (0)20 7696 9900.  Fax +44 (0)20 7696 9911.  LDE 338 (Chancery Lane).
Email clerks@southsquare.com.  Web www.southsquare.com

Education:

Exeter University (LLB 1971)

Professional career:

Called to the Bar 1972 (Inner Temple)

QC 1991

Admitted to the Bar of the British Virgin Islands, 1991, and for specific cases to the Bars of Bermuda and The Cayman Islands

Deputy Bankruptcy Registrar at the High Court 1987-1999

Accredited and registered CEDR Mediator 1997. Member Court of Appeal Panel of Mediators

Member ACCA Disciplinary Panel 2003

Chairman Insolvency Practitioners Association Appeal Tribunal 2005

 

Areas of practice:

Insolvency law, company law, banking and commercial law

More than 70 reported cases in the fields of corporate insolvency, personal insolvency, company law and general commercial law

Provided expert evidence on English law for proceedings in New York

Advised on proceedings in The Bahamas, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, and the Turks and Caicos Islands

                       

Recent work includes:

Acting for the Australian liquidators of HIH in the appeal to the House of Lords on cross-border assistance

Acting for one of the main sub-contractors in the Metronet administration

Acting for noteholders in the litigation to determine whether Cheyne Finance, a SIV, was unable to pay its debts

Acting for the trustees of the T&N Pension Fund in relation to proposed reconstruction of Federal-Mogul

Advising and appearing in relation to recent financial difficulties in the energy sector (Drax, TXU, Enron, British Energy etc)

Acting for the administrators of the Imperial Consolidated Group in major asset recovery proceedings

Advising and appearing for the liquidators and administrators of Barings concerning a scheme of arrangement to settle claims, the bondholders’ litigation, sale to ING and other matters

Acting for US investors in $180m fraud claim against Victor Kozeny

Acting or advising on telecom insolvencies and most of the major insolvencies of the 1990s: BCCI, Olympia & York, Maxwell, Polly Peck, Metro Trading and Facia

Acted for the Executive Council of the Joint Disciplinary Scheme in a major accountants’ professional negligence inquiry in 1995.

           

Reported cases include:

Re HIH Casualty and General Insurance Ltd [2006] 2 All ER 671, [2007] 1 All ER 177 (CA), (judgment of House of Lords awaited)

Re Metronet Rail BCV Ltd [2007] All ER (D) 370 (Nov)

Re Cheyne Finance Plc [2007] All ER (D) 25, 37 (Dec)

El Ajou v Stern [2007] BPIR 693

Hague v Nam Tai Electronics Inc [2007] 2 BCLC 194 (PC)

Re T&N Ltd [2005] 2 BCLC 488, [2005] BCC 982, [2006] 1 WLR 1728, [2006] 1 WLR 1792

Re SSSL Realisations Ltd [2005] 1 BCLC 1

Ultraframe (UK) Ltd v Clayton [2004] RPC 479 (CA), Fielding v Seery [2004] BCC 315

Geveran Trading v Skjevesland [2003] 1 WLR 912 (CA)

Qayoumi v Oakhouse Property Holdings Plc [2003] 1 BCLC 352

Arthur D Little Ltd v Ableco Finance LLC [2003] Ch 217

Re Barings Plc (No 6) [2001] 2 BCLC 159, Re Barings Plc (No 7) [2002] 1 BCLC 410

Omega Group Holdings Ltd v Kozeny ([2002] CLC 132

Re Adbury Park Estates Ltd [2003] BCC 696

Triffit Nurseries v Salads Etcetera Ltd [1999] 1 Lloyd’s Rep 697, [2000] 2 Lloyd’s Rep 632 (CA) Glencore International AG v Metro Trading International Inc [1999] 2 Lloyd’s Rep 632

Re Richbell Information Services Inc [1999] BCC 871, [2000] 2 BCLC 778

Bawejem Ltd v Bank of Scotland [1999] 1 All ER (Comm) 377 (CA)

Re Ransomes Plc [1999] 2 BCLC 591 (CA)

Gregory v Wallace [1998] IRLR 387 (CA)

TSB Bank Plc v Platts [1998] 2 BCLC 1 (CA)

Re Cosslett Contractors Ltd [1997] Ch 23, [1998] Ch 495 (CA)

Re Business City Express Ltd [1997] 2 BCLC 510

Re Bank of Credit and Commerce SA (No 10) [1997] Ch 213

Re Leeds United Holdings Plc [1996] 2 BCLC 545

Re a Debtor (No 140 IO of 1995) [1996] 2 BCLC 429

MacMillan Inc v Bishopsgate Investment Trust Plc (No 3) [1996] 1 WLR 387 (CA)

Re a Debtor (No 340 of 1992) [1994] 3 All ER 269, [1996] 2 All ER 211 (CA)

Re Dollar Land (Feltham) Ltd [1995] 2 BCLC 370

Re ILG Ltd [1995] 2 BCLC 128

Re Butlers Wharf Ltd [1995] 2 BCLC 43

Re Little Olympian Each-Ways Ltd (No 3) [1995] 1 BCLC 636

Re Kentish Homes Ltd [1993] BCLC 1375

Re Portbase (Clothing) Ltd [1993] Ch 388

Re Bank of Credit and Commerce International SA (No 3) [1993] BCLC 106

Denney v John Hudson & Co Ltd [1992] BCLC 901 (CA)

Re Cases of Taffs Wells Ltd [1992] Ch 179

 

Publications:

Consultant editor and contributor to Company Directors, Duties, Liabilities and Remedies (OUP, in preparation for publication in 2008)

Contributor to Insolvency of Banks: Managing the Risks (FT Law & Tax, 1996)

Contributor to Bullen & Leake & Jacob’s Precedents of Pleadings (13th ed)