Chris Makin’s Recent Blog Posts
Beware Conflicts Of Interest
As I write this, David Cameron is getting into increasing difficulties over his relationship with the failed financier Lex Greensill, there are problems over senior civil servants having paid jobs in the private sector, and even Matt Hancock has problems over his family connections with a firm which provided PPE to the NHS. And then […]
Is Your Expert An Amateur?
In a recent edition of Update, the magazine of The Academy of Experts, Merryck Lowe, a forensic partner at BDO, wrote this: “There was a time when a reasonably competent professional accountant could feel comfortable if called upon to give ‘occasional’ evidence to our Courts, without further training or experience and without feeling that only […]
Can Your Expert Truly Sign The Statement Of Truth?
An expert’s report under CPR must conclude with the Expert’s Declaration stating that the expert knows his duty to the court and has complied with that duty. There must then be a Statement of Truth, which used to say: But as from 1 October 2020 that statement is extended, with these words: It is relevant […]
Are You An Unfit Director?
Relax! This article has nothing to do with Joe Wicks, fitness regimes, personal training, or how Madonna maintains her eternal youth. It considers the expectation that company directors shall carry out their duties responsibly, meaning that they must have regard not just to the interests of themselves or their company, but also to what might […]
When Lawyers Wreck Their Case
In recent blogs I have gone on at some length about inadequate “experts”, and the damage they can do to your carefully prepared case. Think of Prof Sir Roy Meadow, probably the most notorious example, the proponent of “Meadow’s Law” (one cot death is unfortunate, two are suspicious, three are murder) who pretended to be […]
Expert Determination – What’s New?
As a chartered accountant (FCA) who practises exclusively in legal matters – forensic accountant, expert witness, mediator, expert determiner – my experience is that expert determination (ED) is considered by litigation lawyers too infrequently. Of course, it is common practice for company sale/purchase contracts and the like to include a dispute resolution clause (DRC), but […]
Experts – When Even The Lawyers Get It Wrong
One of the most notorious, and tragic, cases of an expert getting it wrong was that of Prof Sir Roy Meadow, an eminent paediatrician, who gave evidence for the prosecution in the case of R -v- Sally Clark. Mrs Clark, a lawyer married to a lawyer, had lost two babies through cot death. The headline […]
Is An Expert Determination Always The Final Answer?
In previous articles I have written about How Many Routes to Resolution, the number of ways in which disputes may be resolved. One such route is expert determination (“ED”) which, in my experience, is not used often enough except in dispute resolution clauses in share purchase/sale agreements. ED allows the parties to choose an expert […]
Creative Mediation
Mediation is now so well known that any competent lawyer can rattle off the advantages: quick, cheap, confidential, without prejudice, reduced risk of adverse costs, the parties are in charge, and so on. Today I concentrate on the most interesting aspect, in my view: the ability for the parties to reach an agreement which no […]
Business Valuations
Your client is getting divorced, and the family business forms a significant part of the matrimonial estate. Or your client is a director of a company and has been excluded from management decisions, probably coupled with a claim for constructive dismissal. Or your client (or you?) has for many years been a partner in a […]