Hugh Preston

Commercial

Hugh has been consistently ranked as a leading junior by Chambers and Partners (now ranked as one of the top 7 juniors in the country) and the Legal 500, in the specialist field of Product Liability involving medical and other products.    He combines this with a wider practice including general commercial litigation.

Hugh is instructed in a wide range of commercial matters including construction / TCC work, complex partnership disputes, civil fraud / misrepresentation and sale of goods.   He also acts in a wide range of general chancery matters and employment disputes.

He appears at all levels of the civil courts and including a landmark ruling in the House of Lords in 2009  (Smith v Northamptonshire County Council) and in the same year he appeared in the ECJ in a landmark ruling under the EC Product Liability Directive (O’Byrne v Aventis Pasteur).   On both occasions he was instructed without a leader acting against Queens Counsel.

What the directories say:

“one of the foremost juniors in the field” (Legal 500 UK 2011)

“a serious player in this field with a growing reputation .... he has a very subtle and tactful approach that’s well thought through, and he also proves very good with clients” (Chambers and Partners 2012)

 “charming and unshowy" (Chambers and Partners 2011)

"hard working, bright and without a whiff of pretence” (Chambers and Partners 2010)

“sound, sensible and knows what he’s doing” (Legal 500 UK 2009

Recent cases

• Barclays Bank v Amstrong [2007] QBD:£1.4m contract/guarantee dispute

• Muthana v Yafai [current], Ch D, Court of Appeal.   Instructed on behalf of Yemeni client in very high value (several £million) partnership dispute involving allegations of dishonesty.   Long running case, litigated for several years.

• PC Harrington v Tyroddy [2011] TCC, reported.   Landmark ruling as to validity of adjudicator’s decision.

• Baybut & 73 ors v Eccles Rigg Country Park Ltd (ChD), Times, November 13, 2006: group litigation - applicability of the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations 1999

• Atkinson & Ors v Redcar BC & Ors [2007]: equal pay group litigation: major group action against local authorities in the North East of England