"Highly competent and user-friendly."

Mathew is recommended as a leading junior for “Chancery: Traditional” / “Private Client: Trusts and Probate” and “Court of Protection: Property & Affairs” / “Court of Protection and Community Care” in both the Chambers and Legal 500 directories. Hi recent recommendations are as follows:

Chambers UK Bar 2024 / Chambers High Net Worth 2023 – Chancery: Traditional:

“Mathew provides robust advice and is not afraid to tackle the thorny issues.”

“He is extremely knowledgeable, clear and definitive with his advice. He tells it as it is and has very strong advocacy skills.”

“Mathew is incisive and gives clear advice. He considers issues beyond his immediate instructions in order to give the fullest advice possible.”

Legal 500 2023 – Private Client: Trusts and Probate:

“Mathew can grapple with complex legal issues and has the ability to present arguments clearly and attractively to the court.”

Legal 500 2023 – Court of Protection and Community Care:

“Mathew can produce high-quality work under considerable time pressure and has good client care skills. He prepares well and presents the client’s case calmly and effectively in court.”

Mathew has extensive experience in trust and estate matters, ranging from removal and breach of trust/duty claims to applications for directions. He is particularly experienced in trust/administration applications for the construction of instruments/wills, related directions, “blessings” and applications to vary trusts.

Reported cases include:

• Adler v Cripps Trust Corporation Ltd[2024] EWHC 1711 (Ch) – Mathew (led by Penelope Reed KC) successfully represented the claimant in an application to strike out and/or for summary judgment on her claim for a declaration that she is the beneficial owner of the shares in seventeen property holding companies.
• Almond v Goff [2021] EWHC 1703 (Ch) – Mathew (led by Tracey Angus KC) acted for the adult children of a testator in a claim for construction of a home-made will. The issues concerned, amongst other things, issues of abatement, the effect of revocation clauses in foreign wills, conditional gifts, the rule against inalienability, the beneficiary principle and certainty of objects.
• Brown v New Quadrant Trust Corporation Ltd [2021] EWHC 1731 (Ch) – Mathew acted for the principal beneficiary of two settlements in his claim to restrain a sale of the shares in an equity release company (to which there was a counter claim for a blessing) and to remove the professional trust corporation.
• Bullard v Bullard [2017] EWHC 3 (Ch) – Mathew successfully represented the settlor in her application to rectify a trust established as part of a “double trust scheme”.
• RNLI v Headley [2016] EWHC 1948 (Ch) – Mathew acted for a remainderman in its claim for disclosure and an account of the trustees’ dealings.

Recent experience includes:

• Amending trusts of a commercial nature to comply with Financial Conduct Authority regulations.
• Advising on the barring and taxation of an entailed interest
• Numerous claims to set aside wills on the grounds of capacity, knowledge and approval, fraud and undue influence.
• Spousal and other applications under the 1975 Act.
• An application for interim provision under the 1975 Act.
• A claim to set aside a lifetime gift of a house on the ground of undue influence.
• A claim to rescind so-called “asset protection trusts”.
• Applications to extend the perpetuity period of a trust and to postpone the interest of minor beneficiaries.

Mathew has a busy Court of Protection practice. He boasts experience in virtually every type of property and affairs application, including applications for statutory wills, contentious deputyship applications, and applications concerning the validity, registration and revocation of enduring and lasting powers of attorney. He also regularly advises deputies and attorneys on third-party claims and other issues arising in the management of the property and affairs of individuals lacking mental capacity.

Reported cases include:

• Re KP [2019] – an application concerning the extent of a professional deputy’s entitlement to historic remuneration and litigation costs for which specific authority was not prospectively granted.
• Re AR [2018] EWCOP 8 – an application concerning various bulk orders made for the remuneration of a professional deputy for individuals with small estates.
• A v D [2017] EWCOP 8 – a statutory will application concerning, amongst other things, the effect of a compromise in undue influence proceedings brought by the person lacking capacity against one of her sons.

Recent experience includes:

• Numerous statutory will applications concerning, inter alia, the extent to which the wills should reflect sharia law, the wishes of the person lacking capacity’s late wife and unpaid loans to children.
• A contested deputyship application where Mathew’s client was alleged to be unduly influencing the person lacking mental capacity.
• A case concerning the suitability of the donee of a lasting power of attorney.
• Numerous applications to remove/replace professional deputies.

Advice on the settlement of damages awards

Mathew has acted in all manner of professional negligence cases, from cases concerning a failure to take necessary steps to secure property in divorce proceedings to negligent conveyancing. However, Mathew’s particular strength lies in cases arising out of his core practice areas, i.e. negligence in the drafting of trusts/wills, the administration of trusts/estates and the management of a person lacking capacity’s property and affairs.

Mathew is currently editing the forthcoming 7^th Edition of Partnership Law with Mark Blackett-Ord and Sarah Haren KC.

Mathew is a regular contributor to the Trusts and Estates and the Solicitors for the Elderly newsletter.

Mathew also lectures regularly at seminars and conferences and is happy to provide in-house seminars to firms of solicitors on request. Recent topics have included:

• Applications for Interim Provision under the 1975 Act.
• Partnership Law for Private Client Practitioners.
• Deputyship Applications: Practice and Procedure.
• Minors and Foreign Property.
• Applications to vary trusts in England and the Channel Islands.
• Dispositive Powers: Subjective or Objective “Benefit”.

Mathew read Ancient and Medieval History at the University of Birmingham, graduating top of his year with First Class Honours. After completing the Graduate Diploma in Law at Nottingham Law School, Mathew was graded “Outstanding” on Bar Professional Training Course at City Law School. Mathew received the Terence Fitzgerald Scholarship and an accommodation award from Middle Temple and was called to the Bar in July 2011 with the Certificate of Honour.

Mathew is a member of the Chancery Bar Association, the Court of Protection Bar Association and the Ecclesiastical Law Society.

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