Insolvency
Giles is Head of the Insolvency team at Exchange Chambers. He is widely recognised as a robust, thorough advocate and an insolvency expert who has been consistently noted as a leader in his field.
Giles is the General Editor of Schaw Miller and Bailey on Personal Insolvency (6th Ed) and is highly regarded for his ‘technical knowledge and commercial know-how’ with a wealth of experience dealing with substantial insolvency litigation. Over the last 29 years he has appeared at all levels up to and including regular appearances in the Court of Appeal and even in the Supreme Court of the Seychelles and in the Supreme Court of Gibraltar.
He has a clear grasp of commercial issues and how best to overcome them. He works with his clients, favouring a team approach, particularly when faced with complex issues. With an in-depth understanding of the commercial world, he is adept at keeping his clients informed and aware of any issues that may arise at the earliest opportunity. Giles is a truly commercial litigator in terms of approach to his cases and his clients’ interests and needs. He recognises the importance of achieving his clients’ aims and objectives (whether at trial or through ADR) as quickly and as cost effectively as possible.
His practice has a particular emphasis on company and insolvency work (both contentious and non-contentious) including preference, misfeasance and other work for liquidators and other office holders including company administrations, corporate and individual voluntary arrangements and receivership problems, shareholder disputes, and individual bankruptcy work.
Before taking Silk, Giles was Junior Counsel to the Crown (Regional Panel A) and his work for the Secretary of State focused on contentious public interest winding up petitions, including the appointment of provisional liquidators and appropriate injunctive relief, and disqualification applications under the Company Directors Disqualification Act 1986. In recent years Giles has successfully acted as the leading Counsel for the Secretary of State in what was then the largest public interest petition brought by Companies Investigations.
Giles has also appeared in the Supreme Court of Gibraltar, where he successfully appealed against a decision of a liquidator of a foreign insurance company in order to confirm a substantial proof of debt based on a UK judgment; and has dealt with the high profile insolvency of the Redcar based steel business operated by SSI UK Ltd, now in liquidation and the actions and investigations of DBEIS following the collapse of BHS.
He has also represented over 300 claimants in a multi-million pound corporate fraud case in the Cayman Islands arising out of the CWM FX Ponzi scheme scandal.
Insolvency Cases
Ahmed and Others v Ingram and Others [2018] EWCA CIV 519
SSI UK Ltd v Hewden Stuart Ltd [2015] EWHC 2726 (Ch)
Secretary of State for Business Innovation & Skills v Pawson [2015] EWHC 2626 (Ch)
Overfinch Bespoke Vehicles Ltd (in Liquidation) v Freddie White as Liquidator of Lemma Europe Insurance Company Ltd [13/5/15] Gibraltar
Secretary of State v APW Asset Management Ltd [2015] All ER (D) 160 (Apr)
Secretary of State v Combined Maintenance Services Ltd (2015) LTL 7/1/15
Walker v. Turpin [1994] 1 WLR 196 (CA) (payments in);
Claughton v. Charalambous [1998] BPIR 558 (bankruptcy – sale of land);
Davidson v Stanley [2005] BPIR 279;
Ultraframe v Fielding & Ors [2005] EWHC 1638 (Ch) (corporate fraud);
Meisels v Martin & Dawson [2005] EWHC 845 (ch) (creditors’ proofs);
Northstar Systems Ltd & Ors v Fielding & Ors [2006] EWCA Civ 1660 (costs);
In The Matter of Brampton Manor (Leisure) Limited LTL 8/2/2006 (directors disqualification);
In the Matter of Lune Metal Products Ltd (in Administration)[2006] EWCA Civ 1720, 15/12/06 LTL.
Straker v Tudor Rose [2007] EWCA Civ 368 (Costs).
