Stephen Lennard

Call:1976

Introduction and Contact details

Stephen’s practice is firmly focused on business, his clients more often – though by no means exclusively - being corporate rather than individual. Within that broad commercial context, he concentrates on employment and property work, in both the contentious and non-contentious fields.   
 
Described in the Legal 500 as a “very reliable all rounder”, he is always accessible to clients who appreciate his friendliness and his clear, commercial approach. He is very happy to conduct work on a public access basis when it is appropriate.

Stephen is also a part time judge, sitting as a Recorder in the civil and criminal jurisdictions of County and Crown Courts.
 
Tel:    020 7242 2523 (switchboard)
Ddi:    020 7691 0033
Fax:   020 7691 1234

Email: stephen.lennard@hardwicke.co.uk

COMMERCIAL

Stephen is a business lawyer experienced in commercial and trading disputes of all kinds. He has particular experience of claims involving sales of goods, supply of services, transport, commercial agents, business sales and transfers, estate agency, computer software, electronics distributors and power utilities. He regularly appears in the High Court on commercial matters.

Employment

Stephen enjoys a wide-ranging employment practice. He has handled many contentious disputes in the High Court, especially injunction claims based on post-termination activities and springboards. He acts in the EAT and deals with ET claims of all types. He is also regularly engaged in advisory work relating to employment contracts.

Stephen acts for companies, large and small, and local authorities as well as individuals. He has very considerable experience of unfair dismissal cases, discrimination claims (of all varieties) and post-termination restraints.

Recent Work

• Successfully acted for the Claimant in an unfair dismissal claim against a large US corporation in the financial services industry.
• Successfully defended a race discrimination claim for Veolia (then known as Three Valleys) Water.
• Advising on the application of TUPE in the restaurant business.
• Advising solicitors on redundancy procedures in their own property departments.
• Successfully acted for a local authority on an internal disciplinary appeal.

Relevant Cases

NSM Music v Leeke [2006] ICR 450 EAT
A starred judgment in the EAT (that is one “of particular interest and significance”) on debarring orders and requests for review

Zaiwalla v Walia [2002] IRLR 697 EAT
An important EAT decision on awarding aggravated damages for the way in which a discrimination claim is defended

FSS Travel & Leisure -v- Johnson [1998] IRLR 382
A leading Court of Appeal case on injunctions restraining the misuse of confidential information 

Professional Negligence

Stephen’s principal expertise covers negligence and allied claims against valuers/surveyors and solicitors in secured lending cases.

He has very substantial experience in this sector. He has acted for and advised many leading banks and mortgage providers in both commercial and residential lending cases. These include Lloyds TSB (as it then was) HBOS (in many of its then guises - Halifax plc, HMSL, Banque National de Paris and Bank of Scotland) Barclays Bank, Britannia Building Society, Bank of Ireland, Bradford and Bingley, Citibank, Northern Rock and The Bank of Wales.

As an adjunct to professional liability work and his employment practice, Stephen also handles professional disciplinary cases with recent appearances before the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal, the Nursing and Midwifery Council and RICS Disciplinary Board. He regularly acts as the Legal Adviser to the Ethics Panel of a member organisation of the UK Council for Psychotherapy.

Recent Work

• Acted in an architect’s negligence case on planning submissions for a substantial south coast development
• Acted for an IFA defending a claim of negligence by a disappointed beneficiary of a will executed by the IFA’s client
• Advising an unhappy beneficiary of a will trust against the solicitor/trustee for negligence in his investment decisions and strategy
• In the regulatory field, he represented a firm of London estate agents in proceedings brought under Estate Agents Act 1979 before an adjudicator at the OFT
• Conducted an entirely successful defence to a Trading Standards prosecution in the Crown Court, and represented other agents facing Property Misdescription Act prosecutions for flyboarding offences.
• Represented a chartered surveyor at a disciplinary hearing before the RICS;

Relevant Cases

Herbert and others v Law Society [2007] EWHC 2822 (Ch) [2007] All ER (D) 498 Nov
Intervention of a practice by the Law Society for breaches of the accounts rules with concerns over the honesty of a solicitor.

Lloyds TSB Bank plc v Edward Symmons & Partners [2003] EWHC 346 (TCC) [2003] All ER (D) 158 Mar
A professional negligence claim arising from the valuation of a business centre consisting of a number of units occupied on short leases and licences. 

PROPERTY & PRIVATE CLIENT

Stephen has been regularly listed in the Legal 500 as a leading practitioner in property litigation. The description of him as a “very reliable all rounder”, who works on property cases with a commercial slant, still holds good. It remains an accurate reflection of the bias of his work towards commercial landlord and tenant and real property.

Land & Real Property

Real property is a key area of Stephen’s property practice. He advises generally and has acted in relation to mortgages, beneficial interests, subrogation, equitable remedies, vendor/purchaser disputes, misrepresentation, boundary disputes and easements.

Recent work

• Advised whether the Estate Agents Act was engaged in relation to commission payments on various European transactions exceeding £20m in value
• Acted in a heated beneficial interests dispute between brother and sister over the family home with the added complication of a deaf Defendant – 4 signers in attendance to interpret
• Represented a bank facing defence of limitation in mortgage arrears claims

Relevant Cases

Wynn-Jones v Bickley [2006] EWHC 1991 (Ch)
A rectification claim involving trespass in a prestigious residential estate in the Home Counties – including probably the first award of damages for harassment made in the Chancery Division

Simpson v Simpson and another [2005] EWHC 2098 (Ch)
A ten day trust dispute over valuable development land with a chronology ranging over 45 years

Landlord & Tenant – Commercial

Stephen’s practice covers all aspects of the subject, including assignments, dilapidation claims, rent reviews and breaches of covenant.

Recent work

• Advised a listed pub chain on terms of surrender of 2 substantial leases
• Advised on break clause in retail context
• Advised the founding partners of a firm of solicitors on their personal liabilities following assignment
• Acted on dilapidations claim in a Surrey retail park
• Advised on reverse premiums in the pub/club sector
• Considered whether a mortgagee’s consents to surrender have became unconditional
• Advised whether a previous assignor was bound by the terms of a sub-tenancy when compelled to accept an overriding lease
• Considered for a firm of solicitors, as tenant, when the relevant date for valuation on a rent review for their offices should be determined
• Advised on insurance rents in the leisure industry
• Acted on breach of user covenants by a hotel

Relevant Cases

Regent Inns plc v Easybrand Ltd [2006] All ER (D) 414 (Mar)
Whether summary judgment appropriate on a rectification claim on permitted user of pub/hotel