Peter was kindly invited by The Legal Training Consultancy to speak on this subject at their Professional Negligence Update conference on 23rd October 2024.
Please e-mail Peter if you would like to receive a PDF of his paper. Click here for his profile and contact details.
Although the title of Peter’s session was unlimited, he confined his remarks to the obligations and responsibilities owed to non-clients by solicitors. There are two reasons why this is topical. First, there have been various significant cases in this field in recent years: in particular the appeals, heard together, in P&P Property Ltd v Owen White & Catlin LLP and Dreamvar v Mishcon de Reya [2018] EWCA Civ 1082; [2019] Ch 273 and the 2023 decision of the Court of Appeal in Ashraf v Lester Dominic Solicitors [2023] EWCA Civ 4; [2023] PNLR 14. The second reason is economic: where a person who was the primary cause of a loss is uninsured or insolvent, prospective claimants will inevitably try to fashion sometimes novel claims against insured professionals who were in some way involved in the relevant transaction. Those acting for claimants will wish to inform themselves as to when and how such claims may provide a remedy; those acting for insurers will wish to inform themselves as to when and how they may not.
Topics covered included the intersection between regulatory or supervisory rules and private law rights of action, duties owed to the other side, liability on undertakings and breach of warranty of authority.
Peter Dodge 