Ben Harding

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Year of Call: 2005

Profile

Ben joined Kings Chambers in April 2008 having completed pupillage at 8 King Street Chambers, Manchester.

Ben practises in all aspects of commercial dispute resolution and in a range of chancery work.  He is instructed predominantly by corporate and institutional clients and undertakes drafting, advisory and advocacy work in equal measures in an increasingly busy junior practice

He has in recent years developed a specialist practice in consumer credit work and has acted for a number of lenders in the Manchester PPI litigation before HHJ Waksman QC.

Banking and Finance

Ben acts for and against banks and other financial institutions in relation to a range of finance litigation and lending (secured and unsecured, regulated and unregulated), including in particular guarantee enforcement actions, mortgage litigation, hire-purchase and conditional sale dispute and loan enforcement actions.

A substantial minority of his practice consists of consumer credit work.  Ben regularly advises, drafts and appears in Court in relation to all aspects of regulated lending, including improper execution, unenforceability, cancellation and termination, requests for statutory copies, enforcement orders, exemptions, extortionate credit bargains, unfair relationships and certain aspects of consumer credit licensing.  He is also familiar with connected aspects of finance litigation including secret commission claims, mis-selling of related insurance products, allegations of breach of the FSA Rules and claims for breach of data protection rights.  He has recently represented a number of lenders in the Manchester PPI litigation before HHJ Waksman QC.

Company

Ben has acted in a number of disputes involving share and asset purchase agreements, director's remuneration agreements and breach of fiduciary duty claims.  He is also familiar with corporate insolvency work.

Dispute Resolution

Ben undertakes work in all aspects of commercial dispute resolution, including contractual disputes; agency disputes; disputed assignments; construction contracts (including associated funding arrangements); factoring agreements; franchise agreements; sale and supply of goods and services; share and asset purchase agreements (including warranty claims); enforcement procedures, nuisance claims; claims under the Building Act 1984; and various forms of interim relief (including freezing orders and other injunctive relief).  He appears regularly in the County Court, the Chancery Division and the Mercantile Court (both on applications and at final hearings).  He also has experience of acting in mediations, at joint settlement meetings and in relation to various other forms of negotiated settlement.

Insolvency

Ben appears regularly in relation to bankruptcy and corporate insolvency proceedings and is familiar with a range of applications under the insolvency legislation, including applications for annulment, validation orders and permission to use prohibited company names.

Insurance

Ben is regularly instructed to advise, draft and appear in relation to a range of insured loss recovery disputes, including a number of claims for losses exceeding £1M.  He also has a growing practice in insurance policy coverage disputes and is familiar with claims to avoid liability based on material misrepresentation / non-disclosure, breach of warranty, breach of duty of utmost good faith, fraud and breach of condition precedent. 

Professional Negligence

Ben has a growing professional negligence practice and undertakes advisory, drafting and advocacy work in relation to claims against solicitors, financial advisers, insurance brokers, construction professionals, accountants and other professionals.

Seminars:

Ben contributes regularly to legal and professional seminars.  His recent seminar titles include:

-          "A road map through the Consumer Credit Act" - NCCBA half-day seminar June
           2010, to which Ben contributed papers on unfair relationships, secured loans, 
           'logbook' loans and a case law update

-          "Expert evidence and disclosure: impact of the Jackson report" - in-house
           seminar for Cobbetts LLP May 2010

-          "Perspectives on professional negligence" - case law update contributed to
           NCBA 1-day seminar May 2010