His Honour Mark Gosnell

Mark was admitted as a Solicitor in 1981 and worked in a busy High Street firm of Solicitors until 1998. He became a partner in the firm and head of the firm’s Personal Injury and Clinical Negligence Department.

He became a District Judge in 1998 and sat in the County Court and High Court in Manchester. He was nominated a Specialist District Judge in the fields of Clinical Negligence, Industrial Disease and Catastrophic Personal Injury. He was appointed a Recorder in 2005 and sat in both the Criminal and Civil jurisdictions.

In 2010 he was appointed a Senior Circuit Judge and Designated Civil Judge for Leeds and North Yorkshire. By 2012 he had expanded his area to include Bradford and West Yorkshire and was responsible for managing the judiciary in ten courts.

He regularly heard high-value personal injury and clinical negligence claims and was responsible for management of all High Court appeals on the North-Eastern Circuit.

Mark also had section 9 (1) authorisation to sit as a High Court Judge in the Kings Bench Division, the Business and Property Court and the Administrative Court. His reputation on the bench was as a courteous and efficient Judge who understood the commercial realities of business clients and was often able to broker negotiated settlements on the first morning of the trial. Below is a summary of the types of cases which he tried as a Judge during this period:

• Claims under the Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996
• Claims under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependents) Act 1975
• Possession claims including claims for Rectification and Adverse Possession
• Claims under the Leasehold Reform Act 1967
• Rights of Way claims including claims for Adverse Possession or Trespass
• Boundary Disputes, both residential and commercial.
• Professional Negligence Claims against Solicitors, Barristers, Accountants and Planning Consultants
• Insolvency Claims including allegations of Misfeasance or Preference against a Director and Unfair Prejudice Petitions
• Actions in the Administrative Court against Local or Central Government in relation to planning or procurement issues
• Mis-selling claims in relation to Cavity Wall, Solar Panels, Payment Protection Insurance, Car Finance, Energy Contracts and Interest Rate Derivatives
• Claims against Local Authorities for Misfeasance in Public Office
• Wrongful and Unfair Dismissal claims
• Harassment claims by and against former employees

Mark was also responsible for training other Judges and taught Judges of the Business and Property Court on the Specialist Judges’ course from 2016 – 2022.

He retired as a Judge on 31^st March 2024 and has since trained as Mediator with the London School of Mediation on a course recognised by the International Mediator Institute. He is happy to accept instructions as a Mediator on either a facilitative or evaluative basis on any type of civil litigation or court procedure including costs.

Mediations dealt with so far include Solicitor’s negligence claims, an unfair prejudice petition, a commercial loan dispute, and an employment dispute involving Equality Act issues.

Mark is happy to attend at solicitors’ offices to conduct the mediation or at other counsel’s chambers. He can also conduct remote mediations via Zoom or MS Teams.