Jonathan MortimerConsultant Partner

Jonathan’s experience includes:

Commercial matters

• Representing leading French company which had acquired a business in the UK and pursuing sellers for fraudulent misrepresentation and related warranty claims with a value in excess of £20M
• Defending a leading supplier of IT services in a dispute as to whether the service has been provided to an appropriate standard and further whether the other party was entitled to terminate the contract
• Acting for leading manufacturer of pharmaceutical products in a dispute with former distributor
• Defending a landlord in a claim brought for wrongful termination of a tenancy and conversion of goods complicated by a web of eight companies
• Acting for a charity to investigate mismanagement of a pension scheme for staff involving issues of authority, negligence and possible criminal proceedings
• Representing  a property developer in proceedings issued for alleged wrongful termination of a funding agreement in a trial listed in the High Court of Justice
• Resolving within ten days of instruction a complex insolvency dispute involving an annulment of a bankruptcy order, an application for assessment of the insolvency practitioner’s costs and an application for a sale of a property
• Investigating on behalf of a charity a substantial hole in its finances where fraud was anticipated including instruction of forensic accountants and a criminal enquiry
• Acting for leading supplier of kitchen parts for infringement of registered trademarks including related passing off claims
• Representing an exclusively online retailer in a detailed claim against their IT supplier for failure to deliver a new IT system
• Acting for an off-shore company in a derivative claim under section 260 of the Companies Act 2006
• Representing a food company to defend proceedings brought for alleged misuse of confidential information to obtain a market advantage
• Defending a company against proposed fine by the OFT for alleged price fixing in the construction industry
• Representing a former director of a company for breach of fiduciary duties with a value of in excess of £1 million which proceeded to a five week trial
• Acting for business partner in dispute with the partnership as to numerous investments made in start-up businesses and a failure to account for the proceeds
• Representing in excess of  twenty franchisees in disputes with the Franchisor

Private matters

• Representing a trustee and executor in a claim made by family member that many millions of pounds of assets raised by a company sale but placed in trust are subject to attack as post nuptial financial settlements under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependents) Act 1975
• Acting for a beneficiary under two estates raising numerous issues including possession of properties, whether the wills made adequate financial provision, lack of capacity of the testator, conflict of interest and misappropriation of estate assets
• Representing a private members club where proceedings were issued by expelled members for re-admittance to the members club
• Pursuing an accountant for acting negligently in his capacity as a trustee and obtaining repayment of missing monies
• Representing an investor being pursued by spread betting organisation ETX Capital for alleged losses following surprise move by the Swiss National Bank to remove exchange floor
• Acting for private landlord prosecuted by a local authority for a failure to provide residential accommodation to an appropriate standard
• Successfully applying for a statutory will to reflect more appropriately the testamentary intentions of a retired businessman suffering from Alzheimer’s disease with total assets in excess of £3,000,000
• Suing Leeds Building Society for breach of contract and misrepresentation in respect of a private investment
• Defending defamation proceedings brought against private individual following speech made in public
• Pursuing a firm of solicitors for failure to account for client monies and breach of professional duties
• Obtaining a settlement for individual left destitute following death of partner with no financial provision having been made in the will
• Pursing on behalf of investors a judgment for in excess of £2 million entered against a company providing negligent financial advice

Of public interest

• Representing the residents of Knipe Point in Scarborough threatened by unexplained land erosion into the sea
• Pursuing the Co-operative Funeral Company in a high profile case following the incorrect cremation of two bodies in one coffin and exposing funeral company cover-up
• Acting for St Hilda’s Church, Pickering against Natural England with potential judicial review proceedings for failure to grant a licence to remove a plague of bats
• Advising the Worldspreads Action Group on options to recover a black hole in segregated funds following the downfall of the spread betting organisation Worldspreads Limited

“Jonathan has an excellent grasp of the legal aspects, a fine eye for detail but also keeps his eye on the bigger picture and the financial and human aspects of a case.  Through close teamwork, our tenacity, determination, attention to detail, sound legal arguments and faultless logic led again to a successful outcome.  A job very well done.”

Gerard Verdino, UK Group Chairman, Mademoiselle Desserts UK

“Jonathan has outstanding commercial acumen and is a first-class lawyer. He puts his clients’ objectives at the forefront of his dispute resolution strategy, bringing great focus and creativity to achieving those objectives”.

Mr Charles Samek QC and Mr David Lascelles, Littleton Chambers, London

“It was a pleasure to work with Jonathan in a complex and high value construction claim.  Jonathan’s drafting of the legal proceedings and an application to the Court were both excellent and thorough resulting in a very successful outcome for the client and a recovery of legal costs claimed in full”.

Alexander Hickey QC, 4 Pump Court, London

“As a medium size business we did not want to expose ourselves to litigation with an unpredictable outcome, timeframe or clear budget. Jonathan Mortimer provided a funding solution for our dispute which had no impact on our cash flow. We were also able to obtain an early settlement which has enabled us to move on and develop our business instead of being involved in a lengthy Court battle. We would certainly recommend Jonathan Mortimer for his proactive and commercial approach.”

Chris Booth, Graphics Direct Limited

“Nobody expects to need a lawyer but when it happens, you want the right lawyer and we had that with Jonathan Mortimer.  Jonathan was clear from start, defining the process and more importantly, explaining the possible outcomes so that we could make informed decisions along the way.  His experience was invaluable, giving us the confidence to progress matters and reach an agreement that worked for our business.  Thank you Jonathan”

Julie Jones, Managing Director, Myddleton Croft Investment Managers

“Jonathan Mortimer is very good at explaining the matters at hand simply and concisely, while giving proactive advice.” “Jonathan understands the business – he gets to the heart of issues and offers solutions.”

Chambers UK  2022 (Litigation – Yorkshire)

“Their [the team’s] strength lies in keeping the team small and tightly knit and with a large combined experience: thus the clients benefit from the stability and knowledge which has been built up over the years.”

Legal 500 2022 (Commercial Litigation – West & North Yorkshire)