Peter Dodge

Call: 1992

Barrister

Peter Dodge is a commercial Chancery litigator with a broad practice in professional negligence, banking and financial services and property law.

He appeared in Dreamvar (UK) Ltd v Mishcon de Reya, the landmark professional negligence authority on the liability of solicitors and conveyancers in cases of property fraud. Having started his career as a fund manager at a leading investment bank, he has extensive recent experience of misselling claims relating to financial products generally and to failed or unsuitable investments in particular.

BANKING AND FINANCIAL SERVICES

The large number of misselling matters in which Peter has been instructed includes claims relating to interest rate hedging products (IRHP), collective investment schemes (both onshore and offshore and often involving geared property investments), investment bonds, structured deposits and other structured products, mortgages, pension transfers (often to a SIPP from an occupational scheme or a personal pension plan) and a variety of esoteric, anomalous and sometimes fraudulent products.

Failed investment schemes giving rise to claims in which Peter has been instructed include The Corran Resort and Spa, Laugharne (Kayboo), Needham House Hotel and Hever Hotel (Oak companies), various schemes associated with Northern Powerhouse Developments, Westbeach Holiday Park (Green Park branded companies) and 4 Great Moor Street, Bolton (Mederco).

In recent years, Peter has appeared perhaps more often than any other member of the Bar in cases concerning a claimant’s date of knowledge for limitation purposes in the context of financial advice.

Peter’s career in fund management began as part of a small team advising two offshore unit trusts and a UK authorised energy unit trust on investment in commodities and natural resource shares worldwide. He then joined his bank’s institutional funds department, this managing UK equity and fixed interest portfolios on behalf of pension funds, charities, two quoted investment trusts and an authorised income unit trust. He also advised building societies and local authorities on their holdings of short-term money market instruments. He completed the London Business School’s Investment Management Programme.

On coming to the Bar, Peter joined the Chambers of Timothy Lloyd QC (later Lloyd LJ) at 11 Old Square, often referred to as “the building society set” because of its expertise in the field of secured residential lending.

Reported or notable cases:

Pine v DKLM LLP (ChD) – Acting for two firms of solicitors in defending a claim by mainly Far Eastern clients who had invested in hotel room schemes
CNM Estates (Tolworth Tower) Ltd v VeCREF I SARL [2018] EWHC 2838 (Comm) – Acting for the developer of a £250 million project in a claim against the original senior lender relating to the exercise of rights under the loan and security agreements
X and Y v Z Ltd – Acting for an authorised introducer of potential UK targets to international private equity investors in an LCIA arbitration arising from an investment in the West End leisure sector
Acting for the authorised UK associate of a US investment bank in connection with the voluntary interview of a US based employee of the US bank as part of an FCA investigation
Flex-E-Vouchers Ltd v Royal Bank of Scotland plc [2016] EWHC 2604 (QB) – Acting for a commercial borrower in a claim arising from the sale of a plain vanilla interest rate swap; duties of a bank to its customer in its conduct of the FCA’s IRHP Review
Advising a life office on handling various complaints concerning the administration of pension and other products
Anderson v Openwork Ltd [2015] EW Misc B14 – Acting for an investor in a claim arising from the sale of an unregulated structured deposit product; existence and scope of a common law duty of care
Jacobs v Sesame Ltd [2015] PNLR 6; [2015] CLY 1773, CA– Acting for an investor in the leading recent appeal on the date of knowledge provisions of section 14A (Limitation Act 1980) in the context of the provision of financial advice
Graves v Capital Home Loans Ltd [2014] CTLC 233; [2015] 1 P & CR DG17; [2015] CLY 169,CA – Acting for a mortgage lender in one of the few authorities considering the unfair relationships provisions of the Consumer Credit Act in the context of mortgage enforcement
Evans v Santander UK plc [2013] EW Misc B55 – Acting for an investor in a misselling claim arising from the sale of an investment bond; investor’s date of knowledge for the purposes of section 14A (Limitation Act 1980).
Williamson v Governor of the Bank of Scotland [2006] BPIR 1085; [2006] CLY 2385– Acting for the guarantor of an accountancy partnership’s overdraft facility in an application to set aside a statutory demand
Townsend and Rayner v The Financial Services Authority FIN/2003/0017/0018 – Acting for two IFAs in references from decisions of the Regulatory Decisions Committee relating to their conduct of the Pension Review

PROFESSIONAL NEGLIGENCE

For details of Peter’s experience of misselling and other claims against financial professionals, see his Banking and Financial Services profile.

As to claims against other professionals, Peter acts for not only claimants but also defendants and their insurers in a wide range of matters, including claims arising from conveyancing, secured lending and other property transactions.

Peter has appeared in three of the important recent line of cases involving claims against solicitors for breach of trust, breach of warranty of authority or breach of duty of care in respect of losses resulting from identity fraud: Ikbal v Sterling Law, Dreamvar (UK) Ltd v Mishcon de Reya (led by Jeremy Cousins KC) and Ashraf v Lester Dominic Solicitors (led by Jeremy Cousins KC).

Peter is frequently instructed to attend the mediation of professional negligence claims. Whilst employed as a fund manager, he was awarded the ACCA Certified Diploma in Accounting and Finance.

Reported or notable cases:

Owadally v Planology Ltd [2023] EWHC 339 (KB) – Acting for a firm of planning consultants in defending a claim by owners of a listed building convicted of offences under planning legislation; applicability of the defence of illegality/ex turpi causa
Ashraf v Lester Dominic Solicitors [2023] EWCA Civ 4, CA – Acting (led by Jeremy Cousins KC) for a firm of solicitors in defending a claim by a non-client arising from an application by a lender for registration of a transfer later alleged to have been forged; existence and scope of a duty of care
CNM Estates (Tolworth Tower) Ltd v VeCREF I SARL [2020] 2 CLC 243; [2020] PNLR 27 – Acting (led by Jeremy Cousins KC) for the developer of a £250 million project in a claim against receivers arising from their exercise of a power of sale; applicability of exemption clauses in underlying finance documents
P & P Property Ltd v Owen White & Catlin llp (“Dreamvar”) [2019] Ch 273; [2018] 3 WLR 1244; [2018] 4 All ER 277; [2018] Bus LR 1668; [2018] Lloyd’s Rep FC 445; [2018] PNLR 29; [2019] 1 P & CR 1; [2018] CLY 1637, CA – Acting (led by Jeremy Cousins KC) for a firm of solicitors at first instance ([2016] EWHC 3316 (Ch)) and in the Court of Appeal in the leading case on the interpretation of the Code for Completion by Post, solicitor’s negligence liability in conveyancing transactions, and the scope for claims for breach of warranty of authority
Tomlinson v Lawvue Solicitors [2018] EWHC 3623 (QB) – Acting for a firm of solicitors in defending a claim arising from the grant of mortgages over flats which had been converted without planning consent
Ikbal v Sterling Law [2014] PNLR 9 – Acting for a purchaser in a claim against his conveyancing solicitors in respect of losses resulting from identity fraud
Horler v Rubin [2013] 1 BCLC 1; [2012] BPIR 749; [2012] CLY 1846, CA – Acting (led by Keith Rowley KC) for a member of an investment partnership in a claim against his former partner’s trustee in bankruptcy arising from the sale of shares which were partnership assets; extent of a proxy’s authority at a creditors’ meeting

PUBLICATIONS AND SPEAKING

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