Department profile
Serle Court

Real Estate Litigation

UK Bar Guide 2026 : London (Bar)


Serle Court

Rankings

Chambers Review

Provided by Chambers

Real Estate Litigation - London (Bar)

Band 3

Band 3


What the Team is Known For

Serle Court is a set with strong expertise across a wide range of real estate disputes, with recent experience in areas including waterways, restrictive covenants, service charges and trespassing. Members are experienced in both chancery and commercial cases. Barristers at the set act for high net worth individuals, investment and development companies and hotel groups, among other clients. Barristers at the set have been involved in several high-profile matters this year, including URS Corporation v BDW Trading, acting for the Secretary of State for Communities, Housing and Local Government, who intervened in the appeal in the Supreme Court. One source comments that Serle Court is a "commercially-focused set offering a breadth of property related legal services," while another states "Serle Court is starting to gain a greater presence among the Property Litigation Association, offering a true alternative to the usual suspects."

Strengths

Provided by Chambers

  • Serle Court has an amazing clerks room. Practice director Daniel Wheeler and practice manager Charlie Payne always bend over backwards for me.

    Real Estate Litigation respondentUK Bar
  • Serle Court has the best clerks around.

    Real Estate Litigation respondentUK Bar
  • They have a great clerking team. Practice director Nicholas Hockney is really great - really efficient and responsive.

    Real Estate Litigation respondentUK Bar

Notable Practitioners

Provided by Chambers

  • Band 2Andrew Bruce
    Band 2Andrew Bruce

    Andrew Bruce

    Andrew Bruce has a high-quality property practice with an emphasis on landlord and tenant law and property litigation. He also has substantial expertise in property-related professional negligence work.

    • Andrew always provides practical and technically excellent advice.

      Real Estate Litigation respondentUK Bar
    • Andrew is dynamic and quick-thinking, excellent on his feet and very user-friendly.

      Real Estate Litigation respondentUK Bar
    • He is brilliant on real property disputes.

      Real Estate Litigation respondentUK Bar
  • Band 3Andrew Francis
    Band 3Andrew Francis

    Andrew Francis

    Andrew Francis has a fine reputation at the Bar for his dedicated property litigation practice. He is acknowledged for his work in restrictive covenants and rights to light, and is also recognised for his knowledge of party wall law. He has authored a number of significant texts on property law.

    • He is a top man in restrictive covenants.

      Real Estate Litigation respondentUK Bar
    • Andrew wrote a very good book on restrictive covenants so is very knowledgeable.

      Real Estate Litigation respondentUK Bar
  • Band 3Christopher Stoner KC
    Band 3Christopher Stoner KC

    Christopher Stoner KC

    Christopher Stoner KC has garnered recognition for his expertise in water and canal law, and is known as one of the leading silks practising riparian rights. His practice also takes in service charge and landlord and tenant disputes. He accepts instructions on behalf of public authorities and private individuals.

    • Christopher deals with difficult issues and provides clear and practical advice.

      Real Estate Litigation respondentUK Bar
    • He is absolutely top class.

      Real Estate Litigation respondentUK Bar
    • Christopher is my go-to property silk. He is very responsive, always goes the extra mile and cares about what he is doing.

      Real Estate Litigation respondentUK Bar
  • Band 3Jennifer Meech
    Band 3Jennifer Meech

    Jennifer Meech

    Jennifer Meech acts for a range of individual and corporate clients in an impressively wide range of property cases. Her expertise covers cases regarding agricultural land, property injunctions and easements, among other issues.

    • She gets on top of the detail very quickly and is excellent with clients.

      Real Estate Litigation respondentUK Bar
    • Jennifer was able to absorb a lot of information in a short amount of time and represented the client with strength and energy.

      Real Estate Litigation respondentUK Bar
  • Band 3Rupert Reed
    Band 3Rupert Reed

    Rupert Reed

    Rupert Reed KC is well known for his extensive property practice. He regularly undertakes disputes concerning the management and development of commercial properties. He is particularly known for his work on financial and joint venture disputes relating to commercial property for clients in the retail and leisure sectors. He undertakes work for wealthy Middle Eastern clients concerning property in London.

    • Rupert oozes charm and wins over judges. He is very engaging, effective, tenacious and knows his stuff.

      Real Estate Litigation respondentUK Bar
    • Rupert is excellent at what he does. He has a wealth of regional knowledge and is particularly excellent on matters of DIFC Law.

      Real Estate Litigation respondentUK Bar
    • He is very good - totally across the detail and a pretty commanding advocate.

      Real Estate Litigation respondentUK Bar
  • Band 4Lara Kuehl
    Band 4Lara Kuehl

    Lara Kuehl

    Lara Kuehl has developed a strong real estate litigation practice in which she handles a wide range of matters at different levels of court, including the Court of Appeal. Kuehl is frequently sought to act in such cases as overage and land disputes. She is on the Attorney General's C Panel of Junior Counsel to the Crown.

    • Lara is so approachable and a great lateral thinker which makes her drafting skills top notch.

      Real Estate Litigation respondentUK Bar
    • She is very intelligent in negotiations as well as being thoughtful, practical, calm, organised and a pleasure to work with.

      Real Estate Litigation respondentUK Bar
    • Lara is exceptional at promptly mastering facts and arguing complex law.

      Real Estate Litigation respondentUK Bar
  • Band 4Thomas Braithwaite
    Band 4Thomas Braithwaite

    Thomas Braithwaite

    Thomas Braithwaite is noted for having a diverse practice that spans franchise rights, development rights and negligence claims, among other matters. He is regularly instructed by major bodies such as The Crown Estate in relation to manorial rights and land registration issues, and has appeared before the Supreme Court.

    • Thomas is so good on his feet; he is a very economical, efficient and an excellent advocate.

      Real Estate Litigation respondentUK Bar
    • Thomas provided excellent service at short notice with clear understanding of client needs and how to manage tricky clients to get the best result.

      Real Estate Litigation respondentUK Bar
  • New SilksJonathan Upton
    New SilksJonathan Upton

    Jonathan Upton

    Jonathan Upton regularly handles matters concerning high-value properties and is an expert in such areas as tenants’ rights of first refusal, right to manage and enfranchisement. Commentators note that he really comes into his own in cases concerning service charges.

    • He is really clear in his advice, user-friendly and will end up being one of the next big names at the property bar.

      Real Estate Litigation respondentUK Bar
    • Jonathan is responsive, persuasive and commercial.

      Real Estate Litigation respondentUK Bar
    • Jonathan provided clear and helpful advice on a very complex and technical issue.

      Real Estate Litigation respondentUK Bar
  • New SilksMichael Walsh
    New SilksMichael Walsh

    Michael Walsh

    Michael Walsh KC acts for landlords, developers, local government bodies and large institutional lenders in a broad range of property-related cases. He regularly handles matters concerning development issues, agricultural land and commercial property, and often acts in urgent hearings concerning the repossession of land. He is a visiting lecturer in property law at King's College London.

    • Michael has come to the rescue on a number of occasions and is always available, helpful and commercially-minded.

      Real Estate Litigation respondentUK Bar
    • Michael is always a pleasure to work with; he is strong on the law and excels on people skills and strategy.

      Real Estate Litigation respondentUK Bar
    • Michael gets to the heart of issues quickly and his pragmatic advice on tactics and procedure is second to none.

      Real Estate Litigation respondentUK Bar

Ranked Barristers at Serle Court (9)

London (Bar)

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