Bryan de Verneuil-Smith

Dispute Resolution | Banking Disputes | Corporate and Financial Services Disputes | Crypto Disputes | Enforcement of Judgments and Awards | Fraud and Asset Tracing | Insurance Disputes | Private Equity | Regulatory | Restructuring and Insolvency | Shareholder and Valuation Disputes | Trusts Disputes and Applications

Bryan, a partner in Ogier's Guernsey-based Dispute Resolution team, specialises in commercial litigation, contentious trusts, insolvency, fund disputes, shareholder disputes, fraud and asset tracing, commercial and residential property disputes, regulatory and all types of insurance and reinsurance related disputes.

Bryan has represented clients in the Royal Court on various commercial matters. In particular, he was part of the team of advocates who represented and successfully defended the executive directors of Carlyle Capital Corporation, an investment fund, against a claim for nearly US$2 billion in Guernsey’s biggest ever civil trial (lasting nearly six months in 2016). He continued to act for the executive directors in the appeal of the Royal Court decision heard in October 2018 and was involved in the matter until it settled in May 2020.

Bryan regularly delivers webinars on contentious trusts issues and directors' duties to trust and corporate clients. He has also written articles on a variety of subjects including Guernsey trust cases, pre-action disclosure, the collapse of funds, the solvency test and the Carlyle case. Bryan is also a contributor to the Guernsey chapter of International Trusts Laws (LexisNexis).

Bryan's recent cases include:

- Corporate and fund litigation | Advising a large shareholder of a Guernsey fund relation to claims it could bring against the directors of the fund and related parties for fraud, misrepresentation, breach of duty and mismanagement of litigation that had been conducted in Guernsey and a foreign jurisdiction.

- Contentious trusts | Advising a Guernsey trustee in dealing with an investigation launched by the US tax authorities against the trust.

- Contentious insolvency and restructuring | Acting on behalf of a large international Bank as the primary creditor in applying to have a Guernsey company, which held a multi-million pound London property, placed into administration because of a debt it owed the Bank which exceeded £50 million and then seeking the recognition of the appointment of the joint administrators in England and Wales.

- Insurance related litigation | Acting for insured architects and other construction professionals facing claims for professional negligence.

- Regulatory | Advising directors in connection with GFSC regulatory investigations.

- Property | Acting for commercial clients, both tenants and landlords, on disputes relating to rent and repair obligations, surrender agreements, dilapidations and building and repair works.

Admitted in: 2016 - Guernsey | 2003 - England and Wales

Bryan is a member of the Institute of Directors, the Guernsey International Legal Association, INSOL and ARIES (Association of Restructuring and Insolvency Experts - the Channel Islands chapter of INSOL).