Nigel Sanders

Practice Areas

Nigel is one of the leading commercial litigation and trust disputes lawyers in Jersey with over 30 years’ experience as a contentious practitioner.

As well as commercial and trusts disputes, he also has expertise in contentious insolvency and corporate matters, contentious regulatory advisory work and competition law disputes.

He regularly advises clients on cross-border issues relating to trusts, probate, insolvency, fraud and asset tracing, and corporate and commercial disputes.

Nigel regularly appears before the Jersey Court and has represented professional and institutional clients as well as individuals in a range of important cases.

He has practiced in Jersey, England and Wales, the British Virgin and Cayman Islands.

Nigel is the current President of the Law Society of Jersey having been elected in 2024.

Professional Memberships

- President of the Law Society of Jersey

- Member of the Law Society of England and Wales

- Member of INSOL Member of ARIES

Experience

Nigel worked in Walkers' Cayman Island office between 2003 – 2006. He rejoined us in 2019, as a partner in our Jersey office. Between that time, he was with another leading firm in Jersey, where he headed up their Dispute Resolution department for a number of years.

Nigel trained as a solicitor in London with Frere Cholmeley, before joining Macfarlanes where he spent time in both Abu Dhabi and London.

Work Highlights

A selection of Nigel's recent representative experience includes:

- Acting for beneficiaries in contested trustee blessing application involving important appellate decision concerning the role of the Court in such applications including whether it might provide 'non-binding guidance' (Representation of SG Kleinwort Hambros Trust (CI) Limited and Others [2023] JCA 088).

- Acting for a beneficiary in a trustee blessing applications involving the distribution of significant funds for philanthropic purposes (In the Matter of the Wigwam Trust [2020] JRC 228 and [2022] JRC 268).

- Acting for the trustees in multiple applications to the Jersey Court in relation to the Piedmont Trust and the Riviera Trust which determined important principles of Jersey trust law regarding trustee decision making and appointment/removal, revocation and costs.

- Acting for UHNW beneficiary group in proceedings concerning highly complex and high value trust structures in connection with overseas proceedings.

- Acting as guardian for the minor and unborn beneficiaries of a branch of an UHNW family in a hostile trustee blessing application concerning decisions relating to a high profile operating business owned within the trust structure.

- Acting in cases brought to set aside trusts and transfers of assets into trusts under the mistake provisions of the Trusts (Jersey) law (Representation of P [2021] JRC157; Representation of Q [2021] JRC 166; In the Matter of the E Settlement [2018] JRC 143; Representation of G [2016] JRC 166C).

- Acting for applicant in judicial review proceedings relating to untested group based tax information requests made pursuant to the double tax agreement between Jersey and the UK (G4S International Employment Services Limited v The Comptroller of Revenue [2024] JRC 070]).

- Acting for applicant shareholder in just and equitable winding up proceedings involving the interplay between winding up and arbitration (Shinhan Securities v KS Asia Absolute Return Fund & Ors [2023(1)JLR29]).

- Acting for applicant shareholder in just and equitable winding up of a closed ended Jersey fund (Euro Value Investment Company I v Greater Europe Deep Value Fund II [2013 (1) JLR 70].)

- Acting for liquidators in a cross-jurisdictional group liquidation in an application for pooling assets and liabilities between Jersey and Guernsey companies (Representation of Huelin Renouf Shipping [2015 (2) 148]).

Expert in these Jurisdictions

- Jersey

- England and Wales (not practising)

- BVI (not practising)

- Cayman Islands (not practising)

Industry Sector Expertise

Insolvency and Dispute Resolution

Education