Robert Darbyshire

Areas of Practice

Trusts, Wills and Estates, Capacity and the Court of Protection
Commercial and Chancery Litigation
Landlord and Tenant
Professional Negligence 

Profile

Pre- and post-issue advice and representation in Courts, Tribunals and mediations dealing with:

- Probate
Inheritance Act claims, including those involving minors and high value or complex estates; removal of executors; incapacity claims; claims by and against personal representatives

- Court of Protection
Welfare and finance deputyship issues; DoLS; capacity assessments; best interests decisions;  detention and restraint; consent to medical treatment; anticipatory declarations; experience in acting for patients, local authorities and third parties

- Property
TLATA claims; boundary disputes; rights of way claims; nuisance; trespass; conveyancing; construction disputes; adverse possession

- Business tenancies
Possession claims; renewal disputes; dilapidations; forfeiture

- Domestic tenancies
Service charge disputes; private and public sector possession claims; Equality Act claims; succession

- Commercial
Sale of goods; directors' duties; shareholder disputes; guarantees; partnership; claims for injunctive relief; insurance claims

- Professional negligence
Claims against solicitors, barristers, surveyors, accountants, architects

Notable Cases

• Wallace v Manchester City Council CA (1998) 30 HLR 1111 - a leading authority on damages for disrepair
• New Charter Housing v Ashcroft  CA [2004] HLR 36 - the grounds on which possession orders might be suspended
• Manchester City Council v Romano CA [2004] 4 All ER 21 - disability discrimination by landlords
• Re 26 Camberly Drive (2008) LP/40/2006 - application to modify covenant affecting freehold land
• Trafford Housing Trust v Rubenstein [2013] UKUT 0581 - time limits in "major works" charges by landlords
• Taylor v Burton CA [2014] EWCA Civ 21 - costs in boundary disputes
• Richards v Wood CA [2014] EWCA Civ 327 - construction of trust affecting former council house
• Taylor v Burton CA [2015] EWCA Civ 142 - significance of "subject to contract" qualification

Prescribed Information

Robert Darbyshire is a practising barrister, who is regulated by the Bar Standards Board. Details of information held by the BSB about him can be found here.

Mr Darbyshire’s clerks will happily provide no obligation quotations for all the legal services that he provides. Their contact details can be found here. It is most common for him to attend Courts, Tribunals and Mediations for a fixed brief fee plus a fee for each refresher day. Advisory work, paperwork and conferences are usually charged at an hourly rate, often subject to an agreed cap. Mr Darbyshire accepts Conditional Fee Agreements at his discretion and only in truly exceptional circumstances. Paperwork will typically be returned within 14 days, however professional commitments, complexity and volume of documentation can affect this approximate timescales. If papers are required more promptly, please contact the clerks in Chambers here.