The High Court has ordered a quick trial with regard to the ownership dispute of
The dispute focuses on a bid by US private equity group Westbrook, which owns the long leasehold on the 1,250-flat block in Pimlico, London SW1, to force freeholder Friends Provident (FP) to sell the property.
This morning, Stephen Jourdan, counsel for FP, successfully applied to have the dispute determined at a three-day hearing on the first available court date after 12 January 2009 on the ground that the financial loss being suffered by his client as a result of the non-determination of the claim was “quite extraordinary” and amounted to £13,000 a day.
The dispute began last year after Westbrook set up a series of Jersey-listed companies, each owning two of the flats, in an attempt to use enfranchisement laws to buy the freeholds. In October, Westbrook served a collective leasehold enfranchisement notice on FP.
However, FP rebuffed this in November with a counter-notice alleging that the flat leases were “shams” and “were held by the participating tenants [of
At trial, The High Court will have to determine whether these claims are “unfounded” and whether Westbrook is entitled to exercise the right to collective enfranchisement.
Westbrook Dolphin Square Ltd v Friends Provident Life and Pensions Ltd Chancery Division (Lewison J) 19 June 2008.
Wayne Clark (instructed by Pemberton Greenish) appeared for the claimant; Stephen Jourdan (instructed by Herbert Smith) appeared for the defendant.
