Tom Richards

Tom has a general commercial practice that ranges from small claims in the County Court to substantial Commercial Court litigation.  He has conducted advocacy, advisory and drafting work in a variety of fields, including aviation, consumer credit, construction, economic torts, partnership, the recovery of goods and trusts, acting as a junior or as sole counsel.

Berezovsky v Abramovich 2007 Folio 942
Tom is acting for the Claimant (led by Barbara Dohmann QC, James Eadie QC and Andrew George) in these ongoing Commercial Court proceedings.

As a pupil, Tom gained experience assisting his pupil supervisors in a full range of commercial work, including in relation to the following reported cases: 

• Aegis Electrical and Gas International Services Co Ltd v Continental Casualty Co [2007] EWHC 1762 (Comm); [2008] Lloyd's Rep. I.R. 17.  Tom assisted Andrew Hunter who acted for the Claimant in this reinsurance dispute, which turned on issues of contractual interpretation, including the effect of a ‘follow the settlements’ clause in a reinsurance contract.   
• Customs and Excise Commissioners v Total Network SL [2008] UKHL 19; [2008] 2 W.L.R. 711.  Tom assisted Tom Weisselberg in preparatory work for this appeal to the House of Lords, in which Tom Weisselberg acted (led by Charles Flint QC) for Total Network. 

Tom frequently appears in the Employment Tribunals, and his practice includes a variety of claimant and respondent work. 

As a pupil in Chambers, Tom assisted his pupil supervisors in cases in employment tribunals and the EAT (unfair dismissal, discrimination and whistleblowing) and in the High Court (employee competition, restrictive covenants and injunctive relief), as well as settlement by mediation.  He assisted Pupil Supervisor Tom Croxford on matters including TUPE transfer, age discrimination, and EC and international aspects of employment law. 

Tom has a broad-based public law and human rights practice.  

Tom is currently acting (led by Mike Fordham QC) for Friends of the Earth and Help the Aged in judicial review proceedings relating to the government’s fuel poverty strategy.

Tom’s public law practice as sole counsel has included appearing (for the applicant) in the Asylum & Immigration Tribunals, drafting a complaint to the Parliamentary Ombudsman of maladministration by a public body, and advising a charity on public order issues in relation to a proposed demonstration.

Tom also has particular experience of the law of coroners.

As a pupil, Tom assisted his supervisors in advisory work and judicial review proceedings in a variety of contexts, including extradition, VAT & Customs, coroners’ inquests, GMC disciplinary proceedings, and financial and utilities regulation. 

Tom has experience of sports law work both as a pupil and in his own practice since being taken on as a tenant in chambers.

Tom has appeared as an advocate before the internal appeal committee of a sports organisation, acting for the organisation in disciplinary proceedings against a coach.  He has advised another sports organisation, and appeared on its behalf in the County Court, in relation to a claim that involved (among other things) the application of an arbitration clause in the organisation’s rules.

Tom’s experience of sports law as a pupil included assisting pupil supervisor Andrew Hunter in advising the organisers of a sporting competition on issues of EC competition law and the legality of gambling advertising under UK law, and the McLaren-Mercedes case, in which Tom assisted Andrew Hunter who acted (led by Ian Mill QC) for the McLaren-Mercedes F1 team in two sets of disciplinary proceedings before the World Motor Sport Council. 

As a pupil, Tom gained broad experience of litigious and advisory work in the field of media and entertainment, and he has a particular interest in copyright.

Tom is currently acting (led by Pushpinder Saini QC) for the Defendant in an ongoing claim for breach of copyright, involving issues including the application of the public interest defence to such claims.

Tom’s experience of media and entertainment work as a pupil included:

• assisted supervisor Tom Weisselberg in advising a record company on contractual and competition law issues concerning the exploitation of online and digital rights in music recordings; 
• assisted supervisor Andrew Hunter in advising a vocal artist on the merits of a claim against his former business partner and manager, addressing questions of conflict of laws, contract, partnership and copyright; 
• assisted Andrew Hunter in settling particulars of claim in a number of music industry disputes involving copyright, contractual or partnership issues, including claims by an ex-band member against his former band-mates, a music producer against a record company, and one record label against another. 

Scholarships and Prizes:

2007 Phoenicia Scholarship (Bar European Group)
2005 The Uthwatt Award (Gray’s Inn)
2004 David Karmel Entrance Award (Gray’s Inn)
2003 Passmore-Edwards Prize (Oxford University prize for best performance in Classics & English Finals)
Magdalen College Selig Poetry Prize
2002 Magdalen College Tutorial Prize in English
2001 Passmore-Edwards Prize (Oxford University prize for best performance in Classics & English Honour Moderations);  Magdalen College Scholarship; Magdalen College Lawlor Prize in English

Publications:

Tolley’s Discrimination in Employment Handbook, London, 2008 (contributor).