About Rowan

Legal 500, 2019 – 2023

• Tier 1, Leading Junior in the South East in Property and Construction
• Rowan is phenomenal – putting tremendous effort into the detailed preparation of the case. She is resilient, challenging, articulate, persuasive, eloquent, known to ask clients the right questions and grappling with every piece of information provided.’

Overview

• Rowan is a modern, approachable barrister who is well liked for her excellent client care skills and her ability to work in partnership with her solicitors and clients. She is well adept at understanding and explaining complex legal arguments and has astute case management and tactical awareness. For the majority of cases she is involved at an early stage, drafting pleadings, and attending conferences with the client.
• Rowan’s advice and drafting work is precise, and thoroughly researched, but also commercially practical. She understands the need to work to tight time frames when needed and is always on hand to deal with the unpredictable nature of her caseload.

Property and Construction

• Rowan has a diverse property practice that incorporates trusts of land (tolata), proprietary estoppel, easements and covenants, rights of way, and adverse possession.
• Rowan conducted an 11-day breach of trust and account trial, having assisted in the litigation for over three years. It involved close family ties and a breakdown of the relationship between brother and sister co-owners of a £2.4m London property. Rental income and renovation works over 6 years turned into a hugely complex accounting process, the second largest in Judge Lightman’s history of some 25 years sitting at Central London on accounts cases.
• The matter went to appeal, where Rowan successfully opposed a complex legal argument relating to the status of the proceeds of crime element of the account.
• A further notable case: a 6 day fraudulent misrepresentation on a property information form (TA6). The seller failed to declare disputes with neighbours and Rowan successfully achieved rescission of the contract in circumstances where the property was purchased as a bed and breakfast business, and there was a significant passage of time between the sale and the trial.
• Rowan has developed a significant TOLATA practice, and has dealt with some complex occupation rent arguments, an example being a property that was acquired as a plot of land, developed into what was to be a residential living space, but never achieved planning. Occupation rent was awarded for five years despite the property being uninhabitable and the client not desiring to live there.
• Rowan has experience with wide ranging construction disputes often involving oral reports from architects, structural engineers and quantity surveyors, as well as dealing with associated legal arguments regarding liquidated damages, unjust enrichment, and failure of basis. Rowan has represented clients at arbitration, and mediation as well as at first instance and on appeal.

Probate

• Rowan’s probate practice often overlaps with her property work, arguments of common intention constructive trust and proprietary estoppel on behalf of the estate of equitable beneficiaries.
• One such case started as a Part 8 claim by a father for a declaration against his daughter in circumstances where he had bought the property as a sole owner in 2005, but his daughter had lived there for 15 years, on the understanding she was the 100% beneficiary. She issued a probate counterclaim 8 years after limitation had expired on her potential claim pursuant to the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependents) Act 1975 claim.
• One of Rowan’s current contentious probate matters involves a factual dispute between the testatrix’ friends who recall there was an original will stored at solicitors offices, however that solicitor had since merged with another firm and denied having ever held the original will. There is dispute as to whether a presumption in favour of the revocation of the will arises on the facts of the case, and whether there is sufficient evidence to rebut that presumption. The case is to propound in favour of the copy of the will. The case bears striking similarities to Blyth v Sykes 2019] EWHC 54 (Ch).
• Many of Rowan’s probate matters have involving advising and drafting Beddoe orders, to ensure executors have indemnity for costs from the estate before issuing or defending litigation.

Employment

• Rowan has a particular interest in discrimination and whistleblowing, and has acted in cases for and against both multi-national private and public companies including organisations such as the NHS and Ministry of Justice.
• Rowan is currently acting in a complex disability discrimination claim on behalf of an adult employee whose disciplinary conduct arose as a consequence of his disability. A major British multinational retail employer failed to safeguard him and the co-employee involved and refused to consider the causal connection between the behaviour and the disability despite an imminent occupational health report advising on that very issue. The dispute includes a complex personal injury claim for the resulting mental health breakdown.
• The Legal 500 featured Rowan as one of the leading Juniors in the South East Employment for three years prior to her entry into the Property and Construction section.