Commercial

Elis enjoys a broad chancery and commercial practice and has a particular expertise in the following areas:

Trusts, wills and probate:
Elis undertakes a wide range of work in contentious and non-contentious trusts and probate, from drafting settlement deeds and advising on matters relating to the administration of estates to contentious probate and trust actions. He has a particular interest in claims involving breach of trust, civil fraud and tracing, and also undertakes professional negligence work focusing mainly on trustees, solicitors’ and will-writers’ negligence.

A large part of Elis’ practice in this area concerns claims under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 and the Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996 (TOLATA), resulting and constructive trust cases, and proprietary estoppel matters. He has experience of high-value matters and cases involving simultaneous claims under both Acts or as corollaries to contentious probate claims, together with other aspects of contentious probate including mental capacity issues and undue influence.

Some of Elis’ recent cases in this area include applications for the removal of executors, advising on the validity of inter vivos gifts and donatio mortis causae, and a high-value action in the High Court relating to the ownership of a deceased company director’s shares.

Elis also has a busy paper practice in addition to his court work, and he accepts instructions to advise and draft pleadings and applications in all of his specialist fields, together with non-contentious drafting such as trust deeds and will trusts. It is always his aim to return paperwork as soon as possible.

Commercial litigation:
Elis acts and advises on a broad range of commercial matters. He undertakes general commercial disputes relating to breaches of contract, defective goods and services, breaches of warranty in commercial contracts, guarantee and indemnity actions and enforcement proceedings. He is also frequently instructed in building disputes and Technology and Construction Court matters, where his experience in other areas of property law can be particularly useful.

Elis has a particular interest in partnership law. He acts in a broad spectrum of matters in this area, from matters involving partnership property, dissolution and winding up to breaches of partnership agreements and of fiduciary obligations, exclusion of partners and the protection of partnership assets.

Elis undertakes trials, applications and interim hearings. He has a particular interest in pre-emptive remedies in commercial cases and recognises that a swift, decisive and cost-effective pre-trial solution is a vital objective for many commercial actions. He regularly undertakes applications for freezing injunctions, search orders and security for costs in addition to procedural and summary applications.

Property:
Elis undertakes all aspects of property work. He has appeared in cases relating to mortgages, the construction of leases and contracts for the sale of land, and recently acted as junior to David Berkley QC in a multi-million pound claim involving specific performance and misrepresentation. He is frequently instructed in boundary disputes, claims involving easements and trespass to land matters, and is mindful of the need to manage clients’ expectations and the careful handling required by these often difficult cases.

A substantial proportion of Elis’ property work concerns commercial landlord and tenant disputes; he has a particular interest in dilapidation claims, agricultural tenancies, applications to renew business tenancies under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 and disputes over service charges. He has experience of cases in the Lands Tribunal, the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal and of Land Registry adjudications, and is currently acting for a nationwide property company in a number of cases concerning allegations of fraudulent property transactions.

Insolvency:
Elis has a wide-ranging insolvency practice, and acts for both creditors and debtors in all aspects of personal and corporate insolvency. His practice includes applications in the County Court, the High Court and at appellate level, contested creditors’ petitions and statutory demands, voluntary arrangements, applications to restrain presentation or advertisement of winding-up petitions, transactional avoidance cases, receiverships and administrations. He has a particular expertise in dealing with applications under section 282 and section 375 of the Insolvency Act 1986.

He has also acted on behalf of Trustees in Bankruptcy in proceedings arising out of the administration of bankrupts’ estates, and has experience of dealing with applications for Bankruptcy Restrictions Orders and directors’ disqualification.

Public/Administrative Law

Housing:
Elis also undertakes residential landlord and tenant work. He acts almost exclusively on behalf of landlords and is fully conversant with the problems that can face both private and social landlords when disputes arise. Elis has a particular interest in disrepair claims and has experience of dealing with such issues as claims in themselves (with or without a personal injury element pursuant to the Defective Premises Act 1972) and as defences in rent possession claims. He is also experienced in dealing with public law issues and defences citing the Human Rights Act 1998 and the Equality Act 2010 in social housing claims.

Elis has significant experience of all types of possession claims and a number of his previous cases in this area have involved possession claims brought in unusual circumstances. He has recently acted on behalf of a charitable trust in a case requiring a determination as to whether the property’s occupant was a tenant or simply a beneficiary of the trust, and has also been involved in a case where the tenant’s insolvency was said to be capable of defeating a suspended possession order.

Elis has experience of cases arising from sale and rent back transactions and is conversant with the issues peculiar to such cases; he has also dealt with cases involving squatters, trespassers and itinerant defendants, and is committed to upholding the property-owner’s rights in such situations.

Personal Injury

Elis undertakes a wide spectrum of personal injury work. He has been instructed in employers’ liability matters, road traffic accident claims, tripping and slipping claims and occupiers’ liability matters. He has a particular interest, due to his expertise in landlord and tenant law, in cases involving defective premises and injuries arising from breaches of duty to repair.

Elis acts for both Claimants and Defendants and is happy to accept cases on a conditional fee basis. His practice encompasses trials, applications, infant settlements and disposal hearings in court.

Elis also has a particular expertise in credit hire matters, having undertaken such cases for both Claimants and Defendants at a variety of levels, and can provide specialist knowledge in respect of this often difficult area of law.

Elis’ paper practice includes advising on liability and quantum in all types of personal injury cases and the drafting of pleadings and schedules of loss. He is conscious of the time pressures faced by clients and always endeavours to provide a quick turnaround on paperwork.