James is an established Chancery and commercial practitioner. He brings together insightful understanding of the legal and factual aspects and makes complex matters easy to understand for the lay client. He enjoys teaching and lecturing on all aspects of his practice with a passion for wills, trusts, ecclesiastical law, conveyancing, land law and laws relating to burial grounds.
James Normington has lectured on a range of subjects including Costs, Easements, Chancel Repair Liability, Trusts of Land & Chancery Procedure & Protocol. He is also available to give seminars & training upon request.
James is also a non-executive director of England’s largest Credit Union. He also served 11 years as an officer in the Royal Air Force Reserves.
Commercial Law
- Regularly instructed in Contractual, Commercial & Partnership litigation.
- Experienced in arbitrations and alternative dispute resolution.
- Acted & advised in Commercial & Civil frauds. Most notably junior counsel in a £1.5 million commercial fraud case in the High Court.
- Experienced in advising on contracts involving the carriage of goods by land and sea.
- Frequently instructed to act and advise in cross-jurisdiction litigation and enforcement matters including English-Scots and transatlantic actions.
- Routinely instructed in cases involving unlawful conversion of goods.
Costs
- Instructed in all forms of costs proceedings including “costs only” proceedings.
- Experienced in dealing with wasted costs & “show cause” applications.
- Frequently instructed in as an advocate in detailed assessments.
Professional Negligence
- Experienced in dealing with multi-party professional negligence actions. Junior Counsel in ‘Son of TAG’ litigation brought by AXA against 78 law firms.
- Instructed on a number of cases against and on behalf of a wide range of professionals including surveyors, veterinarians, and solicitors.
Land, Trusts, Wills & Probate
- Experienced in acting & advising in trusts involving foreign subject matter & foreign beneficiaries.
- Frequently instructed in property disputes including easements, rights of way, boundary disputes, trusts of land, private nuisance, adverse possession & trespass for a range of clients including companies, government agencies, local authorities, charities, individuals and unincorporated associations.
- Acts and advises on wills & probate, both contentious & non-contentious, including Inheritance Act claims.
- Experienced practitioner dealing in Ecclesiastical Law. Special interests in Chancel Repair Liability and law relating to burial grounds. Recent cases include acting for a widow in a dispute involving her husband’s burial plot and a mediation involving a private chapel.
Landlord & Tenant
- Regularly instructed to act on behalf of Local Authorities in all aspects of residential housing.
- Experienced in dealing with commercial property including dilapidation claims.
Insolvency & Debt Recovery
- Experienced in covering all aspects of Bankruptcy & personal insolvency.
- Frequently instructed by UK financial institutions in debt recovery actions.
- Experienced in acting and advising on enforcing foreign judgment debts. Co-author of an article on enforcing foreign judgements in England & Wales.
Practice Areas
Appointments & Memberships
- Sweet & Maxwell Prize (2005)
- Neville Laski Prize (2005)
- BVC Major Exhibition (2004)
- Duke of Edinburgh Scholarship (2004)
- British Veterinary Forensic Law Association
- Chancery Bar Association
- Ecclesiastical Law Society
Education
- MA (Hons)
Publications & Speaking
‘Stack v Dowden: Joint Ownership & Legal Ownership in England & Wales’ (International Bar Association Newsletter, 2008): Analysis and commentary on this landmark decision focusing on aspects of significance to international real estate transactions.
‘Chancel Repair Liability’ (LegalHub, 2007): An overview of the legal complexities relating to chancel repair liability. In addition to looking at its origins, the article provides guidance on how to identify the liability and the future of the liability as an interest in land.
‘Reaping the Rewards’ (NY Litigator, 2007): A discussion regarding the enforcement of US state and federal money judgments in the jurisdiction of England and Wales.