Laura is Of Counsel in the Insolvency and Restructuring Team. Laura's practice focuses upon the insolvency and corporate rescue space.
Laura has particular interests in litigation that arises in the context of financial distress, and in assisting clients with navigating insolvency procedures and management of risk. She acts for distressed companies, their creditors, directors and other stakeholders and she has considerable experience of acting for insolvency officeholders.
Laura's experience includes:
- Advising individuals, companies and directors on the implementation or circumvention of insolvency procedures – including administration, liquidation and bankruptcy.
- Defending and pursuing of claims arising under the Insolvency Act 1986, including claims for the recovery of preferences and other antecedent transactions; misfeasance, wrongful and fraudulent trading; and actions to obtain information and/or assets pursuant to officeholders' statutory powers of enquiry (sections 234 to 236 of the Act).
- Advising insolvency practitioners in relation to the conduct of formal insolvency procedures, including regulatory issues, trading, creditor claims, asset recovery and investigations.
Laura is a member of the R3 Association of Business Recovery Professionals and the Insolvency Lawyers' Association. Laura is also a certified Legal Project Manager and a member of the Association of Project Managers, the Chartered Body for the Project Profession.
Key Experience
Laura's recent cases of note include:
- PJSC Uralkali –v- Rowley and Baker as Former Joint Administrators of Force India Formula One Team Limited [2020] EWHC 3442 (Ch). Laura was the lead associate acting to defend proceedings, which were brought against the administrators of Force India. The claim was brought in connection with the sale of the F1 team in 2018, which followed on from the team's financial deterioration during the 2018 F1 season. This was a high profile case, due to the F1 context. It has also been a case of great interest to the insolvency community and the decision has been welcomed by the insolvency industry. Read the High Court Judgment, here.
- Defending a multimillion dollar claim brought against de jure directors of an insolvency company incorporated in St Vincent & the Grenadines, which was connected to the bankruptcy of Mikhail Shlosberg. These insolvencies gave rise to a great deal of litigation and comment in the insolvency community and academic forums. Laura acted as lead associate defending claims brought by the liquidators of the company against the directors, alleging breaches of directors' duties.
Other experience:
- Acting for the administrators of the companies that owned and operated the Caterham Formula One Team, in all aspects of the conduct of the administrations.
- Acting for liquidators in a contentious matter relating to a company incorporated in Luxembourg, which changed its centre of main interests to England & Wales and upon entering UK administration, was the subject of the UK's largest pre-packaged administration sale.
- Acting in relation to an application to place AirFast Tickets Limited into administration and thereafter acting for the administrators in relation to contentious and advisory matters.
- Acting for the administrators of a company concerned with mining of precious metals in relation to a litigation funding agreement for the enforcement of a $10m arbitration award.
- Acting for the liquidator of high-profile property development company, in relation to the conduct of the liquidation and investigations.
- Defending a claim for the recovery of alleged preference, transaction at undervalue and transaction defrauding creditors.
- Acting for a consortium of creditors in placing a company into administration and thereafter acting for the subsidiary company's liquidators in connection with investigations and creditor claims.
Career History
Of Counsel, Mishcon de Reya LLP
Managing Associate, Mishcon de Reya LLP
Associate, Mishcon de Reya LLP
Solicitor, Mishcon de Reya
Associate, Charles Russell LLP
Trainee Solicitor, Veale Wasbrough Vizards
University of West of England, LPC (Distinction)
University of Reading, LLB (Hons) (First)
Articles and Publications
Laura is a contributing author to Tolley's Insolvency Law Service, a prestigious loose-leaf text published by Lexis Nexis. Laura writes on the topic of funding insolvency litigation. Most recently, Laura contributed to the Insolvency Intelligence Journal, having co-authored an article titled "Claims Against Administrators by a Party who is Neither a Creditor Nor a Shareholder" ((2021)) 34 Insolvency Intelligence, Issue 2).