Our Advocates

Professional Information:

Year of Call: 1999
Devil Masters: Maria Maguire QC; Johanna Johnston QC; Derek Ogg QC
Qalifications: LL.B (Hons) (Aberdeen), Ph.D (Edinburgh), Dip.LP


Biography:

David has a wide ranging practice covering many different aspects of civil law. He is particularly strong in the areas of heritable property, trust work, general commercial work and contract.

David has a keen interest in international commercial arbitration and has practical experience of various forms of alternative dispute resolution including arbitration, adjudication and mediation.  He is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (F.C.I.Arb) and is currently working towards Chartered Status.  In 2007 he completed the Diploma Course in International Commercial Arbitration (Dip.I.C.Arb) run by the CIArb in conjunction with Keble College, University of Oxford.  He is a CEDR Accredited mediator and is on various appointing panels.

David has also been appointed an Honorary Lecturer in Dispute Resolution at the CEPMLP (Centre for Energy, Petroleum, Mineral Law and Policy) and Honorary Research Fellow in International Commercial Law and Arbitration in the School of Law, both at the University of Dundee.  He is also co-founder of the LLM (Distance Learning) Degree in the School of Law at the University of Dundee and principal lecturer and Module Co-ordinator for the International Commercial Arbitration part of that degree.

David has appeared before the High Court of Justiciary, Outer and Inner House, Sheriff Court First Instance and at Appeal, the Scottish Land Court and the Scottish Lands Tribunal.  David also has rights of audience in other jurisdictions; he has acquired Higher Rights of Audience before the Commercial Court of the International Finance Centre (DIFC) (Parts I & II) and has rights of audience before the Qatar Financial Centre Civil and Commercial Court, Doha, Qatar.  He is an associate member of Crown Office Chambers, the largest civil common law set of chambers in London.


Professional Appointments:

• Passed Examination for Membership of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (Scottish Branch): M.C.I.Arb. thereafter elected Fellow of the Institute (FCIArb)
• Elected a Fellow of the Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures&Commerce (FRSA)
• Elected a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland (FSAScot)
• Elected to the Council of The Stair Society, Edinburgh
• Elected to the Society for Legal Scholars
• Elected Fellow of the Society for Advanced Legal Studies (FSALS)
• Appointed Consultant to the Lord Gill's Review of the Civil Courts
• Appointed an adviser to and researcher for the Scottish Parliament's Civil Justice Committees as appointed by The Scottish Parliament's in-house research specialists SPICe (Scottish Parliament Information Centre)
• Associate Member of Crown Office Chambers

Publications and Papers:

• Various publications on Package Travel Regulations, Civil Procedure, Written Pleadings and Legal History. Book on Written Pleadings forthcoming.
• Various lectures and conference papers on legal history and written pleadings topics

Recent Cases:

• Bibby Factors Limited v. Brady 4 December 2002 CSOH 23 Sh Princ Bowen, (Interpretation of a commercial contract [all sums guarantee])
• Trygort (No2) Limited v. UK Home Finance Ltd & George Wimpey UK Ltd. 17th November 2006 Commercial Court Glasgow: Interpretation of Commercial Lease Break Option Clause in respect of Spent Breaches and Valid Operation of Option (Pending appeal to the Inner House - see below)
• Gregor Shore Limited v. Manclark December 2006 Civil Court Reports, Edinburgh Sheriff Court: (Enforcement of domestic Missives.) 
• Ness Heritable Limited v. JHP Securities Limited, Stirling Sheriff Court, June 2007 (Consequences of Settling Disputed Dilapidations Claim in respect of Commercial Tenancy by Tender and failure on part of Defenders to move for expenses at point of Minute of Acceptance of Tender.
• Gregor Shore v. Wilson Edinburgh Sheriff Court June 2008 (Failures of defenders to obtemper contractual obligations under Missives for sale of Property)
• Robertson Bros v. Scotia Haddington Sheriff Court, Construction Dispute in connection with fabrication and installation of steelwork in Construction Project.
• Free Church of Scotland v General Assembly of the Free Church of Scotland 2005 1 S.C. 396 per Lady Paton,  [Junior Counsel in 4 week Debate in respect of seceding non-Establishment Church] Led by James McNeill QC.
• McKie v. MacRae 2006 SLT 46 per Lord Glennie [Junior Counsel in Debate on Novel Question of Competency of Dismissal For Delay -  Scotland's First Striking Out Case)