Biography
Paul is a partner and has nearly 30 years’ experience in complex multi-jurisdictional commercial and insolvency related disputes and has acted in some of the largest and highest profile insolvencies of recent times.
Paul’s work is generally claimant focused, often with a heavy investigative bias. His clients include many of the leading accountancy firms and their officeholders, as well as individuals and corporates across a range of specialist sectors.
Prior to joining Signature Paul was a partner in the commercial litigation team at Stewarts for 10 years and before that he was at PwC Legal where he led the Commercial Litigation team. Previously Paul was at Simmons & Simmons and SJ Berwin.
Paul is recognised for his commercial litigation expertise in The Legal 500 UK 2023 Guide. He has also been recommended for civil fraud and banking litigation and is commended as “a highly accomplished insolvency litigator“, who “is fantastic in highly complex insolvency cases where his knowledge and experience put him head and shoulders above others“. Previous guides have described Paul as a “notable practitioner” for banking litigation and “highly recommended” for commercial litigation. He is further praised as “charming, well organised and a pleasure to litigate with.”
Paul is a member of the Association of Business Recovery Professionals (R3) and the International Bar Association and is also a Board Trustee of a charity focused on enfranchising marginalised young women in India through education.
Experience
- Acting for large French insurer in proceedings arising from the Lehman Brothers’ Administration in respect of various claims and counterclaims concerning Forward Financial Instruments made under FBF Master Agreements.
- Acting for a minority shareholder in s.994 and employment proceedings against the off-shore owners of a Data Centre business.
- Acting for the Applicant liquidators in Akers and Anr v Deutsche Bank AG (Re Chesterfield United Inc and Partridge Management Group SA) [2012] EWHC 244 (Ch). A cross border insolvency case in which the Court confirmed that the liquidators of Chesterfield and Partridge, two BVI registered companies in liquidation, could rely on the broad powers afforded to British insolvency office holders under section 236 Insolvency Act 1986, in an application brought under Article 21 of the UNCITRAL Model Law on Cross Border Insolvency (under the CBIR 2006).
- Acting for the liquidators of Stanford International Bank Ltd in regard to claims against HSBC arising from the fraud perpetrated by Robert Allen Stanford and others which resulted in an estimated USD 4,4bn loss.
- Advising Cayman based liquidators in AHAB v SICL in relation to the nature and propriety of certain esoteric financial instruments (Accreting Strike Options).
Publications
Government responds to insolvency-sector reform consultation – CDR News – 12 September 2023
The shackles re-applied: Quincecare duty back under lock and key – Compliance Monitor – 31 August 2023
UK Supreme Court decision on Quincecare: Banks can breathe a sigh of relief – Thomson Reuters Regulatory Intelligence – 24 July 2023
Corporate Governance Code: a missed opportunity? – Solicitors Journal – 20 July 2023
More ESG integration is needed in UK corporate governance – The FT’s Sustainable Views – 10 July 2023
Lords report calls for ‘failure to prevent fraud’ offence – Fraud Intelligence – 17 January 2023
The House of Lords fraud report and the UK’s battle against fraud – New Law Journal – 13 January 2023
What’s in the second Economic Crime Bill? – ICAEW Insights podcast – 7 December 2022
What does the new Economic Crime Bill hold in store for accountants and company directors? – Accountancy Daily – 28 November 2022
Economic Crime Bill may have some unpredictable implications for insurers – Insurance Day – 9 November 2022
What to expect from the UK’s new Economic Crime Bill – Law360 – 3 November 2022
Lack of professional scepticism leads to audit failings – Accountancy Daily – 20 October 2022
Landmark Supreme Court judgment on the creditor duty – The Law Society Gazette – 14 October 2022
Supreme Court rules on director duty to creditors – Accountancy Daily – 7 October 2022
‘Landmark’ ruling on duty to creditors – The Daily Telegraph – 6 October 2022
FRC’s new guidance even more essential in light of recent audit failings – Accountancy Today – 9 September 2022
PwC fined £1.8 million for BT Italy audit failures – Evening Standard – 8 August 2022
Quincecare qualified? – Thomson Reuters Regulatory Intelligence – 14 June 2022
Who ate all the PIEs? Audit reform for Public Interest Entities – Fraud Intelligence – 23 May 2022
FRC audit licensing and a doomed effort to curtail fraud – Accountancy Today – 20 May 2022
Can lessons be learnt from the apparently ceaseless flow of regulatory findings and fines? – Thomson Reuters Regulatory Intelligence – 4 May 2022
Company directorship: corporate criminal risks – Accountancy Daily – 26 April 2022
Audit Watchdog Fines Deloitte £1.45M Over Botched Audit – Law360 – 21 April 2022
Quincecare quarrel: How interpretations of a historic duty may transform the landscape of banking fraud claims – Thomson Reuters Regulatory Intelligence – 1 April 2022
Company directorships: ESG and the risks of private actions – Accountancy Daily – 28 March 2022
PwC Becomes Latest Subject of Investigations – Bloomberg Tax – 7 March 2022
Company directors: increased scrutiny and enforcement – Accountancy Daily – 3 March 2022
Tecnimont Arabia v NatWest – Law.com – 22 January 2022
When the Quinces don’t care… – Fraud Intelligence – 15 January 2022
FRC auditor fines in 2022 – Blog – 12 January 2022
Revealed: The Top 20 Cases of 2022 – The Lawyer – 10 January 2022
Challenger firms wilt under Big Four audit dominance – Accounting Web – 11 November 2021
Challenging the ‘billion-dollar quartet’ – The Law Society Gazette – 1 November 2021
PD57AC – a sledgehammer to crack a nut? – The Law Society Gazette – 25 October 2021
Trial witness statements: a new direction – PLC Magazine – 1 October 2021
Grant Thornton UK fined $3.2M for Patisserie Valerie audit lapses – Compliance Week – 27 September 2021
What The Future Holds For UK Auditing Reform – Law360 – 17 September 2021
Supreme Court rules Grant Thornton must pay £13.4m over negligent advice – Accounting Web – 24 June 2021
Is the FRC on track to become a new, more resilient regulator? – Accountancy Daily – 24 May 2021
LIBOR transition: the final countdown – PLC Magazine – 25 February 2021
High Court Ruling Checks Growth Of Bank Protection Duty – Law360 – 24 February 2021
Clarity on Quincecare duty for banks – The Law Society Gazette – 15 February 2021
Failure to prevent economic crime legislation – where are we now? – Thomson Reuters Regulatory Intelligence – 2 February 2021
UK’s financial regulator rapped following LCF collapse – Global Restructuring Review – 22 January 2021
Corporate failures – can the UK’s financial regulator lead the charge? – Global Restructuring Review – 11 December 2020
Emerging banking compliance litigation risks: SIB v HSBC – A curate’s egg – Thomson Reuters – 16 October 2020
Contentious insolvency expert joins Signature Litigation and warns about future of economy – Edward Fennell’s Legal Diary – 9 October 2020
Increased insolvency and disputes talent at Signature Litigation – CDR News – 7 October 2020
News regarding Paul Brehony’s appointment – The Lawyer – 1 October 2020
Signature Litigation Boosts Revenue By Nearly A Third – Legal Week – 1 October 2020
Areas of Expertise
Latest news

@SignatureLitLLP
We are pleased to announce that Ela Barda has been promoted to Counsel - many congratulations, Ela! Read more here: bit.ly/3XMqd7A #Litigation #CommercialLitigation pic.twitter.com/JxZLKh1qN2
Kate Gee examines recent amendments to the Financial Services and Markets Act 2023 in the FTAdviser
20 September 2023
Kate Gee examines recent amendments to the Financial Services and Markets Act 2023 in the FTAdviser
20 September 2023