Prosperity Law’s Head of Property Litigation, Paul Magee, celebrated winning a significant high-value case on behalf of his client, former professional footballer, Craig Cathcart. The case, which involved a six-figure land claim made against another law firm, was led by Paul and supported by Prosperity Law’s Head of Real Estate, Karen Pontiek.
Proceedings were brought by Mr Cathcart against another law firm who had acted on his behalf in relation to the conveyancing process. During that transaction, the claimant stated that the conveyancing firm acting for him had been negligent in their duties relating to the conveyance of a plot purchased by Mr Cathcart. After the purchase of the plot, the law firm at fault realised too late that it was land-locked and construction work was unable to proceed.
Our team were astonished at how the landlocked plot had not been identified at all. For the law firm in question to miss that the plot was landlocked is quite shocking, particularly after learning that planning permission was obtained and architect drawings had been completed – even a simple Google map search would have shown that there was no physical access to the plot.
As is common for cases which are settled, the insurers of the firm who acted on Mr Cathcart’s behalf in the transaction, initially denied liability, but a payment of almost £500,000 was eventually agreed – a favourable settlement to cover Mr Cathcart’s damages and reasonable costs.
Paul Magee commented on the settlement:
“My client had been terribly let down by his previous representation and left with a plot of land that was not fit for purpose.
“Litigation may be intimidating for many, but in cases such as this, it’s an effective way to right a wrong and access justice. Well done to all involved and the wider team who worked on this.”
Mr Cathcart rose to football fame as a centre-back for Blackpool and Watford, and earned 73 caps, appearing for his national team, Northern Ireland. Paul and Karen celebrated the success with Craig over lunch at Mayfair’s Benares restaurant.
Mr Cathcart said:
“Paul was recommended to me by a mutual acquaintance and from our first meeting he was confident that he could achieve a successful outcome.
The team have been reliable and diligent every step of the way and has done all that was required for us to win. I’m grateful to them – and would highly recommend them to anyone who finds themselves in a similar position.”
A specialist in property litigation, Paul has over 30 years of experience in property disputes and this win is the latest in a series of high-profile, and high-value, successes. The sale of the piece of land in question has since been handled by Prosperity’s Head of Residential Property, Warren Kaye, an excellent example of Prosperity’s multi-disciplinary collaboration benefiting clients.
