Leslie has been awarded ‘Chancery Silk of the Year’ at the Chambers Bar Awards 2019, a prestigious award recognising Leslie’s pre-eminence in his key practice areas. He is one of the country’s foremost chancery barristers with experience of appearing in front of the highest courts in wills and trusts cases. He has over 30 years’ experience of conducting contentious probate litigation, comprising:
- Disputes as to the validity of wills
- Proper administration of estates and will trusts
- Inheritance Act claims
- Claims in respect of estates arising from informal agreements and proprietary estoppel
Leslie has recently appeared in a number of high profile proprietary estoppel cases including Davies v Davies (2014 and 2016) (the ‘Cowshed Cinderella’ case, both at trial and on appeal twice); McDonald v Rose (2017) a £5 million claim against substantial family business; Habberfield v Habberfield (2018) (representing the claimant at trial who was awarded £1.15 million from her parents, and recently (2019) defending the award on appeal in the Court of Appeal) and Gee v Gee (2018) (where he represented the successful claimant at trial).
He has also been instructed to act on behalf of the parents and brother of the late Barry Pring in the long-running dispute with his widow over the administration of Barry Pring’s estate.
He has lectured on these topics to both regional firms and at local law societies.
Appointments:
- Member of the Editorial Board of The Conveyancer and Property Lawyer
Professional memberships:
- Chancery Bar Association
- PEBA
- Property Bar Association
Qualifications & awards:
- MA (Oxon), Hardwicke and Jenkins Scholar of Lincolns Inn (1982)
