David Phillips KC *

David Phillips KC is a senior silk working from 30 Park Place Chambers, Cardiff and Wilberforce Chambers, London.

David advises and litigates in a broad range of commercial matters including professional liability, regulatory, sports related matters and EU transport regulation, as well as mainstream commercial litigation. Over the past twenty years David’s practice has developed to extend to a variety of overseas jurisdictions, most notably in a number of Caribbean countries (Anguilla, Antigua, BVI, St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago, Turks and Caicos Islands) but also Ireland, Bermuda, Gibraltar and Switzerland.

In 2009 David was instructed by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Governor of the Turks and Caicos Islands as leading counsel to head the Islands’ Civil Recovery project. Since then David has been extensively involved in planning and executing the ensuing claims. Some have been resolved without litigation but many have been litigated. So far in excess of $21 million in cash and more than 2,447 acres of land have been recovered. David has conducted a large number of trials in the Supreme Court, appeals to the Court of Appeal and the Privy Council, mostly in the field of civil fraud/ asset recovery but also in relation to related issues such as land registration and stamp duty. In Attorney General of the Turks and Caicos Islands v Akita [2017] AC 590, David succeeded in a case which explores the extent to which an account of profits may be recovered in unconscionable receipt claims.

David’s years of experience with the Turks and Caicos Civil Recovery programme have developed his skills of working in a team. The Turks and Caicos team was made up of other counsel, London commercial litigation solicitors, members of the Attorney General’s Chambers, as well as external advisors and experts (forensic accountants, surveyors, valuers, and others). David brings that experience to his more conventional commercial litigation, with positive effect.