Lara Hassell-Hart

Commercial litigation forms a substantial part of Lara’s practice. She has experience in a wide range of commercial litigation matters, both in the Commercial Court and the Chancery Division, and her work frequently features contractual disputes. Examples of past and ongoing instructions include:

• Saxon Woods Investments Limited v Costa and Ors [2024] EWHC 387 (Ch) (led by Richard Hill KC): a 3-week trial in the Chancery Division under the Companies Act 2006, involving the interpretation and alleged breach of an Exit clause in a shareholders’ agreement; subsequently appealed to the Court of Appeal for a 3 day hearing (led by David Wolfson KC).
• Travelport & Ors v WEX [2020] EWHC 2670 (led by Richard Hill KC, Sa’ad Hossein KC and Andrew de Mestre KC): a 7-day expedited trial concerning the interpretation of a complex material adverse change clause in the $1.7 billion purchase of two travel payments companies, against the background of the Covid-19 pandemic. It remains the leading authority on the interpretation of MAC clauses.
• Acting for the claimants in Tavira Securities Limited v Re Point Ventures FZCO and Ors, a c. £4 million claim in the DIFC concerning a breach of contract, fraudulent misrepresentation and conspiracy in the context of a securities trade.
• Advising and acting for the defendant sellers in a High Court claim for breach of warranty in a c. $50 million business purchase agreement.
• Advising and acting for the claimant in a High Court claim for unpaid debts in a business partnership of London nightclubs.
• Advising on the interpretation of a MAC clause in the context of a multi-million euro Formula One sponsorship agreement.
• Advising on and acting for the claimant company in a six-figure High Court claim for (amongst other things) breaches of confidentiality.
• Advising on the merits of a potential breach of contract claim for failure to settle an invoice for a package of software services.
• Advising on and acting for a claimant in respect of a dispute over the interpretation and application of a deferred consideration clause in the context of a business purchase agreement.

Lara has a well-established practice in banking and financial services matters and has experience in a diverse range of cases in this area. As a junior junior, she undertook a secondment at the FCA focusing on the authorisation and regulation of peer-to-peer lending firms. She is now regularly instructed on cases involving the FCA at the RDC stage and in the Upper Tribunal. Many of her other cases also involve banking and financial regulation elements and/or issues of law under FSMA. Instructions include the following:

• Staley v Financial Conduct Authority [2025] UKUT 203 (TCC) (led by Leigh-Ann Mulcahy KC and Eleanor Davison): a high-profile 12-day trial in the Upper Tribunal concerning a reference by the ex-CEO of Barclays against a prohibition and penalty imposed by the FCA for recklessly misleading the regulator. Named one of The Lawyer’s Top 20 Appeals of 2025.
• Urra, Lopez Gonzalez and Sheth v Financial Conduct Authority [2025] UKUT 214 (TCC) (led by Sharif Shivji KC): a 3-week trial in the Upper Tribunal concerning a reference by three City traders against a prohibition and penalty imposed by the FCA for market manipulation in bond derivatives on the EUREX Exchange.
• (Led by Sharif Shivji KC) appearing in regulatory proceedings regarding the disclosure of inside information in breach of UK MAR.
• (Led by Richard Mott) three combined references to the Upper Tribunal concerning Decision Notices imposing a prohibition and penalty for breach of APER 1 in respect of a pension investment scheme.
• Autonomy v Lynch and Anor [2022] EWHC 1178 (Ch) (led by Robert Miles KC, Richard Hill KC and Sharif Shivji): a 10-month trial in the Chancery Division in which Hewlett Packard / Autonomy sued its former CEO for c. US$8 billion in relation to an alleged accounting fraud under FSMA Schedule 10A.
• Advising on a CVA where enforcement proceedings were ongoing against the company in respect of a collective investment scheme.
• Sharp and Ors v Blank and Ors [2019] EWHC 3096 (Ch), a 12-week trial in the Chancery Division brought by Lloyds’ shareholders against its directors. The claims raised, amongst other things, specific issues of obligations under the Listing Rules in respect of shareholder circulars and the regulation of banks’ capital. Named one of The Lawyers’ Top 20 Cases of 2017.
• Advising as sole counsel in respect of potential proceedings for failure to settle a c. €25 million securities trade.
• Advising in relation to proceedings by the FRC under the Accountancy Scheme and the Audit Enforcement Procedure.

Lara has a strong interest in insolvency work. She was a contributor to Lexis Nexis’s Insolvency Rules 2016 forms, replacing the prescribed forms under the 1986 rules, and is a contributor to the well-respected practitioner text Loose & Griffiths on Liquidators (9 ed., 2019). She regularly deals with proceedings under the Insolvency Act 1986, in the context of both company and personal insolvency. Examples of past and recent instructions include:

• Director disqualification proceedings under CDDA 1986: Lara is experienced in appearing both in first directions hearings and substantive hearings.
• Bankruptcy and winding up proceedings: Lara is regularly instructed to appear on bankruptcy petitions and in opposed and unopposed winding up proceedings. She acted (with Joseph Wigley) for the debtor in In the matter of Derek Quinlan, a nine-figure bankruptcy petition.
• Applications for administrations and special administrations: Lara has appeared a number of times on administration applications, including special administrations. She acted on behalf of the FCA in In the matter of AFX Markets Limited (an application for a special administration order under the Investment Bank Special Administration (England and Wales) Rules 2011/1301) and (led by Andrew de Mestre KC) on behalf of OFGEM in Re Bulb Energy Limited [2021] EWHC 3735 (Ch) (the UK’s first ever application for an energy supply company administration order).
• Advising on issues relating to proofs and priorities of debts in insolvencies: Lara is experienced in advising on provable debts and the priority in the waterfall. Instructions have included: Croxen & Ors v GEMA & Ors [2022] EWHC 2826 (Ch) (5 day hearing, led by Andrew de Mestre KC) on an application by office-holders to determine the extent to which OFGEM and certain energy supply companies could prove in the insolvencies of other energy supply companies); advising a national regulator on the effect of administration on regulated entities for which it is responsible; advising on the provability and priority of a penalty imposed under legislation after commencement of insolvency proceedings.
• Applications for permission to commence and continue proceedings in the context of an interim moratorium imposed under the Insolvency Act 1986.
• Advising a contingent creditor in respect of the effect of clauses in a CVA and on the potential for challenging the CVA under s. 6 of the Insolvency Act 1986.
• Acting in proceedings challenging an administrator’s conduct under Schedule B1 of the Insolvency Act 1986.

Lara is a contributor to Loose & Griffiths on Liquidators.

Lara is interested in all areas of company law. She has a particularly strong background in dealing with shareholder disputes and issues concerning directors’ duties. Her work includes:

• Petitions for unfair prejudice under ss. 994-996 of the Companies Act 2006: Lara is very experienced in s. 994 petitions. She appeared in Saxon Woods Investments Limited v Costa and Ors [2024] EWHC 387 (Ch) (led by Richard Hill KC): a 3-week unfair prejudice petition trial in the Chancery Division under ss. 994-996 of the Companies Act 2006, involving the interpretation and alleged breach of an Exit clause in a shareholders’ agreement and breach of directors’ duties; subsequently appealed to the Court of Appeal for a 3 day hearing (led by David Wolfson KC). She has advised on and drafted numerous statements of case on unfair prejudice proceedings and is well placed to assist with procedural and tactical considerations at all stages of proceedings.
• Breaches of directors’ duties: Lara gained early experience in directors’ duties in her practice, having acted for the claimant shareholders in Sharp and Ors v Blank and Ors [2019] EWHC 3096 (Ch), a 12-week trial against Lloyds’ directors over Lloyds’ takeover of HBOS in 2009. She regularly appears in directors’ disqualification proceedings (often involving a breach of directors’ duties), and advises on and appears in claims by companies and shareholders alleging breaches of directors’ duties.
• Advising a major sporting regulator on the interpretation and application of its internal rules regarding directors.
• Advising directors and companies in respect of their obligations under the Companies Act 2006
• Advising in relation to a proposed partnership structure of a private equity fund.

Lara was previously a contributor to Tolley’s Company Law Service and wrote the “Investigations by BEIS” chapter for the publication.

Lara’s work frequently raises issues of civil fraud, and she has extensive experience of claims involving allegations of conspiracy and deceit. Examples of her work includes:

• Lopez-Gonzalez and Ors v FCA [2025] UKUT 214 (TCC) (led by Sharif Shivji KC): a 3-week trial in the Upper Tribunal concerning a dishonest conspiracy to engage in market abuse in BTP Futures on the EUREX Exchange.
• Autonomy and Ors v Lynch and Anor (led by Robert Miles QC, Richard Hill KC and Sharif Shivji KC): a c. $8 million claim by Autonomy against its former CEO, Dr Mike Lynch for alleged fraudulent accounting, which was heard over the course of a 93-day trial between March 2019 and January 2020 in the Chancery Division.
• (Led by Richard Mott) three combined references to the Upper Tribunal concerning Decision Notices imposing a prohibition and penalty for breach of APER 1 in respect of a fraudulent pension investment scheme.
• Tavira Securities Limited v Re Point Ventures FZCO and Ors, a c. £4 million claim in the DIFC concerning a breach of contract, fraudulent misrepresentation and conspiracy in the context of a securities trade.
• Acting for the claimant company in a six-figure High Court claim against former directors and shareholders for, amongst other things, conspiracy to injure the company.
• Advising on a potential claim for conspiracy in the context of a pre-pack administration sale.

Lara has a great deal of specialist knowledge and expertise relating to energy markets and regulation. As noted above, she is regularly instructed by OFGEM to appear in the High Court in respect of urgent energy-related matters, specifically in cases of insolvent energy supply companies. Lara has appeared in more than 20 such cases, including most notably Gas and Electricity Markets Authority v GB Energy Supply Ltd [2016] EWHC 3341 (Ch) (alongside Nicholas Cox) and Gas and Electricity Markets Authority v Rutherford Energy Supply Limited [2019] EWHC 2760 (Ch). In 2021 alone she was involved in most of the high-profile insolvencies of energy supply companies, including (amongst others) Bulb Energy, Avro Energy, Hub Energy, Green Network Energy, Simplicity Energy, PfP Energy, Moneyplus Energy, People’s Energy, Utility Point and green.energy. She subsequently appeared in Croxen & Ors v GEMA & Ors [2022] EWHC 2826 (Ch) (5 day hearing, led by Andrew de Mestre KC) on an application by office-holders to determine the extent to which OFGEM and certain energy supply companies could prove in the insolvencies of other energy supply companies according to certain obligations arising under statute and the supply licences. She has previously advised in relation to potential claims under the Energy Charter Treaty.

• Member of the Chancery Bar Association (ChBA)
• Member of the Commercial Bar Association (COMBAR)
• Member of the Insolvency Lawyers’ Association (ILA)
• Member of the International Women’s Insolvency and Restructuring Confederation (IWIRC)
• Member of the Financial Services Lawyers Association (FSLA)
• Appointed to the Attorney General’s C Panel of Counsel (2022)

• 2009-2012: BA (Hons) Historical Tripos – Girton College, University of Cambridge
• 2012-2013: Graduate Diploma in Law (Distinction) – City Law School
• 2013-2014: Bar Professional Training Course – City Law School
• Astbury Scholar of Middle Temple

• Contributor to Loose & Griffiths on Liquidators (9th ed.) (2019)
• Commercial Law and Financial Regulation’, United Kingdom Supreme Court Yearbook vol. 7 (2016) (co-authored with Jonathan Crow QC and Emma Horner)