“Excellent, commercial and a pleasure to work with.”
Paul O’Doherty is an experienced commercial barrister who has been advising businesses for over 20 years, from small owner-operated enterprises to large international corporates.
He is experienced in providing strategic, commercial advice and advocacy in complex, high value disputes. His main areas of practice are corporate insolvency, contractual disputes, financial services, civil fraud and construction.
A common theme in Paul’s work is complicated financial evidence. Paul was an accomplished international corporate finance analyst prior to practising as a barrister. He worked on a diverse portfolio of international mergers & acquisitions, private equity, property investments and hedge fund transactions. With considerable experience undertaking due diligence and complex corporate valuation, Paul’s forensic accounting skills set him apart.
Paul is as comfortable providing strategic advice to directors in the boardroom as he is in court. He understands what business people need their lawyers to tell them. A natural advocate with an easy style and a wealth of trial experience, Paul’s blend of legal expertise and commercial insight delivers results for his clients.
Paul has wide ranging experience in corporate insolvency and restructuring. His practical and technical advice is sought after in the most complex insolvency matters. He has advised and represented businesses and insolvency practitioners across industries from financial services to care homes, from pensions to property and construction.
Acting for Cayman Island liquidators in relation to a $100m auditor negligence claim against international auditors. LCIA Arbitration rules governed by Cayman Islands law (2026)
Acting for liquidators in relation to a £60m investment scheme, instructed to pursue a worldwide freezing order, preference claims, TUV claims and breaches of directors duties. BL-2025-001125
Advising in relation to restructuring of a UK agricultural lender. Restructuring in excess of £20m. Acting on the corporate financing and restructuring (2026)
Johnson V Spooner[2022] EWHC 735 (Ch) (March 2022)
Green & Anor v Johnson & Anor (Brookman Home Limited) [2021] EWHC 2610 (Ch): Successfully representing the directors for claims by the Liquidator for monies (£1.2m) paid by directors into a failing company, thus not breaching Directors Duties.
Northern Powerhouse Developments Limited and the MBi Group (2018-2020): Advising and representing the joint administrators in the 2019 collapse of the insolvent hotel and care home investment businesses, Northern Powerhouse Developments Limited (“NPD”) and associated companies in the MBi Group of companies. NPD and MBi were businesses under the control of Gavin Woodhouse, which raised over £70 million investment from approximately 600 retail investors in the UK and overseas for the construction, refurbishment and operation of care homes and hotels. Investors’ monies were primarily obtained through selling individual rooms in care homes and hotels, in a process known as “unitised sales” or “fractional ownership”. The matter has received widespread national media attention, following an investigation by ITN and the Guardian into Northern Powerhouse Developments and Mr Woodhouse’s investment activities. This complex series of administrations concerned over 20 separate companies, with more than 1,100 investments into over 30 investment schemes. The administrations and related litigation has involved: a series of urgent interim relief orders pursuant to Schedule B1 of the Insolvency Act; urgent relief in relation to disclosure; freezing injunctions; clarification of the law relating to directors’ appointments in the context of administrations (Re MBi Hawthorn Limited (In Interim Management) [2019] EWHC 2365 (Ch)); successfully challenging Company Voluntary Arrangement proposals under section 6 of the Insolvency Act; and complex administrators’ remuneration applications under the Practice Direction on Insolvency Proceedings. The administrations are continuing.
The Carlauren Group (2019): Advising and representing the joint administrator in the collapse of the hotel and luxury care home investment group, which raised £75 million from private investors for the development and operation of care homes and hotels. The case has received widespread national media attention, in particular in the BBC and the Guardian.The administrations are continuing. The administration applications included seeking an administration order over a Jersey holding company under the Companies (Jersey) Law 1991 and a detailed consideration of COMI and the competing England & Wales/Jersey jurisdictional issues.
The Connaught Income Fund/Blue Gate Capital Limited (2014-2020): Advising and defending financial advisory firm Blue Gate Capital Limited, which was the FCA regulated operator of the £100 million Connaught Income Fund. The Connaught Income Fund, an unregulated collective investment scheme in the property funding market, collapsed into insolvent liquidation due to fraudulent activity in its investee company, Tiuta. The claim involves a group action with approximately 1,000 claimants suing Blue Gate and Capita: see Connaught Income Fund, Series 1 (In Liquidation) V (1) Capita Financial Managers Ltd (2) Blue Gate Capital Ltd: [2014] EWHC 3619 (Comm). The case received widespread publicity and was the subject of a Parliamentary enquiry and regulatory investigation.
Re M (2019-2020): Advising the director and shareholder of a property development business, placed into solvent administration with in excess of £40 million of assets. Advised on issues relating to conduct of the administration and the remuneration of the administrators.
Re A (2020): Advising the directors of an insolvent technology company facing directors’ disqualification proceedings concerning the execution of a £5 million corporate finance transaction.
Re Carillion Qatar LLC (2018): Advising Carillion Qatar LLC on business restructuring following the high profile collapse of Carillion PLC
The Jaeger Group (2017): Advising and representing a consortium of unsecured creditors dissatisfied with the incumbent administrators of the well-known retail group put into insolvent administration by its private equity funders.
Re Travel Inn (Ireland) Ltd (2017): Advising and representing the liquidator of a dissolved Irish Company, on procedural issues relating to obtaining a winding up order pursuant to section 225 of the Insolvency Act 1986 (winding up dissolved foreign company without the need to restore to the register, as if it were an unregistered company).
Re “R” Limited (in administration) (2017-18): Advising the administrators of a specialist travel business in relation to a multi-million wrongful trading claim against former directors, involving a complex FX funding structure
KJK Investments/G-Loans Limited (2013-15): Advising and defending a private pensions and investment business, subject to a public interest winding up petition, brought by the Secretary of State for Business Innovation and Skills. The companies marketed a novel product to allow private pension fund holders to access and exercise control over their pension fund earlier than retirement. The claim involved complex tax, pensions and accounting evidence, involving £7 million of pension investments.
Paul is an astute strategic lawyer, with a keen eye for detail but never losing sight of the bigger picture. Unravelling complex commercial disputes and getting to the heart of the problem, Paul delivers practical advice on how to achieve the best outcome.
Paul has considerable experience in financial services litigation, with particular expertise in collective investment schemes. Paul brings a comprehensive understanding of investment products to the table from his time in corporate finance.
Paul’s professional negligence practice encompasses claims against financial services professionals, solicitors and construction professionals.
