Greg Williams

Greg Williams

Specialist Family Finance and Family Property Barrister

Greg is a specialist Family Finance barrister, having undertaken this work from pupillage to the present date.
Greg has experience of a wide range of financial remedies applications, but principally cases which involve: High net worth clients, complexity or have an international element, Schedule 1 Children Act claims, Trusts work (including overseas trusts), Family businesses (especially farming businesses and Freezing Injunctions

As a Family Finance and TOLATA specialist, Greg’s practice naturally encompasses applications for relief under Section 15 and Schedule 1 of the Children Act 1989. These tend to comprise from ‘Top up’ income cases (applications in the alternative to a CMS assessment where the respondent earns an income in excess of £156,000 gross per annum) to Property settlement orders, namely temporary housing provision for a minor until they reach majority. Many of these applications are concurrent with Greg’s TOLATA caseload.

Although a family law specialist, in the earlier stages of his career Greg had a much broader mixed family/civil litigation practice and therefore has a detailed knowledge of other areas of the law that fit well with Family Finance issues, including: property law, civil procedure and costs, undue influence, fraud, misrepresentation, some company law, and personal and corporate insolvency. Given Greg’s broader expertise, he is confident when faced with complex quasi-civil/family issues.

Greg has a busy TOLATA paper practice. Aside from advising in writing and in conference, he is often called upon to settle Part 7 claims, Part 8 claims, Defences, Counterclaims and Points of Claim for intervenors in Financial Remedies cases. It is frequently advisable to ‘front load’ advice and work in TOLATA claims and to this end Greg is frequently sought upon by firms nationwide and internationally to advise on issues before litigation begins. To this end Greg frequently advises clients via videoconferencing or telephone and is happy to use Skype or FaceTime.

Consequently – and also given Greg’s expertise in TOLATA work – a great deal of his financial remedies work now involves acting in trials of preliminary issue hearings concerning the true beneficial ownership of properties, where Greg acts for intervenors (often parents or companies) or the main parties (i.e. husband, wife) as may be required.

Greg also specialises in Inheritance Act 1975 and contentious probate claims. He acts for claimants under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975, including partners of the deceased, minor children and adult children. He has acted in cases involving the full array of relief: from income (including Duxbury awards) to capital and property awards.

Greg also represents Estates and is frequently called on to advise administrators at an early stage with a view to dealing with any potential liabilities that may arise in this area.

As to Private Client work more generally, Greg is recognised by his professional clients for having a wide knowledge of chancery issues including contentious wills, will trusts, intestate estates and the intestacy rules, undue influence, powers of attorney, lack of capacity and fraud. A large part of his paper practice relates to providing Opinions on these issues.

Awards

Denning Scholar of Lincoln’s Inn

Hardwicke Scholar of Lincoln’s Inn

Winner, Warwick Mooting Competition 2004

Runner Up, Oxford University Press National Mooting Competition 2004

Accreditations

Called to the Bar by Lincoln’s Inn (March 2006)

Bar Vocational Course – Nottingham Law School

LLB (Hons) – University of Warwick

Member of the The Family Law Bar Association National Executive Committee

The Chancery Bar Association

Vica Chair of Bar Council Remuneration Committee

The Honourable Society of Lincoln’s Inn

The Denning Society

Associate Member of Resolution

Rankings