David Reade KC

Practice Areas

Barrister specialising in commercial, employment, partnership and sport.

Employment: all areas of both contentious and non-contentious employment law (including EU Law). Chambers and Partners Employment Silk of Year 2015. Legal 500 Employment Silk of the Year 2016 and shortlisted for 2017. David has appeared in numerous leading decisions in the field, including Barton v Investec (EAT), Hounga v Allen (SC), NUM v UK Coal (EAT), Brennan v Sunderland (CA), Rhys-Harper v Relaxion (HofL), Rutherford v Harvest Town Circle (EAT), Foley v Post Office (CA), Chesterton’s v Nurmohamed (CA) and Mencap v Tomlinson-Blake (SC). David has appeared as an advocate at all levels from Tribunal to the Supreme Court and before the CJEU. He successfully acted for the employers before the CJEU in the collective redundancy case arising out of the collapse of Woolworths. He has wide experience of the interrelationship between insolvency and collective redundancy having acted in, amongst others, the insolvencies of Comet and Phones4You and presently in the litigation concerning Carillion. He has particular experience of urgent injunctive relief, including search orders, freezing orders and anti-suit injunctions. He has appeared in a number of leading cases in the field including Ashcroft v National Theatre (interim specific performance) QBE v Dymoke (springboard injunctions)(HC), TFS Derivatives v Morgan (restrictive covenants)(HC), Pennwell v Ornstein (confidential data and database misuse) (HC) and Standard Life v Gorman (garden leave injunctions) (CA). His has particular experience of confidentiality and privacy issues in the context of hearings recently having successfully resisted an appeal by The Times against a privacy order, A v X ( EAT). David has extensive experience of TUPE and collective redundancy claims; his appellant cases include Kavanagh v Crystal Palace. (CA), Solectron v Roper (EAT), Ferguson v Astrea Asset Management (EAT), SNR Denton v Kirwin (EAT) and CWU v Royal Mail (CA). He has acted in many protected disclosure cases including in the Court of Appeal in the cases of Day v HEE(CA) and Chestertons v Nurmohamed (CA). He has extensive experience of Equal Pay Litigation acting both on public sector and private sector claims. His practice includes collective labour law issues, acting for both Trade Unions and employers. He acted for British Airways before the Court of Appeal in the industrial action by its’ cabin crew. His collective work has included advising and acting on recognition issues and in cases involving the restraint of industrial action. He successfully judicially reviewed the CAC on its recognition decision against Boots PLC and defended that review in the Court of Appeal. He has appeared on other collective issues including issues related to domestic and European Works Councils. He acted for Uber in the litigation on the status of drivers and has advised and acted for others in the sector. Recent work has seen him advising on national minimum wage and holiday pay issues, particularly in the care sector; he appeared for Mencap in the Supreme Court. He has experience of pension and share option claims and has advised various companies on the pension and employment issues arising out of changes to final salary pension schemes. He has successfully judicially reviewed the Pensions Regulator on the issue of the transnational application of auto enrolment, R v Pensions Regulator (HC), and has experience of arguing cross border and jurisdiction issues, Walker v Wallem Shipmanagement Ltd (EAT).

Commercial litigation: (including banking, financial services, insolvency and consumer credit). He has wide commercial experience including freezing and search orders. He has acted on and advised on numerous minority shareholder oppression claims. He has particular experience of banking litigation involving the sale of complex derivative and interest swap products; acting in Hockin v RBS one of the largest miss-sold derivative claims and Standish v The Royal Bank of Scotland (HC).He additionally had experience of commercial property based litigation successfully appearing in 2017 before the Supreme Court on an appeal on the correct basis for the assessment of business rates, Newbigin v SJ J Monk (SC).

Partnership: His work in this field includes extensive experience of partnership disputes and LLP disputes, including LP in the private equity sector. He has acted on these issues in the civil courts, in private arbitrations and before the Employment Tribunal on those matters for which it has jurisdiction over partners

Sport: David has wide experience of sport litigation and advisory work, including FA tribunals and agent and player disputes. Recent work includes acting Jess Varnish in her claims against British Cycling, acting for Sunderland FC in the defence of commission claims by a former director and advising the club on various football issues. Acting for Aston Villa in the defence of a claim. He acted for Bristol RFC in connection with the recruitment by the RFU of Steve Borthwick and has advised in connection rugby disciplinary issues. He has experience in acting in FA arbitrations.

Mediation: He has worked as a mediator since 2006

Career

Called 1983; Middle Temple; Law Lecturer 1983 to 1986, KC 2006; appointed Bencher of Middle Temple 2009; mediator 2006.

Professional Memberships

COMBAR; Employment Law Association; Employment Bar Association; Industrial Law Society; Professional Negligence Bar Association; British Association for Sport and the Law; associate American Bar Association; International Bar Association. Association of Partnership Lawyers.

Publications

Former editor of 'Employment Law and Litigation'. Frequent writer and lecturer on employment issues. Co-author of OUP's 'The Law of Industrial Action and Trade Union Recognition' (2019). Contributor to Sweet and Maxwell's 'The Transfer of Undertakings'. Co-author of "The Guide to the Equality Act". Co Editor of Blackstone's Employment Law (2019).

Personal

Anything competitive; music; trustee of the London Library.