Richard Langley

Practice Areas

Richard is the firm’s senior partner. He has 30 years’ experience as a litigator and handles a wide range of commercial and public law litigation.

His commercial litigation practice encompasses acting for individuals and charities, as well as corporations and public bodies, in cases involving breaches of contract, internal company disputes, breaches of fiduciary duty, professional negligence, and defamation.

Richard is also known for his expertise in judicial review. It is in this area of his work that he has handled high profile cases for ACPO, Arts Council England, the Association of British Insurers, the British Association for Nutrition and Lifestyle Medicine, the Climate Change Committee, English Heritage, the Environment Agency, Esso, the FCA, the Garden Bridge Trust, the Health and Care Professions Council, the Law Society, the Manchester Ship Canal Company, the Metropolitan Police, Natural Resources Wales, Network Rail, the Port of London Authority, the Royal Yachting Association, Westminster City Council (and other local authorities), and Wightlink Ferries.

In addition, Richard leads our practice as Privy Council agents, in which we have conducted over 50 appeals to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council over the past 10 years.

Work Highlights

UK Supreme Court – acting for the Manchester Ship Canal Company against United Utilities regarding the private law right to sue a sewerage undertaker for discharging sewage into a watercourse: MANCHESTER SHIP CANAL CO LTD V UNITED UTILITIES WATER LTD [2023] CH 1.

UK Supreme Court – acting for Nuffield Health in establishing its entitlement to mandatory rates relief: MERTON LBC V NUFFIELD HEALTH [2023] 3 WLR 13.

Privy Council – restating the law in relation to the power to grant freezing injunctions: BROAD IDEA INTERNATIONAL LTD V CONVOY COLLATERAL LTD [2023] AC 389.

Commercial Court – acting for Westgate Healthcare in its claim against Royal Bank of Scotland for mis-selling of interest rate swaps (2016).

UK Supreme Court – acting for the ABI on the first occasion on which the court struck down legislation from one of the devolved legislatures as outside their competence: RECOVERY OF MEDICAL COSTS FOR ASBESTOS DISEASES (WALES) BILL: Reference by the Counsel General for Wales [2015] 2 AC 1016.

Court of Appeal – acting for Network Rail to resist challenges to the redevelopment of London Bridge station: GRAY v LB SOUTHWARK [2013] ENV LR 22.