Expertise
Appellate advocacy
Focused advocacy in the Court of Appeal and in appeals to the High Court, informed by substantial Commercial Chancery trial experience.
Experience and approach
Alexander acts in commercial, company and insolvency appeals, both preserving decisions obtained below and addressing the consequences of appellate judgments. His recent Court of Appeal work includes appearing as sole counsel in Syspal Capital Ltd v Truman and for trustees in bankruptcy in the consequential hearing in Servis-Terminal LLC v Drelle (No. 2). He combines close analysis of the judgment and appellate standard with a practical focus on the order, costs and protection required after judgment.
Issues that may require specialist counsel
When this expertise may be relevant.
- A commercially significant judgment is under appeal
- Permission to appeal or a respondent's notice is being considered
- The appellate court must construe connected contractual or corporate documents
- Consequential orders, costs or protective arrangements follow an appeal
Selected work
- 01Court of Appeal advocacy
- 02High Court appeals
- 03Permission to appeal
- 04Appeal strategy and written submissions
- 05Consequential and costs hearings
- 06Preserving or challenging first-instance decisions
Representative matters
Selected experience in appellate advocacy.
Syspal Capital Ltd v Truman
[2025] EWCA Civ 469; [2024] EWHC 1561 (Ch)
Sole counsel for Mr Truman, instructed by Fieldfisher LLP
Judges: High Court: Mr Justice Roth; Court of Appeal: Lady Justice Asplin, Lord Justice Birss and Lord Justice Zacaroli
Alexander appeared as sole counsel for Mr Truman in the Court of Appeal, responding to the company's challenge to Roth J's construction of compulsory share-transfer provisions. The appeal required close analysis of the articles, connected shareholder arrangements and the contractual valuation machinery. The Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal and upheld the construction advanced for Mr Truman.
Read the Court of Appeal judgment →Read the case and Alexander's role →Servis-Terminal LLC v Drelle (No. 2)
[2025] EWCA Civ 698
Sole counsel for trustees Robert Starkins and Nicholas Nicholson, instructed by Latham & Watkins
Judge: Lord Justice Newey, Lord Justice Popplewell and Lord Justice Snowden (now Lord Snowden, Justice of the Supreme Court)
Alexander appeared as sole counsel for the trustees in bankruptcy at the Court of Appeal's consequential hearing. He addressed removal, remuneration, expenses, re-vesting of the estate and protective arrangements while permission to appeal was pursued. He did not appear in the substantive Court of Appeal hearing or the later Supreme Court proceedings.
Read the Court of Appeal judgment →Read the case and Alexander's role →BDI Properties Ltd v Murkz Concrete Products Ltd
CH-2024-BHM-000009; underlying petition CR-2024-BHM-000005
Counsel for the petitioner/appellant, BDI Properties Ltd
Judge: His Honour Judge Williams, sitting as a Judge of the High Court
Alexander successfully represented BDI Properties Ltd in a High Court appeal from the dismissal of its winding-up petition. Instructed shortly before the hearing, he advanced procedural-fairness and disputed-debt grounds arising from the treatment of very late evidence. HHJ Williams, sitting as a Judge of the High Court, allowed the appeal, set aside the dismissal, remitted the dispute to a different District Judge and awarded the appellant £7,500 in costs. The remitted hearing subsequently determined that there was no genuine or substantial dispute to the petition debt.
Read the matter summary →