Nicola Stanley
Legal Director, Manchester
Practice areas
Noted as a ‘Rising Star’ by Legal 500, Nicola has almost 20 years’ experience in Dispute Resolution and has advised a wide range of clients from individuals and SMEs to local authorities and PLCs. Her strength lies in having studied and worked in business prior to embarking on a legal career so can understand the client’s business objectives from the outset, get to the heart of the dispute and provide practical, commercial advice to resolve the dispute quickly and cost effectively.
Her broad experience includes general commercial litigation encompassing breach of contract claims, partnership disputes and consumer credit claims with a particular emphasis on professional negligence matters. She has considerable expertise acting for lenders and financial institutions in negligence claims against surveyors and solicitors and more recently, for individuals and limited companies against tax and financial advisers. She also has extensive property litigation experience acting for landowners, landlords and tenants in cases involving break clauses, contested lease renewal claims, dilapidations, forfeiture and enforcement of general terms.
Notable cases
Advising a partnership in a successful breach of warranty claim involving a 2 week trial following the purchase of a dental practice
Acting for a lender client in a professional negligence claim against a surveyor following the negligent overvaluation of a property. Success at trial on all aspects of the claim, including defeating the partial defence of contributory negligence on account of the lending criteria and failure to mitigate (Redstone Mortgages Limited v Countrywide Surveyors Limited [2011] 3 EGLR 153)
Acting for a landlord client in a terminal dilapidations claim involving diminution in value arguments
Acting for a landlord client in an insurance claim contesting reinstatement costs and loss of rent following a serious fire at commercial premises
Career History
- FS Legal 2017 to date
- Read Roper and Read Solicitors – Associate Solicitor, 2014 – 2017
- Walker Morris LLP – Associate Solicitor, 2013 – 3014
- Cobbetts LLP – Solicitor, 2002 – 2013
- Laytons Solicitors LLP – Trainee Solicitor, 2000 – 2002
- PriceWaterhouseCoopers – 1999-2000
- Royal Mail – Graduate Project Manager, 1994 – 1998
