BLCP Eden 1 Limited (in Administration) & Anor v Rooksmead Securities Limited & Ors [2026]

James Pickering KC and Samuel Hodge obtain success for administrators at trial in the case of BLCP Eden 1 Limited (in Administration) & Anor v Rooksmead Securities Limited & Ors [2026] EWHC 1268 (Ch).

James and Sam successfully argued that the purported appointment of receivers in respect of properties owned by their clients, the Claimants (two companies in administration) was fundamentally defective, because the relevant appointment documents named a different company. Accordingly, they contended that the Claimants’ properties had not been transferred by the receivers to a purchaser, D1 on 1 June 2023. The same day, D1 transferred part of the properties to a sub-purchaser, D2, with D1 making a £2m profit.

The major issue at trial was whether the appointment of receivers could be “correctively construed” based on the so-called “Chartbrook principle” of construction.

The Judge noted there was a clear mistake in the appointment documents, namely a mismatch between the company named (which did not own the properties), and the properties listed in the schedule (owned by the Claimants). However, the Judge accepted James and Sam’s arguments that it was not obvious how the mistake could or should be corrected. Accordingly, the receivers’ appointment was held to be invalid.

The judgment also addresses the issue of valid execution of contracts for the sale of land by companies and their directors (on which issue the Judge accepted D2’s arguments).

A link to the judgment is here.

James and Sam were instructed by James Williams, Matthew Rice and Rebecca Ainsworth of JMW Solicitors.