Amrit Johal represents prominent businessman suing Knight Frank and ECP over hostels sale.

Commercial Dispute Resolution Partner, Amrit Johal, who is representing “a prominent Saudi Arabian businessman” featured in a recent article in the EG. The article explains how Knight Frank and Earlsfort Capital Partners (ECP) are being sued by Amrit and his client over the forced sale of several Central London hostels, at less than market-value, in direct contravention of a court-order obtained to block the transaction.

The properties, which were owned by the claimant's companies, had been used to secure a loan from real estate finance firm ECP. After a number of years, and with the loan still outstanding, ECP appointed Knight Frank to recover the debt by selling the properties. Johal had successfully obtained a last-minute court-order to block the sale, and his client was able to present an offer of a higher value than the one obtained by Knight Frank, however the sale went ahead for a price under market-value and against the court's ruling.

In a statement regarding the case, Amrit explained how his “clients, the borrowers, continue to pursue their claim that the £22.5m hostel sale was not at arm’s length and was undervalued”. He continues to explain that an alternative offer in excess of £26m was not pursued, and that there has been a level of secrecy around the transaction. He goes on to say that “Any multi-million-pound transaction has the potential to lead characters into temptation and this case requires anxious scrutiny.”

If you have a subscription to EG you can access the full article here: https://www.egi.co.uk/legal/knight-frank-and-ecp-sued-by-saudi-businessman-over-hotel-portfolio-sale/ 

Article written by:

Amrit Johal
Partner - Commercial Dispute Resolution, Family Law & Sports Law

Amrit Johal is a Partner Solicitor at Spencer West. He specialises in Commercial dispute resolution, including company disputes, regulatory / criminal matters including disputes with HMRC; family law (including financial settlement and children); sports law

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