Skip to content

Matt Taylor

Partner

Matt is a Partner who focuses on commercial dispute resolution. He helps parties best protect their commercial interests, through litigation or other forms of dispute resolution.

Matt has over 18 years’ experience in advising corporate clients on managing their disputes and best protecting their commercial objectives. He has a wealth of experience in dealing with heavyweight corporate disputes, regularly advising on high-value contractual claims (particularly those arising out of M&A transactions), commercial fraud cases, warranty claims and negligence claims.

Matt also regularly advises parties in respect of defamatory publications and associated media/ reputation issues. He has broad experience in both libel and slander and utilizes his knowledge to support clients in protecting their reputations, both before and after publications are made.

Whether you are the aggrieved party or are having to respond to a dispute, Matt can advise you from the outset in order to best position your business to resolve the issue and to best protect its commercial interests. If the best course of action is to fight court litigation, Matt has significant experience in leading Commercial Court and High Court litigation through to trial. Equally, however, Matt is well-versed in other forms of alternative dispute resolution and will utilize these where appropriate to achieve your commercial goals.

Matt regularly advises UK FTSE 100 and FTSE 250 companies on their disputes, together with other leading international companies. He understands the issues that such organizations face and ensures that the approach taken to any particular dispute is tailored to the individual business and its commercial objectives.

Outside of advising clients, Matt is regularly quoted on topical dispute issues, including comments published by The Telegraph, The Daily Mail, The Week and the Law Society Gazette.

Matt was President of Manchester Law Society between 2019 and 2021, representing the interests of the legal profession both locally and nationally. He continues to sit on its Council in order to support the development of the profession.

In his spare time, Matt enjoys sport and running around after two young children. He continues to watch Blackburn Rovers in the hope that they will one day return to the Premier League.

Matt's experience in commercial contract claims includes:

  • defending a leading private telecommunications business in a significant breach of warranty claim brought against it in the High Court arising out of its purchase of a new business with a claim value in excess of £12m
  • advising a leading global food company on a dispute arising out of their logistics supply chain with a claim value of £24m
  • advising a leading UK logistics business in multimillion-pound High Court proceedings brought by a major high-street retailer
  • succeeding in High Court proceedings brought on behalf of a leading transport association on the contractual interpretation of its main long-term IT supply contract
  • acting for an overseas football club in a multimillion-pound claim against the FA Premier League, the Football League and the Football Association arising out of the demise of Portsmouth Football Club

Matt's experience in shareholder and directors disputes includes:

  • advising a minority shareholder of one of the leading site waste companies in the North West of England in multifaceted High Court shareholder dispute proceedings
  • advising a listed company in respect of significant, disruptive action brought by a shareholder activist aimed at seeking the replacement of senior boardroom members
  • advising a high net worth individual in protecting their minority interests in a fast-growing technology company

Matt's experience in fraud cases includes:

  • advising a leading kitchenware manufacturer in a fraud claim against one of its former directors; resulting in urgent freezing injunction applications and ultimately resulting in settlement on favorable terms (with strong recoveries) for the company
  • advising a national financial institution on a fraud within its insurance business, resulting in several injunctions applications and a successful trial win
  • advising a global manufacturing business within the automotive sector on a fraud committed by a senior director; again securing urgent injunctive relief and successful recoveries of the monies fraudulently taken 
  • Presented hundreds of times at various client and public events, both on dispute resolution topics and on wider topics impacting on the legal profession
  • Ranked as a Band 2 lawyer in Commercial Litigation for the North West (UK) in Chambers & Partners
  • Ranked as a Commercial Litigation specliaist in The Legal 500
  • Ranked as an Acritas/Thomson Reuters “Star” Lawyer by Clients
  • Team Leader, Commercial Dispute Resolution Team in Manchester, ranked as a Band 1 team by both Chambers & Partners and The Legal 500
  • Ranked in Chambers UK 2018, 2019
  • Member, The Law Society
  • President, Manchester Law Society, 2019-2021
  • Council Member, Manchester Law Society, 2013 to date
  • Committee Member, Civil Litigation Committee, Manchester Law Society
  • Committee Member, Northern Circuit Chancery Court User Committee
  • Legal Practice Course (Distinction), College of Law, 2003-2004
  • LLB (Hons), Newcastle University, 2000-2003
Matt Taylor

Partner

Email