Farhan Asghar

Barrister

Farhan has a busy, multi-disciplinary practice with expertise in commercial litigation, property, wills, trusts, immigration, human rights, discrimination and public law. Farhan has extensive experience in cases ranging from the lower courts to the Court of Appeal.

Property, Chancery & Commercial

Farhan is frequently instructed in a broad range of civil and commercial disputes. Farhan has a pro-active hands-on approach and can see matters right from inception, at the pre-action stage, through to trial, as well as dealing with consequential matters such as enforcement and costs challenges. He has a very pragmatic approach and, where appropriate, will advise on and conduct alternative forms of dispute resolution such as mediation.

Farhan has a substantial and wide-ranging property practice that encompasses all aspects of real property litigation and advice. He also has expertise in wills, probate, trusts, and inheritance matters.

Some of the types of cases Farhan has experience in include: boundary disputes, orders for sale, co-ownership and ToLATA claims; disputes as to the substantial and procedural validity of wills; applications for the removal of executors and trustees; breach of trust/breach of fiduciary duty claims; estoppel claims; undue influence and constructive trust claims; freezing orders; high-value contractual disputes; company related disputes; partnership and shareholder disputes; charity disputes; leasehold and commonhold disputes, professional negligence claims; insolvency matters, and challenging costs decisions either on appeal or at detailed assessment proceedings.

Immigration, Human Rights and Public Law

Farhan’s diverse public law and human rights practice covers police, prisons, immigration, EU Law, the Equality Act and the ECHR. He is regularly instructed to draft pleadings for judicial review claims and injunctions.

Farhan has expertise in all aspects of immigration work for both private individuals and businesses. He has considerable experience in working with vulnerable clients, including those who lack the capacity to give evidence or conduct proceedings.

Farhan’s immigration practice covers appeals, points-based system applications, EU free movement legislation, entrepreneur visas, immigration detention, deportation, illegal working, and British citizenship.

Farhan also has considerable experience in discrimination claims, having acted in discrimination claims against local authorities, other government departments and large organisations.

Farhan also has extensive experience in Education law, having represented clients in claims against various academic institutions, including Universities, Colleges and Schools. He is particularly adapt in cases where there is a crossover between education law, the human rights act and the equality act.

Notable cases

  • Ullah v Ullah 2023 EWHC 3313 KB – Farhan acted for the successful appellant in an appeal in a large multi-million-pound claim involving complex claims for breach of trust, dishonest assistance, and self-dealing. Farhan was able to set aside an order striking out the claim and refusing permission to amend the particulars of claim, with the claim being restored, permission to amend granted and the matter remitted back for trial.

 

  • FSV Freeholders v SG1 Ltd [2023] EWCA Civ 1381 – Farhan acted for the Appellant in an appeal to the Court of Appeal on a very important matter of construction of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1987, where there was no previous authority on the point.

 

  • Munir v Revenue And Customs [2021] EWCA Civ 799 – Farhan appeared before the Court of Appeal in a second appeal concerning novel points of law about the application of the Civil Evidence Act, where the Appellant sought to argue before a Tribunal that a criminal conviction for being knowingly concerned in the fraudulent evasion of tax did not automatically give rise to liability for excise duty following an assessment by HMRC. The Court of Appeal gave important guidance which may be of significance to numerous appeals before the First Tier Tribunal (Tax Chamber). The case has also been discussed in various blog posts due to its significance.

 

 

  • Paling v Ipswich Magistrates Court & Anor [2021] EWHC 2739 (Admin) – Farhan was successful in setting aside a liability order made by Ipswich Magistrates Court, on the basis of unfairness, apparent bias and a failure to make reasonable adjustments. The application for judicial review was allowed and the matter remitted back to the Magistrates Court to be heard by a differently constituted bench of judges.

 

  • R (on the application of RH) v Secretary of State for Justice CO/1757/2020 – Farhan was instructed by a prisoner challenging the lawfulness of his ongoing detention, due to his various underlying health conditions, in light of the Covid-19 pandemic. The client was released early from prison on special licence after instituting judicial review proceedings.

 

 

  • SK V HM – GPT-2020-000663 – Farhan was instructed in respect of an estate worth over £10 million, with a challenge to the validity of 4 wills due to concerns of undue influence, fraudulent calumny and lack of knowledge and approval.

 

  • Din v Aslam – PT-2019-0008843 – Farhan was Instructed in respect of a claim for delivery up of estate assets from a personal representative, where a freezing order was also granted due to a risk of dissipation with the Defendant being in a foreign jurisdiction.

 

  • SS v HP QB-2020-002502 – Instructed in respect of a professional negligence claim against an immigration advisor.

 

 

  • RFM, N M, I B M (A MINOR) V SSHD HU/12528/2019 – successful appeal to the Upper Tribunal concerning the application of MK V SSHD [2017] EWHC 1365 (Admin), where the court found a child born to Indian national parents, who had not been registered with the Indian High Commission, was stateless and therefore entitled to leave to remain with reference to paragraph 276ADE of the Immigration Rules.

Call

2013

Education

BA (Hons) Economics and Law – University of Leicester

BPTC- City Law School

Called to the Bar at Lincoln Inn

Awards

  • Law works and attorney general pro bono awards- runner up

  • University of Leicester entrance scholarship

  • The Jon Holyoak award

Memberships

  • The Constitutional and Administrative Law Bar Association
  • The Property Bar Association
  • Human Rights Lawyers Association