Joanne Wicks QC

Wilberforce Chambers

Real estate silk Joanne Wicks QC, a champion for both tenants and landlords, appeared in one of The Lawyer’s Top 20 cases of 2019, Canary Wharf v European Medicines Agency. Closely followed by the media and expedited because of its importance, it settled before going to the Court of Appeal, after Wicks won the case in the High Court defending Canary Wharf. In a landmark judgment, the Court ruled that a commercial lease cannot be frustrated by Brexit.

Right at the end of 2018, the Supreme Court had handed down judgment in S Franses v The Cavendish Hotel, in which Wicks successfully acted for the tenant S Frances, a textiles and tapestries gallery which operates at the bottom of the hotel, setting a precedent that will enhance business tenants’ rights in the future.

The other Supreme Court case Wicks was involved with, Julia Duval v 11-13 Randolph Crescent Ltd, concerns long-term residential flat leases and could change the authorisation process for tenants to make alterations to their properties, and is awaiting judgment. A force to be reckoned with in real estate litigation, Wicks is also currently engaged in an arbitration regarding commercial leases and their rent review.