Overview
Maxim practises in all areas of commercial chancery, with an emphasis on the law of charities and the related areas of company, insolvency and property litigation. Recent significant cases include Butler-Sloss v Charity Commission and HM Attorney General [2022] EWHC 974 (Ch) (the new leading case on responsible investment by trustees) and Shop Direct v The Official Receiver [2022] EWHC 1355 (Comm) (concerning the limitation period for complaints brought by a trustee in bankruptcy under the FCA Handbook).
He is ranked as one of the leading juniors for charities by both Chambers & Partners and the Legal 500, and is described as having a “formidable” knowledge of charity law matters while also being “keen to understand the bigger picture”. He acts for charities, individual trustees, and has acted both for and against the Charity Commission. In addition to his charities practice, he is frequently instructed in private client trust disputes.
He is also ranked as a leading junior in both insolvency and property litigation by the Legal 500. As well as acting for individual and corporate creditors and debtors, he has been regularly instructed by HMRC, the Secretary of State for Business, and the Official Receiver, giving him a vast amount of experience in this area.
Maxim is a member of the Chancery Bar Association, the Charity Law Association, the Contentious Trusts Association and the Property Bar Association.
Prior to coming to the Bar, Maxim read Philosophy and Theology at Oriel College, Oxford. He was awarded the Top First in his year and a Gibbs Prize for outstanding performance in Philosophy. He subsequently obtained a Distinction on his MA in Philosophy from King's College London and was a recipient of the Simon Dally Book Award.
At City University Law School, Maxim received a Distinction in his Graduate Diploma in Law and was marked Outstanding on the Bar Course. He received scholarships from Gray’s Inn for both of these – including a Bedingfield Scholarship, the highest scholarship awarded by Gray’s Inn, for the Bar Course.
Other interests
Outside the law, Maxim’s hobbies include running, cycling, music, and a continuing academic interest in philosophy and theology.
The clerks are happy to discuss the basis on which Maxim will act in any given matter. In the absence of express written agreement otherwise, the terms under which Maxim accepts instructions are The Standard Contractual Terms for the Supply of Legal Services By Barristers to Authorised Persons 2020 (as updated from time to time) referred to in the BSB Handbook.