An out-of-court settlement has brought an end to a professional negligence claim which had been set to become one of the year’s most high profile.
The case centred on an attempt by banking giant Barclays to claim £12.7 million from mortgage broker firm Savills Private Finance and chartered surveyors Stocker & Roberts Partnership for what it said were cases of mortgage fraud.
The action was further complicated by a related professional negligence claim against two firms of solicitors.
According to the bank, it consistently received exaggerated valuations from the surveyor firm over the period 2006 to 2007. In one notable case of alleged negligent valuation, Barclays received a valuation of £19.5m for a property which later transpired to be worth only £10.6m.
A spokesperson from Barclays confirmed that its lawyers had settled the professional negligence claim. “The parties have settled the claims. The terms of the settlement are confidential,” he said.
The lawyer had predicted that the case would be one of 2012′s top court cases – a possibility which has now been avoided.
As with most cases of this type, including the lower value ones brought by individual claimants, it is far better to settle out of court, where possible, than to go through the rigmarole, distress and expense of the courts system.
