DAC Beachcroft has been criticised by a High Court Judge for trying to blackmail a businessman in the course of some acrimonious litigation.

The firm was acting for two brothers, Stuart and Warren Ferster, who were in dispute with their other brother Jonathan, represented by Herbert Smith Freehills. In the course of a mediation an email was sent to Jonathan saying that Stuart and Warren had evidence of criminality on his part, and if he didn’t agree to pay significantly over the odds for their shares in a company they would reveal this information and ruin him. As it said, "In the above circumstances, Jonathan's credibility and reputation will be destroyed".

HSF sought to have this email introduced as evidence, and Mrs Justice Rose agreed. The Court of Appeal was damning about it in its subsequent judgement and found against Stuart and Warren, as RollOnFriday reported last year. But this week Mrs Justice Rose’s judgment was finally published, and it takes a dim view of DACB.

The judge says that the email "appears to have been drafted by lawyers and is forwarded to Herbert Smith by the mediator". She is "in no doubt that this was an attempt at blackmail". After receiving it HSF got in touch with DACB to protest and to seek further disclosure, but “in the DAC Beachcroft response there are no further details of the allegations, as requested, but rather they urge the parties to enter into a confidential settlement” and claim that “no threat was intended”. Mrs Justice Rose was having none of it. “I do not accept that. Rather, I read that as DAC Beachcroft recognising the impropriety of what has been said in the email and trying to repair matters.”


A spokesman for DACB declined to comment.