Pump Court Chambers wins £2.75m judgment against former credit control manager
Pump Court Chambers has secured summary judgment and a money order for £2.75 million against its former credit control manager following what it described in civil proceedings as an alleged fraud carried out against the set.
The chambers discovered that £2.75 million was missing from its bank account after the departure of Gillian Goodfield, also known as Gillian Brown. Goodfield had been responsible for the chambers’ bank account and for distributing funds to barristers.
Pump Court Chambers brought civil proceedings seeking summary judgment. Goodfield, who appeared remotely and without legal representation, applied to stay the civil claim. She told the court that she wished for the criminal case to conclude before the civil process moved forward. She said she had tried to cooperate fully and believed that emails, text messages and other communications would show what she described as the extreme mental state and pressure she was under at the time.
Saaman Pourghadiri, for Pump Court Chambers, said there was no basis to suggest that a stay was required to protect the criminal proceedings. He submitted that the civil claim could continue.
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Master McQuail refused the application for a stay. She said it was not clear that the defendant would adopt a different position in the proceedings if a stay were granted, including in relation to the privilege against self-incrimination. She also said it was not clear that any admissions, statements or disclosure of documents within the civil case would, in light of statutory safeguards, result in criminal proceedings becoming unfair, unjust or prejudicial to the defendant.
In the summary judgment application, the court heard that of the £2.75 million alleged to have been stolen, £2.62 million had been transferred into bank accounts belonging to Goodfield or her husband. A further £130,000 had been transferred into an Amazon account that was mostly used to buy goods for Goodfield.
Pourghadiri told the court that Goodfield was spending beyond her means and that her legitimate income was totally dwarfed by the funds in question.
The judge granted summary judgment against Goodfield. A money judgment was made for £2.75 million together with interest of £336,016.87. The order entitles Pump Court Chambers to recover items allegedly purchased with funds belonging to the chambers.
Wiltshire Police said that a woman had been arrested and released under investigation.
The decision brings to a close the chambers’ application for summary judgment, following earlier proceedings in which Pump Court Chambers had sought but failed to obtain an order keeping details of the alleged fraud private. The High Court heard that the sums involved and the movement of funds were central to the civil claim.
The judgment marks a significant step for Pump Court Chambers in its attempt to recover the missing money. The court’s findings were based on the evidence presented in the civil proceedings and the submissions made by both parties.
Goodfield’s position remains that material she has referred to will explain her conduct once the criminal proceedings have concluded. The court determined that the civil claim should continue without delay and that the chambers was entitled to the judgment sought.
The civil proceedings and the criminal investigation will continue in parallel. Further updates will depend on the progress of the police investigation and any future applications in the civil case.