Classic Car Solicitors
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Brighton 01273 685 888
Collector Cars
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    classic car solicitors

    Collector Cars

    Putting you in the driving seat

    Our collector car solicitors have the expertise and knowledge to deal with  range of issues that affect the acquisition and management of classic and collector cars.

    Over the last decade certain members of the firm have acquired specialist expertise in the law and practices relating to the increasingly valuable collectors’ car market.

    Consequently, we have decided to establish a dedicated team of solicitors and support staff, who are not only experienced in their own specific legal disciplines, but also have a life-long enthusiasm and  knowledgeable expertise of almost every aspect of car ownership. In short: “We Speak Motors”.

    The Healys Collector Car Solicitors Group can provide all of the services expected of lawyers, including commercial law aspects of acquisition such as title and contracts, estate and inheritance tax planning and litigation and mediation in the event of dispute.

    More importantly, we have come to understand that issues relating to motors can often be resolved efficiently by looking beyond the strict confines of the legal world.  Classic car ownership involves matters where other specialists play an important part, and in many cases they can facilitate pragmatic and financially sound outcomes.

    As a result, over the years we have set up strong and effective working relationships with a variety of local and international specialists, including accountants, auctioneers and insurers, amongst others, with the best applicable expertise tailored to the matters in hand.  In this way we have all but instant access, both formally and informally, to the right people.

    This practice has recently developed into a distinguishable branch of the law accelerated in part by the extraordinary growth in value of classic, collector and race cars.  Obvious legal solutions are not always readily identifiable and case law remains sparse, but we have found that solutions to problems are frequently achieved by taking a collaborative rather than contentious approach.

    This comes from many years of experience representing clients in similar situations.

    Call Us Today
    Call our London office on 020 7822 4000 or our Brighton office on 01273 685 888. You can also contact us online.
    Call Us Today
    London: 020 7822 4000 Brighton: 01273 685 888 Or you can contact us online: Contact Us
    Key Contacts
    Clive Robertson
    Head of Classic Car Group
    Robert Johnson
    Partner
    Meet the team
    Collector Cars capabilities
    Collector Cars experiences
    • Advising a US owner of an historic 70's Porsche 911 race car, who became aware of another car residing in Europe, bearing the same chassis number, but  differing race livery. Both cars carried divergent histories in early years, but which merged from the eighties. Both cars have been examined by expert marque engineers, whilst painstaking research has been undertaken both in the Americas and Europe, the outcome of which is yet to be concluded.
    • A client based in Hong Kong was the successful bidder at auction in London of a Bugatti carrying a body by James Young. Post auction, the buyer felt "unsure" about the car, when it was discovered that the sale was by the US auction house and not by an unconnected third party. In the event the "seller" could not prove title and was obliged to accept the return of the car, whilst refunding the purchase price as well as settling legal costs and all expenses.
    • Acting for an owner of a Jaguar D Type confronted by a claim from another party claiming that he owned the same, genuine chassis. As with all D Types, the tub has a chassis number, which number is also stamped on suspension and other parts. After a career spent racing the tub of the Jaguar was deemed "tired", when the parts were removed and re-fitted to a new tub, whilst the original tub was discarded. In due course the discarded tub was "refreshed with genuine new parts. The question arose as to which of the cars could be deemed to be genuine. The parties reached a reasonable conclusion.
    • Competition engines, by the very nature of their intended use, are subject to extreme stress and therefor wear. Competent re-builds usually produce the number of working hours expected, but in a small, but significant number of those rebuilds, poor workmanship can bring about major failure. Independent examination by expert engineers has often provided the basis on which we have founded a number of successful recovery actions.
    • Following a year of ownership of an Alfa Romeo Guilia Spider, the purchaser who had bought the car as a present for his daughter discovered that the car and documentation carried reference to two different chassis numbers, which anomalies were not disclosed, nor apparent at inspection. Advice is now being sought on the basis of the remedied that may be available based upon the misrepresentation of the seller.
    • Advising a client who wished to establish the authenticity of his 1949 Alfa Romeo 6c SS This car was bought at auction in the UK, having spent many years in Argentina. Doubts had been raised as to the authenticity of the car, to the extent that it had been labelled a "fake". An exhaustive forensic examination of the car was undertaken. In particular, a sample of metal was cut from the chassis and following analysis, was found to have been to have been cast in the year of manufacture, so establishing provenance beyond a reasonable doubt.
    • Appointed in 2004 to manage the dissolution of AC Car Group Limited, following a century of production ranging from 3 wheeled cars to the iconic AC Cobra.
    Collector Cars insights
    • Healys LLP Sends Serious Warning To The Classic & Collectors Car World

      13th September 2018

      More deliberation and responsibility needs to be brought to transactions by dealers, buyers and sellers in the classic car world, say London Solicitors Healys LLP, following the distressing news which was announced yesterday in the classic car world of the appointment of administrators to the troubled historic car sales, restoration and preparation business JD Classics which had publicly been perceived as a beacon in the sector. Continue reading »

    Collector Cars awards
    Collector Cars news
    • Is Your Will Out of Date? Execute a New One Before It’s Too Late!

      17th January 2020

      Allowing your will to become out of date stores up trouble for your loved ones. That was strikingly so in one case in which a successful businessman suffered a stroke before he could make a new will taking account of his changed financial and personal circumstances.

      The businessman had over the years made at least five wills, the most recent of which was a decade old. A draft new will had been found on his computer after he fell ill, but it had not been executed and was thus of no legal effect. The stroke had robbed him of his capacity to make decisions for himself or to make a fresh will.

      In those circumstances, his long-term partner and daughter applied to the High Court for execution of a statutory will, on the basis that his last extant will took no account of his dramatically changed circumstances and represented a wholly inappropriate disposition of his substantial estate.

      A further complication arose because the man’s son from a previous relationship was plagued by drug and alcohol addiction. His conduct towards his father and other members of his family had been extremely violent and menacing and had culminated in a criminal conviction and a lengthy prison sentence.

      The son, as a beneficiary of the extant will, would ordinarily have been entitled to be served with the proceedings and to be made a party to them. However, in the light of his behaviour, the Court took the rare step of dispensing with those requirements. The proposed statutory will would have no material adverse effect on the son and his involvement in the proceedings would potentially jeopardise his father’s care home placement and pose significant risks to the safety of others.

      For more information on how to obtain or update a Will, please contact Head of Wills & Probate, Christina Spencer on 01273 810079 or email her at: Christina.Spencer@healys.com

    • Legal Specialists Take on Secret Santa in Aid of Great Ormond Street Christmas Appeal

      23rd December 2019

      Christmas is an exciting time for many as we prepare to give and receive thoughtful gifts, spend time with loved ones, and ignore calorie intakes as we embrace chocolates, comfort food and more! However, the festive season can also be an extremely difficult time for many individuals and families too. A great number of  children at Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH) are too ill to go home for Christmas. Continue reading »

    Call Us Today
    London: 020 7822 4000 Brighton: 01273 685 888 Or you can contact us online: Contact Us
    CLASSIC CARS / COLLECTOR CARS