IT Disputes

• public and private sector clients
• customers or users of IT systems and services
• suppliers

• Acting for a major IT outsourcing company in respect of a number of separate multimillion-pound disputes concerning the supply of outsourced IT services both in the UK and India
• Acting for the seller of an IT business company in respect of a claim by the purchaser arising from the sale of a business, earn-out and unpaid invoices for IT support services. The matter was resolved at the pre-action stage
• Acting for a UK plc in respect of a claim for breach of a software licence. Damages claimed were circa £2 million. An upgrade was negotiated
• Acting in an IT contract dispute. We advised on the dispute resolution process and the termination of a multimillion-pound contract for material breach
• Acting for a digital agency in respect of claims arising from the development of an iPhone app. Court proceedings were commenced against our client and the matter settled after close of pleadings
• Representing a client in respect of a claim that customer access software was not fit for purpose. The contract included a tiered dispute resolution procedure (adr law) which was followed and the matter ultimately resolved avoiding excessive litigation costs
• Advising on the termination of a contract for the supply of IT and online gaming services and associated issues and damages claim.

I am not happy with the services a website design company has provided to me. Who owns the Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs) in it? What happens to the IPRs if I terminate the contract?

• Under English law, the basic rule is that it is the author of the code who owns the copyright in the software or website. This is unaffected by the fact that the person commissioning the work has paid for the work to be done. Unless the work was carried out by an employee of a company in which case, it is the employer who will own the IPRs, the IPRs will belong to the website design company unless it has transferred the ownership of the IPRs by means of a written document which provides for the assignment of the ownership from the author to another party, usually the customer.
• Assuming the website design was carried out by a third-party design company, you will need to check your contractual documentation to see if the IPRs have been assigned to you. 

My organisation wants to sue an IT provider for breach of contract for significant financial losses incurred but the contract contains a limitation of liability clause – is it worth proceeding?

• The fact that the contract appears to protect the IT provider against various or all forms of potential liability does not mean that you have no prospect of success. Under English law, to be effective such clauses have to be reasonable (and also incorporated into the contract).
• Whether they are reasonable typically depends on lots of different factors, such as the relative bargaining power of the parties at the time the contract was entered and the parties’ respective abilities to insure themselves against potential losses. The actual wording of the clause is also very important.
• We can help you assess whether the IT provider is in breach of contract, whether this led you to suffer recoverable losses and what effect any limitation of liability clause would be likely to have on any claim that you made.

If we terminate the contract with our existing IT provider, can we force it to assist with migration of services and data to a new provider?

• This will all depend on the terms of your contract with your original provider and unfortunately, the answer is probably no unless the contract expressly provides to the contrary.
• We can assist you with navigating the course between termination and a new appointment, so your risk of downtime is minimised.

A client-focused, responsive team that works hand-in-glove with in-house counsel/GC in a commercial and effective way. Good knowledge of the law and tactical awareness leading to good outcomes.’

‘Paul Walsh assembles and leads an appropriately skilled and resourceful team well bringing his own calm and assured manner to difficult and complex disputes. He is ably assisted by the up-and-coming Jon Scally.’

‘Pragmatic and commercially focused. The team represent excellent value for money.’

‘Excellent responsiveness and diligence in preparation.’

‘Paul Walsh – hands-on leadership and a real expertise in his field.’

• Acting for an NHS Trust in a dispute with a telecommunications provider in relation to a multimillion-pound contract to redevelop the telecommunications infrastructure at the Trust. The dispute centred upon the payments triggered by various contractual clauses, and a factual dispute as to whether the contractor had delivered services under the contract, including a possible right of set off by the Trust for alleged failings in the new system. The dispute was resolved amicably between the parties.
• Representing a UK provider of car parking services in a dispute with a multi-national IT service provider in a multi-million breach of contract claim where a ‘go-live’ date was missed and key milestones not complied with. The matter was resolved and a negotiated exit from the contract agreed;
• Advising a local authority on a dispute relating to the failed integration of its newly procured/developed social care case management workflow system with its previous legacy electronic document management system. We assisted the parties negotiations pursuant to the contractual dispute resolution mechanism. The case involved complex IT issues and detailed contractual analysis and has required us to engage in, and explore, various legal and technical solutions to improve performance and avoid damage to service provision.

Legal 500

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