Eilidh M. Strathearn

Eilidh leads the firm's contentious practice, which covers commercial actions in the Court of Session and in the sheriff court, shareholder and partnership disputes, professional negligence claims brought by businesses, contract and warranty claims following a sale, and the contentious side of insolvency.

A significant part of the work never reaches a court. Commercial disputes in Scotland are shaped early, by the pre-action correspondence, by whether the appropriate diligence has been considered, and by an honest assessment of what a proof would cost against what is realistically recoverable. Clients are given that assessment at the start, and are given it again, unprompted, whenever it changes.

Eilidh takes a particular interest in the practical differences between Scottish and English commercial procedure, including the sheriff court's exclusive competence, the Scottish rules on prescription, and the enforcement methods available in Scotland, since those differences are where businesses relying on English-law assumptions most often come unstuck.

Where a matter requires counsel, the firm instructs counsel.