Sandy Hastie
Harper Macleod LLPHarper Macleod LLP offers significant experience in handling contractual, shareholder, and post-M&A disputes, with increased instructions in group litigation. Practice head Sandy Hastie, praised as ‘one of the top commercial litigators in Scotland’, excels at corporate and shareholder litigation, handling disputes in the healthcare, energy, and financial services sectors. David Kerr manages complex post-M&A, tax, and banking disputes, E-Ming Fong brings expertise to corporate disputes and intellectual property matters, while John McHugh focuses on contractual disputes.
Legal 500 Editorial commentary
Testimonials
Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.
'A superb team, with extensive partner involvement. They are driven, hard-working and have extensive experience in complex, international and high-value cases.’
‘Harper Macleod has established itself as a leading commercial law firm in Scotland. The key strengths of the team are the sheer effort and skill they expend on advancing their client's cases. They are always on top of the details of even the most complex of disputes, and combine that with a real dynamism in either driving a case forward or reaching a resolution of disputes.’
‘The stand-out partner is Sandy Hastie. He is widely recognised to be one of the best lawyers in Scotland. He is vastly experienced, commercially-minded, and frighteningly intelligent.
- 'John McHugh is vastly experienced and brings a real depth and gravamen to all his cases. There is no one better at understanding and simplifying complex and high-value disputes.’
‘Harper Macleod is an excellent Scottish firm with a very strong and well-respected commercial litigation team. The dispute resolution practice is headed by Sandy Hastie, who is one of the top commercial litigators in Scotland, but the department has real depth of talent.’
‘John McHugh is commercially pragmatic and has always prepared cases excellently. E-Ming Fong is very good with clients and consistently thorough in exploring every possible angle for them. Both have experience of a wide range of work and in dealing with factually complex and unusual cases.’
‘Harper Macleod is an excellent firm. They have brilliant partners and brilliant associates. They are regularly involved in the most complicated litigation in the Scottish courts.’
‘Sandy Hastie is an extremely capable technical lawyer, with a strong commercial awareness. He is able to process and understand complex information very quickly.'
Key clients
- Scottish Government
- Coach Stores Ltd
- Energiekontor UK Ltd
- Nero Holdings Ltd
- Optical Express Group
- Arc Legal Insurances Ltd
- Halfords Group
- William Hill
- CorpAcq Ltd
- M&Co
Work highlights
- Advised Robert Kidd on a $350m action against the purchasers of his shareholding in an oil and gas company, and their solicitors, based on an unlawful means conspiracy, including a 5-week proof (trial) in the Court of Session in December 2023.
- Successfully represented Centenary 6 Ltd at proof (trial) in a £40m loss of opportunity claim against TLT solicitors, concerning legal advice given by TLT which resulted in the irretrievable loss of a prior right of action.
- Represented Cromsource srl in its defence of a £2m post-M&A claim arising out of a share purchase agreement, following its acquisition of a Scottish business.
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Practice head
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Sandy Hastie