Assange law firm hit with giant claim

A LAW firm that worked for Wikileaks founder Julian Assange is facing a multi-million pound legal claim.

Howard Kennedy, which also represented Princess Diana’s friend James Hewitt, has been accused of failing to properly structure a development deal that would have seen hundreds of new homes built in the South East.

The firm faces allegations of mistakes in work done for Brighton-based property developer Josh Arghiros and his business Karis Developments.

Arghiros brought the lawyers on board to help draft an agreement to develop hundreds of houses in and around Lewes in East Sussex.

But the project was shelved amid opposition from local residents.

Arghiros alleges that legal failures in the drafting of the contract allowed Lewes District Council to walk away from the deal.

Last year a legal claim against the local authority was settled on the steps of the court for undisclosed sums.

All the lawyers named in the claim as being involved in the work for Arghiros are no longer at Howard Kennedy.

Paul Millet, the former boss of Howard Kennedy, left in 2017 while Mark Johnstone retired in April this year.

A Howard Kennedy spokesman said: ‘Howard Kennedy strongly disputes the claims made by Karis Developments and Karis Southern Housing Projects relating to events in 2015.

‘We will robustly fight the claim and it would be inappropriate to comment further on an active matter.’