Martha Phillips

Her practice spans secured and unsecured debt recovery, property possession, and complex defendant-side litigation, including Section 75 Consumer Credit Act claims, APP fraud and scams, financial crime, freezing orders, breach of mandate, data protection, breach of contract, and financial mis-selling.

Martha has developed particular expertise in the later life lending sector, leading workstreams in later life mortgages and equity release. She acts for a range of financial services clients, from major high street banks to specialist equity release lenders, giving her a thorough understanding of the commercial and regulatory pressures her clients face.

Her dual experience on both sides of litigation means she brings a well-rounded perspective to every matter — anticipating the opposing party's strategy and positioning her clients to achieve the best possible outcome, whether that is successful recovery, an early resolution, or a robust defence.

The work Martha does directly supports her clients' ability to manage risk, protect their balance sheets, and maintain operational resilience. Her clients benefit from pragmatic, commercially minded advice that is grounded in deep sector knowledge and hands-on litigation experience.

Jurisdiction: England & Wales

• Acting for a specialist later life lender in a complex lifetime mortgage enforcement matter involving a third-party occupier with no recognised legal standing, sustained over 18 months across multiple contested hearings, a High Court appeal, five regulatory complaints and a warrant of restitution following the occupier breaking back into the property after a successful eviction.
• Acting for a specialist equity release lender in a multi-party overriding interest dispute in which a third party alleged a beneficial interest of 80% in a mortgaged property, supported by witness evidence of longstanding trust arrangements predating the mortgage. The matter involves complex questions of actual occupation, the validity of an unsigned Declaration of Trust, and the lender's conveyancing position at the point of completion.
• Representing a major retail bank as defendant in a three-party mediation arising from a Section 75 Consumer Credit Act claim relating to a defective home improvement, securing a highly favourable outcome for the lender client.
• Acting for a major retail bank in a dispute arising from defective building works, navigating a Financial Ombudsman Service complaint, a contested FOS award, and subsequent Part 8 enforcement proceedings brought by the customers for alleged non-compliance with that award. The bank's losses were substantially recovered through a favourable settlement of an indemnity claim pursued against the supplier.
• Acting for a major retail bank in longstanding mortgage possession proceedings against a borrower who made repeated applications to suspend warrants and set aside a possession order, requiring detailed witness evidence and sustained opposition to multiple attempts to delay enforcement. The matter was further complicated by significant protective payments made by the lender to the freeholder to prevent lease forfeiture, which required separate recovery alongside the mortgage arrears.