Herbert Smith has appointed partner Matthew Bonye as its new Head of Property Litigation.

Matthew joined the firm in 1992 and became a partner in 2006. He qualified as a solicitor-advocate in 1998 with full Higher Rights of audience in the Civil Courts.

Matthew takes over from Martin Thomas, who is leaving the firm.

Matthew's practice centres on “big ticket” disputes. This has included acting in massive transactional disputes, large scale landlord and tenant matters and also compensation cases arising from the Compulsory Purchase Code.

Some recent examples have included acting for Guinness in their landmark Court of Appeal victory over Railtrack, a case relating to a Lands Tribunal claim by Railtrack for over £50 million. In 2004 Matthew acted successfully in High Court proceedings on behalf of a major European property investment company in a dispute involving non-completion by a purchaser on a property sale contract valued at more that £120 million. Matthew also acted for Postel in its famous victory over Boots in a case concerning multi-million pound repair works at Milton Keynes Shopping Centre. Most recently, Matthew acted for Stagecoach, appearing as objector at the Olympic CPO Inquiry in 2006

Other clients include Hammerson, Standard Life and BAA.

Matthew leads a team of four Associate Solicitors, all of whom are currently in the final phases of training as solicitor-advocates.

Iain Rothnie, Head of Real Estate, commented:

"The firm's reputation as a leader in dispute resolution complements the strength of our award-winning Real Estate Department. The Property Litigation team is a key element of that department and Matthew, having been at the firm since he was a trainee and as one of our strong coterie of solicitor-advocates, is ideally placed to continue development of that practice. His CPO and Lands Tribunal expertise allow us to offer a "cradle-to-grave" development and investment offering."

Matthew Bonye added:

"This is a fantastic Property Litigation group here at Herbert Smith, which encompasses all aspects of strategic property advice and contentious work. The wide range of specialist skills and experience on offer is backed up by the phenomenal resources available to Herbert Smith's Litigation practice generally. We have achieved great results for our clients on the most business-critical of matters. I am looking forward to taking our practice to even greater heights."

For further information please contact Michael Evans in the communications team on +44 (0)20 7466 3190 or michael.evans@herbertsmith.com