Practice Overview

David is a solicitor, partner and Head of Dispute Resolution at a top 200 firm of solicitors where he has always specialised in dispute resolution.  David qualified as a mediator in 1996.  He has handled over 250 mediations across the country with a 90% plus success rate.  David’s specialisms include commercial and contractual disputes, professional negligence, property disputes including landlord and tenant claims, banking and lending, construction, insolvency, employment disputes and trust and inheritance disputes.

Professional Background

David qualified as a solicitor in 1988 and draws on his experience of acting for companies of all sizes, individuals with various difficulties, financial organisations, insurance companies, several local authorities, housing associations and education institutions including universities to unlock any barriers to settlement.  As a partner of over 20 years he understands the stresses and issues involved in running a business.

David is a conference speaker and has written numerous articles on mediation and dispute resolution practice; contractual disputes; professional negligence especially in the area of mortgage works; insolvency; property litigation including on the recovery of assets abroad and trust and inheritance disputes. David also has extensive experience of defamation, harassment and libel claims. The harassment claims have included relational problems and neighbour disputes as well as those arising from the landlord and tenant relationship. Injunctive relief has been a feature. Defamation and libel have included all the media from the newspapers to the new social media and the ambit of defences.

David is an active member of Law South, a grouping of the largest law firms in the South of England.

David seeks to respect those involved in a dispute and understands them on an intellectual and emotional level.  After that, he applies effort and focus to his commercial and legal knowledge to achieve a settlement in as helpful a manner as possible.

Endorsements

• Chambers guide to the UK legal profession names David Foster and says that he is “a very good lawyer” who “gets down to the heart of an issue”.

• "David has a calm authority and he can find the solution in a difficult case. Strategically, I always felt we were in good hands with David.  He was an effective influencer”.  Karen Shuman, Counsel of 1 Chancery Lane

Other Experience

David is a member of the Executive of the Commercial Litigation Association; member of the International Bar Association and the Institute of Directors; and a member of the Professional Negligence Lawyers’ Association, the Environmental Lawyers Association and the Association of Trial Lawyers of America.  David is also a member of the Standing Conference of Mediation Advocates.  He is actively involved in a number of charities and organisations including as trustee.

David is a member of a number of mediation panels.  He has experience in mediation between those of different faiths and cultures and has qualifications in handling relational problems, and high conflict individuals and workplace issues.

David handles international mediations and when mediation was introduced to Kenya, he trained Kenyan lawyers in Nairobi and Kisumu.

Personal Interests

David is married with three children, one of whom is studying law which he takes as an endorsement.  He enjoys sport, especially tennis, and history.