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Royal divorce lawyer Fiona Shackleton has ‘never had’ a laptop or desktop PC from her firm, it was claimed today in a court case involving a Russian oligarch’s former wife.
Lawyers for her ex-client Tatiana Soroka hoping to search Baroness Shackleton’s devices for messages described the situation as ‘distinctly odd’.
But the peer, who famously acted for King Charles in his split from Princess Diana and is currently representing Earl Spencer in his third divorce, will have to disclose messages on her mobile phone in the legal dispute with Ms Soroka.
The oligarch’s ex-wife is suing Baroness Shackleton’s law firm Payne Hicks Beach (PHB), and is hoping to receive up to £600million – more than she won when PHB helped her scoop Britain’s biggest divorce settlement of £453million in 2016.
She claims the firm let her down following the divorce when chances were allegedly missed to have her former husband’s ten-deck floating palace Luna seized in Miami.
The court clash between the two high-profile women comes nine years after Ms Soroka’s record-breaking payout was the latest triumph for Baroness Shackleton, nicknamed the ‘Steel Magnolia’.
Despite her success, Baroness Shackleton, 68, does not appear to use a computer at her offices. Ms Soroka’s lawyers want to search the peer’s devices for messages relevant to the case. But the High Court was told yesterday that ‘no desktop or laptop by Baroness Shackleton will be searched on the basis that… [she] has confirmed that [she] has never had a PHB desktop or laptop.’
Graeme McPherson, KC, for Ms Soroka, said: ‘That is distinctly odd. PHB should clarify the electronic devices that Baroness Shackleton used for work purposes and that they will be searched.’
Relations soured between Baroness Shackleton and Ms Soroka after her divorce-settlement money failed to materialise from her ex-husband Farkhad Akhmedov. Ms Soroka, 52, instructed PHB to chase Mr Akhmedov, 69, for the money.
She claims she spoke to Baroness Shackleton and another PHB solicitor in January 2017, alerting them that her ex was in Miami – along with his 377ft superyacht, Luna. It is the world’s second-largest expedition yacht and has two helipads, a pool and mini submarine.
Her court claim states Ms Soroka asked them to ‘explore options in Miami’ for having the Luna seized, given that it has been valued at around £200million. She claims they failed to act on her instructions, in breach of their duties.
PHB denies acting negligently. It claims Ms Soroka told Baroness Shackleton she was ‘not interested in impounding the ship’. The firm said it ‘remains proud’ of the result it achieved for Ms Soroka.
The case continues.
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