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Trevor Sears

Consultant Solicitor

England & Wales

020 3319 3700

trevor.sears@keystonelaw.co.uk

“A big thank you to my lawyer, Trevor Sears, who I am incredibly grateful to, as he has been, and still is, a rock in the middle of a business and life "ocean". He has put be straight where I wandered off course and his character, which I once described as a mixture of Robin Hood and the Terminator, has been, and still is, a tremendous pillar in my life”

- Astrid Schmitt-Bylandt

Trevor has over 50 years’ experience in the fields of dispute resolution, travel and aviation, and insolvency, and acted for many years as an external legal counsel to the International Air Transport Association (IATA) dealing with issues between airlines and travel agents. 

Trevor is recognised by the UK legal directories as an expert in travel law and described as being a “visible force for his astute handling of work in this sector”. His eminent position and knowledge of this area of law has made him ‘a person to go to’ for those fighting fraud when they need an authoritative perspective on fraud issues within their businesses. 

Expertise

Trevor advises travel businesses on fraud-related risks, regulatory obligations, and commercial disputes, with particular experience handling cross-border travel fraud investigations and litigation involving tour operators and booking platforms. 

Experience

  • Successfully acting for a business travel agency with substantial claims against an international oil group both UK and offshore. 
  • Acting for a leading travel organisation in recovering substantial monies taken by in-house legal advisor. 
  • Successfully acting for a consortium of over 30 airlines in substantial claims against a major travel agency group. 
  • Acting for IATA member airlines against major banks in trust monies claims. 
  • Acting for major travel groups and advising with requirements imposed by regulatory bodies. 

Trevor advises on complex restructurings and insolvency matters with a particular focus on civil fraud, tracing assets, and acting in high-value recovery actions arising out of financial distress or misconduct. 

Experience

  • Successfully acting for a leading UK liquidator in Ponzi-type claims against former directors and others. 
  • Acting for a leading trustee in bankruptcy in high-profile UK bankruptcies with international effect. 
  • Advising a commercial lender on substantial claims against various borrowers including investigations into hidden assets. 

 

Trevor specialises in dispute resolution, advising on shareholder conflicts, fraudulent debt recovery, investor claims, and asset recovery for companies facing internal misappropriation. 

Experience

  • Trevor advises on issues arising between shareholders of companies as well as recovery of fraudulent debt. 
  • Successfully acting for commercial investors in a claim against debtors. 
  • Advising a company on recovery of assets wrongly taken by others within the company. 

Trevor represents directors, shareholders, and partners in contentious matters including unfair prejudice claims, breach of fiduciary duty, and disputes arising from joint ventures, exits, and governance breakdowns. 

Experience

  • Advising companies and partnerships on shareholder and partner disputes. 
  • Advising on complex unfair prejudice issues in company disputes. 
  • Successfully acting for partners of a failed legal firm in recovery of monies due to them. 

 

Trevor advises clients across the aviation and travel sectors on complex regulatory issues, including IATA and ATOL matters, airline disposals, and consumer claims, with extensive experience in international frameworks. 

Experience

  • Supported the client with specific Travel and Aviation Regulatory advice to divest themselves of a number of travel companies within their international group. The structure of disposals was diverse and challenging specifically concerning airline and IATA relationships and resultant financial backing and securities underlying the substantial transaction as well as CAA issues arising from ATOL bonding levels. 
  • Provided advice in a class action concerning the recovery of monies by consumers from an airline where they have purchased flight tickets from the airline, have not used those tickets, but have not been refunded monies paid by them in respect of Departure taxes. 
  • Advising IATA internationally on diverse legal issues over many years. 
  • Advising leading US airline on contract claims against online travel agencies, in international jurisdictions. 
  • Acted for multiple airlines in claims for trust monies against leading banks over many years. 

Please note: The experience list above may include examples of work completed prior to joining Keystone Law.

Recognition

Recognised by The Legal 500 for Travel 2023 – 2027

Recognised by Best Lawyers UK for Aviation 2025 

Recognised by Best Lawyers UK for Travel 2009 – 2025 

Recognised by The Legal 500 for Travel: Regulatory and Commercial 2022 

Recognised by The Legal 500 for Aviation 2013 – 2022 

Recognised by Chambers UK for Travel 2014 – 2019 

Recognised by Chambers UK for Aviation 2014 – 2019 

Recognised in the 2014 edition of Super Lawyers for Bankruptcy and Insolvency 

Winner of the Aviation category in the 2014 Client Choice Awards 

Aviation: Regulatory – Leading Individual Aviation: Shortlisted for excellence in aviation at the International Law Office and Lexology Client Choice awards 2013 

Recognised in the Third Edition of Best Lawyers in the United Kingdom in the practice area of Travel Law

“Trevor Sears is exceptional with his experience and knowledge of the travel regulatory sector. He is very practical and commercial too”

The Legal 500 2023

Trevor qualified as a solicitor in 1972. Prior to joining Keystone Law in 2013, he worked at the following firms: 

  • Davenport Lyons 
  • Kingsford Stacey Blackwell 
  • Booth & Blackwell  

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