My name is Andrew Burgess. In 2021 I was sued for defamation by Samuel Leeds, a property trainer and investor whose business practices have been examined by The Economist, The Guardian and the BBC, which included reporting on the marketing methods used by unregulated property training courses, and on customers who took on debt without achieving the returns they were expecting.

I have gathered some articles and put them here for further reading:

The Guardian Article on Samuel Leeds

The BBC Article on Samuel Leeds and Danny Butcher

File On 4 Investigates Samuel leeds

The Economist Article on Samuel leeds

Dan Neidle Article on Samuel Leeds

Stella Creasey MP article Samuel Leeds

Mr Leeds brought a multi-million pound High Court claim against me and several fellow administrators of a Facebook group in which former customers of Mr Leeds' training courses had shared their experiences. After enduring years of litigation, which had a devastating impact on my mental health and finances, thanks to the invaluable assistance provided by the Free Speech Union, Index on Censorship and the UK Anti-SLAPP Coalition who arranged legal representation for me, the claim was eventually struck out by the High Court and Mr Leeds was ordered to pay my costs. Whilst this was a huge relief to me and the other defendants, the battle isn’t over as Mr Leeds is seeking to challenge the level of costs he is required to pay me.

Samuel Leeds is not just any claimant. He is a high‑profile property influencer, selling expensive investment courses, whose business practices have been heavily criticised, both in the media and in Parliament.

Why This Matters Beyond My Own Case

This is not simply a private dispute. It concerns whether a well-resourced claimant can use protracted litigation to prevent ordinary members of the public from discussing matters that have already been the subject of extensive independent media scrutiny. Mr Leeds has also stated publicly that he intends to rely on defamation laws in Dubai, where he now resides, against people who criticise him if they travel there.

Cases like this discourage anyone else from speaking about matters of genuine public interest. 

What Your Support Will Fund

I need to raise at least £15,000 in order to pay for lawyers to represent me at the High Court so that I can recover my costs in defending myself against the defamation claim brought by Mr Leeds, and the significant costs I've had to incur fighting to get my costs back since the defamation claim was struck out.

How You Can Help

If you believe in free speech, fairness, and the right of ordinary people to discuss matters of public concern without being pursued into silence, please consider supporting this campaign. Every donation, of any size, helps ensure that years of litigation can finally be put behind me.

Thank you for reading, and for standing with me.

— Andrew Burgess