CONTEMPORARY DOCUMENTS: CLINICAL NEGLIGENCE AND MEDICAL NOTES
The judgment of Mrs Justice McGowan today in FE -v- St George’s Hospitals NHS Trust [2016] EWHC 533 (QB) highlights the importance of contemporary documents. It also shows the dangers of the subsequent alteration of notes. There is no suggestion…
AN ATTEMPT TO LIMIT COSTS MAKES A CALDERBANK OFFER INEFFECTIVE
In Burrell -v- Clifford [2016] EWHC 578 (Ch) Mr R Spearman QC (sitting as a judge of the High Court) decided that an offer which was equivalent to the sum awarded in damages was not effective because the defendant also…
BRITISH GAS HAS PRODUCED SOME HOT AIR: DENTON APPLIED NOT CONVERTED
I have already seen several headlines, and numerous commentaries, that mention the “hard line” taken by the Court of Appeal in British Gas Trading -v- Oak Cash & Carry Limited [2016] EWCA Civ 153. The case is not as draconian as…
DENTON AND DELAY IN APPLYING FOR RELIEF FROM SANCTIONS: THE PRINCIPLES CANNOT BE CASH AND CARRIED AWAY
The judgment of the Court of Appeal in British Gas Trading -v- Oak Cash & Carry Limited [2016] EWCA Civ 153 reiterates the significance of the Denton principles. It also emphasises the importance of applying for relief from sanctions promptly….
DELAY, DISCRETION AND SETTING ASIDE JUDGMENT
In the judgment today in Albesher -v- Ryan [2016] EWHC 541 (Comm) Mr Justice Walker considered issues of delay in an application to set aside a default judgment. KEY POINTS A regular judgment was set aside because there was…
JUDICIAL BIAS AND THE ADVOCATE STANDING UP FOR THE CLIENT: AN INTERESTING EXAMPLE
There are some passages in the judgment of Mr Justice Singh in the Employment Appeal Tribunal decision of Nawaz -v- Docklands Buses Ltd Appeal No. UKEAT/0104/15/DM that go beyond the ambit of employment law and are of general application. “…he was,…
RELIABILITY OF WITNESS EVIDENCE: HONESTY IS NOT THE SAME AS RELIABILITY
In Sloper -v- Lloyds Bank Plc [2016] EWHC 483 Mr Justice Spencer had to consider issues relating to the reliability of witnesses. “I must emphasise at the outset of my analysis of the evidence that I am quite sure that…
PART 36: THE COSTS CONSEQUENCES OF LATE ACCEPTANCE
The case of ABC -v- Barts Health NHS Trust [2016] EWHC 500 (QB) decided earlier today provides an object lesson on the dangers of Part 36. His Honour Judge McKenna considered whether he should depart from the “usual rules” in…
PART 36 OFFER DID NOT ENCOMPASS PAYMENT ON ACCOUNT: COSTS ON THE INDEMNITY BASIS: A BAD DAY AT THE OFFICE
The Court of Appeal decision yesterday in Littlestone -v- Macleish [2016] EWCA Civ 127 deals with important elements of Part 36 offers. Not least the importance of stating, with absolute clarity, whether an offer is exclusive or inclusive of previous…
REVISITING COMPLIANCE WITH A PEREMPTORY ORDER AFTER TRIAL: LIES ARE FOUND OUT AND ACTION DISMISSED
I am grateful to Jeff Turton of Weightmans for sending me a copy of the transcript in the case of Anward -v- Severn Trent Water Ltd (13th July 2015). Abid Anwar – Full Judgment It raises an interesting and important point…
DENTON CRITERIA OVERRIDES ALLEGATIONS OF FRAUD: COURT OF APPEAL DECISION: A WAKE UP CALL FOR THE INSURANCE INDUSTRY?
In Gentry -v- Miller and UK Insurance Company [2016] EWCA Civ 141 the Court of Appeal held that the fact that a defendant was alleging fraud did not entitle it to any special treatment in relation to breaches of rules….
DISCLOSURE OF DEFENDANT'S SOLVENCY: ADVERSE ASSUMPTIONS CAN BE MADE IN THE ABSENCE OF EVIDENCE
The case of Sarpd Oil International Limited -v- Addax Energy SA [2016] EWCA Civ 120 related to the practice of awarding security for costs by an overseas company which did not have to file accounts. The case raises other points…
A GENTLE REMINDER OF YOUR NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTIONS 3: THINK VERY CAREFULLY BEFORE SIGNING A STATEMENT OF TRUTH ON BEHALF OF A CLIENT
As part of the series reminding litigators of the new year’s resolutions for 2016 we look at resolution number 4: “Think very carefully before signing a statement of truth on behalf of a client”. We have already seen one case…
THE ONLINE COURT: A GLIMPSE OF THE FUTURE
In Bi -v- Mohammed [2016] EWHC 506 (Fam) today Mr Justice Holman gives an insight into the future of the on-line court, commenting on the problems with evidence by video link. EVIDENCE BY VIDEO LINK There were long periods during…
SWITCHING FROM PUBLIC FUNDING TO A CFA: ANOTHER CASE
NB See the appeal on this case discussed here This blog has followed those cases where judges have decided whether it was reasonable for claimants to switch from legal aid to public funding. Perhaps more to the point, the issue…
PROMISCUITY AND BUNDLES: CAN CAUSE CONSTERNATION
For two years running the post on how to prepare a trial bundle has been the most popular post on this blog (this year it is running second to the post on how to draft a witness statement). The reasons…
INTERIM PAYMENTS, EVIDENCE AND THE BURDEN OF PROOF: OBSERVATIONS FROM THE HIGH COURT
In Sellar-Elliot -v- Howling [2016] EWHC 443 (QB) Mr Justice Sweeney considered some important issues in relation to interim payments. The case is somewhat unusual in that the judgment is one that refuses permission to appeal. However the judge recognised…
REPRESENTATION IN CIVIL COMMITTAL PROCEEDING: ANOTHER CASE
Shortly after the previous post about legal aid in committal proceedings the decision in Watson -v- Holman [2016] EW Misc B5 was placed on Bailli. The case involved committal applications for failure to comply with an order to remove a…
LEGAL AID IN CONTEMPT PROCEEDINGS
In an earlier post I set out the judgment of the Court of Appeal in Brown -v- London Borough of Haringey [2015] EWCA Civ 483 about the availability of legal aid in committal proceedings. This included the passage ” The question…
APPROVAL HEARINGS: CLAIMANTS SHOWING ADVICES TO THE DEFENDANT: A VERY PECULIAR PRACTICE
This is a post inspired by a twitter conversation. It started as a general issue about children and approval hearings. During the course of the discussion it became clear that there were some claimant solicitors who as a matter of course…