REVIEW OF THE YEAR (3): SOME FACTS, FIGURES AND INTERESTING QUESTIONS (“ARE PART 36 OFFERS INCLUDED IN THE TRIAL BUNDLE?”)
This year the blog has had 529,639 visitors and 1,349,269 views. 535 posts have been published. The number of posts were not as hectic as last year (770 posts) but 2020 was dominated by guidance on litigating in a Covid…
MORE GUIDANCE ON E-BUNDLES (FROM THE FAMILY COURT): “NO PAGE SHOULD APPEAR UPSIDE DOWN”
The President of the Family Division has issued guidance on E-Bundles Sup-guidance-E-bundles. Many of the points made here can provide guidance to civil practitioners. “No page should appear upside down.” GUIDANCE ON E-BUNDLES FOR USE IN THE FAMILY COURT AND…
REVIEW OF 2021 (2): CIVIL LITIGATION CASE OF THE YEAR: MOTHER AND CHILD DO NOT BECOME HOMELESS AFTER SUCCESSFUL APPEAL
In Williams v Nilsson & Anor [2021] EWHC 3184 (Ch) HHJ Richard Williams (sitting as a High Court judge) allowed an appeal in a case relating to ownership of property. There is plenty about procedure and evidence in this case,…
REVIEW OF 2021 (1): OPENING LINES OF JUDGMENTS: COSTS, BRASS, MUCK, UNHAPPY FAMILIES AND … ARCHANGELS
The review of opening lines of judgments has become an annual event. Here we look at some of the most interesting opening lines of judgments from cases this year. They cover a wide range of topics and courts. This particular…
THE WINNER OF THE 2021 LEGAL CHRISTMAS SONG CONTEST: (BUT EVERYONE’S A WINNER OF COURSE…)
The results of the 2021 Legal Christmas Music contest were announced on Twitter earlier this month. The (plastic) trophy has been sent to the Secret Barrister for signature and is on its way to the winner. The winner remains anonymous,…
WHEN A CLAIMANT APPEARS AS THEIR OWN EXPERT WITNESS: IT RARELY ENDS WELL
In Tehrani v Hamilton Bonaduz AG & Ors [2021] EWHC 3457 (IPEC) HHJ Hacon considered a case where a claimant appeared as their own expert witness. THE CASE The claimant, a professor, brought an action asserting that the defendant…
SOLICITOR AND OWN COSTS ASSESSMENT: HIGH COURT UPHOLDS DECISION THAT CLIENT NOT LIABLE TO PAY ADDITIONAL COUNSEL’S FEES: SOLICITOR TERMINATED THE RETAINER AND COULD NOT RECOVER COSTS
I wrote about the first instance decision in Murray v Richard Slade And Co Ltd [2021] EWHC 3383 (QB), in two posts in January this year, the first is here, the second here. The claimant in that case (the solicitor…
COURT REFUSES AN APPLICATION FOR INTERIM PAYMENT FOR COSTS: A REVIEW OF THE PREVIOUS CASES
In NAX v MAX & Anor [2021] EWHC 3492 (QB) Master Brown refused a claimant’s application for an interim order for costs. The judgment is useful in that it reviews the previous cases on the topic and sets out the…
RELIEF FROM SANCTIONS: LATE SERVICE OF ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF SERVICE: NOT A “SUBSTANTIAL, SERIOUS OR SIGNIFICANT” FAILURE
In Aelf MSN 242, LLC v De Surinaamse Luchtvaart Maatschappij NV DBA Surinam Airways [2021] EWHC 3482 (Comm) Peter MacDonald Eggers QC (sitting as a Deputy High Court Judge) granted a defendant relief from sanctions in relation to late (and…
THE SUMMARY ASSESSMENT OF COSTS: WHEN IT IS (ABOUT) A LOTTERY
I have mentioned before how many people are interested in reading cases about the summary assessment of costs. There is an example in the judgment of Senior Master Fontaine in Goodram & Anor v Camelot UK Lotteries Ltd [2020] EWHC…
COVERT RECORDINGS AND EVIDENCE: AN ISSUE FROM A FAMILY CASE
An issue relating to the covert recording of conversations arose in the decision of Recorder Briggs in Children (Private Law: Covert Recordings: Adjournment of Final Hearing), Re [2021] EWFC B82. A party wanted to rely on a “transcript” of secret…
“THE FUNDAMENTAL IMPORTANCE OF ADEQUATE PLEADINGS”: CASE REFERRED BACK FOR A SECOND TRIAL BECAUSE CLAIMANT’S PARTICULARS DID NOT STATE THE CASE IT ADVANCED
Anyone who thinks that the rules relating to pleadings are now more relaxed and less important should read the decision of Mr Justice Cotter in Charles Russell Speechlys LLP v Beneficial House (Birmingham) Regeneration LLP [2021] EWHC 3458 (QB). This…
CIVIL PROCEDURE BACK TO BASICS 92: RESILING FROM ADMISSIONS – A SUMMARY OF THE LAW
The judgment of Master Stevens in Shah v London Borough of Barnet [2021] EWHC 2631 (QB) provides an essential summary of the rules and case law in relation to resiling from admissions. The decision itself was looked at in an…
DEFENDANT REFUSED PERMISSION TO RESILE FROM ADMISSION: GRANTING THE APPLICATION WOULD “REFLECT BADLY ON THE JUSTICE SYSTEM”
In Shah v London Borough of Barnet [2021] EWHC 2631 (QB) Master Stevens refused the defendant’s application for permission to resile from a pre-action admission. “On the particular facts of this case, I believe it would reflect poorly on the…
THE APPROVAL OF SOLICITOR AND OWN CLIENT COSTS OF A PROTECTED PARTY AFTER SETTLEMENT: CLIENT NOT LIABLE TO PAY ANY FURTHER PROFIT COSTS; SUCCESS FEE REDUCED TO 15%
In BCX v DTA [2021] EWHC B27 (Costs) Costs Judge Brown reduced, substantially, the sums payable to solicitors from their own client. The judge was considering own client costs after the defendant had paid the bulk of the costs. It…
IS A CONDITIONAL FEE AGREEMENT UNENFORCEABLE IF THE SOLICITOR BREACHES THE CODE OF CONDUCT? MUCH TO THINK ABOUT?
The judgment of Mr Justice Trower in Winros Partnership v Global Energy Horizons Corporation [2021] EWHC 3410 (Ch) gives much for lawyers to think about. Here I want to concentrate on one element of that judgment- does a failure to…
“A SOLICITOR, NO MATTER HOW EXPERIENCED OR INEXPERIENCED, MUST BE TAKEN TO KNOW THE CIVIL PROCEDURE RULES “(ii): A REMINDER OF THE BACK TO BASICS SERIES
The post yesterday on the case where it was stated that every lawyer is taken to know the Civil Procedure Rules has led to me re-visit the “Back to Basics” series on this blog. The series now has 91 posts*…
ROUTE OF APPEAL FROM COMMITTAL DECISIONS IN THE DIVISIONAL COURT: GO TO THE SUPREME COURT DIRECTLY
The observations at the end of the Divisional Court judgment in National Highways Ltd v Buse & Ors [2021] EWHC 3404 (QB) are of some interest. The Court held that the appropriate route to appeal committal decisions made in the…
“A SOLICITOR, NO MATTER HOW EXPERIENCED OR INEXPERIENCED, MUST BE TAKEN TO KNOW THE CIVIL PROCEDURE RULES”
That quotation, taken from the judgment of HHJ Bird in Holterman v Electrium (2020) EWHC 3915 ( TCC) was chosen by Professor Dominic Regan as his “thought of the year” in a recent tweet. Since there are 3208 pages in…
FEE REMISSION: USEFUL LINKS AND GUIDANCE
The recent decision in Gibbs -v- King’s College NHS Foundation Trust (11/11/2021) highlights the need to keep issues of fee remission at the forefront of consideration, particularly when issuing proceedings. There is no guarantee at all that a party will recover…