COURT REFUSES TO EXTEND TIME IN HUMAN RIGHTS ACT CLAIM: THERE IS NO RIGHT TO LITIGATE – THAT IS WHAT LIMITATION IS
In Rafiq v Thurrock Borough Council [2022] EWHC 584 (QB) Mrs Justice Collins Rice refused a claimant’s for an extension of time to a claimant bringing a claim under the Human Rights Act. The judgment is a reminder that there…
POTENTIAL CLAIMANT IN CREDIT HIRE CASE MUST GIVE PRE-ACTION DISCLOSURE OF DOCUMENTS RELEVANT TO IMPECUNIOSITY
I am grateful to Garry Herring of Keoghs solicitors for sending me a copy of the judgment of HHJ Harrison in Allianz Insurance PLC -v- Holt (3rd December 2021). It is an example of the court exercising its discretion to…
EXPERT EVIDENCE: KNOWING WHERE IT CAN ALL GO WRONG – AND AVOIDING PROBLEMS BEFORE THEY OCCUR:WEBINAR ON EXPERTS AND FOR EXPERTS: 21st MARCH 2022
A number of recent cases have emphasised the importance of those who instruct experts, and experts themselves, being fully aware of the nature and scope of the duties of an expert. This webinar looks at cases where experts have gone…
SOLICITORS, AIRLINES AND LIENS: SUPREME COURT DECISION
In Bott & Co Solicitors Ltd v Ryanair DAC [2022] UKSC 8 the Supreme Court allowed an appeal from the Court of Appeal. The Court of Appeal had held that the solicitors were not providing a litigation service in the…
WHY YOU SHOULDN’T BANK ON SUMMARY JUDGMENT: THE COURT SHOULD NOT CONDUCT A “MINI TRIAL” ON SUMMARY JUDGMENT APPLICATIONS
In Philipp v Barclays Bank UK Plc [2022] EWCA Civ 318 the Court of Appeal allowed an appeal against an order giving the defendant summary judgment in favour of the defendant bank. The court emphasised that summary judgment applications should…
WITNESS EVIDENCE IN CLINICAL NEGLIGENCE CASES: WEBINAR 22nd MARCH 2022
Over the past few months this blog has covered several cases where clinical negligence cases have been determined, ultimately, on the accuracy of witness recollection. For example the judgment of Mr Justice Ritchie in Watson v Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS…
PERSONAL INJURY CASE SHOULD HAVE BEEN DEALT WITH BY A GRADE C FEE EARNER: SENIOR COSTS OFFICE DECISION
In TRX v Southampton Football Club Ltd [2022] EWHC B7 (Costs) Master Brown held that a low value personal injury case, arising from allegations of abuse, should be dealt with by a Grade C fee earner. This not authority for…
SOLICITOR CANNOT TAKE OVER CLIENT’S CAUSE OF ACTION: COURT OF APPEAL CONSIDERS ISSUES RELATING TO CHAMPERTY
In Farrar & Anor v Miller [2022] EWCA Civ 295 the Court of Appeal upheld a decision that a firm of solicitors could not continue an action that had been assigned to them by their client. “a champertous agreement…
EXPERTS GOING WRONG – AGAIN : THIS TIME IT HAS COST (SOMEONE) £225,000: THE WORK TURNS INTO DUST
It is rare for me to write about judgments from secondary sources. However the judgment of Senior Master Fontaine in Patricia Andrews & Ors v Kronospan Limited [2022] EWHC 479 (QB) is noted in two reliable sources and it is a case…
INDEMNITY COSTS IN PUBLIC LAW PROCEEDINGS: FAILURE BY THE EXECUTIVE TO COMPLY WITH CONSENT ORDER TAKES THE CASE OUT OF THE NORM
In Butt, R (on the application of) v Secretary of State for the Home Department (Indemnity costs) [2022] UKUT 69 (IAC) the Upper Tribunal found that it had power to order indemnity costs, further, on the facts of this case…
THE ABSENCE OF A GOOD REASON FOR NOT ATTENDING A TRIAL LEADS TO DEFENDANT’S APPLICATION TO SET ASIDE BEING REFUSED
The judgment of Deputy Master Scher in Miah v Ullah [2021] EWHC 3712 (Ch) contains an important reminder of the rigorous test a party has to meet when they fail to appear at a trial. The Master found that the…
JUDGE CALLS A FOUL: CLAIMANT NOT ALLOWED TO RELY ON WITNESS STATEMENTS THAT BREACHED THE RULES: IF YOU ARE GOING TO CERTIFY COMPLIANCE WITH A PRACTICE DIRECTION IT MAY HELP TO READ IT BEFOREHAND…
In Greencastle MM LLP v Payne & Ors [2022] EWHC 438 (IPEC) Mr Justice Fancourt was highly critical of the way in which witness statements on behalf of a claimant had been drafted. The statements involved wholesale breaches of the…
COURT REFUSES TO MAKE AN ORDER FOR SUBSTITUTED SERVICE ON DEFENDANT’S SOLICITOR: THE DANGERS OF LEAVING SERVICE ISSUES TO THE LAST MINUTE
Another aspect of the judgment of Mr Justice Nicklin in SMO v Tiktok Inc & Ors [2022] EWHC 489 (QB) relates to the claimant’s application to serve the claim form by alternative method. This case illustrates how difficult this order…
COURT REFUSES CLAIMANT’S APPLICATION FOR AN EXTENSION OF TIME FOR SERVICE OF THE CLAIM FORM: TIME IS ALWAYS TICKING
There are a number of issues relating to service of the claim form in the judgment of Mr Justice Nicklin in SMO v Tiktok Inc & Ors [2022] EWHC 489 (QB). Here we look at the judge’s refusal to grant…
CLAIMS FOR LOSS OF EARNINGS OF THE SELF-EMPLOYED AND THOSE INVOLVED IN ENTERTAINMENT AND SPORT: WEBINAR 14th MARCH 2022
There are 5 million self-employed people in the United Kingdom making up 15.5% of the workforce. A self-employed person (including directors of small companies) face particular difficulties when seeking to recover loss of earnings after being injured. Similarly those who…
JOINING A DEFENDANT THAT HAS NOT BEEN SERVED INTO AN ACTION AS A PART 20 DEFENDANT: SOME DIFFICULT ISSUES CONSIDERED
In Barclays Bank UK Public Ltd Co v London Plastic Surgeons Ltd [2021] EWHC 3698 (QB) Master McCloud considered a difficult issue relating to joinder when a defendant (who had been served) wished to bring proceedings against as defendant (who…
WHEN A DEFENDANT FAILS TO PRESERVE DATA ON SURVILLANCE EVIDENCE IT IS IN BREACH AND THE COURT REQUIRES AN EXPLANATION
An earlier post looked at the judgment of HHJ Walden-Smith in Stannard -v- Euro Garages Ltd [2022] EW Misc 3 (CC). There is another aspect of that judgment which is of interest. The defendant were relying on surveillance evidence. However the…
THE COURTS WILL RARELY DETERMINE ALLEGATIONS OF FUNDAMENTAL DISHONESTY AS A PRELIMINARY ISSUE
In Stannard -v- Euro Garages Ltd [2022] EW Misc 3 (CC) HHJ Walden-Smith dismissed the defendant’s application that the issue of alleged fundamental dishonesty be heard as a preliminary issue and the action struck out. The judge held it was…
RESERVED JUDGMENTS: IF YOU DON’T APPLY FOR THE COSTS IN TIME THEN YOU DON’T GET THEM: HIGH COURT DECISION
In Preston v Beaumont [2022] EWHC 440 (Ch) Richard Farnhill, sitting as a Deputy Judge of the Chancery Division, found that a successful respondent to an appeal could not recover costs. There had been a failure to comply with the…
LITIGATION: WHAT IS AN APPROPRIATE CASE LOAD AND IS IT IMPORTANT? (A DELIBERATE REPEAT)
I first wrote about this issue in 2016. This went on to be part of a short series, such were the responses at the time. Appropriate workload is an important issue and relatively little is written about it. The issue…