ANOTHER EXAMPLE OF THE DIFFICULTY IN REVISING A BUDGET: AN ACUTE CHANGE OF CASE IS REQUIRED
I am grateful to Michael Davidson from Acumension who has sent me a copy of the judgment of District Judge Hovington in the case of Warner -v- The Pennine Acute Hospital NHS Trust (Manchester County Court 23rd September 2016) (available…
THE PARTIES CANNOT CONTRACT OUT OF COSTS BUDGETING (& A LITTLE BIT ABOUT WITHOUT PREJUDICE CORRESPONDENCE)
An earlier post dealt with the decision of Mr Justice Roth in Agents’ Mutual Limited -v- Gascoigne Halman [2016] CAT 21. However an earlier ruling in the same case contains a consideration of whether the parties can agree to sidestep budgeting….
COSTS MANAGEMENT AND PROPORTIONALITY IN ACTION
Issues of costs budgeting and proportionality were considered by Mr Justice Roth in Agents’ Mutual Limited -v- Gascoigne Halman [2016] CAT 21. It provides an interesting example of the judicial approach to proportionality and costs budgeting. “Proportionality is fundamental to…
COSTS BUDGETING: PILOT SCHEME IN THE CHANCERY DIVISION IN LEEDS
Leeds District Registry has a pilot scheme in relation to costs budgeting. It enables the parties to agree to limit the extent of costs budgeting. The parties can, by agreement, file a simple costs budget with the Directions Questionnaire. If…
ANOTHER EXPERT WITNESS GOES AWRY: PATENTLY A PROBLEM
It is easy for the non-technical reader to pass over judgments relating to patents. These often involve highly technical issues. However there is one aspect of the judgment in Thoratec Europe Limited -v- AIS GMBH Aachen Innovative Solutions [2016] EWHC…
COSTS BUDGETING: IT'S JUST A PHASE I'M GOING THROUGH
One advantage of going to conferences is that it usually gives rise to ideas for the blog. So speaking at the Association of Costs Lawyers conference yesterday has given rise to a whole host of issues which will be explored…
WHEN IS EXPERT EVIDENCE ADMISSIBLE: A MASTERLY EXPOSITION
The judgment of Master Matthews in Darby Properties Ltd -v- Lloyds Bank Plc [2016] 2494 (Ch) contains an important consideration of the rules relating to the admissibility of expert evidence. In particular when is expert evidence “necessary”? “… although I…
SURVEILLANCE EVIDENCE A BREACH OF ARTICLE 8 RIGHTS: ECHR DECISION
In Vukota-Bojic -v- Switzerland the European Court held that the surveillance of an insurance claimant represented a breach of Article 8 rights (but use of that evidence at a hearing was not a breach of Article 6 rights). It could…
A JUDGMENT ON THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN COSTS BUDGETING AND THE ASSESSMENT OF COSTS: MAPPING & SURVEYING THE TERRAIN
In a judgment given today in Merrix -v-Heart of England NHS Foundation Trust Regional Costs Judge District Judge Lumb (sitting in Birmingham) considered the extent to which the costs budgeting regime fettered the powers and discretion of the costs judge…
BEING A LITIGATOR – WHEN IT ALL GETS TOO MUCH (AND IT IS YOU THAT HAS TO PICK UP THE PIECES)
There have been a number of reported cases recently of young lawyers (sometimes trainees) obviously becoming overwhelmed by their workload. This is not a new phenomenon, nor is it necessarily confined to young members of the profession. However it is…
CHALLENGING VIDEO SURVEILLANCE BY THE USE OF EXPERT EVIDENCE: THE PREQUEL
Last month I wrote about the decision of Mr Justice Edis in Hayden -v- Maidstone & Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust [2016] EWHC 1962 (QB). One of the many issues the judge considered in that case was the admissibility of expert evidence to…
WHAT CAN A DEFENDANT ARGUE ABOUT DAMAGES AFTER A DEFAULT JUDGMENT 3: A NUANCED APPROACH
We have looked several times before at the question of what a defendant can argue in relation to damages after judgment has been entered*. The recent decision of Master Matthews in Merito Financial Services Limited -v- David Yelloly [2016] EWHC…
UNNECESSARY MATERIAL, DUPLICATION AND INFORMATION OVERLOAD: ANOTHER JUDGE'S LAMENT
The observations of Mr Justice Kerr at the end of his judgment in Kimmance -v- General Medical Council [2016] EWHC 1808 (Admin) contains some familiar themes in relation to the preparation of cases: bundles, citations and skeletons. “The parties should…
FAILING TO FILE A COST BUDGET AND REFUSAL TO GRANT RELIEF FROM SANCTIONS: A HARSH LESSON
If a litigation solicitor is ever given the job of designing wallpaper here are the three key things that should form the recurring motif. The costs budget is due 21 days before the first case management conference. Where the claim…
IF YOU ARE GOING TO DRAFT PLEADINGS THEN DO IT PROPERLY: A REPLY AND DEFENCE TO COUNTERCLAIM IS NOT A MERE FORMALITY
A post last month highlighted a case where a defendant obtained judgment in default on a counterclaim. The judge refused to set aside the judgment and, in effect, the claimant’s entire claim failed. There is a clear and obvious need…
PROVING THINGS 25: ATTEMPTS TO SMUGGLE IN WITNESS STATEMENTS DO NOT HELP (AND CARRY NO WEIGHT)
There are interesting observations in the judgment of His Honour Judge Hacon today in Raft Limited -v- Freestyle of Haven Limited [2016] EWHC 1711 (IPEC) in relation to an attempt to avoid a limit on the number of witnesses who…
DEFENDANT REFUSED PERMISSION TO ADDUCE FURTHER EVIDENCE: LATE EVIDENCE IS ALWAYS A PROBLEM
I am grateful to barrister Michelle Fanneran for sending me a copy of the decision of His Honour Judge Cotter QC in the case of Moore -v- Plymouth Hospitals Trust (11th May 2016). This involves consideration of relief from…
SIGNING A STATEMENT OF TRUTH ON BEHALF OF A CLIENT: GET THE WORDING RIGHT
On more than one occasion on this blog we have looked at cases where the courts have questioned the wisdom of a lawyer signing a statement of truth on behalf of a client. In Galdikas -v- DJ Houghton Catching Services…
ADVOCACY – THE JUDGE’S VIEW III: MORE GUIDANCE FROM CANADA
As part of the series looking at the advice that judges give to advocates (and how this relates to civil litigators in particular) we return to Canada. Judge Carol Baird Ellan collected the views of 12 of her colleagues in…
ADVOCACY – THE JUDGE’S VIEW II: "USEFUL","JUST & CHEAP": GUIDANCE FROM DOWN UNDER
The post earlier this week on Things Lawyers do to Annoy Judges was, without doubt, one of the most publicised and read posts on this blog. However it also opened up a rich train of enquiry: what do judges write…