A post last week noted the decision of the Court of Appeal in TBO Investments Ltd -v- Mohun Smith EWCA Civ 403 where the court stated that an application under CPR 39.3 should have been allowed when a defendant failed…
In the judgment today in Turner -v- South Cambridgeshire District Council [2016] EWHC 1017(Admin)Mr Justice Warby considered the Denton guidance in relation to an application to appeal out of time. Among other factors he rejected the idea that an error…
In Williams -v- Devon County Council [2016] EWCA Civ 419 the Court of Appeal upheld a decision by a judge to allow substitution of a named individual in place of a group. “These rules exist to enable the court to…
In the judgment given today in Goldtrail Travel Limited -v- Aydin [2016] EWCA Civ 439 the Court of Appeal rejected an application under CPR 52.17 to re-open an appeal on the grounds of bias. THE CASE The Court of Appeal…
In Peak Hotels -v- Tarek Investments Ltd [2016] EWHC 690 (Ch) Mrs Justice Asplin considered the appropriate approach when a party has failed to pay an interlocutory costs order. There is a succinct summary of the relevant case law. “If…
In Mendes -v- Hocthtief (UK) Construction Ltd [2016] EWHC 976 (QB) Mr Justice Coulson decided a point of some importance: is the RTA Protocol brief fee recoverable if a matter settles at trial. “… there are sound policy reasons for…
There are some important observations about costs made by Mrs Justice Carr DBE in RSPCA -v- McCormick & others [2016] EWHC 928 (Admin). THE CASE The RSPCA brought an appeal by way of case stated as to the meaning of…
Given the many strictures relating to the sanctity of the trial date the decision of the Court of Appeal in TBO Investments Ltd -v- Mohun-Smith [2016] EWCA Civ 403 may be viewed as a surprising one. The defendant failed to…
In Elliston -v- Glencore Services (UK) Ltd [2016] EWCA Civ 407 the Court of Appeal took the unusual step of overturning findings of fact by the trial judge. (It is perhaps important that I emphasise how rare this is. There…
In Gibbs -v- Leeds United Football Club Ltd [2016] EWHC 960 (QB) Mr Justice Langstaff made an order that dealt with the question of uncertainty in relation to the assessment of damages. Rather than speculate on sums to be paid…
Hopefully we will never have another Hillsborough. It is possible (even probable) that there will be circumstances in which lawyers are involved in the large scale collection of evidence. The recent inquest has put the evidence gathering that took…
I am grateful to barrister Colm Nugent for his notes of the decision of Mr Justice Picken in Churchill -v- Boot (22/04/2016) in relation to costs budgeting (a summary of this case is also available on Lawtel). KEY POINTS A…
In Undre & Down to Earth (London) Limited -v- the London Barrow of Harrow [2016] EWHC 931 a claimant failed, totally, to prove any loss. The judge found that there was a total failure by the claimant to prove…
This blog has often observed that many litigators could make life a lot simpler if lay witnesses statements stopped trying to give expert evidence and expert witnesses stopped trying to determine issues of fact. I am grateful to Jeff…
One of the most difficult decisions that litigators now face is whether to take “technical points”. Technical points, particularly as to service of the claim form, can potentially bring proceedings to a premature end. However there are risks as well…
Thanks to Sintons LLP there is now a copy available online of the judgment of HH Judge Gosnell in Rouse -v- Aviva Insurance Limited (15th January 2016). This is another case that relates to discontinuance by the claimant in a…
One harsh shock for many litigants occurs when they are asked to prove their damages at trial. We have looked several times when a litigant has come to grief at this stage, largely because there is no evidential support for…
The decision of His Honour Judge David Grant yesterday in Bridgland -v- Earlsmead Estates Limited [2016] EWHC B9 (TCC) makes salutary reading for anyone who drafts pleadings. If the claimants had pleaded their case differently they may have won. It…
In Phillips -v- Willis [2016] EWCA Civ 401 the Court of Appeal gave some clear guidance as to the appropriate approach of the courts when the issues relating to damages are “whittled down” by agreement. The normal procedure is for…
The judgment on costs in Axon -v- Ministry of Defence [2016] EWHC 883 (QB) highlights the risks of a defendant bringing a Third Party into an action. The defendant was successful, however the claimant was not ordered to pay all…
NB THIS DECISION WAS SUBSEQUENTLY OVERTURNED ON APPEAL. SEE THE POST ON THE APPEAL AVAILABLE HERE In Howe -v- Motor Insurers’ Bureau [2016] 884 (QB) Mr Justice Stewart considered the meaning of an action for “personal injury”. He held that…
The opening paragraphs of the Court of Appeal decision today in The Prudential Assurance Company Limited -v- Commissioners for Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs [2016] EWCA Civ 376 should be compulsory reading for anyone who considers that pleadings can be…
In Dechert LLP -v- Eurasian Natural Resources Corporation Ltd [2016] EWCA Civ 375 the Court of Appeal upheld a decision that an assessment of costs could be in private.” “The issue is clearly of importance for both parties. On the…
There is a report in the Solicitors Journal of a sentence passed today for contempt of court. It is another example of the evidence coming from twitter and shows the growing importance of social media in many types of litigation….
I do not scour the law reports for complaints about trial bundles, they just keep occurring and I keep commenting. It is a matter that has a surprisingly large readership: the post on how to prepare a trial bundle has…
In the judgment today in Khaled -v- Secretary of State for the Home Department [2016] EWHC 857 (Admin) Mr Justice Garnham considered Part 35 of the CPR and the admissibility of expert reports in proceedings in the Administrative Court. “The…
The decision of Mr Justice Spencer in Bolt Burdon Solicitors -v- Tariq [2016] EWHC 811 (QB) is an interesting consideration of non contentious business agreements.” The judge found that an agreement which meant that the solicitors recovered 50% of the damages…
The previous post in this series looked at the Court of Appeal decision in Bacciottini -v- Gotelee and Goldsmith [2016] EWCA Civ 170 where the court upheld an award of £250 in damages because of issues relating to mitigation of loss….
MORE ABOUT SERVICE OF THE CLAIM FORM: GOOD REASONS, DELAY AND A FAILURE TO PAY THE PROPER COURT FEES
In TMT Asia LImited -v- BHP Billiton Marketing AG [2016] EWHC 287 (Ch) Mr Justice Burton considered several issues relating to late service of the claim form and failure to pay the correct court fee. KEY POINTS The defendant’s application…
I am grateful to Charles Bagot of Hardwicke Chambers for bringing my attention to the decision in Kranniqi -v- Watford Timber Company Ltd (District Judge Parfitt 13/04/2016). It is a working example of (i)the dangers of failing to comply with…
|n Webb -v-Liverpool Women’s NHS Foundation Trust [2016]EWCA Civ 365 the Court of Appeal overturned an “issue based” decision on costs in a case where a claimant had beaten there own Part 36 offer. “It is a sad fact that…
Over the weekend I heard two speakers on costs budgeting mention my view that costs budgeting may not now apply to fatal accident claims where children are dependants. Given the potential significance of this, it is worth expanding my concerns….
Anyone giving a talk, particularly to a group of lawyers, always has a fear that someone will ask the “unanswerable” question. There was a good question today at the PIBA conference after a talk I gave about witness statements. The…
There are some important observations by Mr Justice Leggatt in Al-Saadoon & Others -v- the Secretary of State for Defence [2016] EWHC 773 (Admin). The case relates to witness statements and the duty of the lawyer when they know that…
There are many aspects of the judgment today of Mrs Justice Lang DBE in Sparrow -v- Andre [2016] EWHC 739 (QB) that are of interest. Here I concentrate upon one aspect – witness credibility. “In my view, such a late…
I worry that it is unfair on judges for me to select a small part of a carefully crafted judgment for discussion. However comments on practice and procedure are clearly made, within a judgment, for a reason. So…
On the 8th March there was a short post on this blog discussing the judgment 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…
There is an interesting decision about the scope of legal professional privilege by the First Tier of the General Regulatory Chamber (Information Rights) in the Ministry of Justice -v- The Information Commissioner & Shaw EA/2015/0160. THE CASE The applicant made…
Following the post about the rule changes coming into force tomorrow there was some discussion about the transitional provisions. The confusion comes about partly because the SI introducing them says the same thing in different ways. However further confusion arises…
In response to several e-mails over recent months I have prepared two courses, available in-house only: one on drafting witness statements, the other on “avoiding procedural pitfalls”. WITNESS STATEMENTS “Too often (indeed far too often) witnesses who have had statements…
A short, but timely, reminder that new rules come into force on the 6th April 2016. These include: No costs budgeting where the claim is brought on behalf of a child. Normally no costs budgeting when the claimant has limited…
In a judgment given today His Honour Judge Peter Gregory allowed an appeal against a decision to confine a claimant’s costs budget to court fees following late service of the costs budget. The case indicates that a more nuanced approach…
Given the recent increase in court fees in relation to applications it is prudent for everyone involved to look for a means to avoid the need for applications, or reduce their client’s exposure to costs. Similar problems are faced throughout…
As part of the series giving gentle reminders of the “litigator’s resolutions” set out at the beginning of the year I am returning to the very basic art of drafting a witness statement. It may be significant that the post…
The first post in this series on litigators and workload got an (unexpected) amount of attention. As part of the series I want to look at one often overlooked, but crucial, part of the litigation chain, insurers. In particular claims…
Peter Hibbert has written an impressive work, The Electronic Evidence and E-Disclosure Handbook. Does it deserve a place on your bookshelf? I have a quick review and a longer review. They both lead to the same conclusion. THE SHORT…
Each application under s.33 of the Limitation Act 1980 is, of course, unique. It is interesting, however to examine the decision of Her Honour Judge Walden Smith (sitting as a High Court judge) in Sanderson -v- City of Bradford City…
In Sidewalk Properties Ltd -v- Twinn [2015] UKUT 0122 (LC) the Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber) considered the issue of the appropriate rates to be charged by an in-house solicitor and the appropriate basis for an inter-partes award. KEY POINTS The…
No sooner was the (metaphorical) ink dry on the post on the Abbott -v- Econwall case when the Court of Appeal decision in Barton -v- Wright Hassall [2016] EWCA Civ 177. In the case the judge allowed an application…
The judgment of His Honour Judge Hacon in Abbott -v-Econowall Ltd [2016] EWHC 660 (IPEC) contains some important observations about the conduct expected in litigation. Also some important lessons in relation to agreeing extensions of time for service. “…parties to…
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